Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 144435 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 722(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144435 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 722(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
I’ve been dying to know what happened, but he hasn’t shared. He hasn’t said anything at all about it, in fact. When I told him I got the email, he just grunted and said good. I’m not sure what that means, but it’s driving me crazy.
Rhys and I have settled into a…I don’t know what to call it, honestly. Anytime I’m within five feet of him, my body aches. It feels like the air around me catches fire. I want to throw myself into his arms and let the flames consume us. I know he feels it too. But somehow, we’ve both managed to keep our hands to ourselves. Whenever I feel myself slipping, I blurt my dad’s name.
He knows what I’m doing when I do it. He doesn’t call me on it. Instead, he shares some memory of my dad, or I do. It’s helped in more ways than one. Being able to talk about him with someone who loved him just as much as I do is healing. For once, I don’t feel completely alone with my grief. I don’t cry myself to sleep at night.
We remember and we laugh.
“What’s your question, songbird?” He tosses his glasses on the table by the door. His badge goes next. He’ll keep the gun on his hip until he gets to his room. That goes in the safe. I’m not sure if he’s always so careful with it or if he’s just extra cautious because I’m here.
“What happened with Marnie?”
“Your guess is as good as mine,” he mutters. “Women like her poison themselves until they’re bitter, miserable, and die alone. My mother is the same way.”
“Really?” I frown, pulling a throw pillow into my lap. “I didn’t know that.”
“Don’t talk about her much.”
“I’m sorry.”
He shrugs. “She didn’t raise me. My stepmom did.” A smile overtakes his face, lighting him up. “She’s a real mom. She’d do anything for me. I have a little sister, Cassia. She isn’t my dad’s kid, but my stepmom would do anything for her too. As far as she’s concerned, Cassia is family too.”
“My mom was great too,” I whisper, squeezing the pillow. “She was a singer like me. When I was younger, she’d take me with her sometimes while she busked in the subway. It was so much fun to watch her. People just loved her energy. Life with her was an adventure.”
“I’m sorry you lost her.”
“You sent me flowers.” He sent the biggest bouquet of pink, white, and purple lilies and carnations. They were beautiful. The rest of the flowers went to nursing homes, but I kept his until every last petal died.
“I did,” he says, his voice soft. His forest eyes are even softer. “I hate that I couldn’t be there, princess.” Sometimes, he looks at me like I’m the only thing he sees. Like he’s just waiting for me to tell him that I’m his, and he’ll betray every belief he’s ever held to keep me. In those moments, the words climb up my throat like an aria, desperate to burst free. I want to utter them. I want to set us both free. So damn bad.
Does he know how much? Can he see me falling deeper?
“Rhys, I…”
“Jack Hale,” he blurts.
I blink twice. “What?”
“Jack Hale was there when I got there,” he says.
“Oh.” I frown, trying to drag myself back from the ledge. Back to reality. I can’t tell him that I’m in love with him. I can’t set us free. He may want me, but that’s not the same as what I feel. Besides, he’s still keeping secrets. Big ones. “Why was Jack there?”
“Good question,” he mutters, scrubbing a hand down his face. He looks weary, tired all the way to his bones. “They were allegedly meeting about something business related.”
“You don’t believe that.” It’s not a question. I’ve gotten pretty good at reading him too.
“I’ve been to business meetings with Jack,” he says. “He never drinks when business is on the table. And Marnie never discusses business at home. Brant was banished to his home office for any and all business discussions.”
“So maybe they weren’t meeting about the company,” I suggest.
“Then what?”
“I don’t know.” I shrug helplessly. “Jack helps Marnie with all kinds of stuff. She likes working with him because my dad trusted him. That’s hard to come by in the business world. People are always looking for ways to take you down and claim your spot. Jack isn’t like that. He was perfectly content being the small fish because my dad made him billions. He didn’t want the headache that came with being the majority stakeholder.”
“What do you think about him?” Rhys leans back against the door, the picture of casual indifference even though the question is anything but. “You trust him?”
“I guess so. He’s been kind of like an uncle to me for the last half of my life. We’ve never been super close or anything, but he’s always been nice to me,” I say. “I’m glad he’s helping Marnie oversee the company. I know I’ll have to deal with it sooner or later, but I guess I’m kind of relieved it’s not my responsibility yet.”