Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 110694 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 553(@200wpm)___ 443(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110694 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 553(@200wpm)___ 443(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
All three men were attractive. They had the Southern wealth vibe about them that reminded me of the men on Yellowstone. I would guess they were all between forty-five and fifty-five maybe.
“You copied and pasted, didn’t you, darlin’?” One of them grinned at me, leaning back on the sofa with one booted foot resting on his knee.
“Lucky for her, she didn’t get her daddy’s ugly mug,” the one with the most salt-and-pepper hair and pale gray eyes said.
I believe that one was Mal. I wasn’t sure exactly if that was right. Linc had introduced them so fast and pointed from one to the other, and I didn’t want to say their names in case I got it wrong. Hopefully, I wouldn’t need to address them.
“My dad is not ugly,” Stevie said defiantly, sitting up straight, as if to challenge the man.
Linc smirked. “Seems the prettiest girl in the state of Mississippi believes otherwise, Mal.”
“You put damn Disney World in the backyard for her,” the one that I thought was Hale said. “You are a king in her eyes. Don’t let it get to your head.”
“We all know I’m the best-looking one,” Luther drawled, and then his eyes swung to me. “Ain’t that right, Branwen?”
My eyes widened. I was not getting in this conversation. I especially wasn’t going to give Luther any wrong ideas. I’d already seen some of his penis.
“Fuck, Luth, Jesus,” Mal said, reaching over and shoving him on the arm while chuckling and shaking his head.
I felt like I had missed something they all seemed to find amusing, except Linc. His jaw was clenched, and the veins in his neck were standing out.
“Mommy, my dad is the most handsome, isn’t he?” Stevie said, turning to look at me.
Why, Vivi Lu, are you bringing me into this?
“Stevie, sweetheart, don’t do that to your momma,” Luther drawled. “God knows he’s barely spoken to her today…” He trailed off. “She doesn’t want to defend him.”
An embarrassed flush rushed up my neck.
“For Christ’s sake, Luth, when he has you by the neck again, I’m not stepping in to stop him,” the one I thought was Hale said.
Luther only flashed me a wicked grin, then turned his eyes back to the television.
“I don’t know how he lives with your ass,” the third one, speaking for the first time, told him. He’d be Jonas, if I was right about Hale.
“I own half the house,” Luther drawled. “He ain’t got a choice.”
Linc whispered something to Stevie, and she smiled, then hopped down from his lap to hurry over to me. “Let’s go play on my new swing set,” she told me, then bent to scoop up Maui, who had followed her.
He was ready to get rid of us, and I didn’t blame him. I wanted to get out of this situation too.
“It was nice to meet all of you,” I told them before letting Stevie start to lead me away.
“You too, darlin’,” Mal called out.
We were almost around the corner of the tree line when I heard one of them say. “Holy fuck, Luther wasn’t exaggerating. Jesus, Linc. If you’re gonna knock one up, that’s sure one I don’t blame you for.”
A pleased smile tugged on my lips, and I hoped Stevie hadn’t been listening. Her vocabulary was getting larger—and not in a good way.
“Shut up, Hale.” Linc’s voice sounded like an angry growl.
“She’s young too. I didn’t know she was that young. Damn, man. Whew. Beauty and youth. What did Levi think about her being so young? Is he older than her?” I thought that might be Mal.
“She is older than Levi.” Linc sounded pissed. “She looks younger than she is.”
“Eh, let’s not forget that she was a little girl when you were already married and had a kid,” Luther piped up. “I might have only been a teenager back then, but I remember her. She followed you around, worshipping the ground you walked on.”
I hadn’t realized Luther had been in Ocala back then. He’d never mentioned it. I tried to think back, but I didn’t remember him.
Whatever else was said after that, I could no longer hear them as I kept going. Stevie was basically pulling me in her attempt to run to her new playset. Linc had wanted to outdo the one that I had wanted to get for Hudson’s backyard. He’d succeeded far beyond any expectation. My jaw had dropped when we walked out here this morning.
There was a round teak sofa with cream cushions and a canopy that came over the top for shade, along with the playground that he called a swing set. Two tall, skinny teak tables stood on either side to hold drinks. I walked over to it and slipped off my sandals before climbing onto it and stretching my feet out in front of me. The furniture came apart into four pieces, making a curved sofa; two small, padded benches; and a round one in the middle to use as a seat or perhaps a table. But when pushed all together, it was large enough to stretch out on like a bed. I preferred it this way.