Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 117740 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 589(@200wpm)___ 471(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117740 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 589(@200wpm)___ 471(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
Cara glanced between us before a sly smile appeared on her face. She shot me a covert thumbs up, and I glared at her.
Trust the teenager not to miss a trick.
Oliver smiled as he lifted the bottle to his mouth. He took several gulps, finishing off the water, then wiped his arm across his forehead. “Pretty hot that, George. Carolina Reaper or something like that, right?”
“That’s what the label says.” He held up the lolly stick. “Well, your reaction wasn’t half as amusing as Rose’s,” he grumbled, shoving the stick into the pot.
“Wait. Back up.” I eyed Oliver. “Is your mouth not on fire? How are you not dying right now? It’s been twenty minutes, and my tongue feels like it’s been scraped over hot coals.”
“You’ve got a brain in there, princess. Use it.” He poked my forehead. “I knew exactly what you were doing—I figured it would be super-hot, but I can handle spicy stuff well, so I thought, why not? Plus, I just really wanted to see this look of frustration on your face right now.” He grabbed my face, squeezing my cheeks together. “It’s not often I get to one up you, you know.”
God, he was irritating.
So, could someone tell my heart that? Because that thing was racing like a madman.
I stepped out of his grip, shoving his hands away. “I concede defeat.”
“How very mature of you.”
“Next time, I won’t make the same mistake.” I sniffed, looking away. “I cannot allow this attack on me to go unpunished.”
His lips curved to one side. “I will be shaking in fear until you retaliate.”
“As you should be. Now, why are you here?”
His eyes sparkled. “I’m here to see my favourite person, of course.”
I motioned to Susan. “Susan is over there. Now, if you don’t mind, I’m busy. Flirt with an older woman on your own time.”
“I didn’t know you were older than me.”
I flinched and glared at him. What was he saying so openly? In front of other people?
“Oh, my.” Susan fanned herself, drawing everyone’s attention. “You’re here to flirt with me, Your Grace? Well, that’s the best compliment I’ve had in years.” She looped her arm through his and gave him a subtle tug towards her plot. “If you’d like to do it properly, how about you take off that shirt of yours and do some hauling about on my plot? I’ve got some soil bags I need loading into my car, and you look like a strong lad.”
Oliver was whisked away into next door’s plot before he could say a word. He didn’t seem to resist at all, and a flash of realisation crossed my mind.
Had Susan just… helped me?
If she had, I was in trouble.
Big, big trouble.
29
* * *
ROSE
The Way We Feel
“What do you want?”
Oliver leant against my beloved Ramona, arms folded across his chest, gaze laser-focused on me. “To see you. That was my plan before Susan roped me in to being her errand boy for the afternoon.”
“You saw me,” I replied, unlocking my van and throwing my bag in the passenger seat. “You tricked me, remember?”
“Hm, did I trick you, princess? Or did I just play you at your own game?”
I stared at him. “I think I preferred it when you were in London.”
“Why? Have I been distracting you?”
“What? While you’ve been gardening and carrying heavy shit around, shirtless? No, you’ve not drawn my attention at all.” I slammed the door and stepped back. “Why are you still here?”
“I told you already. I want to see you.”
I motioned from my head to my toes. “Take a good look, then let me go home.”
“Rose.”
“What?”
“Are you mad at me? Did I do something to upset you?”
Yes.
You told me not to touch other men, then spent that following evening being pictured with tons of other women right before texting me goodnight. Then you came back and spoke to me like nothing happened, even flirting with me.
“I’m perpetually upset with you. I can’t imagine how you could do anything more to upset me at this point,” I replied, looking away from him. “Isn’t that the whole basis of our relationship? You piss me off, I get angry and upset, and we repeat that cycle.”
“All right, I’ve upset you,” he said astutely. “Can you tell me what I did so I can fix it?”
“Unless you can time travel, you can’t fix it.” I walked around the van and opened the door, and he swiftly followed me.
Oliver grabbed the door before I could close it and leant into me. “Rose, let’s talk about this.”
“I don’t want to talk to you.” I jabbed the keys into the ignition. “Please unhand Ramona.”
He stepped closer instead. “Meet me at the cottage.”
“I don’t want to.”
“Don’t be a brat. It’s only cute when you’re naked.”
I stilled. “Go fuck yourself, Oliver.”
“I will, but I’ll think of you the whole time.” He grabbed my hand and pulled it to his mouth, pressing a kiss against the inside of my wrist that sent a tingle across my skin. “Go to the cottage. I’m going to follow you, and we’re going to talk, because we’re adults and that’s what adults do. We can either have this conversation in private at the cottage or on your doorstep. Which one would you prefer?”