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)
He took care of the plane tickets, the rental car, Sorcha.
I’d helped with my stuff in a kind of automaton way, but for the most part, he’d packed us both.
And now he was lazed in my bed on my iPad.
He was not on the phone blatantly dealing with work, giving the subtle hint of how much he was sacrificing for me and that I should appreciate it. He took care of all of that yesterday, subtly, without that first indication he was making a production of it so I didn’t miss it, thus I would be appropriately grateful when the time came for him to use the brownie points he’d racked up.
So…yes.
I’d already been falling for him.
I was falling faster now.
I moved to the bed, asking, “What?”
“Take a look at these,” he bid.
I entered the bed to rest on my stomach, and he turned the iPad my way.
I stared at what I saw.
“Which one ye like?” he asked. “I’ll order it and have it expressed.”
“I…you…” I stammered then tore my gaze from the screen to look up at him. “What on earth are you doing?”
“Buying you riding clothes.”
“I can see that, Dair, but—”
“Christine says your mum has two horses in the stables. They need exercise.”
“I can ride a horse in jeans, regular boots and a sweater.” I flipped a hand at the iPad screen. “I don’t need a formal riding habit.”
His huge grin made an appearance, and he teased, “Lady Norton doesn’t wear jeans riding, lassie.”
I screwed my eyes up at him. “Is this some kind of kink?”
That grin turned roguish, and he answered, “Wasn’t, until I thought of your ass in these jodhpurs.”
I slapped him on the stomach. He grunted, but I sensed it was just for show.
I then pushed off the bed and headed back to the bathroom with Dair calling behind me, “I packed ye and ye don’t have any jeans.”
“I have riding clothes here,” I called back, picking up my makeup brush again. “I ride when I’m at Treverton, Dair, because, as I’ve said before, I love horses, and I’ll add, I love riding.”
“We’ll ride this afternoon then,” he said.
Riding with Dair on my mother’s estate.
Strike that.
My estate.
Yesterday sucked.
I would never in my life forget seeing Mum in that awful room I could tell they tried to make soothing, but they were doomed to fail. Seeing her lying under a blanket without her signature rosy-pink lipstick on.
Eyes closed.
Lifeless.
No spite.
No snide words forming from her mouth.
No disappointment, emotional manipulation or passive aggressiveness.
Just…
Peace.
To my shock, I didn’t like it.
And I would never in my life forget knowing the day she died—having lived her life the way she had, the last thing one daughter felt compelled to share with her was a vicious slap (and I still winced thinking about that), while the last thing the other daughter experienced from her was the need to be protected from her shenanigans—that a two-year-old little girl had died not even getting a chance to make a life.
No, I would never forget any of that.
But today was…better.
Not great. I wouldn’t be settled until I saw Alex.
But it was better.
And riding with Dair later would make it even more so.
So I wasn’t bouncing with joy with the thought of taking on the day.
But I was no longer a zombie either.
Progress.
I’d take it.
Dair, Dad and Nora following, I flew out the door straight to Alex.
I didn’t have to navigate the gravel in heels on the run for long, she raced to me.
We collided in the middle, wrapped our arms around each other and held on.
I’d seen I had more surprises upon her arrival. Rix wasn’t the only one who came with Alex.
Hale and Elsa were there, and obviously, they’d brought their baby boy, Laird.
Chloe, with JT, and Mika were with them.
I had good friends, and I was overwhelmed by their kindness.
But I could only hold on to my little sister.
“This sucks,” she said in my ear.
“Yes,” I agreed.
“You okay?”
“No. Are you?”
“No.”
We kept holding on.
Eventually, I pulled my head away to look at her.
She looked tan and healthy…
And sad.
Which made me mad.
She was just married. Just home from her honeymoon. Pregnant with the love of her life’s baby.
And now…
This.
It wasn’t Mum’s fault, but no matter how irrational it was, I still blamed her.
“I’m glad you’re here,” I said.
She gave me small smile. “I’m glad I am too. I feel better, seeing you.”
It meant everything she felt the same.
“Me too,” I replied.
“And I brought reinforcements,” she noted.
I took my cue and let her go, saying, “I see.”
Rix gave me a super tight hug that I couldn’t breathe through, but it felt crazy good.
I got much the same from Chloe, Mika and Elsa, they just weren’t as strong as Rix so I could breathe.
Hale’s hug lingered, as did his gaze. We were close. But he was a very busy man.