Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 127249 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127249 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
“We wanted to do it tomorrow,” Emily says, “but Noah couldn’t wait.”
“Thanks for the cake. It looks delicious.”
Dante approaches with Noah, his big hand wrapped around Noah’s small one. There’s something about seeing my son’s father showing him affection and care, offering him his unconditioned love and protection, which melts my heart. Maybe it’s because my own father never showed me such consideration.
“I’m impressed.” I prop my hands on my hips and raise a brow at Noah. “I didn’t suspect a thing. You kept the secret really well.”
“It was a surprise.” He glances at Dante with pride. “I didn’t tell.”
Dante smiles down at him with a soft look in his eyes. “No, you didn’t.”
“Tea for everyone?” Emily asks.
I touch her arm. “Why don’t you relax for a change? I’ll make it.” I catch Jazz’s gaze. “Jazz will help me.”
Always quick to understand, Emily doesn’t argue.
“Can we get the gifts now?” Noah asks in a loud whisper.
Chuckling, Dante bends down to put them on eye level. “In a minute. Learning to practice patience is indispensable if you want to get far in life.”
Noah frowns. “What does indispensable mean?”
Emily laughs. “You asked for that one, Dante.”
“Come here.” He sits down, pulls the chair next to him around so that it faces his, and lifts Noah onto the seat. “It means not to be able to do without something.”
While Dante and Emily do their best to give Noah a vocabulary lesson, I escape to the kitchen with Jazz. Being familiar with the house, she’s at home. Without waiting to be invited, she fills the kettle with water and switches it on.
I steal a glance at her as I take the cups from the cupboard. “So, how are you really doing?”
She leans her butt on the counter and crosses her arms. “Why are you asking it like that?”
I take the milk from the fridge. “Like how?”
“Like that day you weren’t supposed to come over and walked in on my mother throwing dinner plates at me.”
Her mother was angry at her for not having done the dishes, so she broke them all… and it looked as if she was trying to break them on Jazz’s head. I was so upset for Jazz’s sake. Mrs. Everson stopped when she saw me, but she didn’t even apologize to Jazz. She just walked out without a word.
I put the milk on the counter and face my friend. “I saw you yesterday.”
It takes her a moment to catch on, and when she does, her cheeks turn red. “You were there?”
“I thought we could have lunch.” I make a face. “I should’ve called.”
She averts her gaze. “It wasn’t what it looked like.”
“Jazz.” I step closer, forcing her to look at me. “It’s me. You don’t have to pretend. And you don’t owe anyone explanations. You and Reino are two consenting adults.”
She blows a cherry-red curl from her forehead. “I don’t know what came over me. He came to apologize for setting me up, and well… I guess you can say the argument got heated.”
“At least he apologized.”
“Still.” Her expression hardens. “I shouldn’t have done that.”
“Why? Why are you so angry with Reino? It’s not just about the musical.”
“It’s just…” She clenches her jaw. “It can’t work.”
“Are you sure it’s not worth a shot?”
She pushes off the counter. “I’ve never been surer of anything.”
Whatever happened between them, she’s not ready to talk about it.
She hesitates before blurting out, “I asked my agent to set me up for new auditions.”
“Jazz, that’s wonderful!”
She scoffs. “Let’s first see if anyone is interested.”
“Hey.” I hook my arm around hers. “That’s already a big step. It took guts. I’m proud of you.”
She flashes me a smile. “But this is your birthday party, and we’re supposed to talk about you. I bet Dante gave you something big and shiny that comes in a Hart Diamonds box.”
“Actually…” I bite my lip. “He gave me Teszner Agglomerates.”
Her eyes flare. She pulls away. “He did what?”
“Yep, it came as a shock to me too.”
To be honest, Dante and I haven’t spoken much since his confession. He never told me who the woman he took to the restaurant was, and I no longer want to find out. I don’t need to. I trust him when he says he’s not touched another woman since we’ve started seeing each other.
Jazz’s brow pleats. “Does Leander know?”
“We don’t have contact. Dante doesn’t want me to talk to him.”
“That’s definitely wise.” When I raise an eyebrow, she quickly adds, “You know I’ve never liked your brother. I think he’s the only person in the world I utterly and truly hate.”
I grin. “Except for Reino?”
She waves a hand. “That’s a different kind of hate.” Taking the kettle, she busies herself with pouring water in the teapot. “We better get back to the others. Noah is dying for a slice of cake.”