Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 96850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
With the kids finally grasping the time crunch, Eve meandered into the kitchen beside him, bending over to take the butter out of the fridge. Those long, smooth backs of her thighs forced Madden to bite the inside of his cheek, his eyes drawn there and held, powerless to do anything but appreciate what he saw. Christ almighty. He’d lived in two countries and played ball in a dozen states and he’d never, ever laid eyes on a woman who came close to the bright, natural beauty of Eve. The name suited her well, didn’t it? He’d spent years being tempted by her, though he’d only ever had the privilege of giving in to that temptation in his mind.
She caught him staring and averted her eyes, quickly setting the butter down on the counter. In other words, not interested. And that was fine. That was her choice to make. Madden was well used to being Eve’s friend and loving her from a distance.
Two nights ago, however, he’d found out something that gave him a dangerous reason to hope that Eve might be willing to explore a relationship deeper than friendship. He was almost too terrified to find out if that hope had merit, but there was no time to sit about wondering. New York expected him tonight, meaning he was operating with a limited amount of time to do one not-so-simple thing.
Find out once and for all if Eve had feelings for him.
Or if the hunger he glimpsed in her on occasion was all in his head.
“I can walk them to the bus stop, if you’re not ready to change out of your pajamas.”
The toast popped up. Tongue tucked into her cheek, Eve plucked out the slices and buttered them quickly, cutting them in half and depositing them on separate napkins. “You’re kind of crabby for someone who is getting signed by the Yankees.”
Madden let that statement stand. “Do you need help packing lunches?”
She shook her head and turned to face him, propping a hip on the counter. “Already in their backpacks. Should I prepare myself for a serious conversation?” Without taking her eyes off him, she handed off the toast to Lark and Landon as they trooped to the door. “If you’re here to apologize for carrying me offstage over your shoulder at my very first burlesque performance, I do not accept.”
“I still haven’t decided whether or not to apologize for that.”
“Really?” She laughed through a frown. “I highly recommend it.”
Madden was making the morning harder on himself, which wasn’t like him at all. Without pointing it out, he knew instinctively she was noticing the same thing. He was the quiet guy who liked to mind his business and observe. Easygoing. But this gut feeling that a lot was at stake had put him on edge, along with the lack of sleep. And maybe, yeah, maybe he had reached the point where being around Eve and never knowing where they stood had grown overwhelming. Painful, even.
“I’ll walk the kids down and be back,” Eve said quietly, retreating from whatever she saw in his eyes. “Backpacks on, you two.”
In four long strides, Madden caught up with Eve at the door, looking her in the eye while he removed her hoodie from its peg by the door and wrapped it around her shoulders. “There’s a nip in the air.”
“Is that so?” she asked on a shallow breath, looking at his chin.
Then his mouth, her pupils expanding.
Confusing him. Always confusing him. She couldn’t put more distance between them without moving to bloody Antarctica, but when they touched, when they got close, she was like leashed electricity in his arms. She had to feel that, right? Feel something?
“I’ll be right back,” she said haltingly, sidestepping out of his reach, looking back over her shoulder as she hurried after the kids. Madden dragged both hands down his face on his way to the front windows that overlooked the street, planting his hands on the frame and hunching over, trying to recover from the contact.
Knowing he wouldn’t.
He watched her progress to the bus stop—and he didn’t like what he saw when she got there. A group of mothers conversed in a huddle and they made no move to include Eve when she arrived, even as their kids welcomed Lark and Landon enthusiastically. Eve stood off to the side until the bus arrived, her expression blithe. Uncaring. She had to notice the furtive glances and eye rolls, though, didn’t she?
This was how Eve had grown up. On the outside. Trying to live a normal life while locals submitted op-eds to the newspaper about the disgraceful strip club on the outskirts of town. Cat Fight had long been her father’s livelihood. A place where Eve did her homework and helped program the lights, the music. It was the establishment that put food on their table. It was also the establishment that had driven her mother away while Eve was still young, the woman no longer capable of bearing the shame being heaped onto her head on a daily basis.