Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 74882 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 374(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74882 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 374(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Mona grins. “Sounds handsome. Tell me more.”
“He’s a pilot…”
“I love him already.”
“He’s such an asshole.”
“But he’s good in bed?”
“Mona!”
“Honey, you don’t get those kind of hearts in your eyes for nothing. The man made an impact on my girl and I can’t wait to hear every detail about him.”
For the next fifteen minutes, we whisper about all the sordid details of my rendezvous with a handsome yet infuriating pilot. It feels good to talk to someone I care about from my real life about what happened. By the end, she’s Team Handsome Pilot. David never stood a chance.
“Sheridan,” David says, making me nearly jump out of my skin and spill my drink. “Want to take a walk with me?”
Mona’s cheeks turn pink, clearly shocked at having been caught gossiping about a guy. Luckily, he doesn’t seem to have heard anything.
“How’d you get the black eye, David?” I ignore his outstretched hand and choose to stand on my own.
He and Daddy exchange a look before David chuckles. “I’ll tell you all about it. Come on.”
Daddy’s features are impassive as he watches David clutch my arm. Mona frowns but doesn’t intervene. David guides me outside. He moves his palm to the small of my back, guiding me through the crowded bar area outside of the hotel restaurant.
Eventually we make it to a gazebo that glitters with twinkling lights. The wind is warm tonight and tickles the hair hanging from my messy bun. I’d seen the shock of all three of their faces when I came to dinner with my hair in a different style. I just didn’t, for once, feel like straightening it.
“You look beautiful, sweetheart,” David says, his hand sliding from the small of my back to my hip as he sort of side hugs me but doesn’t let go.
I’m stiff in his grip. At one time, I dreamed for this moment. “So? The black eye?”
“It’s nothing.”
“David, you promised.”
He lets out a heavy sigh, his thumb rubbing along my hip bone. “Your dad.”
I swivel around to look up at him. His hands settle on my lower back as he regards me with a smirk.
“Daddy? Why? You two never argue or fight, much less start swinging at each other.” I’m blown away by the fact my father hit his best friend.
“Let’s just say I deserved it.”
“What did you do?”
“I told him I wanted something of his.”
“Daddy doesn’t like to share.”
His brows furl and he pats my ass. “No, he doesn’t. Especially when it comes to his little girl.”
I freeze, understanding washing over me. “It was about me?”
“It was.” He sighs. “I told him I was going to start dating you.” He pulls me close to his chest. His erection pokes into my stomach. It reminds me of the night we had sex. How anticlimactic it was.
“He said no?”
“He said hell no and then punched me in the face.” He chuckles, massaging my ass through my dress. “I told him too damn bad.”
My mind is reeling. “And he let you walk away?”
“He made me promise I wouldn’t hurt you.” His features soften. “I would never intentionally hurt you, Sheridan. I love you. Always have. You’ve always been like family to me. Then…”
Staring up at him now, I’m trying to recall what it was that had me so obsessed with him. I wanted to marry this man, for crying out loud. But as I look at him, I don’t feel the same feelings Camilo evoked in me. No fire. No intense feelings. No overwhelming attraction. It’s mild affection for a longtime friend.
“Then you came on to me after dinner that night,” he murmurs. “I drank too much. We ended up at that hotel in bed together. It was nice what we had. It will grow to be better.”
I keep waiting for the pattering of my heart.
The flush of my cheeks.
Warmth between my thighs.
Anything.
All I feel is nothing.
“David,” I start, pressing my hands against his chest that’s soft from age and years of working at a desk. “We shouldn’t—”
He cuts me off, his mouth dipping toward mine. I let out a shriek and duck. Our mouths don’t connect and I get a sloppy kiss on my nose before I manage to untangle myself from his arms. A shudder wracks through me and I don’t understand the sudden repulsion. It’s David. I love him.
But he’s not Camilo.
Just thinking of Camilo’s devious smirk and dark, sexy eyes, heat floods through me. The last thing I want to do is kiss David while I dream of Camilo. That’s completely messed up.
“I, uh, I need to go,” I croak before stumbling out of the gazebo and onto the pathway.
“Sheridan, sweetheart, come back,” David calls out. “I’m sorry. I screwed it all up. Let’s have a drink and just talk.”
I nearly roll my ankle in my heels, so I stop briefly to yank off my shoes, and then I run back up the path toward the restaurant. As soon as I make it back inside, I spot Daddy and Mona. Mona grins when she sees me and Daddy’s tense shoulders seem to relax.