Total pages in book: 179
Estimated words: 170878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 854(@200wpm)___ 684(@250wpm)___ 570(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 170878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 854(@200wpm)___ 684(@250wpm)___ 570(@300wpm)
Other nights, he wouldn’t wake, and I’d lay there, still, staring at the ceiling, counting the ways this could go wrong.
I’d already contacted the closest university that offered nursing degrees, and although it was going to be more complicated than I had thought, I could transfer there. It might mean one more semester, if all my credits didn’t transfer, but it also meant I would be able to live here. With my family.
I’d set the plans in motion, everything close to being finalized. I’d already paid for the upcoming semester. The amount going out of my bank account had made me feel a little ill, but I wouldn’t have to pay for housing. Beau and I had already had that argument.
It went like this…
“When I start school, I’ll need to know the cost of half of the mortgage and utilities,” I said to Beau as we sat on the sofa together, reading. Different books this time. Beau told me he’d read the same books as me to be closer to me. We were pretty damn close at that point.
“No way in fuck.” Beau didn’t even look up from his book.
I put my own book down. “Excuse me?”
Beau looked at me over the top of his glasses. “I said, no way are you paying for half of the mortgage and utilities. That’s my job.”
I glared at him. “I’m contributing to this household if you want me to be a part of it.”
He rubbed my thigh. “You contribute to this household, Hannah. You fill it with laughter and magic. You burn candles, you bake brownies, you plant flowers. What you contribute is worth a fuck of a lot more than any mortgage or utilities. I’ll cover it. I’ve got you.”
Though the sentiment was nice, my irritation grew.
“I can get myself,” I replied through gritted teeth.
Beau tilted his head, scanning my features, his own face softening. “Me wanting to take care of you is not the same as me wanting to control you.”
He rubbed my hands, which I hadn’t realized were clenched into fists.
Though I hadn’t consciously thought that’s what Beau was doing, I understood that ingrained intuitions had started ringing alarm bells. Though I didn’t want to admit it, I carried plenty of scars from my childhood, my marriage.
“If you feel like you need to contribute financially, we’ll work something out. Though I would like it if you could consider that after you’ve finished school and have your dream job.”
He was relenting. He was giving me what I wanted. Because he understood that I needed it. I blinked in confusion. “My dream job?” I repeated, frowning.
He paused rubbing, frowning at me. “Being a nurse?”
Oh, that. I’d been in such a relentless pursuit of my future, I hadn’t considered nursing a “dream.” I’d always viewed it as a compromise. A way out. My real professional dream was utterly unattainable.
I wasn’t about to tell Beau about that.
“Yes,” I agreed. “We’ll discuss it then. And by discuss it, I mean we’ll settle on a number.”
Beau grinned, putting his Kindle down and settling his hands on my hips.
“I like it when you’re bossy, baby,” he murmured, his lips brushing mine.
“I like it when you sometimes let me be the boss,” I admitted. It was ultra masculine for a man to be comfortable taking orders from a woman.
“I know.” He caressed my ribs.
“And I sometimes like it when you’re the boss of me,” I added, kneading between his legs where he was hard as steel.
He let out a rough hiss. “Oh, I can be the boss of you, Hannah Morgan.”
And that was the end of that conversation. Not a clean win, but a nice compromise.
“You’re happy.” Lori’s deduction hauled me out of my memory, probably with a stupid grin on my face.
“I am.” I focused on her. It was a pivotal thing for me to say out loud since I’d never truly been happy.
“What about you?” I asked. She’d only just gotten back from her retreat. I thought the purpose of retreats was to return looking relaxed, at peace. There were dark circles under her eyes, and though she looked stunning while pregnant, there was a strain in her posture that shouldn’t have been there.
“Are you happy?” I asked, worry leaking into my tone.
She smiled tightly, looking down at her stomach. It had become rounded and much more pronounced in the short time she’d been away. “I’m excited about the baby.”
I raised my brow. “That’s not an answer to my question. Does this have something to do with Finn giving Calliope Derrick, of all people, a speeding ticket?”
Pink splotches blazed across Lori’s chest, and her gaze darted away from me. Oh yes, this totally had to do with the police chief. Which I realized was complicated since she was pregnant with another man’s baby. But from what I understood, their lore went deep. Before I could try to gently pry more out of her, her posture stiffened.