Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 86364 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86364 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
Joy stretched her little hands out to him, seeming ready to jump right out of my arms.
“Baby girl, you’re crushing my ego here,” I complained.
“I’m sure she’ll love you again after her snack,” Byron teased.
“So true.”
“Can I get either of you anything to drink or eat?” Chef Donovan inquired as Joy drank her bottle as though I were starving the poor child. Way to make me look like a bad father, kid!
“Iced water would be great,” Byron said.
I nodded. “Same.”
“If you would like to continue your chat in the lounge, I’ll bring your waters and a light snack,” Donovan volunteered.
“Sir, would you like me to take Miss Joy?” Franks offered. It was like he swept in from some secret hiding place. “I can hold her while she finishes her snack. Afterward, I can change her. That would give you a chance to wash your hands and chat with Mr. Graham.”
I lifted an eyebrow at Franks. He’d never offered to take Joy in the past. “Are you sure? I know for a fact that babysitting is not in your job description.”
“Not part of my job, but it would be my pleasure.” Franks led the way to the lounge, which was a fancy way of describing the large living room with the enormous windows. He scooped up a willing Joy and directed me to the nearest bathroom. He had a point, though, in suggesting the swap. There were so many shades of green on my hands that I looked like I’d jacked off the Jolly Green Giant.
I washed my hands, getting most of the color from my fingers prior to joining Byron in the lounge, where our drinks and a tray of cheese, crackers, fruit, and nuts had been served.
“Does Sebastian have a chef too?” I inquired as I dropped into the black wingback chair while Byron sat on the white sofa.
“He does, and I’ve gained three pounds in the past month. But I can’t say I miss cooking. Carol is so much better at it than me.”
At least I wasn’t the only one who couldn’t say no to delicious food. I grabbed my drink and took a long, deep swallow. Leaning forward, I set my glass on the table again and remained with my elbows on my knees. Might as well jump right in with the cold, hard facts.
The entire time I’d been washing my hands, all I could think was that I couldn’t keep up the pretense that Declan and I were platonic friends, and he was just helping an old buddy. Besides, I knew Byron’s secrets because he’d had the bad luck of having them blasted across social media. It wasn’t fair that he didn’t know the truth about me.
“I think it would be best if we laid all our cards on the table; I knew who you were before you came in.”
Byron’s smooth brow furrowed. “We’ve met?”
“Not quite. I was working as a temp at Courtland from the middle of May through the middle of August. In my opinion, you got a raw fucking deal.”
For a second, Byron stared at me, his eyes wide and his pale cheeks tinted pink. “Oh. I…”
“And if it helps, Declan and I have a sort of friends with benefits things going.” I stopped and scrubbed my hand through my messy hair. Why sugarcoat it? “Eh…actually, it wasn’t much of a friends thing. Mostly, he’d come over to my apartment and fuck my brains out every weekend. That agreement only got hotter when I started working under him because it gave me the chance to flirt with him during the day. Get him all hot and bothered. Seriously, I was an HR nightmare, but I was also just temp help and my contract is up now, so it doesn’t matter.”
Byron still hadn’t made any new noises, or even breathed. I waited. He was either going to roll with it or clasp his pearls and storm out.
But Byron did me one better.
The man released a loud rush of air and scooted to the edge of the couch cushion, leaning closer. “I’m so jealous! I was terrified the entire time we were dating at Courtland that we’d be discovered. Sebastian would try to flirt, but I always shut him down. I wish we could have had more fun.”
“Sebastian has one of those private bathrooms in his office, right? No secret quickie in the bathroom?”
Byron shook his head. “No.”
I shrugged. “I could never talk Declan into that, either. It was mostly flirty, dirty talk on my end and a lot of glaring from him. Of course, he had no idea that I’d been hired. One of his managers brought me on to cover for two people on maternity leave. I was there to lighten the load. There was never any plan for me to join the company long term.”