When he finally pulls back, his forehead rests against mine. “Have a good day, baby,” he whispers, voice so sweet, it kills me. “I’m going to fucking miss you.”
He presses one last kiss to my forehead, like a promise he isn’t ready to put into words yet. I watch him leave, the door clicking shut behind him, and for a moment, I just sit there, stunned.
He’s meeting buyers for his cattle today, which leaves me with hours. Hours to pour myself into this idea. Hours to dream about building something that’s finally mine.
With a grin stretching across my face, I drag my laptop back onto my lap, fingers flying across the keys once more.
I type in another search query, squinting at the screen as my brain starts to throb.
Wholesale distributors, online distributors, and secondhand book collections.
There are so many options, it’s giving me a damn headache.
I groan, leaning back against the pillows, when the sudden vibration of my phone on the nightstand pulls my attention. I grab it, my face immediately breaking into a wide smile when I see the caller ID.
Layla & Amelia (Thing #1 and Thing #2)
I hit accept, throwing them on speaker, already bracing myself.
“If it isn’t my two favorite skanks,” I purr sweetly.
Layla’s shriek blasts through the speaker so loudly that I jerk the phone away from my face. “BITCH!”
I laugh, settling back in.
“We haven’t heard from you in three hundred years, you skank. I just know you’ve been withholding life-threatening information!” Layla accuses dramatically.
Ugh, I’m such a bad friend, I’ve been so consumed in my bubble that I haven’t reached out.
I open my mouth to protest, but Layla cuts me off with a triumphant gasp.
“Aha! I knew it, you lying whore. Now SPILL. How’s work? How’s farm life? But most importantly, how’s that grumpy cowboy, Carter?”
I sigh dramatically, flopping back against the bed. “You guys literally only called to harass me.”
“We called because we love you,” Amelia says smoothly, voice calm and teasing, the perfect foil to Layla’s chaos. “Don’t get it twisted.”
“But mostly to harass you,” Layla adds brightly. “That’s just cause we love you, bitch.”
I grin to myself, my heart swelling at the sound of their voices. God, I miss these idiots.
“Okay, alright,” I say, settling back into my pillows, a dramatic sigh escaping me. “What do you bitches wanna know?”
Um, EVERYTHING?” Layla practically shrieks, like she’s ready to tear me apart if I hold out for even a second. “Is Carter still an asshole? Is he still disgustingly hot? Did he finally crack and admit he wants you to ride him like a mechanical bull?”
I choke on air, coughing so hard I nearly drop the phone. “LAYLA!”
“Bitch, you hesitated!” Amelia gasps, scandalized and delighted all at once.
I groan, dragging my hand over my face. “Okay, we may have... fucked once. Or twice. FINE. We fucked a handful of times. Happy now?”
For a split second, there’s silence.
Then the phone explodes with shrieking so loud I have to hold it away from my ear.
“I KNEW IT!” Amelia screams.
“DETAILS, NOW!” Layla demands.
