Total pages in book: 174
Estimated words: 172061 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 860(@200wpm)___ 688(@250wpm)___ 574(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 172061 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 860(@200wpm)___ 688(@250wpm)___ 574(@300wpm)
A thousand memories impaled me. A cyclone of old joy and demolished dreams and the most gutting sort of shame. All of it crashed together to boil a riot of fury in my blood.
It couldn’t be her.
It couldn’t be.
Like the woman felt the rush of my presence, she whirled around.
That was the moment the cornflower-colored eyes I would never forget widened back at me. So blue they were nearly purple.
Eyes that had always danced with mirth and shyness and vulnerability.
For a moment, I was frozen by them.
Fucking staked to the spot.
Before her name that was nothing but a barb of guilt and rejection fell as a whisper from my tongue.
“Daisy?”
TWO
DAISY
Cash Cunningham stood there like a dark cloud beneath the rays of the sun. Hands clenching and unclenching.
So gorgeous my belly fisted and my soul ached as I lay eyes on the boy who had been scored in my psyche like a brand.
Well. Not so much a boy anymore.
He was all man.
Wearing worn jeans and a tight white tee that hugged every muscle of his intimidating frame and a plain cap on his head.
Locks of brown hair barely curled out at his ears.
Face hard and ferociously beautiful and so different than I remembered.
He was so much bigger than before.
Hewn of ripped, rugged muscle, and every bit of exposed skin was covered in ink.
I wanted to take the time to evaluate every detail, but eyes the color of the forest were glaring back.
A toil of greens and golds and browns. Almost familiar. You know, all except for the disbelief and hate that roiled in their depths.
The man was the very definition of shooting daggers.
It wasn’t until then I realized I was basically standing there nude in the freezing river.
Surprise ripping out of me, I dropped the bar of soap into the river and my hands flew up to cover my very bare breasts that were peaked and pebbled from the ice-cold water.
Oh, crap, no.
Why did this have to be my horrible, bad luck?
Shivering, I fumbled back and forth, hobbling a little faster each time since little rocks kept impaling the soles of my feet.
“Ow, ow,” I cried as I tried not to take a full tumble into the unbearably freezing water still melting from the mountaintops.
I did my best to cover myself, all while attempting to wrap my head around the fact that he was there.
That I was actually looking at him.
That he was alive and whole and…raring freaking mad.
Eyes that dragged like blades along my bare flesh took stock, raking down to my hands that covered my boobs, down, down, down my trembling belly to my soaked underwear.
He emitted a low growl, and I felt like I got blasted back by the shockwave of energy that rocketed through the air.
Talk about humiliating.
He finally jerked his attention back up to my face.
My face that had to be flaming red.
A muscle in his jaw ticked, and his anger only seemed to grow.
Crap.
“What the hell are you doing here?” His voice was a scruff of low aggression that sent a tremor rolling through my body. Harsh enough that I finally snapped out of the stupor and jumped into action, tiptoeing and stumbling over the small stones on the bottom of the river toward the towel I left on the bank.
Frigid water splashed up my legs as I blundered my way toward the bank, all while trying to keep my boobs covered with my hands.
I almost made it out when a razor-sharp rock cut into the sole of my foot.
Piercing pain shot up my leg, and I tipped forward.
“Ouch!” I cried. My hands flew out to catch my fall, and my palms planted onto the wet dirt on the bank of the river.
“Gosh dang it,” I mumbled as I struggled to catch my breath and find a little of my dignity, but coming here promised that I didn’t have any of that.
At least I didn’t crash face first into the bed of rocks a little higher, but I doubted it made my fall any more graceful.
Great.
Just freaking great.
Could this get any worse?
Any more embarrassing?
Oh, but it could, because Cash was suddenly there, running up and grabbing me by the outside of the shoulders and dragging me upright.
“Are you okay?” he demanded as he dipped down to get in my line of sight.
The only thing that I could feel right then were his hands. Hands that sent flames scorching up my arms and sailing through my middle.
Chills scattered beneath that touch, and my mouth dropped open. As hard as I tried to form the words, none would come out.
Cash tightened his hold and gave me a tiny shake. “Are. You. Hurt?”
“I…I…”
“Damn it, Daisy. Are you hurt?”
I shook my head. “No. I-I’m fine.”
Okay, I wasn’t fine.
Not even close. He would know it soon enough.
A frown carved his rugged brow, and I had the stupid impulse to reach out and smooth it with my fingers. To tease him the way I used to do.