Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 82453 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82453 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
“I’ll do it just like that.”
“You’re the best friend I’ve ever had,” she whispers. “I’m talking ever.”
Touched by that, I lean forward in the chair I’m sitting in. “You’re a great friend, too, Kirby.”
“It’s Kirbs to you,” she tells me as she glances at her dad.
Rook laughs, and she joins him, tapping her small hand on his knee. “I love you, Daddy.”
Brushing her bangs to the side, he kisses the middle of her forehead. “I love you more, Kirby. I love you so much more.”
A phone ringing breaks the moment.
Posey holds her hands in the air. “Mine’s in the nursery, so it’s not me.”
“I don’t have a phone.” Kirby glares at her dad. “Someone in this room says I’m not old enough.”
“That would be me.” Rook pushes to stand. “I am old enough to have one, and it’s ringing.”
Still clinging to Cindy, Kirby slides to her feet. “Is it Mommy?”
Posey shoots me a smile. “Her mom is Chesca Mills. Talk about gorgeous, right?”
I return the smile, but that’s all I offer.
“It is Mommy.” Rook glances at his daughter before he quickly looks in my direction. “I’ll take it in the kitchen.”
As he walks away, he answers the call, “Hey.”
Kirby’s gaze volleys from my face to Posey’s and then back again. “I think Mommy wants us to have dinner with her. Don’t tell anyone, but Daddy likes when she cooks eggplant and puts cheese on it. She puts extra on Daddy’s piece.”
“I won’t tell a soul.” Posey raises her hand. “I swear.”
“You swear, too, Carrie,” Kirby demands with a sweet little smile.
I follow Posey’s lead and raise a hand, too. “I swear.”
“What exactly are you swearing to?” Rook asks as he rounds the corner to enter the main living area again.
“She can’t tell!” Kirby screams. “It’s a secret, Daddy.”
His eyes catch mine. “I hope it’s a good one.”
It’s not. It’s one that is making me feel insecure in a way it shouldn’t. Rook and Chesca share a child. They lived together for years, so it makes sense that she’d know exactly what he likes to eat.
“Are we going to see Mommy for dinner?” Kirby asks with hope edging her tone.
“You are,” Rook tells her. “I have to work.”
“Scientists don’t work on Saturdays.” She points at me as an example. “Lawyers shouldn’t either.”
“I’m with Kirbs on this one,” Posey comments. “Lawyers shouldn’t work on weekends.”
“Neither should paralegals, but you’re on the clock tonight,” he says. “We’re meeting a potential new client, and I need a point person on this, so that’s you.”
A smile creeps over her lips. “Say no more, boss. I’ll go home and clean up and meet you at the office at…”
He picks up her sentence as her voice trails. “Seven, but not at the office. Atlas 22.”
“Fancy.” She brushes both hands over the front of her overalls. “It’s a date.”
Shaking his head, he looks right at me even though his words are meant for Posey. “It’s not a date. It’s a working dinner.”
Although it’s not necessary, I appreciate the clarification, so I smile and nod.
Rook looks down at his phone when the sound of a bell fills the air. “I’ll take you to see your mom soon, Kirbs.”
His fingers dance over the screen as she nods. “Okay, Daddy, but remember it’s…”
“Kirby, to me.” He shoots her a smile.
I drop my gaze to the table when my phone chimes, indicating an incoming text. I scoop it up quickly. Expecting a text from Abby checking in on her cat, I smile when I read the message on my screen.
Rook: You’re so fucking beautiful. I can’t wait to taste you again.
My hands tremble slightly as I reply.
Carrie: Maybe next time I can taste you? I’ve never done that.
I look up and meet his gaze as soon as he reads my incoming message on his phone.
He stares at me, not blinking, not smiling. The hunger in his eyes speaks volumes.
It feels as though endless moments pass before he types out a reply.
Rook: Meet me tomorrow night at the hotel. How’s 8? I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of you.
I don’t respond via text. Instead, I lock eyes with him and nod slightly. I already know I’ll never get enough of him, and as much as that scares me, I don’t know how to stop the need to be with him. I don’t know if I ever will.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Carrie
Telford sprints into the café and sits across from me without so much as a hello.
“It’s good to see you, too,” I joke. “Why the rush to get down here? I just saw you a few hours ago.”
Five, to be precise.
Like Holden and Milo, Tel bowed out of returning to Abby and Declan’s apartment earlier to view the mural because he said he had something urgent to take care of.
Once Kirby had her fill of playing with Cindy, she insisted her dad take her to see her mom. That’s when I texted Telford asking why he ditched us. I finally got a response twenty minutes ago telling me to meet him at this café near his apartment.