Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 83171 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83171 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
“Nice to see you,” I say shortly.
“And you, as always,” she says curtly and then tugs on Skye’s other arm and whispers in her ear.
Skye reddens slightly but stays calm and mature. I have no idea what Addie said to her, but this isn’t the time or place to rehash it.
I whisk her quickly to our table, where we sit down.
Servers place plates in front of us almost immediately. “Don’t let her get to you,” I say.
Skye nods, and though she tries to hide it, I feel her demeanor change.
She places her napkin in her lap, picks up her fork, but then sets it back down. She’s upset, and I want to help. I need to help.
And I also can’t stop thinking about that chain beneath her dress that’s begging for a yank.
“Braden,” she says.
“Yeah?”
“She’s trying to ruin me.”
I lift my eyebrows, anger surging through me. Addie has upset Skye once again, and I won’t have it.
“What has she done?” I ask.
“It’s a long story.”
“I’ve got time.”
All the time in the world when it comes to Skye.
She sighs. “The day you went back to New York, I got an email from this place called New England Adventures.”
“The hot-air balloon place?”
“Yeah, that’s the one. Have you ever ridden in a hot-air balloon?”
I shake my head. “No. Not yet, anyway. I’d like to try it sometime.”
“You’ll be doing it without me,” she says. “The idea scares the shit out of me.”
I smile and trail a finger over her sexy forearm.
And think about those nipple clamps.
“Anyway,” she continues, “they wanted me to go up in one of their balloons and take some photos and then do some posts. They had this great name for the campaign already. ‘Skye takes to the sky.’ I figured I’m new at this influencing thing, so I can’t really say no to opportunities, right?”
“Right,” I say. “Good to know you listen to me.”
“God, Braden, why wouldn’t I listen? You’re an expert at business. Look what you’ve done.”
I nod. Yes, I did it. With Ben’s help. With…some other help that I don’t like to think about.
Skye continues, “So I called the person who emailed me, Tammy Monroe, to get some further clarification. I tell her how scared I am of plummeting to my death from a balloon, and she assures me how safe it is, how it’s controlled by the FAA and all. She offers me a test ride for free, and if it’s not my thing, I can bow out. So I agree to go on a balloon ride the next day.”
“How was it?”
“It wasn’t,” she says.
I lift my eyebrows again.
“I mean it didn’t happen. But I’m getting ahead of myself. We talked about payment, and I followed your advice. I didn’t take the first offer, except that I actually did, because she explained they were a small operation and couldn’t offer the kind of money Susanne could.”
“Okay,” I say. “You asked. That’s what’s important.”
“So I agreed. I agreed because I’m new at this and I want my name out there.”
I nod. “I can’t fault your logic.”
“So it’s all decided. Tammy emails me the contract, and I sign it electronically and send it back. Then—seriously, like, a minute later—I get an email back from her canceling the balloon ride for the next day. She said they didn’t have availability after all. Still, I expect her to send the countersigned contract later.”
“Why didn’t she send it with the email?”
“Well, I’m getting to that. I get in Instagram to check my first Susanne post, and it’s doing really well. That makes me think of Addie, so I head to her profile out of curiosity.”
“You haven’t blocked her?”
“No. Why would I do that?”
“I saw the nasty comments she made on your first Susanne post.”
“Did you? I deleted them as soon as I saw them.” She smiles coyly. “Are you checking up on me?”
I’m a grown man. I don’t embarrass easily. But at this moment, my cheeks are warming. “Just curious,” I say. “About your new venture. I figured you’d block her.”
“I thought about it pretty seriously,” she says, “but I ultimately decided not to for a couple of reasons.”
“Which are…?”
“Well, she’s a major influencer, so I can learn a lot from how she does things.”
“And the real reason?” I ask.
She smiles. “You’re too much. How do you know what I’m thinking?”
“Ancient secret,” I say. Except it’s no secret at all. Much of Skye reminds me of myself.
“The real reason,” she says, “is twofold. I don’t want to be the immature person who can’t deal with anyone who disagrees with me. That’s Addie, not me. And I also want to keep an eye on her.”
“Well done,” I say.
“I have a good teacher.”
She smiles again, and damn, that chain is calling me.
“So,” she continues, “I get on her profile, and you’ll never guess what I find.”