Total pages in book: 135
Estimated words: 139088 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 695(@200wpm)___ 556(@250wpm)___ 464(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 139088 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 695(@200wpm)___ 556(@250wpm)___ 464(@300wpm)
Raye snorted.
Martha spoke through it, “…but I’d cut off my own arm before I let one of my boys down like you did your daughter today. Far’s I can tell, as parents, we got three jobs. Give ’em life, raise ’em right, then let them live their lives. Not a one of those jobs is easy, ’cept the first if you’re a man. But you blew it on the last today, bucko. So bad I was set to be angry at you until the end of my days, but all I got to give you is my pity.”
Roy was winding up to retort, but Alexis’s mom got there first.
“Roy, we’re leaving.”
Roy scowled at Martha while Cap and Knox (and Jacques) took her back.
“Roy!” Alexis’s mom snapped. “If you don’t walk out of here right now, this courtyard isn’t the only thing I’ll be leaving today.”
“Well, damn. Momma Alexis is finally showing a backbone,” Rhea mumbled.
Roy aimed one last scowl at Martha, then, without looking at anyone, he trudged out.
His wife was already through the gate.
Martha wasn’t quite done, and we knew this when she shouted at his back, “And I don’t have any cats!” She then turned directly to Raye and stated, “Though, been thinking about that, Raye. You got a shelter you can recommend to me?”
Along with being an Angel, a server, my bestie, and Cap’s fiancée, Raye was the resident Oasis pet sitter. She used to do it officially, as a second job for extra cash, but now that Cap was splitting their monthly outlay, she just did it for gift cards from her neighbors.
I watched with irritation as Knox bent down, grabbed Jacques and tucked him under his arm.
My attention was caught with Rhea saying, “I wasn’t aware traipsing around in a man’s shirt was the new fashion statement, but gotta say, sister, you kill that look.”
I hadn’t seen me, but I was one hundred percent certain I did.
“My man and I were interrupted in our reunion by well-meaning friends and a drama in the courtyard,” I replied as Knox made it to my side.
She looked him up and down and asked, “This your man?”
“Haven’t you met Knox?” Before she could say anything, I introduced, “Knox, Rhea. Rhea, Knox. Rhea lives next door to Cap and Raye. Knox is my hot guy.”
“We’ve met,” Knox muttered. “Nice to see you again,” he said.
“Excellent use of restraint in not punching that asshole in the throat,” she replied.
“Thanks,” he replied through twitching lips.
“Well, won’t keep you two any further from getting up to reunion activities that your neighbors are likely to complain about at the next Oasis barbeque. Later,” she bid her brand of adieu and walked away.
Raye took her place, with Cap.
She was looking at me.
He was grinning at Knox’s shirt on my body.
“We good?” she asked me.
“Totally. Always,” I answered.
“Cheyenne strategy meet tomorrow at headquarters?” she queried. “Or will you two still be reuniting?”
I really did want that Cheyenne line item crossed off our to-do list.
But more, I wanted to make up for lost time with my guy.
So I requested, “Can we play it by ear?”
“Sure,” she replied.
“Getting my coffee,” Shanti shouted from the upstairs walkway, on her way to my unit. “Then I’ll be out of your hair.”
“All right,” I shouted back.
Everyone else was drifting away or huddling to gossip about what just happened (and fill Bill and Zach in, and I could tell they didn’t mess about doing it because both men looked ticked as all get out). I got Angel squeezes of my hand and arm that were different versions of Raye’s “we good?” to which I obviously answered the same as I did to Raye, doing it using a smile.
And then it was just Knox and Jaques and me.
Jacques barked because two things needed to happen: pee break and breakfast.
“I’ll look after him, you go make us coffee,” Knox ordered.
“I’ll look after him, you put him down, go up, put on your sling, and make us coffee,” I countered.
“Baby.” He got closer, and his voice lowered. “Promise, I’m healing.”
“Baby,” I held his gaze and did not lower my voice. “If you put on that sling and make me coffee, I’ll give you a blowjob that will make you question your allegiance to the Cardinals, Uncle Sam, the knowledge that the sun rises in the east and man has walked on the moon. So”—I hitched a hip—“which way we gonna play this, honcho?”
He was grinning flat out when he said, “I’ll make coffee.”
“As I suspected.”
He dropped a kiss on my lips before he put my dog on the grass.
Then, the infuriating man, he jogged up the damn steps.
Though he sauntered to my unit.
I followed my dog around and was glad to see this morning he just needed a pee break, because I hadn’t brought my puppy poo bags.