Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 69847 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 349(@200wpm)___ 279(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69847 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 349(@200wpm)___ 279(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
“I did,” I said. “Though, I hate to admit this, but I know nothing about football. I tried to apply what I knew about soccer to it…but I failed.”
He snickered at me before throwing his arm around me and saying, “I hate to break it to you, but American football is nothing like European football, also known as soccer here. They’re completely different sports, and the only related thing about the two is the size of the field they play on.”
I sighed, long and loud. “I was afraid you were going to say that. But heck, not even Sweetie knew anything about football.”
“A lot of the wives and girlfriends don’t know much. They’re just there for the good time, or to support their man. I think you’d have better luck sitting down and watching a game with me so I can explain what’s going on,” he suggested.
That actually sounded really exciting. I loved to learn about new things.
I loved even more that he was willing to help me figure it out.
The trip to the hotel was uneventful.
Though it got more and more comical when he started to limp worse and worse.
“Are you going to make it?” I asked.
He grunted out a ‘no’ and kept hobbling.
“Mr. Slone!” the concierge called out as we passed. “Your wife has a delivery!” We both stopped and turned before the concierge all but shoved a box into his hands. “Have a good day now!”
Slone tucked the box under his arm and refused to give it to me as we made our way up to the room.
It was only as he collapsed on the bed that the box slipped free and he asked, “What’s that?”
I moved to read the label and bit back a groan.
I looked up from the package and stepped away.
Hades.
“Well,” I said as I stared it down like there was a bomb inside of it. “If I had to guess, it’s something sexual in manner.”
My admission had Slone grinning from ear to ear.
He didn’t do that often, so when the sight fell upon my eyes, it felt like the sun had come out after forty days of non-stop rain.
Geez, I’d only thought the man’s scowl was beautiful. His smile? Now that was a sight to behold.
“Let’s open it,” he said. “Who’s it from?”
“My sister,” I answered. “Hopefully.”
“Which one?” he asked as he picked the small, innocuous package up and stared at it.
He shook it gently, and it started to vibrate.
CHAPTER 15
I believe in holding grudges. I’ll heal in hell.
-Ari to Slone
SLONE
“What do you mean, ‘you hope?’” I asked as I leaned over to the side of the bed and pulled my knife off the side table.
Any self-respecting Texan never left home without one.
I mean, who knew when you were going to need to cut a steak and you wouldn’t have any knife to do it with? Enter the pocketknife.
I’d carried the same one for years.
I was just thankful that the team plane didn’t have any regulations on sharp objects making it onto the plane.
I flipped the knife open and handed it to her hilt first.
She didn’t reach to take it.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I don’t want to open it,” she grumbled. “Best possible scenario, it’s an embarrassing dildo. Worst, it’s blackmail photos or something that I’ll be super embarrassed to open. She knows exactly what she’s doing.” She took a deep, steadying breath. “And this is probably around the time I should tell you that I have some freakin’ weirdo that sends me packages. All of them obscene. And now I don’t open anything anymore. Because it’s either from my sister or the weirdo, and they’re both really bad options.”
I didn’t like her sister. I didn’t like even more that she had some person sending her random gifts that were disgusting.
“Tell me more about this ‘admirer,’” I urged as I glanced at the box.
She’d played it off well, acting as if it was no big deal. But I sensed that it was.
She blew out a frustrated breath, long and loud, her hair ruffling around her face as she did.
“I started getting packages about six months ago,” she admitted. “Hades and I used to do a show together, but I decided to change my routine up and only performed with the cats on my own. That’s right around the time that I started getting these packages.”
“Go on,” I urged, wanting to hear more.
“Well, so…I don’t know when it actually started. At first, I was ignoring them because I thought they were coming from Hades—she’s pretty bad about sending me stuff I don’t like. Anyway, one day I got a wild hair and started opening everything. And each package just got more obscene. The longer I opened, the sicker to my stomach I became. Keene saw everything, threw every single package away, and started monitoring the packages—or trying to. Somehow they still got onto the bus, or given to someone. Then wound up finding their way to me.”