Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75414 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75414 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
“What real estate agent did you use to get your place?”
“Ah, I get it,” he said with a dry laugh.
“Get what?” I asked, feigning ignorance.
“Oh, fucking please. You might have been gone for a while, but I grew up with your ass, remember? I know how you think. And right now, you’re thinking you got a pretty thing with a bun in the oven and nothing to offer her but a windowless room in a clubhouse where no one goes to sleep until sun-up.”
“Alright, maybe you do know how I think.”
“This ain’t my first rodeo. Been watching you fucks stumble and fumble around when the right woman comes around for years now.”
“Says the man who nearly went to war with the woman who became his wife.”
“Shit,” he said, a smile spreading, eyes going far away. “Those were some wild times, man. You missed some good shit, being away. But I guess you’d never have met that girl if you’d kept your ass here.”
I’d never thought of that.
Fate, it seemed, had really fucking good planning.
My stomach clenched at the idea of Lolly still being in that glass house. Alone. Scared. No hope of escape.
How the fuck would someone like Ben even handle the idea of a pregnancy? I was damn sure he didn’t want a kid. Too messy. Too germy. Too uncontrollable.
There was no way he’d have let her keep it.
And, clearly, despite everything, she wanted the baby. She’d escaped hell to give it a chance at a normal life.
“I’ll go back through my shit and figure out who the agent was,” Fallon said, pulling me back to the present. “It’s a shit time to buy. Prices are through the fucking roof. But I think it’s about time you get your own place. Getting old, man.”
“Says the guy I just heard talking about the weather and the condition of the roads. You start bird-watching, and I’m gonna be worried, man.”
There was a soft bark, making Fallon glance down to see Edith looking up at him expectantly.
“‘Sup, dog? You are a dog, right? Could be one of those curly-haired guinea pigs.”
From the familiarity with which he said it, I would put good money on one of his kids getting ready to ask for one.
“Edith!” Lolly whisper-yelled. “Get back—oh.” She appeared in the doorway wearing just one of my tees, her hair all bed-messy, her bangs half sticking up. “Hi.”
“Lolly,” Fallon greeted her. “I think your hamster wants to go outside. Want me to take her?” He was already reaching for the leash in Lolly’s hand.
“Oh, thanks. That’s really nice…”
“Fallon,” he supplied. “That schmuck’s boss,” he added, nodding toward me. “Come on, chipmunk, let’s go.”
“He’s really your boss?” she asked when we were alone.
“Also my cousin.”
“That makes more sense,” she decided.
“Do you want coffee? Or I could make some decaf.”
“I think I saw some orange juice in here,” she said, going toward the fridge. “If no one used it for mix—oh, good.”
With only a couple of sips left, she drank it straight from the bottle.
“I don’t know why I’m so dehydrated,” she said, catching me watching her.
“Oh, I got an idea,” I said, thinking about how wet she’d been for me the night before. I got to watch the way a blush crept across her cheeks as realization dawned. That shit was cute as fuck.
“You hungry?” I asked as she went to the sink, rinsing the bottle, then placing it in the nearly overflowing recycling bin. Beer cans and liquor bottles had really piled up quickly. Spike and Cain would have a lot of work to do when they got up. And it was nice to no longer have to worry about shit like that myself.
“Actually, I hate to do this, but—”
“But?” I prompted.
“I kind of agreed to have brunch with Gracie today. You know, before all this happened. She’s making crepes. I can ask if you can come.”
“Gracie’s brunches are girls-only,” I said, shrugging. “Nah, it’s fine. I can drop you off there once you get ready. And pick you up when you’re done. I like that you’re making friends.”
“Gracie is really sweet.”
“She is. She’s the glue around here, and I don’t think enough people see that.”
“You sure you don’t mind?”
“Babe, friends are important. I can keep myself busy for a few hours. Are you taking Edith, or do you want her to stay here with me?”
“No, Gracie demanded to see her.”
That worked out then. It would give me some time to go online, look at houses, maybe even see one if there was one that seemed promising.
After Fallon brought in Edith, we set food down for her, and Lolly went into the bedroom to shower.
When Fallon took off, well, I wasn’t going to waste a perfectly good opportunity for some alone time before we went our separate ways for a chunk of the day.