Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 121764 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 487(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121764 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 487(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
None of which I felt like I could call up with something like this.
Maybe that was why I looked at the two women staring at me expectantly on that course, heaved a big sigh, and gave in.
“You both have to promise not to say a word,” I started, and Maven leaned in closer as Livia clapped her hands in glee. “I mean it — not to anyone, especially not my brother,” I added with a pointed look at Maven.
She made a motion to zip her lips shut, and then they both waited.
And I told them everything.
From that night in Austin and the way Jaxson had accidentally agreed to a road trip to the Four Seasons, camping, and even the sordid details of last night — I spared nothing.
It felt good to tell someone, like keeping the secret had added an insurmountable pressure to my chest. I had always been an oversharer. I liked to talk, and I wasn’t scared of anyone’s judgment.
I was, however, terrified of what they’d tell me to do next.
For a long time after I finished talking, Maven sat completely motionless. Livia just kept taking small sips from the wine bottle and nodding. A few fireworks went off over the course, and we all watched them light up the sky before the silence fell over us again.
“Well?” I prodded. “Don’t ask for the tea and then not drink it. What do I do?”
“I’m sorry,” Livia said, trying to hand me the wine. She wrinkled her nose at me when I declined. “I’m just a little preoccupied trying to picture this whole keychain thing.”
Maven snorted. “Perv.”
“Come on! It was basically a baby whip,” she pointed out. “You know that’s my love language.”
I frowned, then shook my head, not sure I wanted to know the details of Livia’s bedroom preferences. I had picked up enough in passing conversations to know she didn’t date anyone seriously — and that she had more toys in her house than a kid’s seventh birthday party.
“Are you going to tell Vince?” Maven asked first.
I leveled her with a look that answered for me, and she sighed.
“I wish I could tell you it will be fine when you do, but…” She winced. “Even the first time I casually asked if you’d ever dated any of his friends, he had essentially said they wouldn’t be alive anymore if they’d even tried.”
I had to fight to roll my eyes.
“Well, I may not have to worry about it,” I said, picking a few blades of grass at my feet. “Like I said, Jaxson has been ignoring me all day, and he’s got regret written all over him.”
“But he told you this morning that everything was fine, and you’d talk after,” Livia reminded me.
“A lot can happen in a day.”
We all fell silent again at that.
“Okay, let me ask you this…” Maven said, sitting up on her knees. “What do you want to happen?”
The question socked me in the gut.
What did I want to happen?
“Just start talking,” Livia coached. “We’re not making you swear an oath or anything. What do you feel?”
I blew out a breath. “Well, the most prevalent feeling is that I want him to blow out my back.”
Maven and Livia dropped their jaws in sync, and then they both burst into a fit of laughter, clutching their stomachs and squeezing my arms as I fought back my own smile. When they were settled again, I continued.
“I don’t know. I mean, I think this road trip started as a joke, but then it really happened, and now… we’re having fun.” I shrugged. “We haven’t talked about where we’ll go next, but I know I want to keep going. At least for a while.”
“And the G-Wagon passenger seat isn’t all you want to ride.” Livia waggled her brows.
I covered my face on something between a groan and a laugh.
“Okay, wait, we can work with this,” Maven said, hope lighting up her face along with another firework. The big show would start soon, the sky finally dark enough. “Brittzy will have to get back to Tampa in August for preseason training, anyway. So… what if you two just enjoy the next few weeks together?”
“Wait… I love this idea,” Livia chimed in. “Get your kicks on Route 66 and then wipe your hands clean. That’s my favorite kind of transaction.”
“As long as you don’t think you’ve caught feelings,” Maven added. “Because that changes everything.”
Before the lie could even slip through my teeth, my stomach roiled, chest tight. “Come on, we’ve been together four days.”
“Five if you count Austin,” Maven reminded me.
“Okay, five. That’s less than a week. What feelings could I possibly have caught other than the very specific feeling of wanting him to take my clothes off?”
They both giggled at that, and the words themselves sounded convincing. Because it really was insane to think of catching feelings for someone in that short amount of time.