Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 33979 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 170(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33979 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 170(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
She leans in slightly, whether it’s because of the deep thrum of the music and her body is swaying or because I’ve got some kind of effect on her, I’ve got no idea.
“That it is.” I’m confident, not cocky. I’ve rarely had a client want changes at the last minute or say they didn’t like what I’ve created. The proof is in the costs of my work.
“Do you know the artist?” she asks. Standing here with her feels like stepping into something dangerous in the most irresistible way, the kind of moment you hear your friends talk about when they find the one.
“Yeah, that would be me.”
“No way. I mean, no offense, but I’m not buying it. We’re in a bar, and I’ve heard plenty of pick-up lines. Nice try.” I’m at a loss for words. Who I am is not a big secret around here, it’s out of the area that I’m pretty damn anonymous, and while I’d tell her to ask any of the women who know me because they wouldn’t lie, the guys in the group are a bunch of clowns and would probably work against me. I’m not able to get two words out. She’s already walking away before I can get my thoughts together. And in doing so, I’m left standing looking at the missing pieces I’m trying to put together.
At least it’s one hell of a view. The subtle sway of her hips draws my attention to her heart-shaped ass. I watch for a few moments too long, and when she looks over her shoulder, she shakes her head and continues on her path further away from me. The mystery woman goes one way, and I go the other, back to my friends, beer, and food.
“Crash and burn,” Jace says when I make it back to the bar.
“Damn, that’s harsh, man,” Locke replies. He’s behind the bar with Jade and has his arm tossed over her shoulder.
“Yeah, well, we can’t all be easy to please.” Jade looks from me to her brother and man.
“What happened?” Willow asks with an edge of worry.
“Don’t mind them. It wasn’t easy to break through Colt’s tough-guy exterior, either.” Sable joins the group along with the man whose tough-guy attitude she definitely broke. Being a single dad meant protecting not just himself, but his daughter, too.
“She doesn’t believe I’m the artist.” I shrug my shoulders and take another sip of my beer only to realize it’s empty. Jade, being the observant one in the group, grabs me another; doesn’t make a comment, just slides me the bottle.
“Don’t give up too easily, man. Sable didn’t, and I’m glad for it. Maybe she needs a little chasing,” Colt puts in his two cents. He might be right, he might not. What I’m not going to do is look at the beauty of the woman across the room. I’m too damn old to play games.
1
Indy
Present Day
“Where are you exactly?” My best friend, Alex, asks on the other end of the line. We’ve been as thick as thieves since freshman year in college, both of us doing dorm life together, getting an apartment after we graduated, and starting our careers together. Me as a gallery manager in Seattle and Alex as a personal assistant to a billion-dollar, Fortune 500 company; and with her job comes a non-compete and non-disclosure agreement.
“Whispering Oaks, Florida.” I’m a long way away from home, that’s for sure.
“And Miranda has you chasing after who this time?” It’s common knowledge that Miranda Ellery, the prestigious owner of Ellery House of Art, will send me on a wild goose chase for her latest artist obsession.
“A metal artist, which don’t get me wrong, the craft is exceptional and goes way beyond the scope of what would one think. The problem is tracking the artist down.” I’ve driven to two other places already this morning with no luck, one being out in the middle of nowhere, a building sat abandoned and I was dumb or desperate enough to look inside, no trespassing signs and all, yet I walked in there armed with my phone and the flashlight that came with it and nothing else.
I never said it was smart. Then again, coming up empty handed to my boss is absolutely not allowable.
“And that must be going swell, considering you answered on the first ring.” I hear Alex take a sip of what I’m sure is her morning cup of coffee. The time difference is making this trip all the more difficult when it comes to communicating with Miranda.
“I’m heading to the third place, if that tells you anything.” The second place took me to another city entirely. The owner of the place had the forwarding address, which sent me heading back to where I started.
“That really sucks, Indy. How much longer do you think you’ll be in Florida?” We still share an apartment. The rent in Seattle is out-of-this-world expensive to live on your own. Especially when our schedules make it to where we’re only home to eat and sleep. Our workaholic ways combined with always-calling bosses seems to mean we’re always working, and when we’re not, we’re on our computers finding whatever they need or answering their calls.