Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 111732 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 559(@200wpm)___ 447(@250wpm)___ 372(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 111732 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 559(@200wpm)___ 447(@250wpm)___ 372(@300wpm)
Is she with her girlfriends?
Working?
Or on a date?
The thought of Marnie on a date instantly makes the hairs on my neck and arms stand on end. What if Marnie’s out with someone who’s willing to give her everything she wanted from me? We’ve been back for a week and a half, after all. That’s more than enough time for any man to fall head over heels in love with Marnie Long! I should know.
Wait, what?
Full clarity slams into me.
I’m head over heels in love with Marnie Long.
Oh, fuck.
What have I done?
Suddenly, I know for a fact I’ll never be happy again, if I lose Marnie forever, especially because I was too chicken shit to follow my heart. I’ll be tortured for life, if someone else gets to fuck that goddess every night. Hold her close and call her baby. Oh, fuck no. I can’t let some other man take my place next to my woman!
And what about Ripley? I can’t let some other dude play princesses with my girl. Or take my spot at the dinner table next to her and listen to her explaining all the reasons purpole is her favorite color. That’s my seat next to Ripley. She’s my little chatterbox. I’m her glitter-haired daddy, and nobody else!
Auggie: Where’d you go? Are you coming to hang out with Mom and me or not?
Me: Sorry, no. There’s something urgent I need to do.
Auggie: Do you need help packing this weekend?
Me: Not sure yet. Gotta go.
Thankfully, Marnie and I gave each other access to view each other’s locations during family camp, so we could always find each other on the sprawling property. Hopefully, Marnie didn’t block my access when we got home, or I’m going to have to call Henry and beg him to tell me where his daughter has gone.
I swipe into my location finder app and jolt when I see Marnie’s location. She’s at Captain’s. On a Thursday night, no less. Which means she’s there for Singles Night. My skin bursts into flames of jealousy and regret. I’ve got to make things right with Marnie. Right fucking now. I’ve got to get my family back before it’s too late.
My heart crashing, I shove the ring in my pocket, grab my wallet and keys from a desk drawer, and leap out of my chair, determined to race down to Captain’s, confess my love to Marnie, and plead with her to put her ring back on. As soon as I lurch out of my chair, however, my boss, Scott, appears in my doorway.
“Oh, good, you’re still here,” Scott says. He ambles into my office with the urgency of a snail and takes the chair opposite my desk, so I force myself to sit back down, even though I’m physically quaking with the need to get out of here and race to Marnie.
“Guess where I just came from?” Scott says with a wink. “The partnership selection meeting.” He leans forward. “I’m not supposed to tell you this, but I think you’re going to be extremely happy about this year’s selection.”
By all rights, I should be ecstatic about what Scott is implying. I’ve wanted to make partner at this firm since I walked through its doors almost seven years ago. And yet, the only thing I truly care about in this moment is tracking down Marnie and stopping her before she leaves that bar with someone else and then falls madly in love with him and forgets all about me.
Scott leans back in his chair. “The vote was unanimous this year, which is rare. But there was only one person who finally showed me he’s got what it takes to become one of the leaders of this firm, rather than a simple cog in the machine. Finally, I was able to throw my full support behind that person and convince everyone his time had finally come.”
I cock my head, feeling confused. For the past several years, Scott has told me he went to bat for me relentlessly in the partnership committee meeting. Unfortunately, though, each and every time, the committee wasn’t convinced about me for one reason or another, so the offer went to someone else. That’s what Scott has told me, anyway. Repeatedly.
“That’s interesting,” I say. “What qualities did this certain someone show you this year, as opposed to prior years, that made you feel comfortable finally throwing your full support behind him? Are you referring to the fact that Wayne Walters noticed him this year?”
“Well, yes, Wayne was part of it. But Wayne has different priorities than we do as a firm, so he was only one factor. For me and the committee as a whole, it mostly came down to my newfound belief that this person has finally become as cut-throat and ruthless as we need him to be. He’s finally willing to do whatever it takes to get ahead. It’s a fantastic thing to see.”