Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 98324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
He actually gasps.
“It’s very daytime TV, isn’t it?”
“It’s… wow,” he mutters.
“So now you know my villain origin story.” Or, more precisely, the moment I realized that not everybody is required to follow the same rules. Particularly men with a bit of money.
“And… suddenly you have two siblings you never knew about? That must have been wild. And your poor mom.”
You have no idea. “My mom lost it. She kicked him out the same day, then hired a divorce lawyer the next day.”
“So your whole life changed. Just like that?”
“Right. My mother went back to work because she had to. That was a big change, on top of everything else. But for my father? Everything got easier—hiding your second family is hard work, and getting caught made his life simpler. He packed up his clothes and left for his other house, where he stayed forever.”
“Jesus.” He sneaks another glance toward the passenger seat. “I guess that explains why you’re not close to your siblings.”
“It does,” I agree. “Not that he didn’t try. Once his secret got out, he decided we should all spend time together. It went about as well as you’d expect.”
He shakes his head. “Must have been awkward as fuck. What’s the age difference between you and the twins?”
“Two weeks.”
“Stop it!”
“It’s true. The twins are older than me, but Dad was married to my mother first.”
“Oh God.”
“I bet he said that many times the year I was born.”
Eric lets out a pained laugh. “So he created this mess, he’s got three babies on the way, and he just decides not to have any difficult conversations?”
“That’s right. Although at some point, I think his other wife, Kandi, was in on it.” They had a sham wedding when the twins were little. I don’t really know the details. Kandi came from money, though, which probably helped him get away with his treachery for so long. “My mother still won’t even say his name. She didn’t take a penny of alimony. She says he’s dead to her.”
He gives a low whistle. “That’s complicated, Darcy. Sorry.”
“It is what it is. I’ve had half my life to get used to it. But now you know why I don’t know what to buy Theo for a shower gift.”
“Um… is this a bad time to ask if he ever called you back?”
I laugh. “He didn’t. But we bought them a really nice blender from Williams Sonoma, with a gift receipt, because Maribel’s Instagram is heavy on the smoothie pics and recipes, and her blender is a piece of trash.”
Eric smiles. “Perfect! Thank you for figuring that out. I’ll Venmo you for the whole thing.”
“You’re only allowed to pay half. I realize that you’re a professional athlete, but I’m doing fine. And you’re driving me to Massachusetts.”
“All right.” He keeps his hands at ten and two on the steering wheel, and everything about this moment is just so him. The luxury coffee. The car that’s capable of accelerating from zero to sixty in 2.3 seconds. But he drives it responsibly.
Eric makes my heart pound, but he also makes me feel safe, and that pretty much explains my attraction to him.
“So… I know we’ve got four hours to discuss it,” he says. “But what about this stupid dance competition? Do you have any ideas?”
“Of course I do.” Although it kills me that a professional athlete who makes several million a year is worried about what people will think of his dancing skills. I guess we all have our issues. “We just need to pick something a little gimmicky. Have you ever seen Dirty Dancing?”
“Jesus Christ.” He grips the wheel. “I’m no Patrick Swayze.”
“Okay, breathe,” I say quickly. “My idea is simpler than you’re assuming. We can totally make this work.”
He glances over at me, his eyes wary. “You are vastly overestimating my dancing skills.”
“You’re vastly underestimating my planning skills. And you haven’t even let me tell you my idea.”
He sighs. “I’m sorry. Go ahead.”
So I do.
Chapter 12
Here’s Our Game Plan
Eric
A uniformed guard at the hotel gate squints at my invitation before handing it back and waving me through. For the second time today, I ease the car onto the winding curving drive toward the massive, gabled building in the distance.
My impression of the hotel hasn’t changed since I dropped Darcy off here a few hours ago. This place isn’t really Maribel’s style.
Yet when I pull up to the valet stand, there’s a sign on the desk in a gold frame. The Fletcher-Randolph Wedding Shower. So I grab our gift from the back of the car and hand over the key to a young man in uniform. “We’ll take good care of her, sir.”
“I have no doubt.”
Standing there in the drive circle, I check for a message from my date. But then I hear my name called. I turn around and spot Darcy walking toward me. At least I think it’s her. My gaze doesn’t want to land on her face just yet. It’s temporarily stuck on her cleavage. She’s wearing a navy-blue cocktail dress that makes my mouth go dry. The halter style shows off her shoulders, and also her…