Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 85616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
“Maybe we should have a chat with Gabe and Eli? See exactly how they felt when they first met. That could help.”
“Yeah, I was thinking about that. I asked Yuni if she had some time to chat, too. She always knows how to fix things.”
“Good idea.” Chris leaned forward on the small wooden table. “Whatever the case, I don’t think fate can mess up. If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. Period.”
“I hope so.”
Understatement of the damn century. All I’d been wanting in my life was someone special to share it with. But seeing the absolute shitstorm my mom suffered being with my heartless father made me wary of even looking for that kind of connection. Seeing how open they were about their love for each other had imprinted on me from an early age that it was something special. They were the type of parents who weren’t shy about holding hands or giving kisses to each other, even though I’d roll my eyes or shout “gross” from the back of the car. I had never meant it, of course. It made my heart full to see how much they loved each other. Especially around the time when it seemed like all my friends’ parents were dealing with divorces or drama at home. Not me, though. It all felt perfect. Valentine’s Day meant the house was full of flowers, birthdays meant special vacations to beautiful spots that were as picturesque as the smile on my mom’s face when she’d look at my dad. I’d grown up thinking love was something unbeatable. A treasure that never tarnished, especially if it was anchored with a family that felt unbreakable from the start. It was me, my mom, and my dad against the world.
Except it wasn’t. It was me and my mom, while my dad drifted off and formed an entirely new family in secret. The discovery was the equivalent of a nuclear bomb going off inside the home of my nuclear family. It all happened when I was seventeen. Ten years ago now, and I was still dealing with the fallout.
Maybe fate had made a mistake with them and now history was simply repeating itself?
“What’s he look like?” Chris asked. “Is he your type?”
“Chris, man, you know I don’t have a type.”
He scoffed at that. “True, but also everyone has a type. I’ve seen the girls and guys you talk to.”
This was true. Chris had been privy to a lot of my conquests, which I had mostly kept under wraps from everyone else on the team. I wasn’t even entirely sure a lot of my teammates knew I was bi. Coming out was something that had made me nervous, but ever since Gabe ripped that Band-Aid off and came out as gay, I started to let go of that fear. It wasn’t that I thought I’d be ostracized from the team, but I feared the attention. Especially considering that I was already hiding the fact I was a shifter. But Gabe being a trailblazer took a lot of the pressure off of me.
“Well? Who do I have to keep an eye on for you? What’s he look like?”
I chuckled at that and gazed off into the distance, picturing the handsome man standing in the rain. “He’s a little taller than me. Dark hair, wavy I think, but it was wet from the rain. He has greenish-hazel eyes that literally fucking stole my breath away. He’s not super muscular, which I like. He also has great style—wears a gold bracelet and two necklaces that look like they’re worth more than my car. He also has a slutty little gold earring on his right ear that I wanted to lick.”
Chris’ eyes were wide. He was shaking his head and subtly drawing a line across his neck. I scrunched my face, wondering what the hell had gotten into him. “What? Do you not think any of that is insanely hot? Because I know I sure do.”
His eyes slowly drifted upward. My confusion only intensified. Shit. Was it the bumblebee? Had it landed on my head and I was so stud-drunk that I didn’t realize it?
I quickly swatted at the empty air above my head before turning around in my chair.
That’s when I nearly toppled out of it from sheer surprise and pure embarrassment.
“You think my earring is really that slutty?” Miles asked me with a half-cocked grin as sunlight washed over his tanned skin.
Chapter Four
Skin & Bones
MILES
I spotted him the second I walked out onto the patio. He wore a neon green sleeveless tank top and a backward white-and-pink baseball cap, and was sitting across from someone who appeared to be in a pretty engaged conversation with him. His thin gray shorts were sitting high on his thighs, showing a pale white tan line above his knees that I found insanely attractive. I quickly considered turning on my heels and walking back the way I came from. Something inside me shouted for me to do the opposite, but I didn’t want to listen. It was pointless. He was here with a friend, why would I need to interrupt?