Total pages in book: 150
Estimated words: 142818 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 714(@200wpm)___ 571(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 142818 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 714(@200wpm)___ 571(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
“I’m on a run,” he replied tightly. “Now, I’m asking you where you are because it’s late, you’re fucking drunk and it’s too damn quiet wherever the fuck you are. If you’re outside alone—”
“What?” I demanded. “You’re gonna spank me, Daddy?”
There was a dangerous silence on the other end of the phone.
“Don’t you ever fuckin’ call me that again,” he demanded, his voice colder than the early spring air.
We were silent for a long time. I continued to stare at the car that hadn’t moved. Elden didn’t hang up.
“Go back inside, Violet,” Elden sighed quietly, sounding tired.
“Why aren’t you here, Elden?” I whined.
“Because you’re there, baby,” he murmured. “And we’re playin’ with fire right now. I don’t want you getting burned.”
My breath caught in my chest. “What if I want to be burned by you?”
“I’m doing the right thing here, Violet.”
“For whom?” I demanded, thinking of all those ugly words he said to me the last time I saw him.
Elden didn’t answer.
“Yeah, I thought so,” I muttered.
“Go back inside, baby,” he said, softer this time.
I stayed on the line for a long time.
He didn’t hang up.
Not until the door to the restaurant opened and Colby poked his head out.
“Violet!” he barked. “What the fuck are you doing out here alone?”
“Just a second!” I called to him, but Elden had already hung up.
I went back to school after Mom’s opening. She promised to send me any and all baby updates. I was designing her nursery, and even though it was more décor than any kind of design, I enjoyed it.
Sariah was happy to have her partner in crime back and made me tell her everything about Garnett and the Sons of Templar.
Elden called when it rained.
If I was driving, we spoke for however long it took to get to my next destination. I drove extra slowly and lingered in my car for as long as I could. We didn’t venture into the more dangerous topics … like what the calls meant or if he was seeing anyone else, though I tortured myself with the memory of that woman coming out of his room.
He asked about my classes. His tone got deep and tight if I mentioned lack of sleeping and eating. I didn’t even mention the partying, which there was a lot of. I asked him precious little about his life in Garnett because those questions were much too dangerous. I asked him about what he was reading, and then the second I got off the phone with him, I bought that exact book so we talked about it the next time he called. Once, there was a barking in the background of one of our calls.
“Did the club get a puppy?” I asked, no longer focusing on the rain or the tightness in my chest. In fact, the only tightness I got in my chest when it rained was caused by the excitement I felt hearing Elden’s voice.
“No,” Elden answered. He was a man of few words, but it was rare that he answered using only one.
“There’s a dog in the background,” I pointed out.
Elden sighed audibly. “You’re not gonna stop askin’ about the dog, are you?”
“Nope. I love dogs. I always wanted one, but my father never allowed them.” My breath caught as I realized I’d mentioned him. I never did that. Not even in passing.
“Local shelter calls me,” Elden began, filling the silence. His voice was deep, smooth. It calmed me. “If they get a dog in that they can’t get adopted here and need someone to transport it to a family outside of the city or state. They don’t have enough funding for that. So I do it.”
I digested that information. “So you rescue puppies?” I asked on a whisper.
“I transport dogs across state lines when I have the time,” he corrected.
I grinned. “You rescue puppies,” I sang, my fondness for this man growing with every passing second.
“You should have a home,” I decided. “One that isn’t a room in a clubhouse. One that has space. Land. For dogs.” I thought about the space I’d been designing for him in my head. “Open plan,” I continued. “Lots of windows. Nothing closed in. So you feel free.”
Elden didn’t say anything for a long time. All I heard was the barking.
“Are you there?” I asked, concerned.
“Yeah, baby, I’m here,” he said, his low tone wrapping around me.
It had changed something, me talking about a home. Me talking about his future. I didn’t know what exactly it was... But we didn’t speak for the rest of the drive.
I found myself praying, hoping for rain, scouring the weather forecast just so I could go out driving in circles when rain was predicted. Sure, it was a little crazy, but Elden made me abandon sanity. I might’ve been living a college life and even enjoying it, but I only felt partially whole there. Whatever free time I had was spent imagining what life would be like if I was with Elden.