Total pages in book: 136
Estimated words: 125037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
“I make perfect sense. I’m looking at what I want. I am not looking for a cook. I’m looking for a partner. My life growing up was shit, Leila. My mother didn’t want me and beat the hell out of me as often as possible with switches and whatever else she could find. She reminded me daily I wasn’t worth anything but guarding my brother and hunting for food for the family. She didn’t protect us, not even my sisters. I want a woman who will stand in front of my children. Who would fight at my side if necessary. Who would be willing to sacrifice everything for her family. I don’t need a cook. I need you. You’re that woman.”
She had to blink back tears. No one had ever stated anything so amazing to her with the absolute conviction Diego did. He believed what he was saying. She despised that his own mother had told him he wasn’t worth anything. She knew better. He was the best man she knew.
“You’re making me emotional, and I’m not even pregnant.”
His smile was back. “Were you emotional when you were pregnant?”
“It was mortifying. I once started crying because I couldn’t find this silly bracelet Marcy had given me. I’d had it since I was sixteen. I mean, a bracelet? I don’t wear jewelry, but when I misplaced the bracelet, I was devastated and just sobbed.”
Instead of laughing at her as she expected, Diego frowned. “Did you find it?”
Leila nodded. “It was right there on my dresser, but I had accidentally pushed it toward the wall so it had nearly fallen off the back. Fortunately, one of the beads was larger than the others and it caught between the dresser and the wall, and I spotted it when I calmed down. It just felt ridiculous and out of proportion to fall apart over something so inconsequential.”
“Your bracelet isn’t inconsequential, sweetheart. How many times in your life have you been given a gift? That gift means something to you, and it should. When you pack up your things, make certain you bring that with you.”
“You make it sound so easy, Diego. I doubt that my commanding officer is going to just let me go after all the work they put into my training.”
“You aren’t a member of the military. They may have trained you, but they failed to make you part of the military. Had you been captured on one of your missions, they would have denied you were any part of them.”
“Naturally they told all of us that. Wouldn’t the military do the same thing with the GhostWalkers?”
“They do when we’re going on certain missions, but we have the backup of the other GhostWalker teams. We have certain advantages, and those advantages are growing. You’ll be one of our advantages.”
Diego stated the last with so much certainty she couldn’t help the wave of exhilaration that raced through her. He just gave her so many compliments, although he didn’t act in the least as if he had. He acted as if everything he said about her was a fact. Was it? If she could see herself through his eyes, maybe she would begin to have self-worth. She wanted to have a good image of herself in order to give Grace feelings of self-esteem. She wanted her daughter to be confident in every aspect of her life, not just as someone who knew how to hunt and kill.
“Nice to think I’ll be an advantage. I hope you feel that way if you take me home and find out I’m not all that good with household things.”
“Such as?”
“I’m organized, so I’m fairly neat. But I looked around and you’re a neat freak. I might drive you crazy if I don’t put everything in its place. I forget to add half the things I need to my list most of the time. Sometimes I can’t stand to have the windows and doors closed. I feel like I can’t breathe. That could make you crazy.”
He burst out laughing. The sound was rich and had that underlying velvet tone that caught her every time.
“That’s it? That’s what you’re worried about? I have a list of things longer than your arm that are going to drive you crazy. Hopefully, I can find ways to make my shortcomings up to you. I’m good with paperwork. Rubin despises paperwork, so I got very good at it. Lists are a specialty. You want all the doors and windows open; we’ll make sure we have good screens. The swamp can be very humid, and insects seem to like to invade our homes there. I happen to like space, so it won’t bother me to have the house as open as possible.”
“Doesn’t it bother you that you have an answer for everything?” She set her plate down on the little table and picked up the water glass. It wasn’t her smartest move because her hand trembled. She wanted to put it down to weakness, but she wasn’t certain that was the reason. He was freaking her out just a little bit with his absolute certainty.