Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 77582 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77582 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
“But it kind of is,” I say, deciding now is as good a time as any to attempt to explain myself. “I don’t know why I didn’t say something about Darcy that night in the woods. I should have. I usually would have, I just…” I sigh. “Like I told you that morning, we were already having problems. That’s why I was out hiking alone, to get some space to think about what I wanted moving forward. I knew that wasn’t Darcy. Truly. I was going to end things with her that morning anyway. I’d already made the decision, even before we were together.” I drag a hand through my hair. “But when I got to her place, and she told me her period was late. Suddenly, there was a chance we might be having a baby together, and I just couldn’t—”
“It’s okay. It doesn’t matter,” Tessa says, cutting me off with a sharp shake of her head. “It really doesn’t. The past is the past and we have enough drama on our plates in the here and now.” She pulls in a deep breath, letting it out with a flap of her arms. “If you want to grab the bags I put by the garage door, I’ll finish packing and be out in a few minutes. The sooner we put space between us and your ex’s sister, the sooner we can find somewhere to take a nap. I’m suddenly very, very tired.”
“Got it, I’ll meet you out front,” I say, backing toward the door, feeling like shit.
Speaking of shit…
Might as well find someone to clean up the porch while I’m waiting.
Once I’ve deposited the cooler and grocery bags beside the camper, I pull my phone from my pocket. It’s only five-thirty, probably too early for Christian to answer, but I can leave a message.
I put my cell to my ear, mentally composing what I want to say, but to my surprise, my brother answers on the first ring, bellowing, “Wesley! What’s up, brother? Are you catching this sunrise? What the fuck, man? How is the sun so beautiful? How did we get so lucky? To be born on a planet with a sun like this one?”
“I love the sun so much,” a feminine voice in the background—Starling, his fiancée, I’m betting— agrees.
“And I love you, woman,” Chris says, his voice vibrating with emotion. “You’re my fucking sun goddess, and I’m going to worship you until we’re old and gray and your nipples drag the fuckin’ ground.”
Starling giggles. “Never going to happen, buddy. Sun goddesses keep it swag, we don’t drag. Now stop talking about my nipples, you’re going to make Wesley uncomfortable. I love you, Wesley. I can’t wait for you to be my brother for real! We’re finally setting a wedding date and you’re going to be the best man because you’ll dress up in a costume without complaining about it.”
“Yeah, Barrett would be a whiny little bitch,” Christian agrees. “And Drew is going to have too many kids to have time for fittings. They’re pregnant again, did you hear? Mom figured it out last night when Tatum kept drinking virgin mimosas. Those two really love to raw dog.”
Starling giggles. “Gross.”
“Well, they do,” Christian insists.
“So, how drunk are you?” I ask, pretty sure the answer is “very” based on the conversation so far. “I have something serious to ask you, but I don’t want to waste my breath if you’re not going to remember it in a few hours.”
“Oh, we’re not drunk,” Christian says, dropping his voice dramatically before adding in a whisper nearly as loud as his normal tone, “We’re on some kind of psychedelic herb thing Starling got from her friend who leads vision quests in Arizona. It was part of our sun goddess role-playing. I wasn’t sure about it at first, but now…I love it, man. I am one with creation. I am a throbbing heart filled with love, connected to all the other throbbing hearts, and I’m psyched about it. My ego is dissolving in the warmth of the universal truth of our undeniable connection, and I couldn’t be happier. Also, this breakfast sandwich is the best I’ve ever had.”
“So good,” Starling agrees with a euphoric sigh. “Best sausage ever. Best night ever. Best sunrise ever. Oh, and you’re on speakerphone, Wes, just FYI. But we’re alone at the lookout point so no one will hear us. We respect your privacy. Even when we’re one with the sun and realize there is no privacy. Not in the deepest sense of the word. I am you and you are me and we are the everything and the nothing and all that lies between.”
“That’s exactly it. The perfect way to put it,” Christian says, his voice reverent. “You’re so fucking smart. When we decide to raw dog, our kids are going to be tiny geniuses.”