Total pages in book: 171
Estimated words: 164705 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 824(@200wpm)___ 659(@250wpm)___ 549(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 164705 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 824(@200wpm)___ 659(@250wpm)___ 549(@300wpm)
Seb gritted his teeth. “You need the closure.”
His anger surged to life. It looped around us, thick and palpable. Desperate. He’d finally found someone else to speak to other than Oliver, and he didn’t want me gone. Even if it meant tossing his brother under the bus.
I doubted it had anything to do with me or our past friendship. He must’ve been sick of having his guilt-ridden brother as his only companion.
“You have an opportunity to change him.” Seb paused. “To change me.”
I felt myself swaying. Literally. Tilting toward him, hoping he’d take the choice out of my hands and make the decision for me. Maybe even snatch me up and dump me on Ollie’s doorsteps.
The von Bismarck brothers didn’t even a share one whole heart between them. Somewhere in the past twelve years, they’d shattered theirs. I would’ve happily picked up the pieces, but I couldn’t overlook the fact that Oliver cheated on me.
I wasn’t stupid. The timeline of Ollie ghosting me matched with Seb’s accident. But the cheating? It happened before. He’d even left a public comment on her Instagram the morning he took my virginity, inviting her to strip for him on FaceTime.
“Ma’am.” The driver tore open his door and stomped behind me, rapping the roof of his car. “You’re burning my time. I’ve got kids to feed.”
Sebastian clutched the back of his neck, tilting his head down so I couldn’t even see his mask. “I’ve been alone for so long, I don’t remember what it feels like to look forward to anything. In the few days you were here, you made me feel … well, normal. I’ve missed normal.”
“Ma’am.” The driver slipped back into his seat, hammering his horn a few times to get my attention. “Are you coming or what?”
“Your brother wouldn’t want me there,” I said to Sebastian, already considering the absurd idea.
It would just be for a few months. Until I moved on to my next job. It made sense. I didn’t even have an apartment or car to return to. My student loans needed paying off, along with some of the debts my parents had saddled me with. I could save up by squatting at Oliver’s. Look for something nice. Maybe chill for a few weeks.
I’d worked my ass off since I’d turned eighteen. No vacations. Not even paid leave. Even between projects, I gave back-to-back private lessons to aspiring actors who struggled with on-screen intimacy. My friends called me the Thong Whisperer.
In the words of Eliza and Angelica Hamilton, maybe it was time to take a break.
“That would make it so much sweeter.” Sebastian already had his keys in his hands, swinging them by the loop around his finger. He knew I would agree to stay. “You’ll drive him nuts, but he won’t have the guts to get rid of you.”
“Where will I sleep?” I rubbed my forehead, stunned that I actually wanted to go back.
Why not, though? It was free room and board, and I got to help a childhood friend. Pissing off Oliver wasn’t the main goal, but I considered it a welcome bonus.
Sebastian opened his arms. “Any of the seventeen guestrooms available.”
I held a finger up. “Well, okay, but I do have some ground rules.”
The driver lost his patience. He rounded the car, opened the trunk, and tossed my suitcases out with an angry huff. I couldn’t blame him. I planned on leaving a fat tip on the app.
Seb wiggled his keys to get my attention. “Lay it on me.”
“I want us to have one meal together every day. You need to get used to being with people all the time.”
Seb recoiled, gagging. “Don’t be clingy.”
“No promises.” I held up a second finger. “Rule number two, I want you to occasionally get out of the wing during the daytime.”
“Hard no.”
“It doesn’t have to be out of the house,” I clarified, knowing this was a one-off. That Sebastian had no interest in opening up to the world, at least not yet. “You need the sun on your skin. You need to breathe in flowers in bloom. It will be good for you.”
He snorted. “I’m not going to change, Briar. I’d just like a little company for a few weeks. That’s all.”
“Sure.” I nodded, knowing it would piss him off.
“I mean it.”
“So do I.”
“You always were annoying.”
He stomped toward my suitcases, hurling them with frightening ease. With one in each hand, he breezed toward his trunk. Sometime between his master class in weightlifting and my coming to terms with my foolish decision to have a staycation at my arch nemesis’s mansion, the Uber driver disappeared in a blur of profanity.
“You were always a condescending prick,” I offered, making my way to the passenger seat.
We both slid into the car. Seb fired up the engine. As soon as he sat down, I could see it. The tremor moving through every inch of his body. He shook all over. It must’ve taken all his willpower to leave the house.