Total pages in book: 203
Estimated words: 199654 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 998(@200wpm)___ 799(@250wpm)___ 666(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 199654 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 998(@200wpm)___ 799(@250wpm)___ 666(@300wpm)
This lasts all of about two minutes, when I open it and see I’m added to a chat named Creed Chatter.
***
When everyone comes out of the other room, Val comes to the couch across from where I’m sitting and grabs her bag, looping it over her shoulder, eyes on me.
“We’ll bring her home tomorrow. Taylor, Cat, and Amie will give me some training and then we’ll make up a little schedule for her care. It’d be best she continues to sleep until the baby is born and then Riley’s mate will see about helping her with the bond.”
I say, “Well, if you need any help at all, say the word.”
“You’re very sweet, Bailey,” she says and rushes over and gives me a hug. “Just come over. Whenever. Company will be good.”
“Okay,” I manage.
Jase hugs his mother and Taylor before he does the same to Cat, thanking her for her help. He shakes Dr. Blakely’s hand and then waves to the rest of the room before grabbing my hand.
I say, “Bye everyone.”
Jase’s dad comes over and gives me a hug, so Jase lets go of my hand.
“Thanks for bein’ here, Bailey.”
“I’ll be sending positive healing vibes Sherry’s way,” I say.
Amie follows us out so she can head home after hugging me and giving me a look loaded with meaning.
Jase notices, but he doesn’t say anything.
“You two want a ride?” Amie asks, pulling out her car keys.
“I’m okay. I’d like to walk,” I say. “Thanks, Amie.”
She waves.
“Thanks, Amelia,” Jase says and turns to me. “You need to go to the library?”
“No. Misty is looking after it.”
“Misty?” he asks. “She’s from Brody’s pack?”
“Uh huh. I sent her a text message this morning. She’s loving it. Wants to open a library for their pack when they move.”
“Ah,” he says.
“They’re moving soon, I hear,” I continue.
“Yeah,” he replies.
“Um, yeah,” I go on kind of nervously. “So, I took a day off so she can run the show for the day. Um… Brody claimed his mate last night,” I add, “So they’ll be starting their life together, I guess.”
He taps his nose to signal he can smell that fact and we keep walking.
I don’t know what to do with my hands. It’s an odd sensation, but I’m wishing he would’ve grabbed my hand again after his dad let me go.
If I could muster up some nerve, I’d grab his hand.
“I guess the moon helped Adelaide decide she was finally ready,” I say pointedly.
Jase doesn’t answer, seems like his mind is elsewhere, so I drop it, feeling dejected as we walk the rest of the way in silence.
Once we get to his front door, he sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose, saying, “With all that today, I didn’t get a chance to work out my plan for our date tonight. Mind if we have that tomorrow?”
“Sure.”
“Thanks,” he says, opening the door and signaling for me to go ahead.
As I’m moving through the doorway, he distractedly mutters, “Call you later.”
He drops a kiss to the side of my head before he shuts the door behind me instead of coming inside, leaving me alone and discombobulated.
Before he went to the clinic, he said he wanted to talk about last night.
I just finished making it known I took the day off.
But he’s gone.
45
JASE
I run for hours. I run so long, it’s twilight by the time I get back to Tyson’s cabin where I find Bailey sitting on the porch.
She’s changed into jeans and a frilly green shirt. She’s wearing heeled shoes and she put curls in her hair. Again, she’s wearing that glossy red lipstick that sends sharp pains through my groin. She fidgets nervously as I approach and grab my jeans from the chair beside her.
“Hey?” I greet questioningly, as I pull them on, trying to downplay the painful wince of stuffing myself into denim confinement. “Everything all right?”
I give her my back to finish dealing, carefully, with the zipper.
“Not particularly,” she answers.
I turn to face her. She’s looking at her feet.
I wait for her to elaborate.
When she doesn’t, instead looking like she’s trying to work up the nerve to say something to me, I open the door.
“Wanna come in?”
Her stepping in reminds me it’s time for me to take another one of those pills. I took one this morning before I left to find her.
Having her here, I don’t need to test my stretched willpower, so I grab the pills from on top of the fridge, take one, and wash it down with a beer.
“You want a drink?” I ask. “I’ve got water, beer, and… that’s pretty much it.”
She shakes her head. “Can we talk?”
I gesture toward the couch.
She sits. I sit on the arm of the chair instead of beside her, giving this pill a chance to work because fuck, she smells delicious.
“You look beautiful, Bay. You forget to put that scent mask on?”