Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 37645 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 188(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 125(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37645 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 188(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 125(@300wpm)
She nudges me, soft. “What’s wrong?”
“I missed you yesterday,” I admit. Our schedules didn’t line up this week and I had to work two days without her. It fucking sucked to spend nine hours without seeing her.
“Wanna talk about it, or just sit here and let me think up new ways to distract you?”
“Depends,” I say, “Are your ways legal in this state?”
She gives a dramatic sigh. “You wound me, sir. I am a respectable lady.”
I snort. “Says the woman who let me eat her out on the kitchen counter last week.” Just remembering the encounter causes my cock to turn to stone in my jeans. Fuck. I need to start wearing looser pants when Naomi is around.
She rolls her eyes and curls tighter against me. “I regret nothing.”
Her fingers drift over my arm, tracing the pattern of the tattoo she always pretends not to be obsessed with. I want to freeze this moment, live inside it. But I know what’s coming next.
“Can I ask you something?” she says.
“Anything.”
She looks up at me, her eyes huge and serious. “You never talk about your parents.”
I stiffen. Not because I’m ashamed but because I know this is the test. The part where honesty might scare my soulmate off.
I shift, pulling her onto my lap so she’s facing me. “You really want to know?”
“Yeah,” she says, and I can tell she means it. “I want to know everything about you.”
“My mom and dad were…famous,” I begin, running my hands through her curls. “Janelle and Linus Byrne of the rock band, Burned.”
Her face goes blank for a second. Then she screeches, “You’re kidding. Your parents were in Burned?” I’ve spent the last fifteen years trying to run from my family reputation.
“Yeah.” I wait for her to laugh or ask if I’m making it up, but she doesn’t.
“Oh my god, Wyatt. The Byrnes were like, rock royalty. My mom used to play their stuff on repeat. It was all over the news when their plane crashed.” Her eyes soften. She cups my face, thumb stroking along my jaw. “I’m so sorry.”
I shrug, because it’s been years and I’m good at pretending it doesn’t matter anymore. “I was seventeen when they died. Luckily, the Sterlings stepped in. Roman’s dad was my godfather and they did their best to contain the chaos.”
She’s quiet, processing. “Did you want to be a musician, too?”
I laugh. “I can’t carry a tune in a bucket. I always excelled at maintaining control and order, which made me an ideal candidate for a bodyguard."
She rests her forehead against mine. “I’m glad you finally told me about them.”
“I didn’t want to scare you off.” I swallow, suddenly nervous. “I need you more than I need my next breath.”
“Nothing could scare me off,” she says, no fear. “I lo—”
I need her to know the rest before she finishes so I cut her off. “I inherited a shitload of money when they died. Like, obscene wealth. But I didn’t want it. So I put it all in the bank and tried to forget about it. I live off what I make now. The rest just…sits there.”
Naomi blinks several times like I’m speaking another language. “I still love you, even if you’re a trust fund baby.”
“Thank god.” I kiss her soft lips until we’re both breathing hard. “I love you, too, fever. I’ll never get enough of you.”
CHAPTER 10
NAOMI
I’ve been staying at Wyatt’s house every night for the last several weeks but I try to have breakfast with my mom and Casey at least two or three times a week.
This morning started off great with Wyatt kissing me awake but things started going downhill from there. Before could go any further, the phone rang. Evidently, someone broke into The Sterling Rope during the early morning hours and Roman called Wyatt in to figure it out.
So here I am trying to focus on the little things this morning, like the way the sun shines through my mom’s kitchen window or the fact that I finally got the goddamn coffee maker to work on the first try. There’s comfort in the minor victories. My mom is still in her room prepping for a real estate showing, so it’s just me and Casey in the kitchen. She’s got a textbook open beside her bowl of cereal, the spoon halfway to her mouth as she halfheartedly reads the same page over and over. “How has your first week of classes been so far.” I was received when she decided to attend the Silver Spoon Falls Community College until she figures out what she wants to major in.
Casey pretty much ignores my question as she keeps glancing at her phone between bites. I notice the screen lighting up with a series of angry-red notifications. I try not to look, but I can see the tension in her jaw and the barely-contained tremor in her fingers as she sets the spoon down. My heart drops and I know this has to be about fucking Stellan. Everything has been going great late except dealing with Casey’s crazy ex-boyfriend.