Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 44622 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 223(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 149(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44622 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 223(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 149(@300wpm)
Every few minutes, her sultry laugh floats through the room. My blood is fucking boiling, and I'm not entirely sure if it's fury or desire. I'm pissed because she seems so happy. And my cock has never been harder.
It's infuriating.
What is so funny?
She peeks up at me before quickly yanking her gaze away, her shoulders going back like she's wading into the middle of a damn war or something. And then she laughs again.
My balls throb.
I stifle a groan, gripping my bottle like it's a lifeline.
"If you don't talk to Bastian soon, I may pay someone to send him through one of the crushers."
I rip my gaze away from Paisley, scowling as my cousin, Trystan, saunters toward me from the opposite direction, his face a mask of frustration.
"If you're going to kill him, don't fuck up a crusher doing it," I mutter. "I don't want to pay to fix it when his big ass head gets stuck in the machine."
Trystan grunts, dropping onto a stool beside me at the bar. "The man is out of control."
"How is that any different than any other day?" Bastian is Bastian. He's always been an anal-retentive pain in the ass. He's smart as hell, though. And, despite being a control freak, we actually get along. Usually. He and Trystan have always been closer, though, so I'm not sure why Tryst is so bent out of shape now.
"Every goddamn time I find a new alcohol supplier for your project, he finds two reasons they aren't good enough," Tryst complains.
I peek over at Paisley's table again to find her listening attentively to Lucy. She glances up at me, and our eyes lock. Fuck.
She's still so damn beautiful.
Has she missed me at all? Does she think of me? Regret walking away?
"Are you even listening to me?" Trystan mutters.
I rip my gaze away from Paisley, which just leaves me feeling cold. She's always been sunshine. The whole goddamn world is colder without her. It has been for three years. Funny how I never noticed it until she was gone. Before her, I thought I was happy. I thought I had everything I needed. And then she ripped the rug out from underneath me. Two weeks with her, and nothing has been the same since.
"Ridley!" Trystan growls.
"Goddamn. I'm listening." I narrow my eyes at him. "If your suppliers aren't good enough, aim higher. We're looking for quality, not convenience."
"There's nothing wrong with my suppliers."
"There is if Bastian won't sign off on them."
"Might send you through the crusher too, motherfucker." Tryst shoots me a disgruntled look before motioning for Huck to bring him a beer, but he doesn't disagree with me. He knows he can't. Bastian may be a lot of things, but wrong isn't one of them, and with us adding hard liquor to our brand for the first time, we need to nail it right out of the gate. Our name depends on it.
I flick another glance over at Paisley. She's got her head bent, whispering back and forth with Lucy this time. I can't make out a damn word they're saying, but the conversation seems intense. About me? A motherfucker can dream, right?
"Shit. I might let you," I mutter to Trystan.
He shoots me a questioning glance, but I just shake my head, not in the mood to explain. Bastian and Oliver are the only ones in the family who know anything about what happened with Paisley, and neither of them knows much.
Bastian was with me the morning she left. He knows how serious I was about her. And I had to tell Oliver something, considering his wife is her best friend. I've never been able to admit the whole sad truth, though. As far as my cousin and brother know, we just didn't work out. I didn't tell either of them that she ditched me for another man. I didn't tell them that it fucking broke me. I damn sure haven't told them that she still haunts me.
And I don't want the rest of my family in my business, so I've kept them out of it entirely. They meddle as badly as Lucy does, and the last fucking thing I need is all of them trying to interfere.
"What's up with you?" Tryst asks after a minute.
I consider not answering and then shrug instead, my gaze drifting back to Paisley.
"You ever wanted something you shouldn't?" It's a stupid question. We both know the answer is a resounding yes. He's been in love with his best friend, Wyatt Walker's sister, Chloe, since we were kids. And since Wyatt and Chloe are practically family—their mom is Uncle Carter's sister—well, it's complicated.
Tryst glances at me and then over at Lucy and Paisley. "You talking about Paisley?" I arch a brow at him, but he just smirks in response. "If you think everyone doesn't already know that you've been hiding out in Italy because of her, you're delusional, Ridley."