Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 129951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 650(@200wpm)___ 520(@250wpm)___ 433(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 129951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 650(@200wpm)___ 520(@250wpm)___ 433(@300wpm)
“Great. I’m making up for the time I’ll be losing by working into the night.”
I could actually hear the frown in his voice. “Is this London trip putting you that far off schedule?”
“Probably not, but now that I have to find a new place to live by next week, I’m glad I did it because, at this late date, I think I might be screwed, but I still have to put in the time to look for something.”
“Find a new place to live?”
“The cottage I’m renting has black mold. It won’t be safe to move in for at least two months,” I shared. “And it wasn’t that easy to find an appropriate space that would rent to me for only six months. Now I need something fast, and that cottage is cute. I’m bummed I don’t get to stay there. But I don’t know when it’s going to be ready, and I can’t ask a prospective landlord to let to me for two to three months or ask Mr. Atkins to wait for me if I’m in a place for three months and his place is ready to let earlier. I think in the end, I’m probably going to be bouncing around Airbnbs for three months, and that sucks.”
“Vivienne, you have a home.”
My back straightened, and one could say, him uttering those words set an electric bolt through me, much like the one I felt when I first met him.
“You’ll stay at The Downs,” he decreed.
“I can’t ask—”
“You didn’t.”
“Listen—”
“This isn’t a discussion, Vivienne. You’re staying at The Downs.”
My back got straighter.
“Battle—”
“Now, I must go.”
“Battle, no, hang on a second.”
“What?”
“I can’t stay here.”
“Why not?”
“Well, I’m using your Wi-Fi. And eating your food. And your staff handwashes my sweaters for me.”
“And?”
And?
“All of that costs money,” I stated the obvious.
“Agreed.”
“So…” I let that hang.
“Vivienne, as you pointed out so eloquently not long ago, we’re super, crazy, stupid rich.”
“You are. I’m a freeloader.”
“Hardly.” Now his purr had a sting.
“Look at it from my perspective,” I urged.
“What I’m asking you to do, something you seem incapable of doing, is looking at it from mine.”
“Okay, I know you all really dig me, and that’s sweet. Super sweet. I love it. Because I really dig you all too. And I know you’re really happy that Prue is blossoming after she let those schoolgirl bitches take away her shine. But I already felt like I’m taking advantage of you, this will only make it worse.”
“You aren’t.”
“But I feel it.”
“However, you aren’t.”
“I still feel that way, Battle,” I said heatedly.
“More of your American eloquence, I can confirm we do dig you.”
That would be funny, hearing him say those words in his posh accent, if I wasn’t nurturing a temper tantrum.
It was also very sweet to have confirmed, however, I was nurturing a temper tantrum.
“My sisters enjoy having you there,” he continued. “And it would be very hard for me to guide what’s happening between us if you’re off in a cottage by the sea.”
One could say the time was ripe.
So I took a bite.
“Okay, let’s get into that. What’s happening between us?”
“I very much want to fuck my sister’s best friend. I also enjoy her company. So I’m balancing the high wire of seducing my sister’s best friend in a way that won’t affect her relationship with my sister at the same time I’ll eventually get to fuck her, thoroughly and abundantly, whilst enjoying her company in bed and elsewhere.”
He was such a fucking tease.
“Okay, I’m at one with that plan.”
“I know.”
And so damned arrogant.
“Maybe we can talk to Prue?” I suggested.
“I doubt Prue has that first issue with it. She wants me happy. She wants you happy. And I’m happy when I’m with you.”
Oh God.
He put that right out there.
Right out there!
That didn’t make my stomach pitch.
It made it melt.
“However, we must tread cautiously,” he finished.
“Battle—”
“So you’re staying at The Downs.”
Oh my God!
“You can’t alternately sweet and sexy talk me into getting your way.”
“I was afraid of that,” he muttered.
“Okay, we’ve proved we can compromise. So I’ll pay you the rent I would have paid Mr. Atkins.”
“Out of the question,” he growled immediately.
“Battle—”
“I won’t give that comment the respect even to discuss it,” he stated.
“And I won’t stay at The Downs without paying my way,” I fired back.
“Oh, you will, Vivi,” he warned silkily.
“You can’t make me.”
“And you can’t leave us, and you already knew that before you learned of black mold,” he retorted.
Fuck.
Fuck!
“You don’t even want to,” he pressed his advantage.
“We’ll discuss this in London,” I said tightly.
“If you wish.”
“And between times, maybe make a passing attempt at thinking about it from my point of view.”
“I shall do so, if you make the same promise.”
“I’m sorry, Battle, but even if I was rich as fuck, I probably wouldn’t let my sister’s dear friend hang at my house and eat all my food in perpetuity.”