Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 75734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
“How are you liking Moses Mile?” Garrett asked me.
I lifted my gaze to his and prayed I could speak without stumbling over my words. He was just a man. He wasn’t someone I had to impress or be accepted by. Just because he had a demeanor that made one feel as if they should cower before him didn’t mean I had to. Garrett Hughes was nothing to me.
“I’m enjoying it. The Houstons have been wonderful,” I replied honestly.
He smiled then, softening the overpowering presence he seemed to exude. “I hear you’re warming up to the horses. I expected you would. Your mother loved them,” he said with a touch of fondness in his tone that took me off guard.
He had known my mother? I’d not made that connection or considered that. Melanie being her friend was one thing, but I hadn’t placed my mother any further into this circle of people.
“You knew my mother?” I asked then, always wanting to know more about the woman who had given me life.
Although he continued to smile, sadness flickered in his eyes. “Yes. Very well.”
I wanted more than that. How did he know my mother? Where had he met her?
I wasn’t sure where to start when servers arrived at our table and began placing a salad in front of everyone at the same time. As if it were choreographed.
From the quick glance I took of the salad, I could see it wasn’t what I was used to. There were things in it that I didn’t recognize. The meat might be lobster. I wasn’t sure. The small amount of lettuce wasn’t normal lettuce, and it sat on top of chunks of avocado. I didn’t care about the food though. I wanted to hear about my mother.
“Fresh lobster,” Garrett said, as if he were reading my thoughts. “Many believe Maine has the best lobster, but there are those who argue they haven’t had Florida lobster.”
I had never had lobster. Sure, I’d seen it on television and the cooking shows I would watch on the public broadcasting station, but I had never been able to afford something like lobster. Garrett took a forkful and held it up before putting it in his mouth, as if showing me it was safe to eat.
I decided to try it since that was where his focus was at the moment, then get the conversation back to my mother.
Melanie hadn’t told me much. Her details had been sparse. I realized now just how sparse they had been. She’d never mentioned my mother knowing Garrett Hughes.
The salad was indeed delicious. I took several bites while listening to Garrett engage Kenneth in conversation about the upcoming race. I’d been hearing about the Belmont Stakes at the stables. I knew nothing about horse racing, except what I heard among the trainers and jockeys at the stables. Interrupting their discussion didn’t seem like a way to get Garrett to tell me more about my mother. While I waited, I drank my water and finished the salad.
A few times, I glanced over at Trev or Saxon to see who they were speaking to. The girl between the two seemed to be more interested in Trev than Saxon, and I wondered if it was always that way. Trev had more money, and his family clearly held more power.
Blaise was speaking with the lady on his other side. I was happy to be ignored. Especially if my only option was to speak with Blaise. My eyes met Trev’s as I reached for my water. He winked at me, and I smiled back at him. It would have been a much more pleasant dinner if he’d been the brother on my right.
Who had chosen where we sat anyway?
“Careful. The senator’s daughter doesn’t like competition,” Blaise said close to my ear.
I stiffened, startled, then turned my head to see he had leaned close to me. He’d not wanted anyone to hear what he was saying.
I glared at him. “She doesn’t need to worry.”
Blaise raised his eyebrows, as if he didn’t believe me. “Why is that?”
I set my glass down and placed my hands in my lap, fighting the urge to ball them into fists. “Like I told you before, Trev and I are just friends.”
The corner of Blaise’s full lips curled up slightly. “Then, act like it,” he replied before leaning away from me and reaching for his drink.
I wanted to yell at him or use my fist to pound on his arm. Not that it would do much good. His arm looked as if it were made of stone. Very nicely carved stone. Even under the tux he was wearing, his broad shoulders and thick, muscular arms were hard to hide.
The servers arrived again in unison to take away the plates in front of us. It was so smoothly and efficiently done that I wondered if they had to train for this sort of job.