Total pages in book: 150
Estimated words: 143633 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 718(@200wpm)___ 575(@250wpm)___ 479(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 143633 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 718(@200wpm)___ 575(@250wpm)___ 479(@300wpm)
My sweetheart giggled. “You look so… hot.”
“Just hot?”
“Gorgeous,” she said, “absolutely gorgeous.”
“Guess that makes two of us. Let’s get our shoes on.”
Watching her slip into her heels as I tied my laces was enough to give me a hard-on.
“You’re a beautiful girl,” I said as she took my arm.
“Your girl,” she said, reaching up to kiss me.
I was so proud to have her beside me as we walked through the hotel to join Peter and Lola at the bar. They were sitting on stools together, hand in hand, so deep in conversation that they didn’t see us approach at first. It was lovely to see the bond between them, so natural.
“Shit, didn’t see you coming,” Peter said, and slapped my back.
Lola planted a kiss on my cheek before hugging Rosie. There was no superficiality about us being together, just friends enjoying each other’s company. And that’s what we did.
We drank champagne with a cheers, before we moved to the restaurant, where we enjoyed some more. I put everything on my room tab, despite the protests, and we indulged in a glorious menu, with excellent desserts. Rosie’s strawberry roulade matched her dress like a dream.
It was towards the end of the meal – as the room was filling up with more guests – that I began to notice the glances we were getting from fellow visitors. Not least Rosie and Lola, who were clearly hot little minxes, but immune in their innocence. I felt the beginnings of jealousy stir with a racing heart, driven by a primal urge to let the world know she was mine, but I kept it at bay, still chatting and drinking as though I wasn’t carefully observing every single glance my angel was receiving.
“What next?” Peter asked when we were done. “Club, right?”
“Yes,” I told him. “Time for a cab.”
The receptionist ordered one for us as we waited outside, Lola and I enjoying a cigarette before the taxi pulled up to take us into the city. The club looked as good as the pictures had shown, bright lights, and bouncers on the door, with a woman inside directing us up into the VIP room. The place was thrumming with rich ambience, and Rosie, Lola and Peter were spellbound all over again. I soaked in their enjoyment, as well as my own.
“Cigarette?” Lola asked me when we were done with our first round of drinks, and gestured me out onto the balcony, where I accompanied her. She wasted no time, asking me about my earlier request before she’d even taken out her lighter. “What was it you wanted to talk to me about?”
It still felt strange to voice it out loud.
“Some artwork,” I said. “I was hoping you could work on a cover design for me, but I’d like you to keep your work a secret, if possible, please?”
She did a little bounce on the spot, once my request had registered. “For real? You want a book cover? For one of your thrillers? Oh fuck. That’s awesome!”
I shook my head. “No, no. Not for a thriller. I’ve been working on a different project, actually. A novel called The Girl Downstairs.”
Her eyes were magnificent, as was her smile.
“Oh my God! About Rosie? You’ve got the dirty bits in it?! Whoa, fuck. You have!”
“Some of them, yes,” I said with a smirk. “But there is a lot more to it than those. Call it a forbidden romance, if you will. But there is a great amount of romance in it, alongside the filth.”
“Holy shit. You’re serious? You’re going to publish a book about Rosie?!”
“Quite possibly, yes.”
“Does she know?”
“Not yet. She has no idea. Which is why I’m mentioning this to you in private.” I took a drag of my cigarette. “So, I’ll need a cover. Would you be able to design one for me, and keep it a secret until I’m ready to use it?”
“Hell yeah, I’d love that.” She crossed her fingers and held them up. “And I’ll keep it quiet. Promise.”
We talked about the basic outline while we smoked, and we were done with the initial ideas when Peter stepped on out to join us. His timing was good.
“Was going to ask if you wanted another drink,” he said. “Rosie’s just off to the bathroom. I thought I’d get them in.”
“Just finished actually,” Lola said, stubbing her cigarette out.
I did the same and we returned inside together, heading straight back to the bar. The place was busy, but not busy enough that my eyes didn’t seek out my goddess immediately, already having returned from her bathroom trip. She was talking to a guy who was leaning into her, cocky, with his arm on the bar top, and she was nodding, laughing, chatting with him. Oblivious.
“Bloody hell. Didn’t take him long to try it on with her,” Peter laughed over the music. “Still, they probably think we’re out with our kids, not our girlfriends.”