Total pages in book: 47
Estimated words: 44920 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44920 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
“Jesus, what happened to your hair?” his buddy asked.
Justin grinned and ran his hand through it. “Looks good, doesn’t it?”
“Or something.” Dominic shook his head as if to rid himself of the image. “Tye’s going to quiz us if you’re done here.”
“Yep.” Justin smiled at me. “Thanks. That was awesome.”
I rubbed my hands on a towel. “You’re welcome.”
“Naomi, you’re welcome to come listen if you’d like. The law can be fascinating,” Dominic said.
“But test prep—not so much,” Justin added.
“He’s got a point. You can also go down to the kitchen if you didn’t get lunch. Or take a tour of the house or whatever you’d like.”
Hmm. Whatever I’d like. Those were words I didn’t usually hear during the workday. “I think I’d like to walk on the beach for a bit. Maybe find some shells.”
Dominic nodded. “Sounds good.”
“Just remember, if they move, they’re still occupied,” Justin warned, which was a good point. I didn’t want to deprive some creature of its home just so that I could have a pretty souvenir.
The guys waited until I’d cleaned up a bit and then I followed them down the stairs. They stopped at the base. “We’re going to be in the den. Can you find your way from here?” Dominic asked.
“Of course.” Since I was still standing on the bottom step, I was eye to eye with him. It was kind of nice to not have to crane my neck up to look at one of them. But then I started to step down and Dominic grabbed my arm, stopping me. Confused, I looked at my feet and saw a streak of orange race past. “What was that?”
“Willow,” Dominic explained.
Oh yeah, the cat.
“Is she off chasing a lizard?” Though I sincerely hoped that those little lizards didn’t make it up this high because this was the floor my room was on.
“She’s probably looking for Tye,” Justin said. “She’s crazy about him.”
Dominic nodded, letting go of my arm. “If I ever show up here without him, she sulks the entire time.”
“Sounds like a very loyal cat.”
Justin’s eyes gleamed. “She is. So if you’re thinking of making a play for Tye, just know you’ll have to go through her first.” He eyed my folksy and feminine outfit. “And no offense, but my money’s on Willow.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Good luck with your studying.”
As I headed back down the stairs, the thought of the orange cat sitting possessively on Tye’s lap made me smile.
8
DOMINIC
We started in the den, and Tye dutifully quizzed us. He’d always been a strong student, and usually grasped new concepts quicker than Justin and me. But it was such a beautiful day. The sun was out, and the cool blue water of the pool was inviting. And every so often, I’d go to the window and catch a glimpse of Naomi walking up and down the beach. She’d found a bucket somewhere, probably an abandoned kid’s pale, and it made her look like a little girl searching for shells. I had no idea where she’d gotten those flowy clothes. My mom would’ve called them hippie clothes, but somehow, they looked beautiful on her. It made me long to be outside, closer to her, but also closer to the fresh air. And speaking of fresh air…
“God, you guys stink,” I said, ignoring the question Tye had just asked.
“Hey, I’m doing my best,” Justin protested, and I laughed.
“Not your study skills—whatever oil Naomi used on you.”
“I thought it smelled nice,” Justin said.
“Yeah, but not two different kinds, in an enclosed room.”
“He’s got a point,” Tye said. He set down the study guide he was holding. “Want to reconvene at the pool in ten minutes?”
“No reason we can’t study down there,” I said with a nod.
“I was studying down there earlier,” Justin said.
“And you can again,” Tye said.
“Yeah, as soon as we dunk you repeatedly until either your head stops smelling like that or you drown.”
“Might be easier than taking the damn LSAT,” Justin grumbled, and I bit back a laugh. “Okay, ten minutes.”
It was more like fifteen, but it was much more pleasant out there. Tye had pumped up the pool floats. He was on a sturdy raft with one foot in the water. Justin was in what basically amounted to a large innertube. His arms and legs look ridiculously long as they stuck out in all directions. And I was on a remnant of childhood—a large pool float shaped like an alligator.
We all had drinks, and the study guide was on a chair just out of the splash zone. We’d get to it again, but not just yet.
I ran my fingers lazily through the cool water, and the alligator float glided slowly toward Justin. “So except for the weird smelling oil, how were the massages?”
“Fucking amazing,” Justin said. His voice was loose and relaxed, either from Naomi's touch or because he was no longer fielding study questions. Maybe both. I looked over at Tye.