Total pages in book: 149
Estimated words: 140604 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 703(@200wpm)___ 562(@250wpm)___ 469(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 140604 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 703(@200wpm)___ 562(@250wpm)___ 469(@300wpm)
One shoulder shrugged. He was in a suit. On a Sunday. In the middle of a tiny Texas town as spring was rapidly becoming summer. He looked completely out of place, but then that was probably his point. “I got bored. I needed some new challenges.”
That didn’t sound likely. He didn’t care about challenges. He cared about how easy his life was. Once he told her the reason he loved her was because she knew how to take care of a man. Her money didn’t hurt either. “So now you’re a sales rep?”
“Babe, the compensation is insane, and you know I like to get out of the office.”
No, he didn’t. He was actually pretty lazy, but like a lot of men he tended to fail upward. People saw the work being done around him and assumed he was the reason. He was not.
And there was more. She looked around. There was no evidence of Jessica, the woman he left her for. The woman who told Olivia she was getting old, and men didn’t like women who were so aggressive. Jessica had been soft and dependent and desperate to get out of Willow Fork. She’d thought sending her to Dallas to work would be the end of it, but it had just given them cover. “Did you bring your wife with you?”
His cheeks turned slightly pink, but then the confident smile was back. “About that. I might have made a mistake. We didn’t actually get married. I tried with her. I really did, but I realized something.”
Don’t say it. Please. It had already been a day. She did not need those words to come out of his mouth.
“She wasn’t you.”
There they were. Things didn’t work out with the twenty-year-old broke admin, so he was back to the ball buster because when they were together, she took care of the world for him.
He could be relentless. She should tell him to fuck off, but the account was one of the largest they had. It was worth fourteen million a year. So she had to handle him, and he loved the chase.
“Olivia? Are you okay?” a deep voice said behind her.
Or she could put a wall between them. One that might slow him down and allow her to get through this week with some dignity.
She turned and Keane was standing beside Garrett like the hottest, sexiest, safest wall she’d ever seen. She moved right into his arms.
“I almost fell. You were right. I’m being reckless, but I’m so excited to show you where we’re going to live.” She leaned in, whispering in his ear. “Please go along. I’ll explain later.”
His duffel dropped as his arms went around her. “Are you okay, baby? I told you we’re here for life. No need to hurry. We’ve got all the time in the world.”
Okay. Maybe she hadn’t thought this through. She kind of thought one of them would take the boyfriend role.
Why? She lived in this world, and they were obviously looking for a woman to share short term. Probably long term. This was stupid.
She had slept with two super-hot men. Why was she acting like a shamed nun?
If she had the balls everyone accused her of, she would walk away from them all.
Except she didn’t want to. She didn’t want Scott to bother her since it was obvious he was back for a second try at her. She didn’t particularly want to drop Garrett off at a motel and pretend Keane didn’t exist.
There were two Olivias. The guarded one and the party goblin who wanted everything her friends had. Fun. Spontaneity. Crazy sex.
She kissed Keane and turned to see Scott’s eyes widen. “Keane, this is an… I don’t think we were ever friends, so I’ll be honest. He used to work for Barnes-Fleetwood and we dated and he left for a better job and a younger woman, neither of which seemed to have worked out so now he’s here as the rep for our biggest distributor.”
“That’s a lot,” Keane whispered.
“A bit unfair, but I understand.” Scott had a smirk on his face. “So you’re dating this cowboy? I’m surprised at that. I expected you would find someone in Dallas.”
Garrett moved in, his eyes only for her. “Am I the dirty little secret, Red?”
Role play. He was giving her a way to save some face.
She tilted her head up and went on her toes. “Never, Sir.”
“Ah, you’ve taken up the family’s view on romance.” Scott sounded annoyingly amused. “It’s okay. I like a challenge. I don’t suppose I can steal you for a couple of hours. I thought we could open negotiations with a margarita or maybe a drink at The Barn. It’s been so long since we spent a night there. Drinking, dancing. I never thought I would miss this place, but I have. I’ve thought about it and you for a long time.”