Total pages in book: 111
Estimated words: 111038 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 555(@200wpm)___ 444(@250wpm)___ 370(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 111038 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 555(@200wpm)___ 444(@250wpm)___ 370(@300wpm)
I looked into his eyes.
They blazed with an emotion that made my throat swell.
I didn’t dare name it. If I did, I’d fall even harder, faster. And I was scared of what I already felt.
“I wish Owen could’ve met you,” I whispered.
“Babe.” His face transformed with such tenderness and warmth. He cupped my face with both hands and lowered his head, his lips finding mine.
Yes. Owen would’ve liked him. He would’ve liked him a whole bunch.
The three of us hung out the rest of the day.
Blaise suggested the pool, so we swam for the next couple hours. Miss Sandy brought out swim trunks for both of the guys. I went up to my room to change. I pulled out a one-piece and a bikini, laying them both on my bed.
I couldn’t decide.
I’d normally grab the one-piece, but Blaise was here, and I wanted to look good for him.
It wasn’t until Miss Sandy knocked once on the door, stuck her head in, and said, “The bikini, Miss Aspen,” that I made my choice.
She came in and disappeared into my closet. After I changed in the bathroom, she held out a cover-up for me. I took it, feeling sophisticated for maybe the first time in my life.
She took my hand and whispered, “I like your boy very much, even if he did stay the night.”
I nodded, fighting a blush. “Me too.”
“We’ll bring lunch out to you and your guests,” she said as she retreated. “They’re already enjoying the pool.”
“Miss Sandy.”
She paused, glancing back.
“Thank you.”
She nodded, her eyes blinking a few times. “Of course, Miss Aspen.” She started to leave, but looked back once more. “It’s nice to hear laughter in the house again. It’s been a long time.”
Oh. Now I was crying.
I took a deep breath, pulled the cover-up on, slid my feet into sandals, and headed downstairs. She was right. It’d been a long time coming, and I was going to enjoy this moment.
Who knew when I might get another one like it.
32
Blaise
It was nice to spend the day with Aspen and Zeke. My girlfriend and my best bud were getting along. Zeke didn’t bring up the party again, and I was grateful. That would’ve made Aspen tense. I didn’t want to put her in a situation she wasn’t ready for. Having Zeke here was a big deal, and I thought he might have realized that.
He brought out a soccer ball later, his head cocked to the side. “Yeah?”
It’d been a while since I played.
I wanted to. Instantly. The feel of kicking it, moving it forward, moving it with me, running alongside it as if it were a part of me—that all came back to me in an instant.
I wasn’t known for soccer here. I was enjoying that. It was a break from another thing that came with New York. The pressure. The extra attention.
I got attention here, but it wasn’t like anything I got in New York.
I was enjoying that, and Aspen. I glanced over. I hadn’t talked to her about soccer yet. She had no clue, and right now, I kinda liked the confusion there. But damn. Zeke knew what he was doing when he brought that out. Just seeing it in his hands and I wanted to rip it from him, herd it, keep it to me, and that feel of running the length of the field, kicking it in, almost nothing was better. Well, sex was, but I was really missing the feel of scoring a goal especially when it was after a tough battle.
Zeke couldn’t compete with me. If I gave in—fuck. Who was I kidding?
“Give it to me.”
His grin turned cocky. “Come get it from me.”
There was a section of grass on the other side of Aspen’s dad’s man-shed.
Zeke led the way, swaggering over there like he could hold his own against me. He knew I played. He knew how well I played, but I was thinking that he had forgotten.
He was about to be reminded.
He turned, dropping the ball with his hands going to his hips. He was going to say something, maybe lay out some rules, but I was already there.
One touch and I pulled the ball from him.
“Hey!”
His legs closed. He thought I was going to kick between them, but I didn’t. I merely reached out, my toe on top of the ball, and I tugged it to me. That’s right. It was mine, not his, and I flashed him a grin, knowing he’d pick up on my sentiment.
He scowled. “Not fair.”
I laughed, starting to run with the ball. “If you think I’m playing with a handicap against you, no fucking way.” I urged it farther down the grass, nudging it with the side of my foot. The inside. The outside. I bounced it back with my heel, stopping, rotating, jumping around it, and when Zeke got closer, I flipped it in the air, my knee bouncing it beyond him.