Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 82279 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82279 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
“It’s not the same,” I growl.
“How so?” he challenges.
“It’s just not,” I snap, not giving him any further details. “Trust me.”
They were pretending to have feelings publicly while actually having them. There’s no make-believe, fake relationship going on between Kaitlyn and me. Just a bunch of rules and purely transactional sex exchanges. Ethan would never understand that.
“Mm-hmm,” he says, but I know he doesn’t believe me. Luckily, he drops it and walks away.
Before Kaitlyn leaves, she says goodbye to everyone, and I try to fade into the background before anyone else can call me out on my bullshit lies. When she’s out of sight, I can finally breathe again, even if Ethan’s watching me like a hawk.
Now that she’s out of her ovulation window, we haven’t been having sex, but I find myself craving it and needing more of her. Once she’s pregnant, all of this has to stop. The intimacy ends, and we go back to the way things were before we fucked.
Once the sun sets and we’re stuck working by flashlights, I decide to call it a night.
“Meet y’all back here at the same time tomorrow afternoon. We should be able to finish it before the deadline.”
A round of thank fucks echoes as we all grab our tools and go our separate ways. My body’s sore from all the pushing and pulling I did, and I was already tired from working a full shift beforehand. However, in the end, I know the difference we’ll make will be more than worth it. That’s what keeps me going when I’m about to fall over from exhaustion.
When I get home, I kick off my boots, then throw my hat on the table. Kaitlyn’s pulling dishes from the cabinet, standing on her tiptoes to reach the bigger plates at the top. I move beside her and help, pressing my body into hers as I pull them down.
“Thanks,” she mutters, smiling when she spins around. She’s freshly showered and smells like honeysuckle. It makes me want to lick her all over.
Our proximity is all I can think about, but I make no attempt to move. After the day I’ve had, I just want to get lost in her. But she’s the first to speak up. “Are you hungry? I made dinner.”
“You cooked?” I ask, taking a much-needed step back and looking at the pan filled with steaks, roasted potatoes, and green beans.
“Yeah, I thought you could use a good meal after how hard you worked today. Plus, Grandma forced me to take a bunch of the steaks she got from the butcher. Couldn’t deny that woman even if I wanted to.”
“They smell and look amazing. Thank you,” I graciously tell her.
“Want to watch the new superhero show?” she asks, handing me a fork and knife. It’s a series with lots of action.
“Yeah, didn’t the latest season just come out?”
“Yes, it did, and if I don’t get to binge it immediately, I might actually die.”
I snort at her dramatics. “Fine by me.”
We take our plates to the couch, but before I sit, I quickly change into clean clothes and wash up. When I return, she’s got the remote in her hand and the first episode cued up. I sit next to her, and our bodies practically melt into one another as we eat.
“This steak is incredible,” I tell her, cutting another huge bite and popping it into my mouth.
“Want to know my secret?” she asks with a smirk.
I nod.
“Butter. Lots of it,” she gloats. “And seasoning, of course.”
“Best steak I’ve ever had,” I tell her truthfully. “Could eat this for the rest of my life and never get sick of it. Just like you.” I blurt out that last part before I can stop myself.
She gulps as we stare at each other. We never talked about the last time we had sex or how close we’ve gotten to crossing the lines. The sexual tension streaming between us is almost unbearable. I wonder if she feels it too or if I’m just imagining it because I want to haul her into me and kiss those plump lips I can’t stop craving.
After we finish eating, half of the episode is still left. Kaitlyn pauses it as I take our plates to the sink, then return to the couch with two sodas.
I lean back, and when she does the same, I open my arm to let her rest against me. This is nothing out of the ordinary, but still, it feels different. I trace circles on the outside of her arm, and the goose bumps that cover her skin each time I touch her return.
“Oh my goodness,” she says during a gory scene in the show. “I can’t believe I just witnessed that.”
I’m actually shocked too. “Same. That was… a lot.”
We can’t pull our eyes away from the TV. Its unpredictability is one of the things we love most about this show. Superheroes and antiheroes, rooting for the bad guy who’s kinda good has always been one of our things.