Total pages in book: 119
Estimated words: 113330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 567(@200wpm)___ 453(@250wpm)___ 378(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 113330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 567(@200wpm)___ 453(@250wpm)___ 378(@300wpm)
Iris sees me and flushes. “Okay, bye for now.” She abruptly ends the call and greets me with a bright smile. “Hey there! How was your run?”
“Good.” I sit next to her. “Did you see the food I left for you?”
“I ate every bit of it. Thank you. I was famished.”
“You slept a long time. How do you feel?”
“Like new. Thank you for letting me sleep. Sorry it was for so long.”
“I’m glad you got what you needed.” I motion to her phone. “Who were you talking to?”
“My best friends.” She shifts in her seat. “They, uh, know our other friend, the one who canceled on me this week, so they wanted to make sure I’m doing okay here all by myself.”
She’s a terrible liar. Bright cheeks. Shifty gaze. If I keep pushing, I’m pretty sure she’ll crack and tell me what’s really going on. “Why did one of your friends shout ‘stay off the internet this week!’ before hanging up?” I playfully side-eye her. “Are you addicted to porn, Iris?”
“You caught me.” She laughs. “No, my friend who said that was just reminding me to be fully present so I can thoroughly enjoy everything the island has to offer.” Her chin wobbles slightly, but she quickly camouflages it with a sad little smile.
I stroke her leg and ask softly, “Have you been crying?” Her tears have dried, but her eyes and cheeks are still red, so it’s believable I’d ask the question, even if I hadn’t been eavesdropping.
She shakes her head. “My eyes are probably puffy from sleeping so long.”
Man, she’s a tougher nut to crack than expected. As I ponder my next move, there’s a brief, awkward silence, which Iris fills with, “I’ll get myself packed up. Thank you again, Roman. For everything.” She hugs me. “I had an amazing time with you.”
I’m surprised she’s truly planning to leave without at least hinting about me asking her to stay longer—or, at the very least, that we should have sex another time before she heads out.
Cameron’s voice pops into my head. She’s a pariah, Roman. Stay away from her, Roman. But the words that tumble out of my mouth don’t align with Cameron’s instructions. “Stay here for the week,” I blurt. “Stay with me.”
Oops. In deference to Cameron, I planned to say “on me.” Not “with me.” As in, “You can stay here on my dime, while I leave and find somewhere else.” But I guess my dick intervened and blocked the message from my brain to my mouth.
Iris’s cheeks burst with color. “I would love to stay here with you.” She pauses. “But I can’t.”
“Can’t or don’t want to? Come on, Iris, I’m not doing anything this week, except playing golf on Friday. As far as I’m concerned, there’s no good reason for you to go somewhere else, unless that’s what you genuinely want.”
Iris swallows hard. “No, I’d really, really like to stay here with you, but—”
“Great. Then it’s settled.”
“But I really shouldn’t. At least, not without showing you something first—something that might make you decide to revoke your invitation in record time.”
Chapter 12
Iris
A warm, gentle breeze wafts over me, and I’m hit with the fragrances of tropical flowers and sea salt. I couldn’t stand to be in the bungalow as Roman watches the video, so I cued it up and staggered out here onto the patio to stare at the ocean and pray Roman won’t retract his invitation for me to stay.
Movement to my left draws my attention, and when I turn to look, Roman is walking toward me with two glasses of champagne in his hands and a lopsided grin on his handsome face.
“Good for you,” he says. “You sexy little baddie.”
My jaw nearly clanks onto my lap. Of all the reactions I was anticipating, that wasn’t one of them. “You’re not totally freaked out?”
As he sits, Roman pulls a face like that’s a preposterous thought. “Not at all. I’m impressed and turned on.”
“Turned on?” I repeat, not sure I heard him correctly.
“There’s nothing hotter than a woman standing up for herself.” He places the two champagne glasses on a small table. “I’m sorry for what you’ve been through, but I’m proud of you for taking him down.”
“Brandon’s got everyone convinced he walks on water, so I wanted to unmask him.”
“Mission accomplished.” He places his large palm on my bare thigh, and his hand feels warm and comforting. “You’ve got nothing to be ashamed of, Iris. Your ex was a shit stain on the underpants of life, and you gave him exactly what he deserved. What you did took guts, and anyone who says any differently can eat a bag of dicks.”
I can’t believe he’s not the least bit weirded out that I was supposed to get married mere days ago. Or, at least, put off by the raunchy thing I said at the end of the video about getting myself railed and scrambled. “Did you watch the whole thing?”