Total pages in book: 118
Estimated words: 120838 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 604(@200wpm)___ 483(@250wpm)___ 403(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 120838 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 604(@200wpm)___ 483(@250wpm)___ 403(@300wpm)
“Even me?” he asked.
His reaction made me pull from Dair’s arm before I smacked it.
“You don’t have to be all honest all the time,” I complained.
“I’m trying to prove a point,” he retorted.
“Well…duh,” I shot back.
Dair burst out laughing.
I screwed my face up in a poisonous look aimed at him which only made him laugh harder.
I gave up on Dair and turned to Hale.
“Not you. I knew you were here for me,” I assured.
The animosity fled, and Hale’s lips twitched. “I take it you two made up.”
Two could play the honesty game.
“He tackled me in the woods and hurt my back.”
“Aye, I did,” Dair copped to it right away, and if my ears weren’t deceiving me, he did it proudly. “She was running through thick fog. She’d already tripped once and wrenched her back. Any second, she was going to run into a tree.”
“I was hardly going to run into a tree,” I disputed.
“Did ye have that first clue where you were heading?” he asked.
“Away from you,” I answered.
“And undoubtedly eventually into a tree. Or a heart attack. Ye were breathing so hard when I tackled you, ye were wheezing.”
I was one thousand percent wheezing.
I settled into silence and a glare.
“Well,” Hale broke into our bickering, “since everything seems all right, and I’m here, you want to go out and get some lunch?”
Lunch?
“What time is it?” I asked.
“Ten thirty,” both men answered me.
Ten thirty!
I hadn’t slept that late in years.
“It’ll take her an hour and a half to get ready,” Dair told Hale.
“That’s why I suggested lunch and not brunch,” Hale told Dair.
“If ye can hang for fifteen, I can take a quick shower and we can catch up while Blake does her hair and picks an outfit,” Dair said.
“Works for me,” Hale replied.
“I am standing right here, you know,” I pointed out.
“Go on up.” Dair jerked his chin upward. “Start the onerous selection process for your outfit. But go slow and take it easy. I’ll bring some ibuprofen and coffee up.”
“It was just a twinge this morning,” I informed him.
“You’re getting ready to go to lunch. Then going to lunch. And coming right back to the heating pad,” Dair bossed me.
“I—”
“As entertaining as this is,” Hale cut in and looked at me, “it does take you an age to get ready. And that’s no judge. Elsa’s the same way. The results are always worth it. From both of you. But if you don’t get started, we won’t have lunch until three thirty.”
Suddenly, I realized I was starved.
“I’ll go on up,” I said and headed that way.
“Lass,” Dair called.
I turned to him.
He pointed a long finger to his gorgeous lips.
I released a harassed breath and stomped to him, got up on my toes, and kissed those gorgeous lips that were now smiling.
I then headed back out saying, “I won’t be long.”
“Right,” both men replied in dual tones of disbelieving.
Whatever.
I walked up the stairs trying to decide on what sweater I’d wear.
But forcing its way into that decision-making process, the knowledge hit me that Hale was, indeed, the richest man in the world.
And maybe the busiest.
And he was here.
Because he heard I was hurting.
And because he loved me.
He also heard that from Chloe, who heard stuff from Alex, and they were both worried about me.
Because they loved me.
I had two choices on how to react to this tardily dawning apprehension.
Bawl my eyes out.
Or smile and get on with it.
I chose door number two.
And not incidentally, a few minutes later, I chose the perfect sweater.
In the end, it took me two hours to get ready, because, in order to stop everyone I loved who loved me in return from worrying about me, I did a group text to tell them Dair and I made up.
This meant doing hair and makeup while fielding a variety of calls.
But considering my excuse, neither man I loved (who loved me in return) minded.
“Aye, lass,” Dair encouraged gruffly.
He was on his knees, his head bent, his hands to the headboard, his legs spread, and at his command, I was reaching through his glorious thighs and stroking his cock.
Yes, at his command.
Like I was his good girl.
Though, I totally was.
I mean, just the command put me there, but how he was right now?
Yum.
“Fuck, that little twist ye do,” he grunted, beginning to pump into my hand.
I’d done the twist while stroking his cock by accident close to our beginning, but I added it to the festivities when I heard the noise he made when I did it.
I was thoroughly enjoying this, so much that…
Dang it.
I needed him to fuck me.
“Dair,” I breathed.
He heard it, I knew it, when I lost hold because he turned, tossed me onto my belly, kneed my legs apart, settled between them, and slammed inside me.
My head flew back, that felt so damned good.
“Honey,” I panted as he thrust into me, fucking me into the bed.