Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 120631 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 603(@200wpm)___ 483(@250wpm)___ 402(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 120631 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 603(@200wpm)___ 483(@250wpm)___ 402(@300wpm)
“I’ll be fine. Simon is coming early to help me set up. He has a truck.”
At least she had a backup plan. Chances were, she’d need it.
Logan arrived with several boxes. “Holy crap. This is all for the shower?”
“Don’t you start,” Jocelyn snapped.
Despite her notable stress, she looked damn sexy with her hair twisted up in that sloppy knot and her flannel tied around her waist as the tank top underneath clung to her sweaty skin. It wasn’t even hot out, but she was so worked up she looked like she’d just run a marathon.
“Build the boxes and then go to town and grab these things.” Soren handed Logan a roll of packing tape and a handwritten list of last-minute items.
He frowned as he skimmed the list. “Where do I get safety pins? And why do you need so many twenty-dollar bills?”
“Try the pharmacy, and the cash is for tipping.” He thought it might make things easier if they put each vendor’s tip in a pre-labeled envelope beforehand.
By nine o’clock, everything was glued, packed, and ready to load. Jocelyn looked like she’d been run over by a steamroller, but Soren was energized from a job well done.
He’d been just about to tell her there was a chance he might miss the big surprise, when she said, “Thank the Valkyries you’re going to be there, because as soon as this is all set up, I’m hitting the bar—hard.”
He decided then it was best to keep his schedule to himself. Why give her one more detail to worry about?
“I’ll be sure to keep your glass filled.”
She collapsed onto the couch. “I’m so tired.”
“You should take tomorrow night for yourself and rest.”
She draped over the cushions like a deflated starfish. “You’re probably right. I’ve been going nonstop. Maybe tomorrow we could order in and watch a movie or something.”
“Actually, I can’t. I have a work thing I need to attend.”
“Oh.” She frowned. “Like, a social thing? Do you need me to go with you?”
“Don’t worry about it.” He waved away her concern. “It’s just a boring corporate event. I plan to be in and out as fast as possible.”
He still had to pack and go over some last-minute notes before he left. Looked like he’d have to take a rain check on his blowjob for services rendered.
Planting his hands on the arms of the chair, he bent to press a kiss to her lips. “Which means you finally get a night to yourself. Use it wisely, because after that, I’m making up for any lost time. And you owe me one.”
She smiled, her eyes drowsy and her bones seeming to melt within. “Carry me to bed.”
That night, he texted Marie to check on the gift. She, of course, was way ahead of him and already purchased a collection of Beatrix Potter’s first editions of Peter Rabbit, and a rare first edition of Moby Dick for when the baby was older.
She also informed him that his tux had been delivered by the cleaners and that his luggage, including his golf clubs, was already on the jet.
CHAPTER 15
“OH YEAH, I’M A WILD ONE”
Soren disembarked from the Gulfstream right on time. The private car Marie arranged waited on the tarmac to drive him directly to The Vanderbilt Hotel.
Jocelyn had texted him that morning, wishing him a good day and informing him that she planned to sink into writing to keep herself from stressing over the baby shower. He reminded her not to work too hard and to try to get some rest tonight.
By seven that evening, he was dressed in his tuxedo and on his way to the charity gala. On the drive from the hotel to the Aldrich estate, he called Logan to check in on King.
“You couldn’t get a normal-sized dog, could you?” Logan said, sounding a bit overwhelmed.
“Oh, come on. He’s big, but he’s a gentle giant. Why are you so out of breath?”
“We were playing a game of Hide and Seek.”
Soren frowned. “Don’t let him out of the yard without his leash, Logan. That dog can run.”
“Yeah, no shit.”
“Did you lose my fucking dog?”
“Everything’s fine. Now.”
“Logan, I swear to God, anything happens to him—”
“Nothing is going to happen to him, you maniac. Go have a drink and stop being such a control freak.”
Jaw tight, Soren ended the call. He should have asked Jocelyn to watch him, but he knew she already had a busy weekend ahead and didn’t want to add to that.
Already missing her this evening, he shot her a text.
Hope you’re relaxing.
Who is this?
Ha. Ha.
Very relaxed, actually. Sitting here, naked, soaking in the tub, wondering if the hand-held showerhead can reach me.
Soren cursed under his breath as the car slowly turned. He shifted in his seat. Even from a hundred and eighty miles away, she could make him hard.
His phone pinged before he could respond, and his eyes widened at the erotic photo that filled his screen.