Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 151097 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 755(@200wpm)___ 604(@250wpm)___ 504(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 151097 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 755(@200wpm)___ 604(@250wpm)___ 504(@300wpm)
“Shopping!” Chiara squealed before snatching the card from Ocean’s fingers. “I can’t believe you’re crazy enough to trust us with the black card. Ooh! Coby should come with us. We can have a girls’ day and get to know her better.”
“Nah,” Ocean said.
“Why not?” Priscilla challenged.
“Because I said so.”
Oh, boy. Feeling Ocean’s dominance rolling off him in waves, I rubbed my nape nervously. Priscilla must have too because she backed down with a roll of her eyes and one last glance at me before spinning on her high heels and leaving the room. Priscilla didn’t seem to care one way or another if I came, but Chiara seemed genuinely disappointed as she turned and reluctantly left, too.
“There,” Ocean said with a panty-melting grin directed at me like he was proud of himself. “That should keep their nosy asses out of my business for a while.”
“What was that about? Why couldn’t I go with them?”
Ocean was halfway to the ensuite when he paused and regarded me with a raised brow. “You wanted to?”
“Not really. But I’m curious why you didn’t want me to.”
Ocean didn’t respond right away, turning to disappear inside the bathroom, so I followed him. “I don’t really have the men to spare right now.”
“Okay…and?” Ocean didn’t respond as he pulled out the first aid kit and sloppily patched himself up. “You think I’ll run, don’t you?”
He simply stared at me through the mirror as he wrapped his shoulder. His dark eyes warned me to drop it before he moved away from the sink to turn on the shower. After shoving down his sweats, he stepped under the cold spray. He must have really wanted to avoid a fight because he didn’t even wait for the water to turn warm. For a few seconds, I was distracted watching the water sluice over his dark skin as he washed himself with a thick bar of soap.
It took too long for me to realize Ocean still hadn’t answered me.
He turned his back on me to continue showering. I narrowed my gaze on his strong back and tried not to be distracted by the way the muscles bunched and flexed as he moved.
Ocean still didn’t trust me.
Did I trust him?
Maybe a little, but not blindly. At least…not yet. And not in the way I trusted Hunter.
If she told me to wander blindfolded into rush hour traffic and that I’d make it unscathed, I wouldn’t think twice about throwing myself into danger.
I wasn’t there with Ocean yet, but I would like to be.
“Your cousins seem afraid of you,” I said, changing the subject. “Is there a reason why?”
Besides the obvious…
Ocean’s attention finally returned to me, and then he beckoned me inside the enormous shower. I only hesitated half a second—worried that he’d distract me from the answers I wanted—before I untied the sash on my robe and let it fall to the heated floor.
The water was warm by the time I stepped inside, but not to my liking, so I turned one of the many matte black knobs on the wall before facing Ocean, whose expression was pensive as he drew me close. I didn’t even notice the sponge in his hand until he tugged on my wrist to lift my arm out in front of me.
“They’re not afraid because of something I’ve done,” he explained as he slowly ran the lathered sponge up my arm and back down again. “They’re afraid of what I could do once I have the power. Priscilla is…protective of Chiara. The two of them try to stay on my good side so that I’m not tempted to marry Chi off to the first abusive asshole who offers me the slightest advantage.”
“Why would they think you’d do that?”
“Because it’s what my father did to Priscilla. And what our great-grandfather did to his sisters—Priscilla and Chiara’s great-grandmothers.” Ocean flinched suddenly, but before I could ask what was wrong, he flinched again. “Argh. Shit.”
“Wha–”
“Argh! Argh!” He yelled while leaping to the other side of the shower, where he huddled in the corner out of range of the water pouring down like a rainfall. Ocean and I stared at each other with matching confused expressions when I continued to stand under the water while steam quickly rose around us, fogging up the glass wall.
I placed my hands on my hips. “What is wrong with you?”
“You don’t feel that?” he yelled.
“Feel what?”
“That water is scalding, Coby! The fuck are you trying to do? Give me third-degree burns?”
Rolling my eyes, I spun on my heels and quickly turned the knob until it was halfway between where he had it and where I wanted it. “Better?”
Ocean held out his hand to test the water, and I choked back a laugh as he returned to me. I didn’t want him thinking I did it on purpose, so I schooled my expression into a concerned one, and he smirked before letting out a laugh of his own and shaking his head.