Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 37200 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 186(@200wpm)___ 149(@250wpm)___ 124(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37200 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 186(@200wpm)___ 149(@250wpm)___ 124(@300wpm)
“I’m not opposed to that, you know, but there is something I need to tell you, well, ask really.” She steps back, grabs the glass of wine from the counter, and takes a healthy sip. I do the same with my whisky before setting it down and taking the food out of the delivery bags.
“Eat in here or on the couch? And not with you on the floor.” I get that she enjoys it, but if we’re going to talk, I don’t want to do it with the back of her head, and my idea of fun isn’t sitting my ass on a cold floor; an area rug doesn’t cut it.
“Here. I’m too tired, stressed, and worried to even think about moving,” she admits.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. What’s going on?” I ask as I watch her go from happy to sad. I don’t let her sit in a chair; instead, I’m picking her up by the back of her thighs.
“Ezra.” She lets out a squeal with a smile as I place her on the counter, wedging myself between her thighs.
“Tell me what has you on an emotional roller coaster, sunshine, and why you’ve held it in all day, when I’m only a phone call away.” With her on the counter, our eyes meet, mine locking on hers. Even when she closes them and takes a deep before showing me those pretty green eyes of hers again.
“The loan is perfect; still on a no-spending budget. That’s fine. It’s not like I do a lot of that anyways. The few groceries or food I do pick up aren’t enough to break the bank or put up any issues on my credit report. Perry, that’s my banker, who’s been with me since college, called Bonnie and Chad to present the offer to them but only got their voicemail. He also mailed a letter to their last known address. Since the phone numbers were a no-go, he isn’t hopeful. That was yesterday morning. No return phone call as of yet. He said he’d keep trying. What I’m worried about the most is not being able to reach them at all. I mean, you saw what happened when the espresso machine broke down. It’s been even worse lately. What if they’re not answering because they don’t want to sell the shop, using me until I’m all dried up after all the sweat, tears, and time I’ve put in?” Her shoulders slump in defeat.
“Sunshine, we’ve talked about this. If that’s the case, which I don’t think it is, we’ll go from there. I’ll be there helping you, no matter what. Now, you want to tell me what favor you were talking about?” Anything Millie wants, she gets, no questions asked. I’d give her fucking anything.
“Can you look into Bonnie and Chad?”
“Yep, I’ll do that tomorrow,” I respond right away.
“Wow. I should have known it would be easy to ask you. You’re the best, Ezra. The absolute best.” I kiss her forehead.
“That’s all you, sunshine.”
“How about we’re both pretty darn spectacular,” she replies as I step away, not helping her down. Millie’s going to stay right where she is, and I’m going to take care of more than figuring out what’s going on with the owners of Books and Brews. I’m going to feed her dinner, fuck her until she’s boneless, tuck her in right beside me, and hold Millie all night long.
TWENTY
Ezra
“Oh, this has to be good,” Parker states as he walks into my office. My suit jacket is already off, and there are two to-go cups of coffee on my desk, one closer to where he’s sitting down, mine near my hand. I took Millie to work, using my driver, and stayed with her while she opened, making sure everything was good to go and set up on her end. I ordered the coffee along with a kiss that I knew wasn’t going to hold me over all day; I’d probably be making a trip back to Books and Brews on my lunch break. Then I made sure she locked the door behind me. Millicent is intoxicating, changing me in ways I’d have never thought possible before. Thoughts of one day asking her to marry me keep popping into my head, seeing her pregnant belly swollen with our child, a hand on her stomach as she smiles that sweet smile of hers.
“Shut up. I’d give you the whisky. Something tells me eight o’clock in the morning is too early even for you.” Getting Parker to the office last minute and without notice pissed him off, judging by the text he sent me when I asked him, long after Millie had passed out. Yet here my brother is.
“It is. So I see you’ve had a change of heart. Coming over to the not-so dark side, baby brother?” He’s loving this.