Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 86841 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 347(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86841 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 347(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
For Jude’s safety, I had to keep it together and get this out. I couldn’t cry in front of Gathe.
“He figured out the windows were bullet—no, bombproof from the insurance adjuster at Vapiano. Because they weren’t even cracked from the tornado. Then, there was the thing about my car just having a few scratches, although it had been slung against the power pole. I intend to confront Dad about the totaled car lie he gave me. I like my car.” I took a breath, then continued, “He is afraid that my being there is unsafe for the others who might be around. After all, if I require bombproof windows and a car that can survive being tossed by a tornado, then I must be a major target. He can’t put that target right there in the middle of people who could be hurt because of me. Which I get. I do.” It just hurt like a bitch. And I wanted to go now so I could go cry about it.
Gathe reached over and squeezed my arm. “I’m sorry, Princess. I know you liked him, but he is a priest, and at the end of the day, there was no future for you two.”
I know. Doesn’t make it hurt less.
I nodded.
“Come to Bane’s tomorrow night. Everyone will be there.”
I started to shake my head but stopped. The idea of going back to the way things had been before I started working at the clothes closet made the void in my chest begin to spread.
“I’ll think about it.”
“You will?”
The excitement in Gathe’s voice felt foreign or unattainable. Something that lay just beyond my grasp.
“Thanks for the ride. Now, will you unlock the doors?”
“You’re gonna be okay again, Saylor. This was just the beginning.”
I didn’t want it to be the start. That made it sound fleeting, as if it would be a moment in time I forgot. And I would never be able to forget. Not one single second. All of it was threaded together and now a permanent part of my soul.
Almost a year since he’d been killed, and the only thing that was different was there was no Crosby. I’d sat on this sofa, scanning through Insta, while they all yelled at the flat screen last year. It was week two of the NBA semifinals, and it was boring as hell. Netflix was looking better by the minute. I’d have already left if Gathe wasn’t so damn happy I was here.
I looked down into my empty martini glass and decided that a number three was required. Perhaps if I drank enough, the unending replay in my head of every moment I’d spent with Jude would stop or at least pause. Even when I was asleep at night, he found his way into my dreams.
When I stood up, Gathe’s gaze immediately swung from the game to me. I held up my empty martini glass and gave it a little shake, showing him it was empty before walking over to the bar. Last year, I had drunk High Noons in a can on a night like this. Now, I was downing dirty martinis. By the look on Gathe’s face, I could tell he thought I was preparing for when Halo entered the room. I wasn’t. Oddly, I didn’t care.
I had expected to meet her the moment I walked inside, but she’d been bathing Crosby’s baby. No. That was snarky. His name was Hawkins, and he was Halo and Bane’s son. She was getting him ready for bed.
Bane had appeared after the bedtime prep with him. Than had asked if she was coming, and he’d replied that she had to nurse Hawkins first. He had been feeding more lately, and nursing took almost forty-five minutes.
Okay, so if you’d known Bane Cash a year ago, you’d have never expected the man to utter things like breastfeeding and bath time. I had caught myself staring at him, trying to fit this man into the asshole I had known all my life.
His gaze swung to mine, and the crease between his brows, as if I had no reason to look his way, made it clear he was still the asshole I knew. Just the daddy version.
After I finished shaking up my drink that I’d put two shots of vodka in instead of one, I poured it into the glass. I opened the mini fridge for the olives since I had emptied the bowl of them earlier, but I found none. I needed my olives. Three, to be exact. Closing the mini fridge, I headed back through the great room and down the hallway leading to the kitchen.
Gathe once again turned to see where I was going.
“Olives,” I said before leaving the room.
I wasn’t sure if I should be insulted or not. It was likely he was concerned about me. Making sure I was handling everything okay. Or he was worried about me bumping into Halo. He was the one who wanted me to meet her. He swore I was gonna like her. We could all be one big, happy family.