Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 99313 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 497(@200wpm)___ 397(@250wpm)___ 331(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99313 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 497(@200wpm)___ 397(@250wpm)___ 331(@300wpm)
It takes a moment to realize that if I didn’t care about Carter on some level, I wouldn’t be this upset. Noah isn’t telling me anything I didn’t already know. Carter is a player. He’s been a manwhore since I’ve known him. I’ve seen a fair number of girls traipse from his room in the morning looking well sated.
Why did I think sleeping with him was a good idea?
“Daisy?”
I blink and focus on my cousin who is staring at me with narrowed eyes.
“Yeah?” I make a concerted effort to wipe the misery from my expression. The last thing I need is for Noah to ferret out the truth.
His attention shifts to me. “What’s going on?”
A moment ago, that’s exactly what I wanted. Now, not so much.
“What do you mean?” I swallow past the lump in my throat and push all the emotion down where I can’t focus on it.
“You have a strange look on your face.” He pauses as if picking through my expression with more care. Noah knows me better than almost anyone. “Like you’re going to be sick or something.”
I shake my head and flatten a hand over my tummy. “The pizza’s not sitting well, that’s all. I ate too much.”
He grunts.
I hold my breath and wait to see if he’ll ask any more questions. After about thirty seconds of scrutiny, his gaze bounces back to the game. A time out has been called and programming has switched to a commercial.
“Can I ask you a serious question?” His voice drops as he shifts on the couch. “And I want you to be honest with me.”
I send up a quick prayer and hope this has nothing to do with my sneaking around. I hate lying to Noah, but there’s no point in coming clean when I might be ending things with Carter.
My muscles tense. “Sure.”
“Do you like Ashley?”
The air rushes from my lungs until I feel lightheaded. I was so prepared for the worst, that I almost release a gurgle of relieved laughter. Just as that’s about to happen, I rein it in.
Noah wears a solemn expression which is at odds with his usual demeanor.
“Ummm,” I stall and gather my thoughts.
Of course, I don’t like Ashley. She’s done nothing to endear herself to me. In fact, it’s been the opposite. But still, I don’t necessarily want to disclose that.
Instead of answering his question, I deflect. “Why are you asking?”
“I don’t know.” He lifts his shoulders. “Just wondering.”
His gaze resettles on the game. The clock is running. I’m surprised when he says, “You don’t seem like a fan.”
I nibble my lip and wonder how to handle the situation. “Does it matter what I think?”
“Kind of.”
“Why?” As much as it pains me to say this… “In the end, it only matters how you feel about her.”
“Yeah, I know,” he sighs. “You probably haven’t noticed, but Ashley has a few annoying qualities that are starting to get on my nerves.”
I almost choke.
Um, dude, I noticed from day one. I just never said anything.
“What specific qualities are you referring to?” I ask.
I could easily tick off at least five from the top of my head. Probably more.
He sits up, his elbows going to his knees. “Well, you saw what just happened, right?”
Yup, it was kind of hard to miss.
“She seems picky about her food,” I say, attempting to tread carefully.
“It’s not even that. It’s more that she expects me to jump the moment she says the word.” He pauses. “You know, I wouldn’t have minded running out and exchanging the salad, but her attitude pissed me off.”
Noah is a good boyfriend. And I’m not just saying that because he’s my cousin and I love him to death. He’s dated other girls before Ashley and always treated them well. He’s not one of these jocks who’s looking to bang as many chicks as possible. He’s a relationship guy. I can’t blame him for wanting to be spoken to with respect.
It’s unfortunate that Ashley doesn’t treat him the way she should.
“But it’s always been like that,” I admit. “When you two started going out, you spent a lot of time catering to her, so…” I shrug as if the rest is obvious.
“You’re right, I did.” Noah’s lips flatten. “But I’m tired of her expecting so much from me and not getting anything in return. I guess it took me a while to realize how self-centered she can be. Now that I do, it really irks me.”
This probably makes me a bad person, but part of me wants to leap off the chair and do a victory dance that Noah has finally opened his eyes to his girlfriend’s behavior. As difficult as it is, I refrain. He might be bothered that Ashley stormed out of here, but that doesn’t mean they’ll break up anytime soon. For the time being, I need to remain neutral. If I express my true feelings and they hash out their problems, then I look like the bad guy who never wanted them together in the first place.