Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 100090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
“I’m sorry.” I return to him and hug him once more, practically clinging to him. “I really am. I’m not ghosting you or anything. I’m just getting a grip on some stuff. But Jake’s game is tonight, and I’m absolutely going to that.”
“I’ll save you a seat in the Wild section,” he says before kissing the top of my head. “Right next to me.”
“That sounds like a fun section.”
“It’s the best, complete with grandparents, kids with missing teeth, and a bunch of men who will yell at the coaches and the refs a whole bunch.”
“That’s my kind of party. Thanks. I’ll be there.”
“I can’t wait.” He kisses me, his hands framing my face, and I give myself over to him, enjoying the way he feels. God, I’ve missed him even more than I realized.
Suddenly, the bell dings over the door.
“Well, maybe I should come back.”
“Hi, Mom,” I say without looking away from Ryan. She said she’d be stopping by first thing to shop for some dresses. “Come on in.”
“I was just about to go,” Ryan says as he backs away and then smiles over at my mom. “It’s always good to see you, Mrs. Allen.”
“Hello, Ryan. How are you and your sweet boy doing?”
“We’re great, thank you. Mac mentioned that he took Jake over to your house for dinner one night while we were gone.”
“I just love that kiddo,” Mom says with a warm smile. “He’s welcome at our home anytime. I hope that next time you’ll come with him.”
“I’d like that.”
Am I wrong, or did my mom just invite my boyfriend over for dinner?
“Let’s make it for next Sunday,” Mom continues, and I can’t help but smirk. Yep, that’s my mom for you.
“I think that works for us,” Ryan agrees. “Thanks for the invitation. What can we bring?”
“Just yourselves. How does pot roast sound?”
“Like my favorite. I’ll see you then.” He smiles down at me now. “Don’t work too hard today, babe. I’ll see you later.”
He brushes his fingertips down my jawline, and then he’s off, and my mom sighs after him.
“I’ve always liked Ryan,” she says. “It would be great if he was an official member of the family.”
“Whoa.” I hold up a hand and shake my head. “We’re barely dating, so let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”
“He took you to Paris and remodeled your house,” she reminds me as she admires a purple dress that is all wrong for her. “I’d say it goes past barely anything, but I will say that Ryan’s mom, Joy, and I had lunch last week, and the two of us couldn’t be happier.”
“Did you two already plan the wedding?” Mom’s head whips around, her eyes full of joyful hope, and I roll my eyes. “I’m being sarcastic, Mom. He didn’t pop the question or anything.”
“Well, what’s he waiting for? That’s what I want to know. Anyway, I really need a dress for this book club party we’re having next weekend.”
“I think I have just the thing.”
For thirty minutes, I help Mom pick out some things to try on, and when she’s tucked in the dressing room, I open my computer to order my new phone. Ryan’s right. I need to take care of it right away, and I’m impressed that no one has shown up to magically hand one over since he left.
After placing my order, I check my email and frown. There’s a new message from Unknown Sender, no actual name, and when I open it, it simply says:
I warned you.
“Darling, I think I found the one!”
“I’ll be right there!”
Something tells me not to delete this. Instead, I just close the computer and go see which one Mom has decided on.
She does a quick twirl in the rust-colored dress, making the fabric swirl around her legs, and I grin. That’s the one I would have chosen, too.
“I love it,” I tell her. “You’ll be the best dressed one there.”
“I think so, too. I’ll take it.”
While she changes back into her other clothes, I take a minute to call Grace and see if she’d be willing to come back to work.
“Hello?” Grace says.
“Hi, Grace, it’s Polly.”
“Hi, Polly,” she replies softly.
“Hey, I hear that things went really sideways while I was gone, and I wanted to reach out to you and apologize. I didn’t know that Melissa would behave the way she did while I was gone, and I’m sorry that she made you feel so uncomfortable that you felt that you had to quit.”
Grace sighs on the other end of the line. “It’s not your fault—”
“Yes, it is my fault. I own this place, and it’s up to me to make sure that everyone feels safe while they’re at work. I’m sorry that you didn’t feel that. I want you to know that Melissa was fired this morning, and I sincerely hope that you’ll consider coming back to work for me. I’ll pay you your regular salary for the week you lost.”