Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 91373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
At the sneer in his voice, I warned blandly, “Be careful, brother.”
“Don’t tell me you have actual feelings for this woman? You know her mother is a junkie? She was raised by her grandfather on a farm in the Highlands. There’s no record of previous relationships or any kind of a life, for that matter. She’s just a quiet nobody, and bringing her into your world like this when you have no intention of keeping her is a level of cruelty I did not expect even from you.”
Indignation wrapped its hand tightly around my throat and my voice was but a whisper, “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Sebastian’s eyes narrowed in contemplation. “Yes, I do. I can see my words hit their intended target. Good. Perhaps you’re not a complete sod after all.”
“If you just came to insult me, you can leave.”
“I came to tell you that Father is recovering well.”
“And you thought I cared? How pathetically naive.”
My brother’s expression tightened. “You know what … I wish that I didn’t care about you.”
I flinched. I hated him for getting a reaction out of me.
“For years, I’ve carried guilt for the way I handled things with you over Father and Saffron. I’ve attributed your entire personality change to Mother’s death and Father and Saffy’s betrayal … but it’s been years, Theo. At some point, I just have to admit that you’re never going to be the boy I remember.”
Pain slashed across my chest.
“You’ve turned into a selfish, self-indulgent, bitter, and uncaring prick,” he spat. “And this woman you’re carting all over London, spending your money on, dressing her up to play the part … what happens to her when you grow bored? Do you even care?”
I could barely hear over the blood rushing in my ears.
“God, I hope that look on your face means you care enough not to be a selfish cur. Maybe that means there’s a little of my brother still in there.”
When I continued to stare blindly at the floor, I heard him huff, seconds before he strode out of the flat, slamming the door behind him.
Twenty
SARAH
Before I left for the meeting with my agent, Theo announced we would be going to a club that evening. We were both more the pub type, but when I told Theo I’d only ever been to a nightclub once, in Inverness, he’d decided I needed to experience a proper club.
“I’m not taking you to some celeb spot like Cirque Le Soir either,” Theo said with obvious distaste. “We’ll go somewhere I think you might actually like.”
My meeting with Liz went well—in person, she was hyperintelligent and forthright, but warm too. She’d informed me we had three more foreign language deals on the table, which took the series to thirty-three countries. I still couldn’t wrap my head around that.
My excitement about the evening ahead escalated into nervousness when I walked into Theo’s flat. He was already dressed, looking incredibly sexy in an expensive, fitted three-piece suit. While he always dressed well, I’d never seen him in a suit. I crossed the room to smooth my hands over his chest.
“You look handsome.” I smiled up at him.
However, he stared blankly down at me and replied, “Thanks. Why don’t you get ready? I’m sure one of the dresses you bought yesterday will suffice.”
He didn’t ask me about the meeting, which was unusual in itself, but he also hadn’t reacted to me touching him, and Theo was surprisingly tactile and affectionate.
“Is everything all right?”
“Fine. I thought we’d eat first and then start at a bar before I take you to a club.”
Feeling a decided chill and distance from him, my stomach knotted. “Are you sure everything’s all right?”
“Fine. I just don’t want to miss our reservations.”
Letting his strange behavior go, I disappeared into the bedroom to change, hoping his mood would lift once I was ready.
I’d bought two cocktail dresses on our shopping spree. One was black and the other a green that closely matched my eyes. Deciding I wanted to blend a wee bit for my first London club experience, I chose the black. It was a simple silk chiffon dress with thin straps and a deep V neckline. It clung to my curves without being too tight and ended just above the knee. Theo had sworn it straddled that fine line between sexy and classy.
I paired the dress with the Jimmy Choo sandals I’d treated myself to. They were just as simple as the dress with a thin black suede strap over the toe and around the ankle. At first, I’d thought it ridiculous to spend that kind of money on such a basic design, but then I’d walked in them and couldn’t believe how comfortable they were.
Quickly creating a beachy wave with my hair straighteners, I left my hair down and applied eye makeup and lip gloss. Looking at myself in the mirror, I smiled, feeling sexy and grown-up outside of the bedroom for the first time in a long time.