Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 65862 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 329(@200wpm)___ 263(@250wpm)___ 220(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65862 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 329(@200wpm)___ 263(@250wpm)___ 220(@300wpm)
“Cricket,” he says.
His deep, strong voice fills the silent room and it sends a warm chill down my back. I know he’s called me by that name before because it sounds familiar.
He pushes off the mantle, and the muscles in his back flex. Jesus, is this guy an advertisement for Bowflex? I didn’t think he could look any bigger, but from the front he’s like Thor.
When his eyes land on me, I feel completely naked. My palms sweat, and I try not to stammer as I see this big, muscled, hammer-wielding god before me.
“Where am I?” I ask, proud of myself that I was able to string a couple of words together.
Thunder strikes again, only it’s louder this time. I don’t have time to cover my mouth as it makes me jump and I let out a little scream.
He moves to me, faster than one would expect with how big he is. And before I can comprehend what he’s doing, he’s wrapping me in his arms to comfort me. That deep, rich smell fills my lungs again, and I know for sure now this shirt is his. So is the bed I woke up in.
I look up into his bright green eyes, and everything comes back to me.
“You’re home,” he says, as he places a kiss on my forehead.
Chapter 8
Fritz
“Where is she?” Lilith snaps, and I can see the anger and frustration in her eyes. I’ve let her down. Just like I let my parents down. The thought sets me on edge.
“I don’t know. She couldn’t have gone far. I went by her apartment this morning, but she wasn’t there.” I check my phone again, but she still hasn’t read my texts from last night. I try to reassure Lilith. I don’t want her to think I’ve fucked up completely.
“How could you be so fucking stupid? I told you to make sure she was gone for the day before you came in my office.” Lilith places her hands on her narrow waist.
“I know. I’m sorry,” I say, reaching out to touch her hand. She jerks hers back like she can’t stand the thought of me. “What’s the big deal? She’s gone. Let her go. It was time to end things anyway.”
Lilith turns around and gives me a death stare, and I take a step back from her, realizing she is even more mad than I thought. I don’t understand how she didn’t get upset that I had to pretend to be with Blair. You’d think she would have been jealous and that she’d now be glad Blair is gone from our lives. We can come up with a new plan.
“You have put this entire operation in jeopardy,” she says, crossing her arms over her chest. “It took years for you to find her then get her to work here. We don’t have the time to find someone new. Do you know how difficult it was to find someone so isolated and easy to manipulate? She was the perfect person for this job and you had to go and fuck it up!”
She shouts the last part at me and suddenly I’m afraid that I may have screwed things up beyond repair. I try to think fast so I can fix this.
“I’ll make it right. I promise. I’ll come up with something.”
Lilith rolls her eyes and lets out a long breath. “Jesus, how could I get involved with an idiot like you?” she asks, but I don’t answer. I can fix this, show her I can handle things.
“You’re not going to kick me out of your guest house, are you?” I ask, wondering where the hell I would go. My family disowned me years ago, and I’m flat broke until more money starts coming in from the stolen art.
“This was going to make both of us a fortune. I don’t have time to find someone else to take the fall for this. It was years of grooming and coordination. One slip with a lousy lay and now all of it is on the line.” She turns to look at me, and there is fire in her eyes. “You get her back here and make this right. You do whatever it fucking takes for her to agree to come back to work. And I don’t care if that means you marrying her or never seeing her again. If you cost me all that I’ve built, I’ll make sure this all falls on your shoulders. Get it done, Fritz.”
She spits out my name like it’s dirt in her mouth.
“It’s late. Why don’t we go home and I can run you a nice bath?” I offer, but the set of her jaw leaves no room for debate. “You can count on me,” I finally say, trying to do what I can to smooth things over until I can fix this.