Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 133878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 669(@200wpm)___ 536(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 669(@200wpm)___ 536(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
When the Harper brothers had walked in and taken a place near the big windows, he’d known he would try to wait them out. Or at least sneak by without Max Harper starting something. Bay couldn’t help but take the bait every single time. Now he had a different reason. Now he wanted to sit here and watch her.
She was smiling, but it wasn’t her goddess of the world smile. There was a tightness to her whole body that gave her away. He’d made a careful study of the woman who would fit so perfectly between him and his brother. He was starting to think she might be the only woman in the world for them.
And wasn’t it the story of his life that she didn’t want to want them.
The chemistry was there. She was curious. She watched them both but she was…scared? Disappointed in her own needs? Disgusted that she was attracted to a couple of lowly cowboys? One he could fix. The second he could possibly turn around.
He was deeply worried it was the third, and he couldn’t make himself more respectable.
Bay, he could talk up. Bay was a real artist. He was quirky. Bay was Stef Talbot’s student.
Shane was just his bastard brother.
“I know you think it’s a funny rivalry, but the Harper brothers are cornerstones of this town.” His brother rarely thought about anything but his art. He was brilliantly talented but could be short sighted when it came to…well, anything else. “If we irritate him and he wants us gone, he can do it.”
Bay sat back with a long sigh. “Somehow I think Stef would have something to say about it. He’s happy with the work I’ve been doing. He’s planning a whole… What did he call it?”
“Showing.” Sometimes Shane was sure he listened to Talbot more than his brother did. Sometimes he was sure he knew more about the damn art world than the actual artist. “He and Jennifer are going to do a showing at the end of the summer, and they’re inviting a bunch of people they know who have influence in that world. He thinks you’ll be able to make some serious sales.”
Bay nodded. “See. There’s no way he’s going to pick Max over his star pupil.”
Short sighted. “Max, who he views as his brother. Max, who’s the godfather to his son. That Max?”
Stef Talbot didn’t have any blood siblings, but he considered the friend group he’d grown up with to be his family. Max and Rye Harper and Callie Hollister-Wright were his siblings, and he would never turn his back on them. Rachel Harper was Jennifer’s best friend. The billionaire did not need to make money off of them. It was pure kindness that he was doing all this work for Bay.
Bay sighed. “Fine, but I don’t think you understand. I know he seems like we annoy him, but Max enjoys being annoyed. He’s one of those guys. He likes the banter. Especially now that he’s married with all those kids. It reminds him of when he was young and could fuck around with people.”
Shane worried the “banter” reminded Max that they were assholes who’d hit on his wife before they got married.
And now he wanted to hit on the guy’s sister again.
She laughed at something her brothers said but he still didn’t buy it.
None of her socials had mentioned she was coming to Bliss. In fact, she’d talked about spending the whole summer in Manhattan working on what she called her fall line.
So why was she here?
“They’re awful. I don’t understand how we’re supposed to deal with half-done costumes? Are they going to be ready? We’ve only got six weeks before we open,” one of the women was saying in the booth in front of them. There were four people, and they’d been here even longer than he and Bay. Three women and one man, and they were obviously in some kind of crisis.
But he had a crisis of his own.
She was here, and it might be their last shot.
Were they even ready to make a go of it with any woman? Much less the one he was pretty sure was the right one? What the hell did they have to offer her? It wasn’t like they owned much of anything.
Bay held up his hands, obviously giving up the argument. “Fine. But when I’m polite to the man, you’ll see what I mean. We have a relationship, Max and I, and this will tilt that fucker, and you might not like where we land.” He took a long breath. “I don’t think we should be held hostage here so my presence doesn’t offend the prince of Bliss County. Besides, don’t you think our waitress is going to get antsy? We are literally taking up a table she could be earning another tip from. Especially since you’re a miserly bastard.”