Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 76782 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76782 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Mo fhiadh beag,
I will miss you today.
Thank you for the best weekend I can recall.
I look forward to many more of them.
Yours,
Sully
I recalled the alarm of first seeing him. Then discovering I wasn’t in danger, but still uncomfortable. He was serious. Stern. Intense.
And then he had teased me. Smiled. It transformed his face.
I discovered the man behind the lawyer. The gentle, sexy, sweet side. The passionate nature hidden under the brooding exterior.
And I liked it. More than liked it. I liked him. Very much. In fact, I’d go so far as to say—
“Hey.”
The sound of Bonnie’s voice cut through my thoughts, and I glanced up. “Oh, hi.”
She came in, sitting across from me with a grimace. “So I think your weekend at the cottage was all about snow and wind instead of walks on the cool beach?”
I laughed, pushing my hair over my shoulder. Another damn clip had broken this morning. I needed to get to a drugstore—or a chemist, as they called it—and buy more. My hair needed a good cut as well and to get thinned out. It was getting wild.
“I got a few walks in before the storm hit.”
“I am so sorry. I hadn’t heard a storm was blowing in until long after you got there.”
I waved my hand. “No worries. I was fine. I had food, heat, and lots of good…” I stumbled over my words. “…books to read. The view was still incredible, and the break was awesome.”
“You weren’t frightened?”
I thought about the moment Sully burst through the door and the terror that had overwhelmed me. But I only smiled and shook my head. “No, I felt perfectly safe.”
“Good.” She sat back with a laugh. “I spoke with Sully this morning. He said he’d actually taken the weekend off. Can you imagine if he had shown up? What a comedy sketch that would have been! The two of you trapped together in that little cottage during a snowstorm.” She cackled merrily. “Like a bad rom-com.”
I swallowed, pushing my hair back again, suddenly nervous. Bonnie frowned. “What is that mark on your neck?”
“Wh-what?”
“You have a bruise. A couple of them. Did you get hurt?”
I shut my eyes, knowing I had to tell her. “No. But there is something I need—”
One of the managers appeared in my doorway. “Bonnie, you’re needed in Rex’s office right away.”
“What now?” she groaned.
“He’s having a meltdown over some new implementation.”
She stood. “Okay. Sorry, Autumn, we’ll have to continue this later.”
“No problem,” I replied, grateful for the reprieve.
“I might need you to help me with this. Be ready to come and aid me.”
I smiled. “Of course.”
She left, and I sat back with a sigh. I shouldn’t be so nervous. Sully and I were adults. We were in a mature, if somewhat fast, relationship. Of sorts. It was our business.
But I liked Bonnie. We were good friends. And wasn’t there a rule about dating a cousin? No, that was a brother. Although she had described Sully as being more like a brother. What was the saying? Bros before hoes? No, that was for men. Hoes before bros? Except I wasn’t a ho.
Was I? I did sleep with him within hours of meeting him.
I dropped my head into my hands. What a mess. Then I straightened my shoulders. I would tell her at lunch and let the chips fall where they may.
Except I never got a chance. Rex’s meltdown was epic, and we both worked through lunch. Of all the senior staff, he was one of the most vocal against the new policies, no matter how often it was explained to him that they were now the law, as well as simple common sense. Then I had a meeting with another department that ran long, and when I got out, Bonnie was gone.
I sighed as I looked at my phone. Sully had sent the directions and suggested between seven and seven-fifteen would be a good time to show up. It was almost six now, so I decided to work a bit longer and then head off to the pub to meet them.
I only hoped I would meet two smiling faces and not an angry friend and a defensive…boyfriend?
I felt my lips pull into a smile. Was Sully my boyfriend? Lover? Potential partner?
We had so much to talk about and decide.
So many questions to work through.
Maybe once the passion of the weekend simmered down, he would change his mind.
Maybe I would.
But simply the thought of that happening made my chest ache. There was something between us. Something powerful and real. At least on my part.
I hoped he would feel the same.
CHAPTER EIGHT
SULLY
Like foreshadowing, today, I dribbled hot and sour soup on my tie. Then I dropped a piece of sweet-and-sour pork on my pants. I left the office, rushed home, and changed into jeans and a thermal shirt before heading to the bar. The casual attire made me feel more at ease for what lay ahead.