Total pages in book: 45
Estimated words: 43540 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 218(@200wpm)___ 174(@250wpm)___ 145(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 43540 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 218(@200wpm)___ 174(@250wpm)___ 145(@300wpm)
Fuck him.
Anger surges up my spine, and I shove my palms against his chest. “Get off me.”
“With pleasure.” He pulls out, and I immediately hate the absence of him. He sits up, grabs his jeans, and slides them on while I reach for the closest piece of clothing, his T-shirt, and toss it over my head.
A million things that I want to say swirl inside my brain. But panic has me spitting out, “That was a mistake.” He doesn’t have to tell me my words hurt. I sense it in the way his shoulders tighten. His jaw clenches, and he shoots off the couch.
“Don’t bother. It wasn’t much for me. No need to make excuses. We both have regrets. Let’s leave it at that.” His rebuttal hurts just as bad. Guess we’re even. I find my underwear and slide it on. “Gotta chop more wood,” he says. He slips on his shoes and, without a jacket, opens the front door and slams it behind him.
What the fuck am I doing?
And even more importantly, how will I make it out of here without doing something else I’ll regret?
Chapter six
Callie
I step outside to find Easton by the curb, leaning against his bike. “How’d it go?”
I take each step slowly, keeping my breathing calm. When I make it up to him, I stop. Then I lunge into his arms. “I got it!” A giggle ripples up my throat, and I hug him, pressing kiss after kiss to his beautiful face.
He lifts me in his arms. “Fuckin’ knew you would. Millrose would be dumb not to hire you.”
“I know, but there were so many other people applying. Probably way more qualified than me.”
“Babe, you’ve worked your ass off to get this job. It’s your dream job. They saw that passion in you. No way they were going to choose anyone else.”
I stare up at him. “I can’t believe it.”
“Believe it. You’re gonna kill it and make a shit ton of money. Then I’ll quit my job, and you can be my sugar momma.”
“Mmmm. . .” I murmur against his mouth. “What else?”
“Shit, if you’re paying, I’ll do anything you want. I’ll be your little pet.”
“I like where this is going.”
He kisses me hard. When I’m out of breath, he pulls back. His intense eyes bore into mine. “Thought you knew by now I’d do anything for you. You’re mine. Forever and a day.”
“Why the added day?”
“Because even forever wouldn’t be enough with you.”
***
I must have fallen asleep on the couch.
When I sit up and listen for Easton, the only sound I hear is the crackling of the fire. I look out the window and see him outside. How long has he been out there? The gigantic pile of chopped wood is one indicator. His blue lips, the other.
I slide on my boots and open the door, taking a few steps outside. “What are you doing?” I ask, but he doesn’t acknowledge me. “You know, I couldn’t care less if you freeze to death, but if I have a change of heart, you’re a giant, and there’s no way I can drag you inside. So stop being a stubborn mule and get inside before you turn into a popsicle.” I jump when he throws the ax onto the wooden stump. His shoulders rise and fall, then he turns and prowls towards the cabin and up the steps.
“Not the kind of pet I remember being,” he says, not making eye contact and stalking inside. I count to ten, then follow, shutting the door behind me. Easton is standing by the fireplace, his head hanging down.
“Look. . .” I start, not knowing what to say. “I don’t want to be at each other’s throats like this. This whole situation is messed up like royally. I would be out of here if I could, but I can’t. And what happened earlier. . . I don’t know what to say about that. For so long, I’ve only known how to hate you. And if I don’t, then. . . I don’t know where that leaves me. And I can’t—I refuse to go back to the person I was when you broke me.”
He lets off a harsh breath. Squeezing his eyes closed briefly, he lifts his gaze to mine. “You act like you were the only one hurt here.”
“I wasn’t the reason we ended. You were.”
“No, you took an assumed situation and ran with it.”
I raise my hands. “Easton, I caught you with a naked woman in your apartment.”
“She wasn’t there for me.”
“Are you kidding me! How do you expect me to believe that? This is why I spared myself the excuses. I knew this is what you would have said.”
“Because it’s the truth! I came home to her there. She was one of Russ’s randoms. She walked out of his room at the same time I showed up. She was so drunk she didn’t even realize I wasn’t him, and I was just trying to get her off me.”