Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 34934 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 175(@200wpm)___ 140(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34934 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 175(@200wpm)___ 140(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
He nods. “Yep, everything’s on schedule.”
I point between the two of us. “Are we okay?”
He hesitates and then nods, holding his hand out to me. I shake it, and he mutters, “Don’t fuck this up, Wolfe. You’re already my brother, but if we can make this for real, then all the better.”
I pull him in for a manly hug and pat him hard on the back. “Same, brother. Same.”
CHAPTER 12
SAMANTHA
I stare at the box of my favorite chocolates and the note on top. It was on my desk this morning, and I’m just now getting time to open it. People have been in and out of the office all day, and I wanted to open it in private.
I open the envelope and slowly pull the card out. “Any time you walk into a room, you make it brighter. If you need a reminder, I’m happy to be it.”
My eyes widen. Does this mean that I’m about to find out who’s leaving the notes, chocolates, and flowers? This has been going on for a little over a week now. The notes are sweet, sometimes sexy, but it’s starting to drive me a little crazy.
I open my drawer and pull out a dozen notes.
One after another, I start to review them.
Like always, I compare the first one to the others, and the handwriting on the first one is different than the others. I’ve tried to put a reason to this, but I still don’t have a direct answer.
“My life is better with you in it.”
“I hope you know how strong you are. You’re doing better than you think.”
“You deserve to be loved.”
When I got that one, I instantly thought of my talk with Elijah. He’s the one that keeps saying I deserve things. As a matter of fact, with everything, it looks like it’s Elijah sending me the gifts, but I haven’t let my mind set on that. I don’t want to believe it and then be wrong.
I read through the next few notecards and am surprised when Elijah knocks on my open door.
I can feel the heat instantly start to rush to my face. He acts as if he doesn’t see the notes as he looks at the box of chocolates. “Mounds bars. Your favorite.”
The fact that he knows that is telling. He has to be the one sending me the flowers, the notes, the chocolates and candies. “Yeah, they are my favorite.”
He comes into my room and puts his hands on the desk. “What are you doing tonight?”
It’s Friday night. It’s almost embarrassing to tell him that I have no plans, but I shrug. “I don’t have anything to do. Do you need me to work late?”
He shakes his head. “No, I want you to come to my house for dinner.”
Surprised doesn’t even cover it. “Me and Kane?”
He shakes his head. “No. I mean, if you’re more comfortable with Kane being there, then I can invite him, but I was hoping that you and I could have dinner together. I want to talk to you about a few things.”
I try not to act like Elijah asking me to dinner is not like a dream come true, but it is. I start to stutter yes but can’t seem to get it out, so I nod my head.
He leans toward me and puts a hand on my cheek. “Is that a yes?”
Wide-eyed, I stare at him. “Yes… yes, I’ll come for dinner.”
He looks very pleased, and I am totally surprised when he bends over and presses his lips to my forehead. “Great. I’ll follow you home after work and then drive you over to my house.”
I shake my head. “No, then you’ll have to take me home later. I can just drive.”
With his hands on the arm rest of each side of me, I catch my breath. The closeness and the way he’s looking at me is both exciting and nerve-wracking.
He tilts his head and smirks, as if he knows how he affects me. “If it’s okay with you, I’d rather drive you. I’ll worry about you out at night by yourself.”
Unable to say anything, I just nod.
He lifts his arm and looks at his watch. “What do you think about cutting out early?”
I gasp and then smirk. “I don’t know. My boss may not be happy with that.”
He smiles. “I think he’ll be okay with it.” He tucks a stray piece of hair off my face, behind my ear. “Plus, I’m ready for our date to start.”
I suck in a gasp. “Date?”
He nods. “Yeah, grab your stuff. Let’s get out of here.”
I sit in shock for a few seconds, and then he helps me to my feet. I pick up my tote bag and load it up with my planner and note pads. He takes it from my hand, along with my purse, and asks, “Anything else?”