Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 100423 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 402(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100423 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 402(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
My mind slips, traitor that it is, to that crazy dream. His hands, rough, pinning me down. His mouth, relentless, unraveling me until I was nothing but want. The way he’d fucked me so mercilessly, the screaming. God, that scream, that stupid, over-the-top scream still echoes in my bones. My cheeks burn, and heat crawls up my neck, and that just makes me extra pissed.
Thank God!
Chapter
Eighteen
HUGH
I’m still surprised that she had stood up so politely to receive my handshake. Her hand is in mine, small but calloused, warm from whatever she’s been wrestling with at that wreck of a cottage… and fuck me, but I can’t take my eyes off her. She’s a mess—overalls smeared with paint, streaks of white and blue across the denim. Underneath, she’s got this cropped striped shirt, torn at one sleeve, baring her arms—smooth, dusted with freckles, glistening faintly with sweat from her labor. Her bun is so sloppy it’s half-unraveled. Strawberry blonde tendrils curl around her face. Her cheeks are flushed pink. She is literally glowing in the soft light, and it hits me, visceral and raw: I want to kiss her, right here, right now. I feel my thoughts go rogue and unravel like a rope cut loose. The urge is overwhelming, a pulse in my veins, but I grit my teeth, holding it back, my jaw tight as I force control.
Suddenly, those blue eyes start to blaze, and she pulls away, her hand slipping free. Her face hardens as she remembers why she’s here. For a moment there, she forgot she’s not here for pleasantries. She’s got a message to deliver.
“I really didn’t appreciate waiting,” she starts, her voice clipped, blue eyes narrowing as they lock on mine.
My gaze flicks to my empty hand, still tingling from her touch, and I’m almost amused. Almost. I withdraw it and tuck it into my pocket. I tilt my head to study her. I’m not offended—not really. Meeting her again, up close like this, makes me realize I want her. Not just the land, not just the win—I want to fuck her, and it’s not just a whim either. The attraction’s so real and sharp, it cuts through my usual detachment and makes me tolerate her quirks, her defiance, and the fire she’s barely containing.
“I apologize. I wasn’t presentable when you arrived. Please, do take a seat,” I say, keeping my voice even, gesturing towards the wicker chairs. My eyes scan the array of appetizers and pastries across the table. “Would you like a cup of tea?”
But she doesn’t answer or budge. Instead, she scowls and crosses her arms.
I pick up the teapot and pour some tea into two cups. “Cream or lemon?”
“I’m not here to drink tea,” she snaps, her voice high-pitched, slicing through the throbbing air. “I came to tell you I’m not happy with how you keep intruding into my affairs, even after I have clearly said I want nothing to do with you. It’s disrespectful. That lamp? I know what I bought, and I was perfectly happy with a reproduction. I’m offended that you tried to manipulate me by sending me a fancy new one I didn’t ask for and don’t want. I’m here to say I don’t know what your agenda is, but if it’s my land, I’ve told you before, and I’ll tell you again—it’s not for sale. It’s my grandmother’s land and cottage, and I’ll do everything to keep it. Don’t bother bribing me with money or anything else. All you’re doing is pissing me off even more, and we’ll end up in a legal battle. So don’t try it again. I’m being kind this time because you made an effort to receive me, but please, send someone to my house to take that lamp away. I have no interest in it, and I don’t want it.”
Her words hit like a barrage, each one laced with that stubborn fire, and I feel her boiling inside, her cheeks flaring pinker and pinker with every second that passes. I set the teapot down and lean back, my eyes meeting her stormy glare head-on. The calm I’m projecting? It’s a mask, and she’s fraying it. I can’t keep up the nice act, not when she’s standing there, defiant, beautiful, and unraveling me in ways I didn’t expect.
Time to cut the bullshit.
“OK, then. Let’s get to the heart of the matter,” I say, my voice hard and direct. “Last time, I offered you double the market value for the cottage and land. But right now, and this offer is time-specific, I’m offering you three times the market value of the land. What do you say?”
Chapter
Nineteen
LAUREN
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7b0uoqm_zRM
-I won’t back down-
“Oooh!”
I can’t believe it. It’s beyond comprehension. His smug tilt of a smile, the way he sips his tea like he’s got all the time in the world—it’s maddening. He is treating me like I’m nothing more than an annoying mosquito buzzing in his ear that he can’t swat away. I swear, no human could understand why this man refuses to listen. I’ve been clear—painfully clear—and yet he’s still tossing out offers, tripling the value of my precious cottage like it’s only pocket change.