Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 81333 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 407(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81333 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 407(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
The windows go down as butterflies scatter from the tall grass lining the driveway and the glistening water appears in front of us. It’s the color of the sky before a storm—a deep, dark blue. Waves splash happily against the shoreline, and I close my eyes and just revel in being here.
Poppy pilots the car to the front of the house and shuts off the ignition. “Oh, this is gorgeous.”
“It so is,” I sigh, opening my eyes and pointing towards the lake. “Look at how peaceful the water is today.”
“Uh, I was talking about that . . .”
CHAPTER 3
LAYLA
“You’re right, Layla. I’m going to love it here.”
“Shut up,” I hiss, trying desperately to take my eyes off the chiseled, sweaty man standing in the middle of my lawn next to my brother. “Who the hell is that?”
“That would be your hottie brother. And, damn, girl, he looks even better in the off-season when he’s not quite so leaned out. That ass . . .”
“Not Finn,” I groan, leaning forward to get a better glimpse as Mystery Man moves, the sun ricocheting off his drenched body. “Who is with him?”
“I don’t know his name, but he looks like a damn good time.”
They look our way and I slump back in my seat. “These windows are tinted, right?”
“If not, I’m fairly certain we aren’t making a great impression,” she laughs. “I’m assuming Finn isn’t expecting us?”
My head bobs side-to-side as I watch Finn’s friend. A pair of bright blue mesh shorts riding low on his hips, his thick, muscled body widening as my gaze travels up to his shoulders.
Finn says something to him that makes him throw the football he’s holding towards my brother. He laughs, and although I can’t hear the sound, it makes me smile too.
“You’re fucked.”
“Yes, please.” Clearing my throat, I try to thrust my way back to reality. “Okay. Enough. We are all adults here.”
“Which is why we need to stop gawking at their ridiculous bodies and imagining what their sweat tastes like and—”
“Really, Poppy?”
She laughs, picking her sunglasses up from the middle console. “You were thinking it.”
“Here’s the thing,” I say, feeling some sense come back to me, “whoever that is was brought here by my brother. Between that and the way his body screams athlete, that means one thing.”
“That his sex appeal is off the charts? Because I concur. If that man wants to give me babies, I’ll take them.”
I flip her a look. “It means that he’s trouble. A football player. The kind of guy you just told me I need to stay away from.”
“You do. Doesn’t mean I do,” she says, putting on her glasses and stepping out of the car.
“Damn you, Poppy.” Heaving a deep breath, I open my door and step into the warm afternoon air. “Hey, Finn!”
My voice is a little wobblier than I’d prefer and my gaze a little too weighted on my sibling, but I can’t look past him. My peripheral vision is catching enough movement to keep me feeling like I’m being swamped by the waves of Lake Michigan.
“What are you doing here?” Finn comes my way, his grin stretched ear-to-ear as he tosses the ball back to his friend. “I didn’t know you were coming up.”
“Last-minute decision,” I say, tucking a strand of my sandy blonde hair behind my ear. “Didn’t know you were headed this way either.”
“Branch and I thought we’d get away for a few days before the pre-season starts.” He looks away from me and his features darken just a bit. “Hey, Poppy Quinn.”
“Hey, Finn Miller,” she flirts. “Good to see you.”
“I don’t know how it gets any better than seeing you.”
“Always a charmer,” she smiles. “So, this is Branch Best, huh?”
“That’s me.”
His voice is more Southern than I expected, which only adds another cinder block to my already sinking mental capacity. The honeyed twang that’s just barely detectable is enough to make my knees threaten to give out.
His eyes fall on mine, the pools of blue twinkling in the light. The corners of his lips tug up into a sexy, playful grin. One thickly-veined arm extends in front of Finn as he reaches towards me. “I’m Branch Best. And you are?”
“My sister,” Finn warns, knocking his hand away. “No touching, Best.”
“It’s a handshake!”
“It starts with a handshake with you,” Finn explains. “Or a spilled drink. Or an exchange of insurance information . . .”
“She ran into me.”
“Maybe to start. But I’m pretty sure I walked in on you running right into her.”
Poppy and I laugh as Branch sticks a football in Finn’s stomach, making him bend over long enough for Branch to extend a hand to me again and flip me the most adorable smile I’ve ever seen. “Branch Best. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Before I can think twice, I slip my palm into his. On contact, I jump and instinctively pull away, but he clasps down onto my hand with his large, calloused fingers. He grins again. “Do you have a name, Finn’s sister?”