Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 131459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
I still said, “Yes.”
“That’s the consequences of letting yourself be a motherfucker,” he shared.
“You made a mistake. You’re not perfect. I’m switching stances and beginning to think you’re being too hard on yourself.”
“My son barely spoke to me for nearly two years. That’s how badly I hurt him. That’s how deeply I shook the foundation of the man he thought his father was. Trust me, I’m not being too hard on myself.”
Another shot to the heart.
Disappointing Cadence like that?
I couldn’t even think the thought, it was too unbearable.
“Okay,” I said quickly.
He said nothing nor did he move.
I tipped my head to the jute bag he’d set on the island and informed him, “Cadence made you snickerdoodles. You seem to be rocking negative two percent body fat, but don’t give them to your neighbors. They’re worth an extra nine holes on one of the probably seven golf courses in your community.”
The line of his broad shoulders relaxed.
“We only have three,” he replied.
“Only three?” I asked, fake-aghast.
His lips tipped up, he shook his head, and visibly, the rest of his body relaxed.
I took a sip of my wine (excellent) and said, “I hate to be an ungracious guest, but you need to stop confessing all your crimes and feed me.”
“Right,” he said quietly.
“Can I help?” I hinted he let it go and get a move on with the food, but mostly our evening.
His hard part was done.
“The garlic bread’s ready to be put in the oven. It’s pre-heated. Can you slide that in?”
“You betcha.” I came off my stool.
We worked side by side, though for mere moments, considering my one task was to slide a tray in the oven (and Tom made homemade garlic bread, it looked divine, I couldn’t wait to taste it).
I got more tasks as Tom gave me a stack that included placemats, plates, napkins and silverware.
I set up our spots at the counter.
In their zone, Venus and Ace cavorted while Boris, Nala and Serena, in a kitten pile on the plush bed, napped.
Tom finished things up, we dished out, sat beside each other, and Tom told me to dig in.
I did.
It was delicious.
I was swallowing when he said, “It hurt like hell, listening to that message you left after the Elsa Cohen thing.”
I suddenly found swallowing difficult, turned to him and whispered, “That was out of line and I’m so sorry.”
“I wasn’t fishing for an apology, Mika. I deserved it. I just want you to know how glad I am to have you back.”
The tightness in my chest was long gone.
But now, it warmed.
I shunted to my left, bumping him with my shoulder.
He reached out, wrapped his long fingers around my hand and gave it a squeeze.
Too swiftly, he let go.
And we let it go and got on with eating.
* * *
We were in Tom’s sunken living room.
The cats had been relocated into their local pen. Ace, Venus and Nala were napping, Serena and Boris were frolicking.
Tom was reading the contents of the envelope and freaking me out.
“Maybe you need to take a break,” I suggested as his expression moved from stormy to homicidal.
He lifted his gaze (he was wearing dark-framed reading glasses, they were insanely attractive on him).
“Core Point has approached Hale and Judge. They want to discuss being major sponsors of a program that Trail Blazer is hoping to launch soon. They’re talking naming opportunity. The kind of money they’re considering throwing at this, their aim is to be synonymous with Hale Wheeler, who is Luke to Corey’s Darth Vader, but he grew up as my son.”
I knew of Hale Wheeler, most everyone did.
Hale was Corey Szabo’s only child. He’d inherited his father’s vast fortune upon his death. As such, Hale was now the richest man in the world, but wouldn’t remain that way, considering he was redistributing massive parcels of his father’s wealth. Due to these efforts, he was quickly becoming a sort of folk hero. A new-style Robin Hood with a more lawful way of obtaining the means, and a more thoughtful way of distributing it.
Because of this, he was fast rocketing beyond the richest man in the world to the most famous.
The fact he looked like a movie star didn’t hurt.
Since I’d paid attention to Tom from afar, it hadn’t escaped me in the years that had passed that Hale had been unofficially adopted by Imogen Swan and Tom Pierce, Tom especially.
I didn’t think I’d ever seen a photo of Hale with his birth father.
But I’d seen dozens of Hale with Tom, from when he was young to recently.
There was something worth pursuing, however, at how forcefully Tom claimed Hale as his. And I sensed it didn’t have to do with how Corey Szabo had interfered with his plans to reconcile with Imogen.
Though, I wouldn’t be pursuing this now.
“Hale and Judge are thrilled and are considering this deal,” he finished.