Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 121887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
I just knew I’d done what I’d done. I couldn’t change it. It had to be said. It was long past time. It was said.
And it was time to pick the perfect throw blanket for Javi.
NINETEEN
“ROYALS”
(LORDE)
The next day, after our before-work make out session in his truck, I wandered dazedly to the back door of The Surf Club, waving hazily at Javi.
He watched me, smirking supremely smugly.
God, he was hot.
I got inside, did my stowing-purse, putting-on-my-apron thing, and wandered into the kitchen, saying to Lucia, “Hey, Lucia.”
She was arranging some greens fastidiously on a plate, so, as per protocol, she ignored me.
I hit The Surf Club proper.
When I did, Willow, behind the bar, gasped.
Standing at the bar, Byron’s eyes got big when they landed on me.
“Holy shit.” I heard Raye say.
I rounded my front in a huge wave and called, “Hey, everybody.”
I then went to the espresso machine because I needed my own dirty chai, STAT.
I’d barely packed the portafilter when I was in an Angels huddle.
I gazed around and repeated, “Hey.”
“You have sex hair,” Jessie said.
“And sex eyes,” Raye said.
“And sex face,” Luna added.
“That’s because Javi and I had sex.” I leaned into them and said dreamily, “Lots and lots and lots of really, really, really phenomenal sex.”
“Buzz off, Byron,” Shanti ordered. “It’s time for girl talk.”
“Happy for you, Harlow,” Byron called as he made his way to his table.
I watched him, mumbling, “He’s so sweet.”
“Earth to sex kitten Harlow, come in sex kitten Harlow,” Jessie called.
She sounded like she was trying not to laugh.
This was good, everyone should be laughing!
I tried to focus on her, failed, but even so, shared, “He took me to Geordie’s. We had a window table. We watched the sun set. And he made me laugh a lot.”
“Oh my God, I love that,” Willow breathed.
I looked to her. “He carried me up his stairs when we got home, like a groom carries a bride.”
Willow gasped.
I wasn’t sure, but I thought Raye and Luna did too.
“We’ve had sex…” I lifted my hand and tried to count, failed at counting, dropped my hand, and said, “Umpteen times. Including twice this morning.”
“You don’t say,” Jessie drawled, but she sounded happy.
She should be happy.
The whole world should be happy!
“I didn’t have time to do much with my hair and makeup,” I shared.
“Yeah, we can see,” Shanti replied (she sounded happy too).
“Though, we took a break from having sex yesterday to have brunch and go shopping,” I told them. “Javi now has a killer lamp and a fabulous throw blanket, and in six to eight weeks, he’ll have the perfect armchair. And get this!”
They all leaned closer.
“He bought stemmed wineglasses and stemless ones for me to drink wine because, as he said, ‘My Lolita isn’t gonna drink her wine from a regular-ass glass.’ Isn’t he amazing?”
I sighed.
“He calls you Lolita?” Raye asked.
I nodded exuberantly. “He does. Isn’t that the best?”
“It’s adorable,” Luna muttered, but she sounded happy too.
“And he held me the whole time I cried after I told Mom I wasn’t going to Easton’s birthday dinner on Saturday because she treats me like dirt.”
There were gasps all around at that one.
“Wait. Hold up. Seriously?” Jessie queried.
I nodded, my lips turning down. “It was unfun.”
“Babe,” she said softly, taking my hand. “Did you really finally lay it out for her?”
Another nod from me.
“I had no choice,” I admitted. “Javi told me either he was going to dinner with us, and then he’d rip them a new A-hole when they acted like A-holes to me, or I could tell them to kiss off until they could treat me with respect. I chose door number two.”
The haze was clearing, so I focused more fully on Jessie and Raye.
“I need my How to Deal with An Alpha training, because, even though Javi and I discussed it further when I wasn’t in danger of losing it, and we both agree that no time would be right but the law needed to be laid down, since then, Dad has called about ten times, Easton has called four. So I think I’m facing O’Neill Family Armageddon, and it was me who hit the red button.”
And yes, Javi and I did discuss this, after we returned home from brunch and shopping (and after we had sex again).
“Well, you weren’t there when Dad sprung Debbie on me at Lon’s,” Raye said. “Cap totally lost his shit. It was Inner Caveman time ten thousand. I was lucky he led me out rather than dragging me by my hair. So I think you picked the right way to go with that one.”
I’d sensed this, but it was good to know I was correct.
“What are you going to do about your dad and Easton?” Willow asked.
I grimaced, all this talk about my family was killing my Javi buzz. “I don’t know. I don’t want to think about it. I don’t want to deal with it.” I was fully focused now, as dealing with my family mess made me wont to be. “Although I feel like I picked the lesser of two evils, I wish this wasn’t happening now, because I’m happy.” I looked between all of them. “Like, really, really happy. And you know why I’m happy?”