Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 91748 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91748 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
“Let’s get started,” I said, swinging my gaze off her before I said something stupid or acted on the desire to toss her on my bed.
“That looks intimidating,” she said with a breathy laugh as she walked over to the U-shaped desk I had in the far-right corner of my room.
“It’s a hell of a lot easier than doing all this on an iPad. You’ll see,” I replied and went to boot it all up. “You can take the screen on the right and the chair. I’ve got a stool in my closet I can use.”
“Why do you have a stool in your closet?” she asked in an amused tone.
The reason wasn’t that amusing, but she didn’t know that. I started to make something up, but the truth came out instead.
“It’s with my guitar. I used to keep them both over there in the corner. I would sit on the stool to play.” I paused, not looking at her, but at the screen in front of me. “I don’t play anymore. So, I put them away.”
“You play the guitar?” I could hear the surprise in her tone.
“I did,” I repeated.
“Why did you stop?”
I hesitated, not wanting to say it because I didn’t talk about this with anyone. They hadn’t asked either. Kash had noticed when he came in my room, and the reason why was one he didn’t have to guess. He’d said nothing.
“My mom taught me. It was our thing,” I told her. “I-I don’t want to look at it. She’s too weak to hold her guitar now, and—and I …” I couldn’t finish. My throat was tightening.
“You can’t play, knowing she can’t,” Elsie said softly.
I nodded.
“I’ll go get the stool. You keep doing this,” she told me, not waiting for me to answer.
I had to go in that closet every day and see it there. But I didn’t point it out. She was trying to make it easier on me. I let her.
The monitors were filled with all the information we needed to get to work when she returned, carrying the stool. I watched her bring the stool over and set it down. Her eyes lifted to meet mine, and we stood there, reading more from each other’s expression than words could ever say.
Twenty
Elsie
If I wasn’t so locked in on what I was doing, this would be less enjoyable. Although I’d met everyone at the pregnancy announcement party, I hadn’t been around many of them again. All the other females were inside, except for Cressida, who had been sitting on Kash’s lap the last time I glanced back at the sofa.
Forge had set up a space on the bar that faced the flat screen with two laptops this time instead of iPads, along with two different iPhones he was using. I’d figured out one was his personal one and the other was for incoming bets.
Gathe was also outside on the patio with us, and I felt a little more comfortable with him than the others.
Saylor and Jude had come out for a while, but they’d left at some point. I wasn’t sure when.
Tonight had heavier betting totals than last night, and right now, we were working with a possible upset, which meant more money to be made, and Forge was riding a high about it.
At one point, he’d looked through the window at Oz and made the devil’s horns sign with his hand and stuck his tongue out. That got a smile out of me. He’d caught me watching him and winked before turning his attention back to the games. The only other times I had gotten distracted was when he leaned over me to look at my screen. I got to smell him, and the warmth from his body always gave me goose bumps.
Today hadn’t been easy, but he had been there. In fact, he didn’t let me out of his sight. He’d stayed with me the rest of the day, done his best to keep me too busy to think about anything else. I knew why he was doing it, and I let him. I wanted to be near him.
“How’s the adjusting going?” Forge asked me while still watching the games.
“Point spreads and money lines are up to date, but …” I paused as I watched the game take a sudden turn. “Changing it now,” I assured him and went back to balancing out the numbers.
“Shit,” he muttered. “I need to hedge incoming bets.”
He sat back down on his stool and went to work on the laptop in front of him.
“You gonna give her a break?” Kash asked.
Forge cut his eyes at me. “You need one?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“She’s good,” he called out. “Mind your own business.”
“Whatever,” he replied.
I wondered if he had asked that because he thought I needed one or if Cressida had said something to him.