Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 126823 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 634(@200wpm)___ 507(@250wpm)___ 423(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126823 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 634(@200wpm)___ 507(@250wpm)___ 423(@300wpm)
Stella laughed. “They know who gives them all the treats. Blatant kissing up right there.” She stepped back to ensure Raine made it safely into Shabina’s house.
Shabina could see it wasn’t easy for Raine to walk, even with her cane. Her progression was slow. There was no expression on her face, but without a doubt each step caused pain. Raine had always been an adventurer. A bit of a thrill seeker. She’d hiked the entire John Muir Trail alone, nearly three hundred miles of wilderness. She’d summited Mount Whitney several times and been up Half Dome numerous times. She’d hiked the Alps, been in a dormant volcano in Iceland, gone to the ice caves in Romania and hiked all over that country. She’d hiked the backcountry of Thailand and gone down the Amazon River as well as traveled to many other countries. She parasailed and bouldered, and she loved anything involving problem-solving, which made her good on aerial silks and rope. It was difficult to see her struggling to walk.
Shabina crouched down to pet and scratch both dogs, greeting them enthusiastically. She loved them both. Once they had their fill of her attention, they raced to meet the new puppy. Shabina carefully washed her hands as Stella put Raine’s backpack on the end table in the great room. Raine never went anywhere without her backpack. It was waterproof and contained her laptop.
“I made us late, Shabina,” Raine said. “I’m so sorry. The General.” She rolled her eyes. “You have to remember him; he insisted I find information for him.”
“What?” Vienna whirled around, pressing her back to the sideboard. “You’re on sick leave. You aren’t supposed to be doing any work at all.”
“Well, he believes I shouldn’t be working, but that rule doesn’t apply to him. I told him there were others he could use, but he was insistent it had to be me. He also pointed out there was nothing wrong with my brain since I was too stubborn to use painkillers, and all I had to do was sit on my ass and figure it out.”
“He said what?” Zahra was outraged.
“Yep. Actually, he said skinny ass.” Raine sounded amused.
No one with the exception of Raine knew if the General was really a general. Raine always called him that, but when anyone inquired, she made a joke of it and insisted he simply liked to be called that. Shabina believed he was a general. For some reason, Raine seemed to think most things he said to her were humorous. Even his insults.
“If Rush knew,” Stella said, “he’d take your cell, and if that didn’t work, he’d take away your laptop again. Doctor’s orders take precedence over a boss who doesn’t respect your leave.”
Raine made her way to one of Shabina’s very comfortable chairs in the great room. She lowered her body slowly into it, stretching her leg out in front of her. It wasn’t difficult to see that the journey had been painful. There were little beads of sweat on Raine’s forehead, but she appeared triumphant.
“I would go crazy if I sat around doing nothing. And technically, I don’t have a boss. I’m a private contractor and I prefer it that way. The General can puff up as much as he wants but he knows he can only push me so far. In the end, I’m going to get my way.”
“Don’t let him say you have a skinny ass,” Zahra said with a little sniff of disdain. “That’s so insulting. He has no right to make personal comments. There should be someone you can make complaints to.” She stood up, puppy still in her arms, and went to the little crate Vienna had placed in the corner of the room. “While I eat, I’ll put Misty in her crate until I train her to stay on her bed like the other dogs. I don’t want her to bother everyone.”
“It isn’t like he’s older and we can make allowances for a different generation,” Harlow added. “He’s being a jerk.”
Shabina indicated the food. “I’ll fix your plate, Raine. I made your favorites.” She gave the command to her three Doberman pinschers to go to their dog beds.
The other women followed suit.
“He was goading me. He doesn’t think my ass is skinny,” Raine explained with a little sigh. “He asks me out all the time.”
Zahra lifted her eyebrow. “That’s his way of flirting?”
Raine laughed. “Yep. He thinks he’s very clever.”
Zahra made a face. Vienna and Harlow exchanged a long, confused look. Stella and Shabina laughed.
“He’s a geek, isn’t he?” Stella asked.
“Totally,” Raine said.
“Just how many men do you have asking you out?” Harlow asked. She began lifting the lids from the food warmers. “Shabina, you’ve outdone yourself.”
“It all looks delicious,” Stella agreed. “You’ll have to roll me into the swimming pool.”
“There should be plenty left over to take home to Sam,” Shabina said as she got into line to fix Raine her food.