Total pages in book: 52
Estimated words: 49005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 245(@200wpm)___ 196(@250wpm)___ 163(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 49005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 245(@200wpm)___ 196(@250wpm)___ 163(@300wpm)
“How was church?” I ask.
Jasper grumbles, and Felix says, “Fine.”
“And your gran?” I grab my coat, lock the door, and follow them out to the truck, where Felix helps me up on the passenger side, then climbs in to sit beside me on the bench seat.
When Jasper gets behind the wheel, I’m between the two brothers, and it’s starting to become my favorite place to be.
“Gran’s fine. She said to tell you hello.”
I give Felix a look, certain he’s joking, but then not sure at all.
“Want some coffee?” He reaches across me to pluck one of the three travel mugs from the console. “There’s cream and sugar in it.”
“That sounds great. Thank you.” After I take the mug from him, he reaches down past my legs to retrieve a small paper bag. “And oatmeal cookies from Gran.”
“Really?”
He pulls one out and hands it to me, then passes a cookie to Jasper, and sticks one in his mouth as a place to hold it while he closes the bag.
“Homemade cookies. What a treat,” I say, breaking off a small piece and immediately eating it.
Felix shakes his head as he snaps off a piece of the cookie in his mouth. “Not homemade. Gran doesn’t bake, but she knows a good bakery.”
“Ah, well, just as good. Thank you for sharing.”
I’m so busy nibbling and enjoying the coffee, which has the perfect amount of sugar, that I don’t notice we’re leaving the island, until we’re crossing the bridge.
“Where are you headed?”
Both brothers give me curious looks. “To a tree farm,” Jasper says. “You wanted to get a Christmas tree, right?”
“I usually just buy one of the trees they sell in the grocery store parking lot.”
“Fresh cut is better,” Jasper says. “It’s not that far.”
“We’ll get you home in plenty of time for your dinner,” Felix says, and I feel guilty when it takes me a moment to remember what dinner he’s talking about. Can I blame last night’s kisses for nearly making me forget about Nick and Rudy? Yes, definitely.
I ask the Winter brothers about their family and learn that their grandma and grandpa are the only relatives they have nearby. Their parents and sister are still in Virginia, but the men moved here because they always liked the area.
They ask me about my family and my job, and then I find out that they work as mechanics during the day.
“Ah, just like your Club Red act,” I say, recalling the part where they came out in blue coveralls with grease marks on their face, and did all sorts of sexy things that involved holding big wrenches between their legs.
Jasper snorts and shakes his head.
“How did you like that?” Felix asks.
“Your show was a huge tease. You told me you take it all off, but you really don’t.”
Both men look incredibly amused by my complaint, and I realize that I’ve just revealed how badly I was hoping to see them naked.
“We do take it all off,” Felix says. “We just keep some parts covered.”
“Damn cowboy hats,” I mumble, knowing I’ll get a laugh out of them.
“We’ll show you everything anytime you want to see it,” Jasper says as he makes a left turn onto a narrow road, and I have to employ a good bit of willpower to pretend I didn’t hear that.
“How’d you end up working at Club Red, by the way?”
Felix shrugs. “Probably the same way as almost everyone else there. We wanted extra money.”
“We’ve been able to help our grandparents fix up their house,” Jasper says.
“That’s really nice.” It’s more information to add to my evolving view of the Winter brothers. They seem more like real men now, not just bad boys, though that’s definitely still a big part of them.
If I wasn’t also seeing Nick and Rudy, would I fall into bed with Felix and Jasper, no matter how bad of an idea that would be? I’m pretty sure I would. They seem like they’d be worth the inevitable broken heart.
The three of us wander through the rows of firs at the tree farm, and though I’m not at all picky about my selection as long as it fits in my house, I take a while to decide, because I’m in no rush to leave such a nice place when I’m with such good company.
When I finally make a choice, Jasper saws down the tree, and I enjoy watching him do it. Felix carries it back to the entrance, where Jasper proceeds to pay for the tree, no matter how much I argue.
“Consider it us giving you your money back, since you were unhappy with our performance at Club Red last night,” he says, smirking, and all I can do is shake my head.
Back at my house, they also insist on putting the tree up for me, and helping me string the lights and wrap the garland.