Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 134725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 674(@200wpm)___ 539(@250wpm)___ 449(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 134725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 674(@200wpm)___ 539(@250wpm)___ 449(@300wpm)
“Um, if you want to send me back to … your father-in-law’s, I’ll just get my stuff together, and...”
He opened the crate door and Chili hopped directly to the side of my head and then climbed down to my shoulder.
The machine dinged right on time and I walked over to get him a baby bottle. I was dying to pee. And brush my teeth. But I’d already shirked my responsibilities enough, so I figured I’d suffer until Chili had a full belly.
I’d suffer soon enough, because oh God, I flipped the clamshell on my watch open. I had about 33 hours until I got struck with the deadly space flu.
I was ready to cry. I didn’t want to have sex with someone else. I didn’t want to be married to someone else. I wanted Zane. I knew after just this past day and a half with him that I would be a lucky girl to be married to him. And I was pretty sure by the look on his face that I fucked it all up.
I put the baby bottle in Chili’s mouth, and I paced while he fed, lying on his back in my palm, blinking up at me with innocent eyes while he drank his bottle, his little tail wrapped multiple times around my pinky finger.
“Want to explain to me what you mean by ‘take you to my father-in-law’s’?” His arms were folded across his chest and he was leveling me with a dark look.
Holy shit, that expression was intimidating.
“I – I know you can’t likely imagine me being around your son after that, so again, I’m very sorry, and as soon as I feed him you can just take me back and… and…” That was it. I couldn’t hold back. I choked out a sob and I burst into tears.
He was suddenly holding me. Holding me?
I still had Chili between us, in my hand drinking his bottle and looking up at us, but Zane’s arms were around me and his lips were on my forehead.
“Shortcake, I’m not sending you anywhere.”
“I’m such a fucking idiot,” I whimpered, my forehead resting on his chest.
“Listen to me… you’re not the first one who’s gotten drunk and fallen asleep. It’s not a crime. And ---” his voice cracked with laughter, “apparently our wine here is mean.”
“I made a fool of myself last night. And probably made you think there’s no way you could possibly see a future with someone who would be so irresponsible.”
“What?”
“If you hadn’t been here, Chili might have starved to death. If… if…”
Chili hopped onto Zane’s shoulder, evidently done with his bottle. I backed away from him, set it down on the top of the nourishment machine, and wiped my eyes with my knuckles.
“Here. I’ll deal with him.” He fetched his phone and tapped away at it. “I’m starting a bath for you. Go ahead and relax, I’ll have it infused with oils that’ll help relax you, and then we’ll have some food and have a chat. Okay?”
I bit my lip and nodded.
Chili rubbed his head on Zane’s jaw and let out a loud “Coooo” sound.
I went to turn away to walk to the bathroom when his arm hooked me around the waist. He pulled me close, giving me a determined look that made my heart play hopscotch.
“I’m not sending you anywhere, Tanya. You’re very wrong if you think that. In the past, what… however many hours you’ve been here, I’ve only become more infatuated with you.”
“Forty-one.”
“What?”
“Forty-one hours. It’s been forty-one,” I breathed, sort of shocked.
His eyebrows furrowed together as he eyed me curiously.
“I’ll just go take that bath, thank you,” I scurried off, ready to pee my pants and feeling so embarrassed it wasn’t even funny.
***
I emerged from the bathroom dressed in pink jeans and a white cotton cardigan and matching camisole set with freshly painted toes that matched my manicure from yesterday, mostly because I was procrastinating coming out and the master bathroom also had the ability to do nails and hair and everything else the other bathroom had the capabilities for. My hair was in a ponytail after I found one of my hair bands listed in the inventory list under my face on the computer with the rest of my things. I’d taken a minute to browse through everything under that icon of my face and it looked as if Zane had seriously kitted me out. It was perplexing, to say the least, because I now had a full wardrobe. More clothes than I’d had even at home. Dresses. Pajamas. Socks. Underwear. Bras. Nighties. Sexy ones and lounging ones. There were two pants suit sets but most of it was either dresses or skirts with blouses. Shoes, too. Beautiful ones. I’d stared in awe as I scrolled and scrolled, taking in the feast of things there. Accessories, too. Dangling bejeweled earrings. Necklaces. Bracelets.