Total pages in book: 149
Estimated words: 151384 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 757(@200wpm)___ 606(@250wpm)___ 505(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 151384 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 757(@200wpm)___ 606(@250wpm)___ 505(@300wpm)
Worry filled her. “Abe?”
Then his door opened and he stared down at her with a frown. His room smelled musty. As though he needed to open a window. And he looked like he hadn’t had a proper shower in a while.
“Abe,” she said softly, her heart breaking. She wasn’t sure what was going on with him, but she had to do something to help him.
“Immy? What are you doing back? Aren’t you supposed to be gone until Sunday?”
“It is Sunday.”
He rubbed his head. “It is? Shit. That means I’m going to work tomorrow.”
“Yes. You’re supposed to be going to work. So you probably want to shower, right? I’ll change the sheets on your bed while you do.” She ducked under his arm before he could reply.
The drapes were pulled and it really didn’t smell great in here. Which was so unlike Abe. That worry in her gut grew.
“Immy, you’re not changing the sheets on my bed. And I don’t want to shower.”
Immy wasn’t sure what to do or where the tears came from. But a small sob escaped her.
“Immy? Shit. Fuck.”
Abe turned her so she was pressed against his chest. Then he wrapped his arms around her.
“That’s t-two dollars for the s-swear jar.”
“I’ll pay it later. Honey, what’s wrong?” he asked, rocking her back and forth.
“I don’t . . . I don’t know. I was so worried about Maeve and then she was kidnapped and now we don’t know whether her kidnapper was tied to the cult. I thought the cult was far behind us, but it keeps coming back. No one is acting the way they normally do. Sampson is extra grouchy. I hardly see Isaiah or Jenner. And I’m so concerned about you. You don’t seem yourself.”
“Shit, Immy,” he muttered. “I’m fine. I’m all right. I just . . . being knocked out like that. It showed me how vulnerable I am. And I didn’t like the feeling. I was supposed to be protecting Maeve and she nearly fucking died.”
“That wasn’t your fault.”
“Wasn’t it?” he asked pensively.
“Look at me, Abraham. It was definitely not your fault.”
“Ooh, my full name, I must be in trouble with the munchkin.” He tickled the sides of her neck where it met her shoulders and she giggled, trying to get away from him.
“Stop! Stop!”
“Right.” He rested his hands on her shoulders. “I’m going to take a shower and try to come back to the land of the living. You go unpack or have a lie down or something. You look a bit pale. Are you feeling all right?”
She groaned. “Why do you guys always do that?”
“Do what?” he asked.
“Turn things around on me. I’m supposed to be taking care of you, not the other way around.”
He turned her toward the door. “Go. Rest.”
She spun at the doorway. “Love you, Abe.”
“Love you too, Immy. And don’t worry, everything will be fine.”
Nodding, she waited until he went into the bathroom. And then she stripped the sheets off the bed, opened the curtains and a window.
Then she grabbed the sheets and started walking down the stairs. She wasn’t really paying attention to what she was doing and she stepped on a sheet. Letting out a cry, she suddenly found herself in the air.
“What the fuck!” a male voice said before she was caught against a firm chest with one arm.
Another arm reached out so his hand could wrap around the banister and she stared up into the shocked face of Tobias.
“Um, hi.”
“What the fuck?” he repeated.
“I, um, well . . . I think that’s self-explanatory. And I’ll give you a pass on the swear jar. But only because of the circumstances.”
“Immy. What. The. Fuck?”
“What’s going on?” Jenner rushed down to them from the top of the stairs.
Why?
Why did this keep happening to her?
“What happened?” Jenner asked.
“Was walking up the stairs toward her when she went flying through the air,” Tobias snapped.
Yikes.
He really sounded mad.
She leaned back to look into his face. “You sound mad.”
“I am mad!”
“I’m not sure why. But you should probably do something about that. You’ll give yourself an ulcer. Or gray hair. Not that you wouldn’t look good with gray hair. No, not good. Hot. Um, no, I didn’t mean that. I meant, distinguished. That’s what I meant!”
Please, God.
Someone stop me from talking.
“Already getting the gray hair and the ulcer, too,” he said.
She nodded. “Yep, that’s what I thought. Maybe you should take up yoga. I can help you. I’m a yoga expert.”
“Since when?” Jenner asked, moving closer.
She glanced over at him. He had a strange look on his face that she couldn’t decipher.
And then she realized that Tobias was still holding her in his arms.
“You can put me down, now,” she said.
Shoot. Where did the sheets go? Yep, there they were, all over the stairs. Great.
“I put you down, you gonna slow down and not rush around and risk breaking your damn neck?” Tobias asked.