Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 59983 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 300(@200wpm)___ 240(@250wpm)___ 200(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59983 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 300(@200wpm)___ 240(@250wpm)___ 200(@300wpm)
“Firstly,” he says, setting his phone down, “this is a clear mark, a boundary you’ve never tried before. I originally assumed you want to bring Liliana as your date to show Elena that she has no right to claim you.”
“Elena lost me when we divorced,” I state bluntly.
“True. But now that you’re eager to go this far to obtain Liliana’s acceptance and be your date, I’m trying to imagine why you are doing this. How you came to behave like this.”
“Like what?” I haven’t been a saint or celibate since my divorce.
“Like someone else. Your reputation precedes you, and that reputation is one where others consider you cold and aloof.”
I roll my eyes at his choice of words. The same ones Elena likes to dole out.
“What happened to the man who often says that love is a myth?” He smirks as he stands.
I shake my head, peeved that he’s calling me out on this one-eighty. It’s got to be a surprise for him. I’ve never pursued a woman like this, never wanted one while keeping my distance and working out how to play the game with her. But he has no idea how deeply Liliana has gotten under my skin. Not just from the two nights we shared, naked and sated in bed. Not from that quick orgasm I gave her in the alley either. It’s who she is. Generous, honest, ready to give and not take.
“If I’m being completely sincere,” I admit, “I can’t claim to understand it either.”
I only met her for such a short time. We’ve spent more of it apart than together, but there’s just something about her. Something that pulls at me and keeps her in my thoughts and my dreams, driving home that as much as the idea sounds like sappy superstition, Liliana could very well be the one. And she’s about to slip away when I want to keep her far longer than this.
“I’m sure it will fade,” I add as I pull my jacket on. “I’m sure that after she comes to the Grayson Ball and I get a reminder of what it’s like to be near her, it’ll fizzle out.”
He hums a reply. It’s not a sound of agreement or argument, but just to show he’s listening and attentive. Maybe skeptical, too.
I am as well. Doubt nags at me as I call it a night and head home. This place is my life. Work is what consumes me, but I can’t help imagining how different things would be if it didn’t. If I were to ever open myself up to allow a woman—even love—to matter more.
21
LILIANA
Ihave no business being this calm after Anton cornered me in the alley and fingered me. I definitely have no right to dismiss what he said, about how he always gets what he wants. It’s a fact of life. He has the power, money, and means to get anything he wishes for.
Except me.
That’s also a fact of life, one that he is not going to change through any magic of sheer willpower alone.
His claim should have me freaking out, worrying he’ll escalate from having me watched to something worse. But I don’t have the time or energy to dwell on it. If he were that serious about forcing his way back into my life, he wouldn’t play nice. He’d just do what he wants and have me hauled off somewhere. He hasn’t, so I have no reason to panic.
Even if I wanted to, I simply don’t have the downtime or energy.
“I can’t believe that of all the bakeries in the city, we got this order.” Jenni is all smiles as she says it, busy stacking more boxes onto the counter.
I grin, nodding as I continue counting and double-checking the parts of the massive order that I’ve been waiting to complete. And that is the reason why I can’t dwell on what Anton said or what he did to me in the alley. This massive order came in so unexpectedly that at first, I worried if Jenni and I could pull it off. It’s an overnight boon for us, one that we’d be fools to turn down.
With Margarita and Rob helping, we barely pull it off. Keeping up with our regular orders while turning out enough for this one feels like a marathon, but it’s worth it.
“Maybe someone saw the ads for the delivery service that’s coming up,” Rob says, hustling more dough over to Margarita. The sweet smell of yeasty bread isn’t bothering me too much, but skipping lunch is going to cost me later, given the morning sickness. The all-day sickness.
Ugh.
Don’t think about it.
“I’m not sure the ads could’ve gotten the bakery this much notice,” I admit. “I only started running those ads yesterday.” I am glad for this mega order though. It will more than pay for the cost of the preliminary ads I recently made up as a test to announce the upcoming delivery service. “However this company found out about us is a godsend.” That’s all that matters.