Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 67982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
“He doesn’t think he’s good enough for me,” I say with a casual shrug of my shoulder. It’s my way to convey that this isn’t hurting me, but truth be told, I’m really fucking hurt he would push me away. We have something special, and that bonehead won’t look past his insecurities to hold on to it.
“Well, he’s not,” Aiden says, and I turn to look at him in surprise, a stack of dish towels in my hand that I’d pulled from the box. Aiden opens up a drawer by his hip and I toss the towels to him. When he stows them away, he adds, “But no one really is, Josie. You’re a total gem. A prime catch. Not many people can stack up to you.”
“Oh, shut up,” I say with an impatient wave of my hand, and take another hefty sip of wine. “I’ve totally got my faults.”
“What was with the kiss?” Aiden asks curiously. “It was awkward and inappropriate.”
I grimace as I think about it. Not that it was bad, because Aiden is a good kisser, but because it was wrong and I was angry at Reed. “Reed told me that I should give you another shot. He apparently thinks you’re better suited to give me everything I need.”
Aiden’s been so laid back about my relationship with Reed that I actually expect him to brush this off. Instead, he looks at me with contemplation. “Could he be right?”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t think so,” I tell him truthfully, and it hurts me to see a flash of pain on his face. He wipes it away quickly, though, and goes back to being my friend so fast I almost doubt I saw it.
“Why is he pushing you away then?” he asks me.
I think about it a moment while I pull more towels out of the box. “It wasn’t an involved conversation, but the gist of it was that he doesn’t think he can support me the way I need to be. I think it’s wrapped up in what I do for a living. It doesn’t make any sense, because Reed is one of the most confident people I know, but I think it’s nothing more than pure insecurity on his part. And seriously, Aiden…why do you need this many dish towels?”
“Maybe it’s not insecurity but rather pure devotion driving him,” Aiden says, ignoring my dish towel jab.
My head pops up and my body locks over his theory. “What?”
Aiden gives me a slightly patronizing look as he pushes off the counter. He grabs my wine from where I’d set it on the counter and hands it to me. I drop the towels and accept, bringing the rim to my lips and polishing off the contents in a drunken bar girl fashion.
As Aiden refills my glass, he smirks at me. “I don’t think Reed’s pushing you away because he’s insecure. I think he’s pushing you away because he’s crazy, head-over-heels in love with you and he truly wants you to have the absolute best you can have in life. I’d say he’s confident in himself and this isn’t really about him. It’s more of a misguided notion he thinks he knows what’s best for you.”
“I honestly need to be drunk to understand what you just said,” I mutter, and take another long sip of my wine.
“This is it for Reed,” Aiden says confidently. “He cares for you so deeply he’s willing to sacrifice his happiness to ensure you get yours. Of course, he’s wrong about you needing something more than what he provides, but that’s beside the point. He’s truly doing this with nothing but pure altruism in his heart. Mark my words.”
Aiden continues to smirk at me, completely pleased with his analysis. “You’re saying he loves me and that’s why he told me to give you another shot?”
“It’s totally screwed up thinking for sure, but yes…that’s what I’m saying. I’m also going to go out on a limb and say that Reed’s never been in love before. This is a life-changing moment for him and he’s acting in your best interests. Again, his reasoning is kind of stupid, but what can I say…he’s a dumb jock.”
“Hey,” I say irritably, and smack his chest. “Don’t call him that.”
Aiden laughs and finishes off his first glass of wine. I finish mine too and he pours the rest of the bottle between our two empty glasses.
“Come on,” he says as he walks into the living room. “Let’s sit down and just get drunk. Unpacking can wait.”
Sounds reasonable to me, so I follow Aiden into the living room. He sits in a recliner and I take one end of the couch.
“I don’t think he’s ever had a serious relationship,” I say as I swirl the wine in my glass.
“I think that would be a good guess, seeing as how he’s not handling this very well,” Aiden surmises. “And if you spill that wine on my white couch, you’re buying a new one for me.”