Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 77611 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77611 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
If I ever meet his mother and those brothers of hers, I’ll have to thank them for raising him to know right from wrong. Though I think he would have turned out like this regardless. Michael Demir is simply a good man.
Too good for you.
It’s possible. He’s also too rich for my blood, too complicated and, other than not being local, too perfect to be real.
I look back the way we came, at the clearly marked trail of compacted snow, and frown. It was my idea for Bellamy to bring Michael so they could have more time to talk and work together without an audience. But where are they?
I probably shouldn’t care so much. My trapped in a cabin with a mountain man fantasy is over now. Bex should be on her way here with the band, Connor is inside along with the rest of my clothes, and I’ve already spent more time with my pub beast than I have with anyone I’ve slept with before.
It was wonderful. I’ll never forget a second of it. But I should be ready to call it by now. I should be thankful that it happened and glad it’s over, so I can get back to my busy but satisfying life. That’s my brand. That’s how I roll. I’m Anti-commitment Guy. I don’t date. I don’t do relationships. I never fall in love.
“Weird weekend,” Jake says.
I look over, startled to realize he’s standing right beside me. How long has he been there? “Understatement is clearly your superpower.”
He smirks. “Uncle Michael really told you about all of that stuff with Bell’s company? Voluntarily?”
I nod. “Well, he didn’t tell me about the heiress. But the rest of it, sure.”
“I’m glad I was never interested in finance,” he continues thoughtfully. “It sounds like it’s full of greedy assholes.”
I nod and open my mouth to tell him about the time Alexander Hamilton—
No. I’m not interested in regaling anyone with trivia at the moment. The truth is, the best thing about that founding-father-without-a-father is that Lin-Manuel made a musical about him. He isn’t relevant to this situation, even if he was obviously bisexual and married to an heiress. Like Michael could have been, before we’d ever met, if he hadn’t stood up for himself.
“I’ve known him for a few months now,” Jake tells me. “And he doesn’t really talk that much. Especially not about himself. Dad says he’s shy.”
I blink. “Are you sure we’re talking about the same person?”
“I’m sure.”
Michael had told me he was uncomfortable around people, that he spent a lot of time on his own as a child, and that he’d never had any long-term relationships. And it’s true that he doesn’t seem to get most of my entertainment or social media references. It’s just hard to imagine him being shy after the last few days. He was so open and gregarious with me. So passionate.
“There’s my life partner.”
I turn to see Connor walking down the ski lodge steps toward me. Front Desk Veronica, who’s currently holding his hand, stops and stares at him with her mouth hanging open, and Jake coughs into his glove.
Good lord, Coach Himbo.
“He heard someone say ‘hetero life partner’ once and thought it was cute,” I explain with a grin. “We’re just roommates. He gets confused sometimes.”
Veronica snorts out a laugh, and her dimples pop into view. She’s got rosy cheeks, her hair is a riot of golden curls and I bet she bakes cookies. Regular cookies with chocolate chips that rich foodies wouldn’t know what to do with but kids would love.
Connor flushes but he doesn’t acknowledge the fumble. “Bex texted that she’d be here soon. Also, that she’s with Tanaka for some reason, which is kind of insane since I just saw him in the lobby with his fiancé like four hours ago. Anyway, we’ve been looking around and he hasn’t checked out, but he is gone. They both are. We came out here to see if they took their car and here you are.”
Bex is with Ken Tanaka? I pull out my phone and send her a text.
Me: Why are you with Batman? Saving the world again?
“I had no idea this weekend was going to be so entertaining,” Veronica/Future Mrs. Lafferty tells us with a conspiratorial gleam in her eye. “Jill will be jealous she missed it because she decided to have surgery to fix her deviated septum. It’s even better than that sex toy convention three years ago. Do you have puppies inside that jacket, by any chance? I only ask because it’s moving.”
OMG they are perfect for each other. Their babies will be blonde and beautiful with no filters.
Before I can answer, Bellamy drives up slowly, with Michael and his multiple containers behind him. To keep myself from running toward him like a besotted idiot, I unzip my jacket and let Mims and Mad, who are already attached to their leashes, down to the ground where they can sniff the new area to their hearts’ content.