Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 91840 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91840 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
I turn to Julian. “Speedy is my girlfriend.”
And I sound like a teenage boy.
The grin on Julian’s face tells me I’m going to get the ribbing of my life because of that comment. But you know what? I don’t give a fuck.
See what she’s doing to me? Turning me into one of those guys who goes brainless over his girl.
“You do realize that you’ve got your hands full with him, right?” Julian says to her.
“Oh, yeah, totally.” She giggles.
“Hey! I’m an easy guy to get along with.”
She snorts.
I look at her. “What?”
“Nothing.” She shakes her head, smiling innocently. “Right, boys, as much fun as this night has been, this girl is tired, so I’m gonna hit the hay.” She squeezes my thigh with her hand and then softly kisses my lips. “Night, babe,” she whispers.
My dick instantly perks up.
Not yet, big fella.
“It was really nice to meet you, Julian.”
She gets up and goes over to him. He gets to his feet and kisses her on the cheek.
“Thanks for the pizza.”
“Anytime.” She waves him off. “Hope to see you again soon.”
“You definitely will.” He smiles.
“Come on, Gucci.”
She pats her thigh, and Gucci looks up from her spot by Julian’s feet, not seeming to want to move.
“I’ll bring her through when I come to bed.”
“Oh, okay.” She smiles.
“Night, babe.” I watch her leave the room, her gorgeous ass swaying in her skirt as she walks. My cock begs to get up and follow her.
“So…she’s your girlfriend,” Julian says in a singsong voice.
I flip him off, and he laughs.
“Smoke?” I say, suddenly needing a cigarette.
“Sure.”
Julian never used to smoke. He only started up a few years ago when he was getting clean from his addiction. Yeah, Julian’s the friend who was addicted to painkillers. It’s not uncommon for addicts to replace one addiction with another. Lesser of the two evils. They’ll both kill you in the end. It’ll just take the smokes longer to send you to the grave, and you won’t lose everything because of them.
We head out onto the terrace, and Gucci follows.
I take a seat on one of the chairs at the table and pass Julian a cigarette. I light my own up and then hand him the lighter.
Gucci parks her butt next to Julian’s chair.
“I can’t believe you have a fucking goat living in your apartment.” Julian chuckles, reaching down to scratch Gucci on the head.
“I know. But she comes with Speedy. They’re a package, so what can I do?”
“I like her.”
“Speedy or the goat?”
“Well, Gucci’s cute. But I meant Ava.”
“Yeah. She’s great.” I smile and then take a drag of my cigarette.
“And she makes great fucking pizza.”
“Ain’t that the truth.”
We’re silent a moment, and then he says, “You look real happy, Gabe.”
“Don’t I always?”
“Nah, you’re a moody fucker, and you know it. But, now, you seem…I don’t know…different. Lighter. Less tense.”
He’s right; I am. And it’s because of Speedy.
“She’s good for you, Gabe.”
“Yeah, I guess she is.” I smile.
“It’s about time you found someone to love your sorry ass.”
And that knocks me back in my chair.
“Whoa! What? Love? Calm yourself the fuck down. We’re just dating. Well, fucking. I mean, we haven’t actually even been out on a date.”
Shit. I haven’t even taken her out on a date. What kind of boyfriend am I? The clueless-shit kind obviously.
He raises a brow. “A minute ago, she was your girlfriend. And, not to point out the obvious, but you do have her living in your house.”
“She is my girlfriend. And she only lives here because of circumstances,” I protest. “With my broken foot, I’ve needed help, and she needs a place to stay.”
“You still need help?”
“Well…no, not anymore, as I can take it off to bathe now. But she hasn’t found a place to stay yet. She can’t find anywhere in her price range that takes pets.”
“Mmhmm.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing.” He’s watching me with an amused look on his face. “I just think Gabe doth protest too much.”
“Don’t fucking quote Shakespeare to me, you douche. And I don’t love Speedy. Sure, I love fucking her. She’s hot as fuck. She’s funny and smart, and she cooks amazing food. I like having her around. Like,” I emphasize. “I like her. Not love.”
“I never said you did. I said, it’s good that you have someone to love you. But, now, I’m thinking that you do love her.”
I flip him off, and he laughs.
Why is this bothering me so much?
I don’t care what he thinks. I know I’m not in love with Speedy, and she’s not in love with me.
We’re just having fun.
Right?
Right.
Julian stubs his cigarette out and gets to his feet. “I’m gonna head off. I’ve got an early start in the morning.”
“You going back to Vancouver?”
“Day after tomorrow. Got a meeting with the studio heads first thing. I’ll catch you before I head back to Vancouver though.”