Total pages in book: 45
Estimated words: 42942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 215(@200wpm)___ 172(@250wpm)___ 143(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 42942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 215(@200wpm)___ 172(@250wpm)___ 143(@300wpm)
Wait. What just happened? I looked at Shawn who was clearly attempting to not let the disappointment of being turned down show on his face.
“That will work too,” he said.
“Great!” Hollie stated. “Before you leave, we’ll work out a time you can swing by.”
Before Shawn could say anything else, Hollie had her attention back on me. “So, I was thinking we could take a few hay bales and make a little half-circle with some blankets thrown over them.”
“Okay,” I said, trying not to smile like a damn fool who had just won the lottery simply because she had turned down Shawn’s offer to go out. Well, to meet up and talk about a pretend anniversary party he and I both knew he wasn’t going to throw.
“We’ll use some hurricane lamps with maybe some rosehips in them and LED lights. I don’t think your parents would want candles in the barn. Oh, speaking of, I’ll use them on the candelabras as well. You won’t even be able to tell they’re not real.”
I grinned. “Sounds great so far.”
Now she smiled a full-on smile, and it made my heart want to burst from my goddamn chest. What in the living hell was happening to me?
“In the middle, I’ll have a small rug with some rose petals thrown about. Edison lighting up above to give it the perfect romantic lighting. The rest will be left up to Greg. What do you think? Will Greg be on board? It’s not a whole lot but is simple and romantic enough.”
I sat back in the chair and looked at Hollie. She was fucking amazing, and I highly doubted she even really knew how great she was at her job.
“He’s going to love it all, Hollie. I mean, you don’t need me for any of this.”
She laughed, and I wanted to fist-pump when I saw her cheeks stain with a bit of pink. “I will need you for moving the stuff out of storage, and since my staff will most likely be working the other parties, I’ll need some help from the family with decorating. I won’t be able to do it all by myself.”
“Of course. They’ll be there,” I replied, then added in a softer voice than I had meant to use, “I’ll be there to help you with whatever you need.” Our eyes met and I wasn’t sure how long we stared at each other before Shawn cleared his throat.
“You know, I think this is the longest the two of you have gone without fighting or issuing some kind of challenge to one another. I’m impressed. If I didn’t know better, I would think you two were friends.”
Before either of us could reply, the waitress brought our food. The rest of lunch was spent with Shawn talking Hollie’s ear off and asking question after question about her event-planning business. Every now and then, Greg’s engagement would be brought back up. Hollie asked me about the dig site. I was more than happy to talk about that and about how Shawn enjoyed being a lawyer for the city. It was actually a really pleasant lunch, and when it came time to leave, I found I wasn’t ready to go. And that added to my already confused state.
After I picked up the tab, I looked at Shawn. “We should probably get going. I need to get to the office.”
He gave me a shit-eating grin. “I’m not in a rush. You head on out, and I’ll stay and walk Hollie to her car.”
Hollie wiped the corners of her mouth and stood. “Thank you for lunch, Lucas. Thank you for the offer, Shawn, but I’m meeting my sister at my aunt’s shop.”
“How is the witch-crafting going? Still haven’t found your inner witch yet?” I asked with a smug expression.
Hollie put her purse over her shoulder and walked up to me. Her eyes danced with amusement as she replied, “When you get the body rash that won’t stop itching, then you’ll know I’ve found her.”
After she was finished speaking, she winked and walked off. I watched as I tried to remember how to breathe the right way. Damn if she wasn’t spit and fire and beautiful to boot.
Shawn let out a roar of laughter. “Damn, I really like her.”
I shook my head and turned back to him. “Doesn’t appear the feeling is mutual.”
He rolled his eyes. “She just didn’t want to accept with you sitting there.”
“And why would me being here have anything to do with it?”
He shrugged. “I think you forgot we drove together here. You need me to drop you off at your office or the dig site?”
Turning back to watch Hollie walk away, I had to fight the urge to follow her.
With a shake of my head, I answered, “I’ve got an errand to run first. I’ll just walk back.”