Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 151097 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 755(@200wpm)___ 604(@250wpm)___ 504(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 151097 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 755(@200wpm)___ 604(@250wpm)___ 504(@300wpm)
“You?” Coby said in disbelief.
We were both temporarily distracted when Ocean removed his cufflinks and began rolling up his sleeves to reveal muscle-corded forearms.
I cleared my throat and looked away from all that arm porn. “Abel’s good.”
“You’ll be better,” Coby said with total confidence. “And then you’ll kick his ass, and I’ll be there to watch.”
That’s why she was my bitch. It’s too bad I wasn’t shit, lusting after her fiancé.
My appetite fled as foreboding washed over me, but then my empty stomach gave a painful clench, reminding me I hadn’t eaten today. It didn’t help that the food looked amazing.
“What’s wrong, Hunter?” Ocean was staring at me as if he’d read my mind.
I stared at my plate. “Is it possible to be hungry but too tired to eat?”
“I think so,” Coby answered as she happily devoured her zucchini ravioli. She looked beautiful today in her sweater dress and fishnet tights, while I looked and felt beat to shit.
I felt my appetite waning again.
“Come here, Vengeance.”
I looked up to see Ocean pushing back his chair, but not to stand. He sat there and waited for me to obey. I directed my confused frown in Coby’s direction, who stared at me encouragingly while nibbling on a carrot. Standing on shaky legs, I went to him.
Ocean took my hand and pulled me into his lap.
As soon as I felt his hard thighs underneath my butt, my skittish gaze flew to Coby again.
She smiled softly at me, and it felt like I was dreaming.
“You two have to be the weirdest couple I’ve ever met,” I grumbled.
Coby giggled, and Ocean snorted before lifting the silver dome off his plate. My mouth watered when I saw the braised short ribs on a bed of rice and carrots. He picked up his fork and knife, cut off a piece, and lifted the meat for me to eat.
I hesitated only a moment before leaning forward and accepting the offering. The flavors immediately exploded in my mouth, and I hummed my amazement.
“Oh, my God,” I moaned.
“Good?” he asked me.
My skin flushed for some reason. “Yes.”
“Want some more?”
I greedily nodded, so he speared another piece for me. Bite after bite, he patiently fed me, and I was too hungry and exhausted to be embarrassed about it.
“What about you?” I asked after half the plate was almost gone.
“I’ll eat when you’re taken care of,” he told me.
Coby finished eating, having gotten a head start while Ocean hunted me down, so she stood and announced she was going to shower.
I frowned after her as she left the balcony, leaving Ocean and me alone.
I stared off into the distance, so Ocean started eating from his plate and mine.
“Want some wine?” he offered between bites.
“Ocean,” I shifted on his lap to face him when I heard the shower turn on inside the room. “What’s going on?”
Sighing, he placed his fork and knife down. I actually felt a little guilty about not letting him finish, but not enough to deny myself the answers I needed. “You won’t be staying in the cabin after tonight. There’s a winter storm coming. You and Coco will be safer and more comfortable in the main house. Coby sleeps in my bed, but if you prefer, I can have a room prepared for you…”
If I prefer…
That meant it wasn’t the first option being offered to me.
Curling his fingers with mine, Ocean lifted my hand from my lap and kissed the back of it. “Is that what you want?”
I didn’t answer right away because I didn’t know what I wanted. “You said if I prefer…”
“I did.”
I gulped. “What’s the alternative?”
Ocean sat back and rested his cheek on his fist as he stared at me. “My bed, Hunter.”
My stomach dipped.
On cue, an off-key rendition of “We Belong Together” by Mariah Carey suddenly came from the direction of the bathroom.
Neither Ocean nor I reacted because it meant falling out of this bubble erected around us.
“You want me to sleep in your bed with you and Coby?”
“Yes. But only if you want it, too. I don’t want to make you feel unsafe.”
“I feel safe,” I blurted. “I don’t think you’ll hurt me.”
Ocean stiffened under me.
Oh, hell. What had I done?
“No, Vengeance. I won’t,” Ocean confirmed. And then he trailed a finger down my arm. “Not until you ask me to.”
I squirmed in his lap, and all I could think was that it was a bad day to be going commando.
“What’s the matter?” Before I could make some excuse, his hand slid up my thigh until it cupped my center. “Is it your pussy?”
“Yes.” What? What, what, WHAT? “I think you know you’re making me wet, Ocean.”
“Kiss me, and I’ll make it better, Vengeance.”
I didn’t give a damn why I shouldn’t when I pressed my lips to his. I wasn’t thinking at all. All I could do was bask in how wrong it didn’t feel.