Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Trying to act unconcerned, he shrugged off her comment and said, “The doctor confirmed there weren’t any drugs in his system—not even enough alcohol for him to be legally drunk.” He zipped up the first piece of luggage and continued, “But that still doesn’t explain how he ended up in the hospital, acting like he was in desperate need of psychiatric care—doctor’s words, not mine.”
“Oh, shit! I almost forgot the condoms,” she squealed. “Hold that thought!”
Ryder stood, mouth wide open, and watched his niece race into the bathroom and then come back out holding a box of condoms…count—one hundred. Fuck, he couldn’t think of his sweet, innocent niece and condoms at the same fucking time. Where had the time gone? When in the hell had she gotten old enough to have sex, much less have sex one hundred times on a cruise ship?
“Oh, for fuck’s sake! Put your eyes back in your head,” she reprimanded as she shoved the box of condoms into his arms. “Those are for the whole group, not just me. Anyway, uncle dearest, you’re acting like an old man. You’re barely thirty. Act like it for a change.” She waggled her eyebrows and added, “Maybe you and Remi could hook up while the rest of us are cruising Alaska! I bet he could make you feel young again!”
“Hush, Cassiopea! Did you turn bad while your father and mother were still alive, or have I done this to you?” Ryder’s older brother and his wife, Cassie’s parents, had been killed in a plane crash while traveling with their band when Cassie was only eighteen years old. The pilot had been high on drugs, and his stupidity had ended up killing America’s most popular rock band and the most loved people in Ryder and Cassie’s lives. Their deaths had been devastating to both of them, but that devastation had helped the two of them form a bond that no one could break. Six years later, the pain of losing them was still there, but not quite as raw.
“My naughtiness is all you, Uncle Ry. You know mom and dad were the very essence of innocence!” She batted her lashes at him playfully.
“Whatever. Keep that shit up and I’ll petition the courts to hold your trust fund back for another few years,” he growled, just as playfully. He hated overseeing Cassie’s millions. It was a constant worry, and he couldn’t wait to hand everything over to her when she turned twenty-five.
“Forget it, old man. I’m not ever taking charge of my trust fund. You’re doing a fine job, making my money grow and keeping me in the lap of luxury. I like things the way they are.” When Ryder opened his mouth to argue, Cassie threw her hand up to stop him. “Don’t waste your breath. I’m going to forever be the annoying pebble in your shoe. Deal with it. Now…about Remi,” she said, utilizing a brilliant change of conversation tactic. “You know, he hasn’t really been the same since we got back from our trip to New Orleans.” She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “You know, if I didn’t know better, I’d think it had something to do with that crazy psychic we went to see.”
“What? Why would you do that?”
“Because,” she answered with a shrug. “We were in New Orleans; it seemed like the thing to do. Anyway, we all did a reading with this lady. It was no big deal. I mean, she said something special about all of us…blah, blah, blah. I’m going to get married when I’m twenty-five and give you five grandchildren. I call bullshit on that one. You know how kids get on my nerves.”
“You love kids and you know it, but twenty-five is too young to get married. Forget it. I call bullshit, too. So, what did she say about Remi? Did she feed him some line like he was going to die early, and he’s all torn up over it?” Something like that might fit with how he was acting, if anybody believed in that sort of nonsense.
“No, nothing like that,” Cassie answered. “I mean, it was mostly all cream puffs, champagne, and roses for all of us. She told Nelson to watch his blood pressure and take care of his health while he’s young, so he doesn’t have the same struggles as his parents…but I guess she could have probably found out about health issues online if she tried hard enough. According to her, Micah has two soulmates, but she isn’t sure he’ll find them both in this lifetime. Sarah will never find true love unless she learns to look at what’s right in front of her. Remi has the gift. Yes, the gift,” she said dryly. “If her mystic facts are correct, he’s clairvoyant and maybe possesses a few other abilities, as well. She asked him if he’d ever noticed anything and he laughed at her—not rude laugh, but just laughed and told her ‘absolutely not’. She told him that was fine and that some psychics were never called upon to use their abilities.” Cassie shrugged. “He seemed fine with everything she said, but when we were leaving the place…that’s when things got really weird.”