Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 86710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 347(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 347(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
“Oh I’m not worried about that at all,” Jace says, pulling me around to sit on his lap. He looks at me with so much emotion in his eyes that guilt almost suffocates me.
Tell him! everything in me screams but it’s too late. If I tell him now, I’ll never see him again and I’m not ready to lose Jace Anderson.
“When are you going to send it to Ivy?” he asks.
“Soon.” The article is ready but I’m terrified, to be honest.
“You’re being chicken,” Jace says, seeing right through me. “It’s very well written. Best thing I’ve read in ages. Go on and send it to her.” He gently nudges me out of his lap.
“Okay, boss,” I say and give him a mock salute. As I turn to walk away, Jace slaps my ass. “I’ll get you for that,” I tell him before I disappear from his view, but I’m grinning.
I grab my laptop and sit down on the bed, propping my back against the headboard. I click to open the article and read through it once more. Not that it needs any more changes. I’d already saved Ivy’s email address and after inhaling deeply, I hit send.
I shut my laptop and sit on the bed terrified. I make myself stand up and return to the kitchen. Jace has already poured another glass of wine for me. I sit for it and take a huge sip.
“I texted Ivy to tell her to watch out for your email,” he says.
“What? Jace!” I cry out. “You shouldn’t have done that. It’s better she finds it when finds it.”
“There’s no way I’m going to sit here for hours twirling my thumbs,” Jace says. “Relax, it’ll be fine. You’re a very good writer.”
“Let’s talk about something else,” I tell him. “Tell me, do you have a favorite among your brothers?”
He laughs. “Nope, I’m close to both of them.” He drinks his wine and then says, “You rarely talk about your brother.”
I can’t deny that because it’s true. It’s not just Marcus I don’t talk about with Jace, it’s a lot of things. I worry that I might say something that will give away who I am. Since I can’t sieve all of it, I find it easier to not say anything. “What do you want to know?”
“His name for starters,” Jace says. “You’re the most secretive person I know. If I didn’t know any better, I’d bet you worked for the FBI.”
I know that Jace is teasing but that doesn’t stop nausea from rising up my throat. “His name is Marcus and he’s married to Charlotte, my wonderful sister-in-law.”
“Is there a chance of me meeting them?” Jace says.
I’m about to protest when I remember the way he reacted when he thought I was keeping him a secret. “Sure.”
He rolls his eyes dramatically. “When?”
“I’ll let you know.” I have no intention of introducing him to Marcus or Charlotte. It’s one thing to watch my own mouth and quite another to police other people. I refuse to torture myself.
My phone vibrates and Jace grabs it before I can. He looks at the screen.
“Amelia.” He gives me the phone and my hands tremble as I take it.
“I’ll call her back,” I tell him trying to sound casual. Why would Amelia call me at this time? An idea probably. I text her and explain I have company and can’t pick up her call. I remove all notification sounds and when she texts me back, it simply lights up.
Are you fucking Jace Anderson??
My face heats up. I text her back. What?
She replies. Nothing. Call me tomorrow. I have an idea.
“A friend?”
I look up to find Jace watching me. I smile. “You could say that.”
“Who are your closest friends?” he asks.
I’m saved from answering by the ring of my phone. “It’s Ivy,” I whisper to Jace as if she can hear me.
“Pick it up,” he says with a huge smile.
I hit answer and put it on speaker phone. “Hi, Ivy.” My heart is pounding so hard it’s unbelievable.
“Oh my God,” Ivy says. “You wrote that?”
“Yes.”
“You write like a seasoned writer,” she gushes. “So natural. I don’t even have anything to add. Tell you what, you should try and get it published. I’m sure that there are many magazines whose readers would enjoy reading our story.”
“Thank you,” I tell her. “I can’t tell you how much your words mean to me.”
“You’re welcome. I still think you should try and write novels,” Ivy says.
I chuckle. “I think I’ll stick to shorter pieces for now.”
I disconnect the call and high-five Jace.
“I told you she’d have nothing but praise for your writing,” he says.
I’m so happy, it feels as if I’m suspended in the air. Jace and I finish off the bottle of wine and, feeling more than a little tipsy, we go back to bed. He lies on the bed and I crawl on top of him.