Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 116759 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116759 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
“That I will allow.” My hands shook as I ran them through my wet hair. “I’m going to pack.”
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
SEBASTIAN
Yesterday 19.46
Lily: I’ve arrived. Jan’s home now so heading straight there.
Sebastian: Let me know when you get there.
L: I will.
S: And let me know how Jan is.
L: I will. Love you.
S: Love you too.
Yesterday 20.31
L: I’m home. Jan is exhausted but okay. Her wrist is in a cast. I feel better seeing her for myself.
S: I’m glad. Tell her I’m asking for her.
L: I did. How are things there?
S: Zac just told me he invited a bunch of people here tomorrow. They’re flying in from all over.
L: How do you feel about that?
S: It’ll be a distraction from missing you, I suppose.
L:
Today 09:22
S: Morning, Sawyer. How’s Jan?
L: Grumpy but fine. Annoyed at me for leaving you to rush to her side. The gratitude is overwhelming, I tell ya.
S: LOL. Secretly she’s pleased. I’m not. I missed waking up with you this morning.
L: Me too. What are the plans for today?
S: Apparently, I have a bunch of guests to welcome, remember. You?
L: I might as well study. Jan’s grumpiness is making me long for you and the villa. Remind me I love her.
S: You love your sister.
L: Thanks. Go have fun. We’ll talk soon.
S: Love you, Sawyer.
Today 22.23
L: So how did your day go?
S: It has been one long party. The place is packed with people. My parents might kill me if they ever find out.
L: Who are all these people?
S: Uni friends. School friends. People we know from the area.
L: Well, try to have fun. Go enjoy yourself. We’ll talk tomorrow.
S: Night, Sawyer.
L: Night, Thorne.
Istared down at the string of texts between me and Lily, wanting her with me for multiple reasons. Truthfully, I was glad January was okay. She reminded me a lot of Juno, so I’d grown rather fond of Lily’s younger sister. If Juno had been in an accident, no matter how major or minor, I would have gone home too, so I understood Lily’s decision to leave.
But right now, she would have been the perfect buffer. Last night, I’d locked myself in my room, avoiding Colette who came over as per Zac’s invitation. Now, however, with all our old friends and acquaintances filling up the place, I didn’t feel like I could or should abandon the party. Colette, as it turned out, wasn’t a problem. She’d shown up again but was all over Zac.
The problem was Gisele Martin.
Gisele was the daughter of a family friend. Her mother was English, her father French, and we’d run in the same circles for years. We’d slept together casually over those years. Since she was on spring holiday from Oxford at her family’s château a mere half an hour from here, she’d taken up Zac’s invitation and appeared with three of her friends.
The drunker she’d gotten, the more she attempted to drape herself all over me.
An edge of panic and guilt followed me around the party with her. No matter how many times I told her I had a girlfriend, she merely laughed like I’d said something funny.
“You look like a hunted animal.” Sierra appeared at my side, holding out a fresh beer.
“You saw?”
“Oh boy, did I see. Who is she?”
I explained my history with Gisele. “I’ve told her multiple times about Lily,” I promised. “It only seems to make her come-ons worse.”
Irritation tightened Sierra’s features when she caught sight of Gisele strolling into the kitchen with a drunken sway to her hips. “Leave it to me.” Before I could speak, Sierra marched across the room and halted Gisele’s travels. I couldn’t hear what was being said, but Sierra’s body language was aggressive and Gisele’s defensive. When Gisele said something with a haughty lift of her chin, Sierra suddenly put her face in hers and said something that made Gisele blanch.
She raised her arms in a surrender gesture, threw Lily’s friend a huffy sneer, and whirled around on her six-inch heels, departing the room.
I slumped with relief. “Thanks,” I said with genuine gratitude when Sierra returned to my side. “What did you say to her?”
“I told her I’d give her a reason to get another nose job if she didn’t back off my friend’s boyfriend.”
I sniggered. “You didn’t?”
“That girl is already an entitled spoiled brat, something I can tell from having only met her for a minute. Add in too much alcohol and she needed some serious incentive to back off. You actually slept with her?” Sierra wrinkled her nose in disgust.
“I didn’t really care if she was nice.” I shrugged. “I wasn’t looking for a relationship.”
“Well, no wonder you fell for Lily if all you did before was surround yourself with the Giseles of the world.”
“It’s not all I did. I’ve hung around with some very nice women. Smart, sexy, funny women. But none of them felt right. Because they’re not Lily.”