Series: Fever Falls Series by Riley Hart
Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 96922 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 485(@200wpm)___ 388(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96922 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 485(@200wpm)___ 388(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
“I’m not meeting your family, Jace,” I said sternly. “Come on.”
“No, I think you’re cool, and I’m considering it all more than I did before, but I’ve always said, if Nance doesn’t like someone, I don’t trust them. And I’m not going to sign over a year of my life and walk away from my job and my family if I don’t trust someone. I need time to think it over anyway, and you’re in town…”
“For the night. And now it’s already been an extra night.”
“Well, if you can’t stay, consider it a no.”
God-fucking-dammit. Hard to reason with someone who had all the cards. “Okay, okay. When are we doing this dinner?”
“That’s more like it,” he said, smirking like he realized he had all the power.
I didn’t like the feeling of not being in charge, but I was desperate for this account, so I would put up with whatever ridiculous requests this guy made.
4
Jace
“What are your thoughts, Mac? You think we should be celebrities?” I glanced in the rearview mirror at Mac in his little car seat. Droopy-looking black snout, creased brown face, purple tongue sticking out as he panted, and those wide, black eyes assuring me that, in fact, he still didn’t understand a damn thing I said to him.
We were en route to the hotel Dax was staying at in downtown Fever Falls. I almost felt bad he had to stay in town for another day, but he didn’t have to stick around if he didn’t want to. Only if he wanted me to consider the sort of ad campaign he was pitching, and which I needed some time to think on.
I should have blown him off like the other bigwigs who’d called with offers. Hell, I had every intention of doing just that when I headed into Fever Pitch to chat with Dax. However, since things had calmed down, it was easier for me to think straight, and what he was talking about was a lot of money for me to throw away without so much as giving it a second thought.
High six figures. A guy could do a lot of good with that much money.
Was I really considering any of this, though? Or was I just interested in continuing to chat with Dax? Both, maybe?
I pulled into the porte cochere at his hotel and called him. He came out a few minutes later and slid into the passenger seat, talking on his cell.
“Just tell Baxter I’ll get back to him tomorrow about that whole ordeal. I’m in a meeting.”
“Yeah, I can imagine the kind of meeting you’re going to have tonight.” The words were unmistakable on the other end of the line, and Dax turned to me as though to see if I’d heard. I made no attempt to hide my amusement.
Were they just joking around, or was Dax into guys? And why did I give a shit, since it wasn’t like we would do anything together.
“Okay, Carter. Later,” he said, then hung up and closed his door.
“Sorry, that was my assistant.”
“Ooh, you just keep getting fancier and fancier. Sunglasses indoors, martinis, and now an assistant.”
He eyed me curiously. “Do I seem like a cliché LA PR guy? I promise I’m that and so many more of the dickbag aspects you might assume about me.” He flashed a smile, looking more like a model than a PR guy in that moment.
Not even just a model. He had an almost star-like quality. Wasn’t hard to imagine him on a billboard or in some hotshot movie trailer, playing a major action star in some sort of Die Hard-esque film.
“I’m only giving you a hard time,” I said. “It’s all very different than what I deal with day-to-day, but I respect it. And aside from you thinking we’re not as cool as your LA crowd, I don’t judge it. You’ve hardly been here two days. It can take some time to warm up to this place.”
“Thank you for being such an incredible welcome wagon.”
“Thank you for offering to pay me some serious cash.”
We headed out of the porte cochere, and I started through town. “Nance’s place is a little off the beaten path, I should warn you. About ten minutes outside of Fever Falls, and if you think this is a small city, you don’t even have a clue how rural it can get. We’re in the ’burbs, but go maybe ten minutes farther, and you’re in farm country.”
“And this is where you grew up?”
“A little bit. I was at the shelter in town until I was ten, and that’s when I was adopted.” I could feel Dax’s tension, the way people sometimes got when I brought up my childhood. “That wasn’t to turn the conversation super serious or anything. That’s all in the past, and I have an amazing mom, best in the goddamn world.”