Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 87289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
I fire off the answer.
Me: Sweet Surrender.
There’s a longer pause this time before she responds.
Callie: Did you turn on my location?
Me: Consider it a safety measure.
Callie: That’s a little stalkerish.
Me: Agree to disagree.
Callie: Is everything okay?
I snap a pic of Nora sitting contentedly next to me watching TV, totally engrossed in the show.
Me: She’s perfect. I just wanted to check on her mom.
Callie: I’m fine. I won’t be out much longer.
Me: Good.
Callie: Thank you again.
Me: Enjoy the rest of your evening out.
As soon as I hit send, I tack on—
Me: Not too much, though.
Callie: I’ll try not to.
I stare at her last message, my thumb hovering over the screen.
Does she have to try hard?
Are she and Beau hitting it off?
It might have started out as a business thing, but has it turned into more?
With a yawn, Nora leans against me, her head settling on my arm. I reach for the blanket and tuck it around her small body so she’s cozy.
And I let myself imagine what it would be like if this were more of a permanent situation.
If she were mine.
If they both were.
11
Callie
The second I step inside Beau’s restaurant, my suspicions grow that this is more than a business meeting. The space is dimly lit, with muted music playing and pretty votives that flicker on every table.
The atmosphere is intimate.
More romantic in nature.
It’s the kind of place where a man proposes and future plans are talked about.
This is supposed to be a business meeting about potential contracts and wholesale orders for desserts. But when Beau pulls out my chair and gives me a slow, confident smile, I realize he’s not thinking about dessert trays.
He’s staring at me like I’m a tasty treat on the menu.
And I don’t know what to do with that.
I’m totally out of my element.
Beau orders a bottle of wine along with our dinners before I even have a chance to look over the menu. He charms our waitress with a smile the entire time.
I was with a man like that. Someone who was quick to cajole you into bed, all the while thinking about his next conquest.
That’s not a mistake I plan to make again.
Once the wine arrives, I take a sip out of politeness and then set the glass down.
Beau is handsome. Smart. Put-together. Women literally turn their heads to stare when he walks by.
I should be into him.
Instead, all I can think about is whether River figured out that Nora insists on reading Goodnight Moon twice. Or if she made him do the voices. Or if she talked him into letting her eat chocolate chips straight from the bag by batting her big brown eyes at him. Will that affect him the same way it does me?
I blink and realize Beau asked me a question.
“So, you and River… What’s the story there?”
My fingers tighten on the base of my wine glass as our steaks are set down in front of us. “River?”
Beau tilts his head, smirking like he already knows the answer. “You two seem close.”
“We’re not,” I say a little too quickly, cutting into the steak and then smearing butter on the potato.
His smile widens. “Good. Although, it wouldn’t matter if you were. I’ve never been afraid of a little competition.”
My stomach twists at that pronouncement.
The rest of our meal is filled with talk. And what I mean by that is Beau does most of it. He tells me about his restaurants, his investments, and plans for future expansion. I nod, murmuring at appropriate intervals, all the while waiting for him to ask a few questions about me or even the bakery. Maybe the kinds of desserts I specialize in.
He doesn’t.
Not even once.
I carefully check my phone under the table for any missed messages, but there aren’t any. Which is a good thing. It means Nora isn’t giving River any problems.
I refocus my attention on Beau’s face. On the words coming out of his mouth. On the candle that flickers between us.
It’s no use.
In my head, all I see is River crouching down to talk with my little girl. And the bag of toys he brought for her. The way she handed over her stuffy, as if she’d known him forever. Then there’s the sound of River’s quiet, steady voice when he said I could trust him with Nora.
We’re midway through dinner when my phone buzzes, and I pounce on it as if it’s a lifeline.
River: Just wanted you to know that Nora has tied me up and is running wild through the townhouse. JK. We’re fine. She colored a masterpiece for you, and we hung it on the fridge. Now she’s watching a show. Then we’ll read a few books, and it’s lights out for this girl.
A sharp pang cuts through me.
Not at the part where he says he’s been tied up, but that he’s so good with her.