Total pages in book: 210
Estimated words: 203847 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1019(@200wpm)___ 815(@250wpm)___ 679(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 203847 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1019(@200wpm)___ 815(@250wpm)___ 679(@300wpm)
They’re small strings. Tiny, microscopic strings no stronger than a spider’s web, but they’re there. And that’s enough to scare me.
What I should do is text Tyler and tell him that I don’t know what I was thinking. That a no-strings relationship will never work with us, because I love the strings. I hate them and I love them. They’re my downfall, my temptation.
I should tell him that I’m in love with love, and that’s why our matching outlooks on no-strings relationships will eventually fall apart. Eventually, I will want more than he can give.
Eventually, I will want all of him. Every little inch of his body and his mind will be needed by me. More than that, I’ll want his heart and his soul. I’ll crave it.
That fear, of needing someone so badly you’re blinded by it, floods through my body. It’s strong, all-encompassing, and I wrap my arms around myself. My hands are shaking.
I can see it. Of all my triggers, Tyler is my biggest one yet. He knows what I want in bed. He knows how to work my body, and as soon as I get addicted to that, the rest will follow. It’ll follow in a wild burst of temptation and obsession that I won’t be able to resist.
So I do what I should have done days ago, and I grab my phone, still trembling.
Last night was a mistake. I shouldn’t have agreed with you. I’m sorry. I can’t see you this way.
“Yeah, yeah.” I put Old Dill’s pint in front of him and hold out my hand. “Come on. Your tab is at the limit, and if you’re to be believed, you got paid on Friday.”
He grins, crow’s-feet appearing by his eyes, and digs into his pocket. He pulls out his wallet and dumps two hundred dollars in twenties on the bar. “Here you go, darlin’. That’ll keep Donny off your back.”
“Thank you.” I sweep the bills up and ring it up on the register. “Now you’re clean again.”
“Ready to start the next one,” he chuckles, taking a long drink from his pint.
I roll my eyes and walk to the middle of the bar to serve the people waiting. Friday nights are always hell, especially around this time. Everyone’s done with dinner and they’ve decided that, instead of staying in their pretty, little restaurant, they’ll hit the bars.
The sudden rush eases off, leaving the bar blissfully empty. I hand a pair of college girls their bottle of wine and two glasses and they take a seat at the table in the corner. But they’re not the only ones sitting there.
Through the rush, I didn’t see him come in. I didn’t see him walk in and take a seat in the corner, and I definitely haven’t felt him watching me. He is though.
Tyler’s dark eyes are fixed on me. His gaze is so intense, almost as if he thinks I’ll disappear if he looks away. He wouldn’t be wrong—I might just run out the back door when my shift is done. I’d have to be damn stupid to not know why he’s here.
He’s here because he’ll ask me questions I don’t want to answer. Questions I don’t have to answer.
I think of that as I finish up the last hour of my shift. I fuck up more than once—overfilling a pint glass, dropping a wine glass, spilling cranberry juice over the bar. Like a fucking bartending newbie. Everything I can fuck up, I do. Plain and simple.
And it’s because of him. Because he unnerves the crap out of me.
Rosie rests a hand on my shoulder and smiles. “I’ll take it from here, Liv. Pete will be here in ten minutes. You go home.”
“Thanks.” I smile gratefully and walk into the storeroom. I make sure not to look at Tyler as I walk away.
I grab my coat and shrug it on, turning my hood the right way out and pulling it over my head. It could be pathetic trying to run, but right now, I don’t care. I don’t see it as weak or pathetic. I see running as knowing when shit is too much for you to deal with. That’s strong, not weak.
“Nice try.”
I stop and pull my hood around my face. And carry on walking toward my car.
“Are you just going to ignore me?”
I unlock my car and take a deep breath. “Actually, I was kind of hoping I could leave before you noticed. But yeah. Ignoring was plan B.”
“I’m not sure whether I should be pissed off at you for trying to run or think you’re fucking adorable for thinking you can.”
“Go with both. It’s a happy medium,” I quip, pulling my car door open. I get in just as the passenger’s side door opens and Tyler joins me. I sigh.
“So. Do you want to explain that text?”