Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 78850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
“No. Raven is done interning. If you need more help, hire someone,” I seethe with visions of tossing the glass bottle out the window and shattering everything.
Shattering.
The way my chest feels when I think of giving her up. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. This is over. I need to tell Raven the truth—that I have never considered not marrying Rachel.
I never lied to her.
She only thinks she’s in love with me. She’s nineteen, for fuck’s sake, caught up in the excitement of having sex with an older, experienced man.
I walk out of my office, ignoring the startled gasps and stares, push the elevator button, and loosen my tie.
Love.
Christ, it’s not even a real emotion. It’s nothing more than two people connecting and then mistaking that feeling as love. It wears off, as all connections do. They break up, and boom, they start all over with another person.
Snorting, I bring the bottle to my lips. This is why Rachel is the one for me. I already can’t stand her. How fucked up is that?
“Mr. Powers.” I turn toward the voice.
“Your car is ready for you.” Iain stands with the door open.
“Thank you.” I slide in and lean my head back, letting the warmth of the bourbon flow through my veins. And just like that, I feel better than I have in weeks.
It takes ten minutes from my office to my house. In thirty minutes, I’ll be balls deep inside whoever the surprise is that Rachel has arranged.
And in an hour… well, in an hour, everything will be back to normal.
“Mr. Powers?” Iain’s voice makes me blink and I slowly look over at him. His usual calm expression has changed, his eyebrows knit together as if he, too, is concerned. Clearly, he’s been standing with the car door open while my mind races.
Nodding, I step out and gaze up at my house. “You believe in love, man?” I say, turning before I walk up the steps. The question seems to have caught him off guard. Pain swirls in his dark eyes. I guess that’s my answer.
“Absolutely.” He takes a breath and nods. “Fuck yeah, I do.” He steps to the front of the Mercedes.
As I start to walk up my front steps, I reflect on this. Even Iain believes in love, has clearly been in love. For all I know, he’s in a happy relationship, though I somehow doubt that if the haunted look in his eyes is any clue. Yeah, that’s a man who has demons, someone who’s been hurt. I open the front door and enter my foyer, instantly smelling food.
“Rachel?” I call out, setting my bottle down.
“Upstairs,” she yells back.
The house seems deserted. She probably dismissed everyone. I take the stairs, hearing music coming from my bedroom as I walk to the left toward Raven’s room, stopping myself before I knock.
It’s like I have weights on my chest, like I’m fighting something. This is a battle that can’t ever be won.
Screw knocking. Why pretend you’re something you’re not? I enter, my eyes instantly finding her. It’s as if I’ve stepped into a different universe, because in this universe all is moving slowly, as if time is trying to give me a second to catch up.
Raven stands. The book she was reading falls to the floor. Her eyes are red as if she’s been crying. But all I can do is stare at her.
She is my weakness, but I don’t have to be her downfall.
“It’s over.” My voice comes out strong. Our eyes connect, and I let myself become trapped in her sapphire pools as they blink back tears.
“What is wrong with you?” Her voice cracks. As she walks toward me, her scent of orange blossoms wraps around me. When I die, this will be my last smell—I know it. Her face and this smell will wrap around me as I take my last breath. Jesus Christ, I need to stop drinking. I’m thinking crazy, or maybe she’s just that dangerous.
Her eyes, which at first held tears, are now almost black. “What. Is. Wrong. With. You?” she repeats.
“I told you I’m an asshole.” I unbutton the top two buttons of my dress shirt.
She snorts, covers her mouth, and nods, then points out the door. “You really are going to marry her? Do you have a fucking clue who, and what, she is?”
“I know exactly what she is, Raven.” My voice is flat, and suddenly everything seems gray and dark.
“She’s hated me from the day I was born. Why?” She throws up her hands. “I don’t know, and you know what, Jett? I don’t care, but you… I thought you were brilliant. I thought you were strong and…” Tears spill down her face. Pain, much like what I witnessed moments ago with Iain, flows out of her, making me uncomfortable, as if there’s a noose around my neck.