Total pages in book: 164
Estimated words: 152853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 764(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 510(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 152853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 764(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 510(@300wpm)
“Did you think I grew up in a cave?”
“That's not what I meant,” she snaps. Funny, but when she's pissed at me, it's the only time she shows life anymore. The fire that used to leave me cursing her in my head returns, and she’s almost her old self. Almost. “I meant, like, taken care of. Not abandoned for ten years.”
“It's not abandoned. I have someone come out every couple of weeks to do maintenance on the place. Mow the lawn, and make sure the doors and windows are intact.”
“Sounds like a really great place. So, I guess it used to belong to your parents?”
And look at that, I’m already tired of this conversation. “It's mine now, and that's all that matters. Fortunately for you, no one else knows about it. You'll be safe here. There's no way Jeff will come knocking on this door.”
The way she winces at the mention of his name makes me feel like a dickhead and wish that I hadn't said it at all, but then there's no point in tiptoeing around the obvious. She's here because she's running away—not that I can blame her. We're sort of between a rock and a hard place when it comes to the Knight family. We can't strictly come out and say that I had that bastard picked up the second he stepped off the jet upon returning to the States. Or that we held him in a warehouse until I had the pleasure of slitting his throat and watching him bleed out.
He deserved it. I wouldn’t take it back if I could. After what he did to her, he deserved much worse. Even in the end, when he was looking death right in the eyes, he had the nerve to blame her for the abuse he doled out. That was the final straw. I went deaf to everything except the rush of blood in my ears and sliced him from ear to ear. I wish it had been slower, more drawn out. I’d acted purely on impulse, letting my emotions rule me. It was why I tried my best to remain calloused, and robotic, as Tatum called it. I didn’t like the person I was when I let my emotions overcome me.
Because of all of that, we’re dealing with a worried father. A worried father with money, and resources, that he could use to dig around. Not to mention the shitty attitude he clearly passed on to his son. Rather than find out the sort of person Kristoff really was, he’s seeking to blame Tatum for something she didn't do. Father like son, I suppose.
“Well... thanks, I guess,” she manages, even if she looks pained. “This is a good idea.”
“Hold everything. Did I just hear you say thank you?”
Crimson floods her cheeks. There it is again. It’s like the real Tatum peered through the curtain for a split second before disappearing behind it again. “Don't make me regret it.”
Staring back at the house, I take in that it is the first time I'll walk through that door since the night I left. Ten years. I hardly remember the kid I was back then.
“You know, I never did discover why you ended up working for my father.” I can feel her watching me as I round the shiny new SUV, opening one of the rear doors.
A box immediately tries to fall out, and I use my shoulder to stop it. Jesus Christ. “Did you bring everything you own?” I groan at the chore ahead of me. “It's going to take all day to unload this shit.”
“Way to avoid answering the question.”
“You didn't ask a question.” I hand her a tote bag before digging out a wheeled suitcase and dropping it on the ground.
“Watch it, Mister! You break it, you buy it.”
“What’s that mean?”
“It means if you break my suitcase, you’ll have to buy me a new one.”
I’ll never admit it out loud, but the way she looks at me, with her nose turned up, her eyes narrowed, and that sassy mouth spitting out words left and right in a vain attempt to cut through my icy exterior… It’s the hottest thing I’ve ever seen, and the funniest, because I know she thinks she’s better than me. And, in many ways, she is. But here in this house, on my turf, we’re the same.
“I will not be told to buy you anything. On the off chance that I felt guilty for breaking your precious luggage, I would replace it.”
“Somehow, I doubt you could afford it.” If I wasn’t fully aware of her past, and her father wasn’t my boss, her ass would be bent over my knee, and I'd spank her until she apologized, but unfortunately, none of those things will happen.
“I don't work for free, you know. I have all the money I need and then some.”