Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 120326 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 602(@200wpm)___ 481(@250wpm)___ 401(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 120326 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 602(@200wpm)___ 481(@250wpm)___ 401(@300wpm)
He laughs. “Well, that’s good to know. You really are a little country bumpkin, aren’t you, Lana?” Even though his words are kind of insulting, his tone isn’t. It’s soft, tender almost. This is definitely uncharted territory for us.
“I’d rather be a country bumpkin than a city snob,” I answer, keeping my voice cheerful.
He gives a low chuckle. “Oh, so I’m the city snob, am I?”
I take another sip of the wine; it really is a nice one. “I don’t know…are you?”
Slowly, a smile spreads across his mouth. “I really like the grown-up Lana. She’s still kind of shy, but she’s got sass.”
“I can’t believe you just said I’ve got sass. You’ve gotten cheesy in your old age, Rob.”
“What?” He grins. “You are sassy these days. You used to be so touchy. I could never have any fun with you or you’d run away in a sulk.”
“Well, I’m not sixteen anymore,” I say, colder now. All of a sudden I can’t stand how he refers to his bullying as “having fun.” Yeah, having a bit of fun making me miserable.
He frowns at me as I walk away from him and go to sit with Sasha and Sandra, who are chatting in the dining room. A couple of minutes go by before there’s another knock at the door. Seeing that nobody’s making a move to go and answer it, I decide to take it upon myself to do so.
When I do, I find a really good-looking woman with shiny plum-coloured hair standing on the porch step. An equally good-looking man is with her. He’s tall and built like a rugby player. He steps in past me and drops two stuffed suitcases in the hallway at the foot of the stairs.
“Who are you?” asks the woman, giving me an appraising look.
“I’m Lana,” I answer, and her dark eyes light up in recognition, like she knows my name. Weird.
“Lana.” She smiles. “I’ve heard a lot about you. I’m Kara,” she says, offering her hand.
Oh. Robert’s girlfriend Kara? And she’s heard a lot about me? Um, okay. I shake her hand briefly and she saunters on into the house, the rugby player following closely behind her.
Three
I haven’t even gotten beyond the hall when I hear Robert’s voice boom out, “What the fuck do you think you’re doing here?”
I walk carefully into the room to find that everyone’s gathered around, silently watching the confrontation. Kara swings her poker-straight hair over onto one shoulder as the rugby-looking dude stands beside her, a defensive air about him.
“Gary and I came to leave off your things. They’re in the hall. So there’s no need for you to show up at the apartment looking for them.” She pauses and bites her lip, a smile threatening to break out. “Oh, my God, are those Sasha’s clothes you’re wearing? That’s just too funny, Rob.”
He gives her a look that says I couldn’t give a shit what you think is funny and then replies, “You’ve brought my things? Might I remind you whose name is on the lease?”
Kara points her French-manicured fingernail at him. “And might I remind you that we put my name on it last week before I moved in? You don’t even like the penthouse, so I don’t understand why you’re making such a fuss about it.”
“Uh, I’m making a fuss because you show up here with fucking Frankenstein meets Jonny Wilkinson when I’m trying to have a few quiet drinks with my mates. And because you packed up my stuff and moved it without my permission.”
Alistair gives Robert a high five for the “Frankenstein meets Jonny Wilkinson” comment. Gary bristles and flexes his fists. Uh-oh.
Kara grins like a cat and places a hand on Gary’s bicep, as though to calm him. I stand beside Sasha, who turns to give me a sly wink. We both know this is better than any soap opera on the telly. Sasha’s always told me stories about Kara’s and Robert’s dramas, but this is the first time I’ve gotten to witness one first-hand.
“Are you jealous, is that why you’re being so difficult? These are my friends, too, and I’d like to stay and have a drink,” says Kara, a subtle pout on her lips.
“You’re not welcome here,” Robert bites out, folding his arms.
Kara’s almond-shaped eyes flick to Sasha before she asks, “You don’t mind if I stay, do you, Sash?”
“Be my guest,” Sasha answers happily, turning to give her brother a big smile. This is obviously payback for him being a dick to her over dinner.
“What the fuck, Sasha?” Robert hisses. “Don’t be a bitch.”
“What?” Sasha asks, all innocent. “Kara is our friend. I’m not going to ban her from my house just because you can’t handle the fact she’s moved on.”
Robert glares at his sister before saying, “Speaking of which,” he looks at Kara and then eyes Gary, “You made quick work of replacing me. It’s barely been a day.”
Kara lets out a loud laugh. “Are you seriously going to play the victim here? Because if we’re keeping score, I think we both know who was the bigger slut in our relationship, and it wasn’t me.”
Several low “ohs” emanate from those in the room. I sip on my wine, simultaneously enjoying Robert getting burned, but also feeling bad for him. Having your ex-girlfriend show up at your sister’s house with a buff blond guy the day after you break up can’t exactly be a pleasant experience.
“Isn’t it the point of a relationship to only be a slut with each other?” I whisper humorously to Sasha, who grins and elbows me in the side.
Robert laughs joylessly and rubs the palm of his hand along his jaw. “Have you really got nothing better to do right now than be here? I tell you what, why don’t you and Gary go on back out to your car and get better acquainted. You always did enjoy a fuck in a public place.”
I cringe at his crude words, but Kara simply continues to smile at him perversely, like she either enjoys him putting her down or she sees his rudeness as an indication that she’s successfully getting to him.