Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 116362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 465(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 465(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
I pick up the menu and start considering the options.
Olives?
Fried potatoes?
Rio taps me quickly on the hand. “Oh my god, Amanda,” she whispers harshly. “Look but don’t look.”
Of course I follow her gaze to the alley and look.
Walking on the sidewalk amongst the many people out for dinner and drinks is Blake.
He’s wearing black pants and that slate grey dress shirt he wore when we had sex in the library, the shirt that unbuttons just enough to see a hint of chest hair, that showcases those shoulders and large forearms on which I’ve memorized every freckle and hair. It’s one of my favorite shirts on him, and when he wore it the other day for the cover of the Billionaire book, I couldn’t help but throw myself at him. As usual.
His hair is shiny, disheveled, catching the evening light and he has this cagey look in his eyes, making him look brooding and intense and all the things I want to see in him.
He looks like mine.
I want him to be mine.
I swallow it down though, prepared to just sit there and watch him move past, his long legs taking easy, casual strides.
Then I realize there’s some guy with him. Shaggy hair to his shoulders, tanned, wearing skate shoes, board shorts, and a Quiksilver tank top. The guy probably smells like surfboard wax too.
The two of them look like men on the prowl, and a pang of horror runs through me when I imagine what their plans are. After all, Rio and I are out and I’m keeping an open mind about the guys I meet. Why would I expect less from Blake?
They’re almost gone, Blake’s gaze now directed at the bricks on the ground beneath them. I almost exhale the breath I’ve been holding when Rio stands up in her seat and yells.
“Hey, Blake!”
“Oh my god,” I hiss at her, grabbing her dress and trying to pull her back down. “What are you doing?”
“It’s water under the bridge, isn’t it?” she tells me, waving at them.
I dare to look over to the alley. Blake’s eyes light up when he spots me. Even though I’ve never met the guy he’s with, he doesn’t look too confused. He probably assumes that Blake has slept with one of us.
His assumption would be right.
“Hello ladies,” Blake says, hands thrust casually in his pockets as he strolls to the railing between us. His eyes linger on me and they’re nothing but warm. “How are we this evening?”
“Where are you guys going?” Rio asks. She gestures to the seats. “Here, sit with us. It’s been ages since we’ve seen you, Blake.”
“Yes,” he says, smiling at me. “Ages.
I try to show nothing on my face, but I can tell his friend is studying me very closely. I wonder what Blake has said about me, if anything.
“We’d love for you to have drinks with us,” Rio says, finally sitting back down. “And I just ordered more sangria!” She pretty much yells that last part. People in the alley turn to look at us.
I give Blake a withering look. “You better sit with us or she’s just going to get louder.”
He holds my eyes for a moment saying nothing and saying everything. He nods, biting his lip in that way he does while still smiling.
“Heath,” he says to his friend and gestures to the table. “Might as well.”
Heath looks at us eagerly. He’s definitely game.
“We’ll be right in,” Blake says, and they disappear inside the front door of the restaurant.
Once they’re out of earshot I grab Rio’s hand, squeezing it painfully hard. “What are you doing?”
“Ow, you wench,” she says, ripping her hand away. “Like I said, water under the bridge. When’s the last time you saw him? When you handed in your assignment? That was ages ago. So he was an asshole in class, he’s not in class anymore.”
“You can’t fuck him,” I warn, shoving my finger in her face.
She looks completely taken aback.
Just then the boys show up.
“Hey, thanks again,” Blake says, taking the seat across from me. “We were looking to get a few drinks somewhere, but every place is packed.”
“It’s the weather,” I tell him.
“What a small town Victoria is,” Rio muses.
“Very, very small,” Blake says, grinning at me.
I can’t help but smile back. Yeah, that smile? Still horribly infectious. Every part of him is horribly infectious. Once you have his cock inside you, that’s pretty much all you’ll ever want for the rest of your life.
“Amanda,” Rio repeats, and I realize she’s been talking.
“Huh?” I ask, tearing my eyes away from him.
“I asked you if you had fun working with Blake,” she says.
I raise my brows. “Uh, yeah, it was fun.”
“She’s very smart, you know,” Blake says.
“You’re not so bad yourself,” I tell him lightly.
Heath’s eyes are volleying between us. “Wait a minute. Is this the Amanda you had to work with on the book? For school?”