Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 115308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
“I’m going to make sure you make it safely out of my house and to my car. Next time, you bring extra contact solution and an extra pair of glasses that you can leave here.”
I paused, pulling my eyelid down.
“You should probably bring some other stuff too. Extra toiletries and clothes. And I’ll do the same for yours until we move in together after the wedding.”
I gaped at his blurry reflection.
“What?” he asked quietly, uncertainly.
“Nothing,” I whispered, my heart in my throat. “It’s just … feels nice to not play games with you. For you to just … for you to really want me in your life and not be afraid to say it.”
Baird pressed his chest to my back, his lips lingering at my ear. “The only way I’ll ever not be in your life is if you ask me to go. And even then … I’ll fight for you.”
Tears threatened to spill, exacerbating my current problem. I elbowed him. “Don’t make me cry right now!”
His body shook against mine with amusement. Then he gently slapped my butt. “Hurry. We’re going to be late.”
I muttered under my breath about arseholes saying perfect things when you had your finger in your eyeball, which only made him snort-laugh. As quickly as possible, I removed the contacts and dumped them in the trash with Baird’s guidance.
Everything was blurry, so it was hard to gauge the distance between objects. Once Baird had everything he needed, he took my hand again and guided me outside. He locked up one-handed, not letting me go, and then helped me over the cobblestones toward the building’s car park.
His grip was gentle but firm, and I bit back a giddy smile.
Will wasn’t the hand-holding type.
Charlie was. I’d loved holding hands with him when we were kids.
“What are you thinking?” Baird asked as we stopped by his car.
Realizing I could pretty much say anything to him, I smiled at his blurry face. “I love holding hands with you.”
He squeezed said hand. “Then my hand is yours to hold whenever you want it.”
There went those damn tears again. My nose stung trying to hold them back. “Seriously, you have got to stop saying the nicest things.”
His face drew closer, his lips brushing mine. He whispered against them, “Never. Not until it sinks in.”
“What sinks in?”
Baird didn’t answer. Instead, he opened the passenger door and helped me into my seat.
“What sinks in?” I repeated.
He closed the door and rounded the bonnet, sliding into the driver’s seat.
“What sinks in, Bear?”
“No time. We need to get moving. I hope you like a little El Camino in the morning.” Music blared to life, and I recognized the opening riffs of a song by The Black Keys. Baird, like me, had an eclectic taste in music. One minute he was listening to rap, the next techno, the next rock—whatever struck his mood.
I guessed we were done with the questioning portion of the morning.
I didn’t ask again, but I pondered his words all the way to my flat.
Not only was I tired from lack of sleep, but my body ached all over. And not just from Baird rolling me around in his bed last night but from walking around venues all day. Thankfully, the acting in love and happy part of the venue shoot was easy because Baird and I were still high from finally getting together.
On the way to the first venue, Baird told me about Braden’s proposal to use Blantyre as the location for the wedding ceremony and reception. I was fully on board, so as soon as we met up with the director and crew, they called the project managers to relay the proposal to them. They said if we could get permission to film there tomorrow so we at least had the footage, they’d talk with the higher-ups about switching venues.
The thought of another day of traipsing around luxury wedding locations might have made me want to curl into a ball if Baird’s presence didn’t inject me with adrenaline.
He could barely keep his hands off me.
At one point, during the second venue shoot, he’d waited until the crew was distracted and then he’d hurried me into the empty ballroom to press me up against the wall and kiss me breathless.
He’d been perfect all day.
My eyes were too sore for contacts, so I’d chosen to wear my glasses after Baird convinced me I looked hot. Bruno was being an arse about them.
“They reflect light! We can’t see her eyes, and they’re her best feature.”
Baird lost his good-boy charm in an instant. “Wrong. Her heart is her best feature, which is why she’s too nice to tell you to fuck off. I’m not. My fiancée’s eyes are sensitive today so she’s wearing her glasses, and if you say one more word about it, I’ll take Maia back to my car and we’ll drive out of here, leaving you to explain why your pissant behavior lost Pennington’s precious pennies today.”