Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 69413 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69413 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
“Well, we’re in a perfect little world, here,” I told him. “After the wedding, we’ll all be gone, and none of it will matter.”
A dip of disappointment hit me.
I… really didn’t like the idea of all of this being over.
In fact, freezing this moment and making it last as long as possible was a whole lot more appealing to me right now.
Right now, home made me think of my stack of bills, which was only going to feel worse after this expensive trip. Home made me think of my job, and all the extra hours I’d have to put in, on my feet, cooking breakfast for snooty tourists who looked at me like I was a roach.
Right now I could live in a dream with Landry, pretending this was the kind of leisurely life I got to live all the time.
“Jamie,” Landry said in a soft voice. “You still with me?”
“Oh,” I said, coming back to reality. “Distracted. I apologize.”
“Sorry if I derailed your evening,” Landry said as the Ferris wheel made another turn.
“Derailed?” I balked. “Since you came and found me, it’s gotten a whole lot better.”
His eyebrows lifted. “Really? It looked like you were having a great time talking with that guy, earlier.”
“Oh, Elias? Sure, Chase introduced us. He’s a nice guy.”
“He’s a very cute guy, too,” Landry said, his eyes searching my face.
I shrugged one shoulder. “He’s… fine.”
“Just fine? Something wrong with him?”
I struggled to come up with a good answer for that. “Just a feeling I get,” I said. “There was nothing wrong with him. Just like there’s nothing wrong with the last few guys I went on dates with, before work got crazy. But I could tell Chase was trying to set us up, kind of like a blind date, because he knows Elias travels to California a lot. But I don’t see that kind of a connection forming with him.”
Landry hummed. “I’m starting to think no one is your type.”
I furrowed my brow. “Wait. What is that supposed to mean?”
He glanced over at me, a glimmer of mischief in his eyes. “When was the last time you went on an actual date? Before work got crazy, like you said?”
I stared off at the mountain peaks. “I don’t know. Six months ago? No, wait, six months ago was when we redid the patio at work, and that was total chaos. Shit. Maybe it was the year before that.”
“So you haven’t been on a date, or focused on your personal life at all, for at least eighteen months?”
Suddenly my body was feeling a little warmer, maybe from embarrassment or maybe because I’d been sitting too close to Landry for too long.
“I don’t want to think about that,” I finally told him.
“If you haven’t even cared about dating for that long, it sounds like some part of you isn’t ready for more.”
Suddenly I felt like every part of me was retracting internally. Almost recoiling from him after he’d said it.
Not ready for more? Who the hell was he to say something like that?
I let the brief burst of anger simmer inside me, pulling in a long breath through my nostrils. I looked away from him, out toward the fairgrounds as the Ferris wheel finally made its last descent toward the ground.
“Well, you’ve known me for somewhere a little over 48 hours, so I don’t think you’re necessarily the best judge,” I said, trying but failing to keep an acidic tone from my voice.
“Hey. Jamie. I didn’t mean it like that,” Landry protested. “I was trying to be empowering, actually. Shit, I think I put my foot in my mouth.”
I turned back to him and saw a genuine apology in his eyes.
Christ, he looked good. I still couldn’t believe I was sitting next to him—this absurdly handsome man who had somehow gotten me all emotional in the span of just a few minutes.
I felt bad for my strong reaction.
I took in a deep breath of air as the Ferris wheel came to a stop. Both of us stepped off and I turned to Landry.
“It’s fine,” I finally said.
He looked dubious as he stepped off onto the ground. “Are you sure?”
I swallowed. “Yes. I think I just freaked out a little bit when I realized how long it’s actually been, and… well, I feel like a loser, and I’m pretty convinced I’m going to be alone for the rest of my life—”
I cut my words short when I realized Landry was trying to hold back a laugh. I watched as he failed miserably, laughing openly now, his head tilted back.
He looked so damn good in his light, tan-colored coat, even as he was laughing at me.
“You are not going to be alone for the rest of your life,” he finally said. “I’m sorry, but that was the funniest thing I’ve heard all day. You? Alone? Come on, let me buy you another spiced wine.”