Total pages in book: 149
Estimated words: 147967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 740(@200wpm)___ 592(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 740(@200wpm)___ 592(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
“You’re talking to me now.”
“This can’t be happening. Wait. What happened?” She removed one hand but kept her gaze away from his as she glanced around. “I’m in my bedroom.”
“When you stood, you went really pale and then you fainted,” he informed her. “I still don’t like your color.”
“I don’t like your color either,” she grumbled. Then she sighed. “That’s a lie! I love your color. NotloveImean . . . oh . . . um . . .”
Merde.
“Calm, Maya. I know what you meant. Don’t get stuck in a loop.”
“My life is a loop. So I fainted?”
“Yeah. Is that something that happens often?” he asked.
“No. Never.”
“I’m going to call Hack.”
“What?”
“Hack is a doctor that Ink knows well. He patches the guys up if they need it.”
“Guys? Do you mean your friends?”
Hmm. “Something like that.”
“I don’t need a doctor,” she said quickly.
“Tough.”
“I’m not sick. I just didn’t sleep last night and I haven’t eaten. I’ll feel fine after those two things.”
He eyed her for a long moment. “You’ll eat. And drink water. And you’ll stay off your feet. If you’re still not looking or feeling great after that, I will call Hack.”
“All right.”
“Good. Now what do you feel like eating?”
“Um. Well. About that . . .”
Matthieu stared into the fridge with a sigh. He was a pretty good cook. He could make something with very few ingredients.
But even he couldn’t create something from nothing.
Well, not nothing.
So far he’d found coffee, creamer, a couple of potatoes and some instant rice.
Still, that wasn’t really enough to work with.
He’d noticed that had plenty of pet food, though.
Priorities.
“Yeah, I haven’t done the grocery shopping in a while,” she said from behind him.
He whirled with a frown. “What were the three conditions you agreed to if I didn’t call Hack?”
“Um.” She stared down at her feet. He had to admit that he really wanted her to start looking at him.
Give it time.
Rome wasn’t built in a day.
“Maya,” he said warningly. “You knew the rules. What were they?
“Uh. I had to eat.”
“And?” He took a step toward her.
“Drink water.”
“And?” Another step.
“I seem to be drawing a blank.”
Brat. She wasn’t drawing a blank. He grasped hold of her around the waist and lifted her into the air.
She gasped. “What are you doing?”
He sat her down on the kitchen countertop.
“Putting you off your feet. Remember the last rule?”
“Oh yeah, that was it.”
Little liar.
If she was his, her butt would be on fire right now.
But she’s not yours. She’s a client.
A client who had a bit of a listening problem.
“Yeah. That was it. We need to do a grocery run. But since you need to eat quick, we will order pizza.” He wrinkled his nose. Fast food was not his favorite. It was full of preservatives and chemicals.
It certainly wasn't something he wanted her eating.
“Pizza yum! Um . . .”
“What is it?” he asked as she hesitated.
“It’s just . . . the food . . . uh . . . do I . . . I mean, am I supposed to . . . feed . . .”
Ahh. He started to understand. Was she worried that she was meant to cook for him? Or was she concerned about paying for the food? He glanced around her house. It was obvious she didn’t have a lot.
And what she did have, she likely gave to her pets. It couldn’t be cheap to have all these animals.
Speaking of animals. Dougie ran in and nearly plowed straight into him.
“They’re hungry. I need to feed them. And check on the girls,” she said.
“Tell me what to do and I’ll do it,” he told her. “After I order the pizza.”
“I should order the pizza. I, um, I am meant to pay for the food, right? For you, I mean? Obviously, I pay for me.”
“Nope,” he told her. “I have an expense account.”
Which got charged back to the client, so he would gladly spend the maximum allowed if it meant her father got charged and she had some actual food in the cupboard.
The relief he saw on her face before she glanced away told him that had been what was worrying her.
Yeah. Her father was an asshole.
And he was going to suffer . . . along with the stepmonster.
Matthieu would make certain of that.
13
“Ireally wish you’d let me help,” she called out from where he’d planted her in a rickety-looking outside chair.
“No. I got this.”
“Are you sure?” she said doubtfully.
“I have this,” he told her firmly. “Stay put.” He’d already given the other animals their food and he’d ordered a pizza. Now, all he had to do was get the darn chickens back into their coop before it got dark.
He’d put some food in the coop, but they weren’t moving toward it.
“I can’t understand it,” Maya told him. “Usually when I scatter the food out, they just rush inside. They know it’s time for bed. Don’t you, girls? You’re all being so naughty. I think you’ll have to call them.”