Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 152064 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 760(@200wpm)___ 608(@250wpm)___ 507(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 152064 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 760(@200wpm)___ 608(@250wpm)___ 507(@300wpm)
“They all came?”
“We want to support you,” Hemi says gently.
My heart stutters when Flip appears, dressed in a pair of jeans and a hoodie. He removes his toque and runs his hand through his thick, dark hair. It feels like a year has passed, instead of just hours, since he gave me flowers.
The girls greet their significant others, and I sneakily order another shot while I’m hidden behind Hemi and Dallas.
Flip ends up two stools down, and the woman beside him immediately starts chatting with him. It happens all the time. Usually I let it roll off me, but not tonight. My parents’ marriage is ending, my family is broken, my idea of love has been shattered, and I don’t even know how to process the betrayal I feel over my mom leaving me on the outside of this with everyone else. My life is spinning out of control and some random woman is flirting with Flip.
His gaze finds mine, and I realize I’ve been staring. The woman’s back is to me, so she can’t see us making eye contact over her shoulder. He arches a concerned brow. I arch a defiant one in return.
I shoot my shot, maintaining eye contact. She puts her hand on his arm, dragging his attention back to her. Which, of course, pisses me off. Irrationally.
I push away from the bar, doing my best to walk a straight line to Flip. Based on my slight wobble, the shots are catching up to me. This explains why I don’t adjust course and head for the bathroom, instead of proceeding toward the star of my fantasies.
“Hi.” Now that I’m standing in front of him, I don’t know what to do.
He turns away from the woman flirting with him, and she shoots me a “I was here first” look. She has no idea.
Flip tips his head, furrow deepening as he settles a single finger under my chin. The woman behind him frowns at the intimate contact.
“How many of me are in front of you?”
Triumph emboldens me and I blink a couple of times to bring him into focus. “Just one.”
His eyes narrow. “Are you sure about that?”
“I wouldn’t lie to you, Phillip.” I drag a fingertip between his eyes to smooth the furrow.
“What’s going on here, Tally?”
For some reason, I go with blunt honesty. I must have drunk my filter to death. “I’m jealous. I hate the way that woman was touching you, and I want it to be me.”
Everything about him softens. “Talls.”
The woman who was chatting him up has moved to her friends, her irritation clear in her rigid stance. I climb into Flip’s lap and drape an arm over his shoulder. I don’t even mind the fresh disapproval slanting his brow, because his attention is on me.
“How drunk are you?” His hand settles between my shoulder blades. I finger the silky strands at the nape of his neck, encouraged by the fact that he hasn’t moved me off his lap.
“Not that drunk.”
“Are you sure? ’Cause you’re sitting in my lap, Talls.” His fingers slip under my hair and flex against my neck, sending a shiver down my spine. Something shifts between us, and suddenly I’m hot all over.
“I feel safe with you. Everything is falling apart. I want us to be okay.” I follow the neck of his T-shirt with a single finger.
Flip folds my roaming hand in his. It feels good to have him touch me like this, to have his focus on me. “How about I get you some water?”
I don’t like that he’s treating me like a child, even if I’m behaving that way. “How about you stop acting like my daddy, Phillip?”
“I’m trying to help you make good choices, kitten.” The dark look on his face, his gravelly tone, and the surprise term of endearment all send a thrill through me.
So I keep pushing. “What if I don’t want to make good choices?”
His nostrils flare. “You’re a problem tonight, aren’t you?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m supposed to protect you from guys like me,” he whispers. The DJ cues up a song I like, and another great alcohol-fueled idea forms.
I slide off Flip’s lap and move to stand between his legs. He doesn’t stop me as I run my hands up his thick thighs. “Then I guess you have to come dance with me.”
“Haven’t you had enough dancing tonight?”
“Never.” I bat my lashes and push my lips out in a pout. “Pretty please?”
His gaze moves over me on a slow sweep. “It’s not a good idea.”
“Fine. I’ll ask Quinn or Kellan. I bet they’d like to dance with me.”
He shakes his head. “Not if they know what’s good for them.”
A shiver skitters down my spine as he slides off his chair. The front of his body brushes mine as he rises to his full height, fingers skimming the length of my arm. It feels intentionally intimate. “You’ll be my bodyguard?”