Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 146477 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146477 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
I hear a loud smack, and I can only assume that Diesel has already had to intervene with Ace. “We’re Knight’s friends,” Diesel says. “Just dropping off your keys.”
“You got my car?” Harper asks, the soft tone penetrating right through my chest and making me wish I could melt straight through this wall and find her on the other side.
“Knight did,” Ace says. “We were just along for the ride. We dropped it back at your apartment but figured leaving the keys on your front door wasn’t the brightest move.”
“Wow. And they say chivalry is dead,” Izzy purrs, her voice shifting in the room, telling me she’s moving around, probably putting herself right between my best friends. “You’re both huge. It’s like an Izzy sandwich. How tall are you guys?”
“Down girl,” Harper scolds. “They’re the enemy.”
Ace laughs, and I recognize the tone in his voice from every time he’s been in a bar, working his magic on a woman. I realize that at some point, he’s going to fuck that girl, which is only going to further complicate things for me. “You know what they say. Sex is always better with someone you’re not supposed to want.”
“Literally nobody has ever said that,” Diesel scoffs before I hear the familiar jingle of Harper’s keys. “The car is parked in the underground garage beneath your building. Hope that’s alright.”
“Thanks,” Harper murmurs. “He really went and got it for me, huh?”
“Why the fuck wouldn’t he?” Ace questions. “He also fixed that little . . . janitorial issue you were having. You don’t need to worry about him anymore. He won’t be an issue. Him or his friends.”
“I . . . He’s here, isn’t he?” she questions, making my back stiffen, wondering if she now thinks I’m a little bitch for not having the balls to come in here. I hope she realizes that I’m fighting every impulse within me that desperately wants to cross that threshold and pull her into my arms.
“Uhhhhhh,” Ace says, not able to lie for shit. “He might be in the general vicinity.”
“You wanna see him?” Diesel tacks on.
“No,” she says too quickly, her voice almost panicked and sending a pang of agony right through my chest. “Just, ummm . . . Tell him thanks for me.”
“SHE SAID THANKS,” Ace yells toward the door. And I reiterate, I’m going to fucking kill him. His tone lowers again, and I can only assume he’s speaking to Harper. “He said anything for you because I’m a pussy-whipped bitch, and that you should repay him by giving me this hot little vixen’s number, and if not, can I at least fuck her in the disabled bathroom down the hall?”
Another smack sounds through the room, and this time Ace grunts in pain. “The fuck was that for?”
“Keep your dick in your pants,” Diesel mutters before his tone shifts. “We’ll get out of your hair, Harper. But uhh . . . I’m glad you’re okay.”
“Thank you.”
“And listen,” he continues. “Just know that while you’re figuring shit out with Knight, you’re family. If you’re in trouble or you don’t feel safe, whether that be at home or work, you can call.”
“I appreciate that.”
I can almost picture the awkward, forced smile that Diesel would offer, doing his best not to seem like the grouchy bastard that he generally is. Only that thought disappears the moment Izzy speaks up again. “Oh, don’t you worry, big guy. I’ll be more than sure to call.”
Fucking hell. There’s going to be another fight between the boys.
“You do that, babe,” Diesel murmurs, and not a moment later, the boys stride out of the room, both Diesel and Ace looking far too impressed with themselves.
“Don’t even fucking think about it,” I tell them, knowing they each have a one-track mind.
“Fuck, you’re such a thirsty little whorebag,” I hear Harper scold her best friend through the thin hospital walls. “What the fuck is wrong with you? Always thinking with your vag.”
“I know,” Izzy murmurs. “I can’t help it. I need to climb them both like trees. I’ve never been so worked up in my life. I’m going to have to excuse myself and take care of business in the bathroom. Holy fuck.”
At that, Ace turns on his heel, more than ready to head straight back in there, but Diesel catches him by the scruff of his shirt, dragging him away from Harper’s room. “Come on, Romeo. It’s just you and your hand tonight.”
We start making our way back down the hall, and while I know I should take off and get home to get a good sleep for work tomorrow, I can’t seem to make myself head toward the exit. “You guys go ahead,” I tell them, my gaze shifting toward the hall that will lead me back toward the hospital’s security center. “I’ve got some shit I need to work out.”