Chapter 9 #2
“It was awesome! You were badass,” Liam says, and his mother sighs, pursing her lips. She glares at Isaac, who lifts his hands.
“It was great, Wolf. Thank you so much for the tickets,” Sophia corrects, a warm smile on her lips when she looks at him. “And for bringing my best friend to visit. If it weren’t for you, I probably wouldn’t have seen her for another year. She’s too consumed by work.”
“I thought you were freelance. Can’t you work from anywhere?”
Thank you, Sophia.
“I am,” I say, avoiding the suspicious look from my best friend. “But I do a lot of local stuff in Boston, and it can keep me grounded more than I’d like.”
Not my finest work, but it’s believable enough.
“Right. That makes sense. Well, it was my pleasure to help facilitate this reunion,” Bennett says, draping around my shoulders. “Maybe we can make it a regular thing.”
Liam looks between us. “Aunt Sloane, are you dating Wolf Bennett?”
“Liam!” Sophia snaps, pinching the bridge of her nose. “I am so sorry.”
“It’s just a question. They kissed earlier!”
“We need to have a discussion about your language habits,” she says with another glare at her husband.
“Don’t look at me,” Isaac says.
“He spends one whole day with you and the guys, and now he’s dropping shits and asses every other word.”
“At least it’s not fuck.”
Bennett chuckles under his breath, biting down on his bottom lip while trying to maintain his composure. He clears his throat and adjusts his footing to relieve some of the weight on his left side, meeting the still-expectant gaze of the ten-year-old. “Aunt Sloane and I are friends.”
“Well, it would be cool if you were dating,” Liam says. “Then you could go to shows all the time, and I could say my uncle is a wrestler! Everyone at school would be so jealous.”
“Okay, enough pestering,” Sophia says, rolling her eyes. “We need to get Liam home for bed. Sloane, are you staying in town or did you have…other plans?”
For the first time, I don’t have an answer.
Bennett and I haven’t talked about this—what happens after the show.
We talked about getting here, the tickets and passes, me visiting Sophia, meeting him at the arena before his pre-show routine…
everything except this exact moment. What happens now?
Do I go back to Boston? But if I go back to Boston, when will I see him again?
And how will I ever get a chance to pin down Amos, or someone willing to talk about Amos?
To get that opportunity within the short timeframe I have, I’d have to travel with him, immerse myself in his world…
That thought terrifies me and excites me all the same.
Part of me wants to go with him—to be around him—but the other part knows I have to go.
This may be my only chance to figure out the truth about Amos and his company.
But what if Bennett doesn’t want me to travel with him?
If that’s the case, I’m royally screwed.
“You’re more than welcome to stick around until he’s back on the road on Thursday if Wolf is busy this week. I’m sure Wolf would like to have his girlfriend back by then,” Sophia says to me.
Bennett’s eyes widen, and I match my best friend’s smirk with a hard glare.
Isaac chuckles under his breath, planting his hands on Liam’s shoulders and guiding him away. “We’re just going to go over here.”
“We’re not dating,” I say, still glaring at Sophia.
“You’ve been on dates, haven’t you? Multiple ones. Not to mention”—she looks at Bennett—“you flew her to the other side of the country for a show.”
“I came to surprise you!”
Sophia rolls her eyes. “Save your breath, Lolo. As happy as I am to see you, I know the only reason you’re really here is because of him.”
Bennett rolls his lips, trying to hide his smirk.
Shaking his head, he chuckles softly, planting his hands on his hips.
“That’s a question for Sloane. I have two full days of helping out at the training facility in Tampa, then a shooting day for some anniversary material.
I won’t have much downtime.” He looks my way.
“You’re probably better off hanging out here until—”
“I wouldn’t mind getting to see how things work, and I can make myself scarce when I need to,” I say.
Was that too pushy? I don’t want to seem too desperate, but I don’t want to let this opportunity slip through my hands.
“As much as I’d like to have you around this week, Honey, it’s not possible.”
Damn, that stings a little. This might be harder than I thought.
“You’re welcome to meet me in Salt Lake City on Thursday. Join me on the road for a few days. If you want to, that is…You can see what life on the road is really like.”
…Or not.
Bennett continues, “I don’t have anything booked the following week between shows, so if you’re free, I can show you around—”
“Yes!” A wide grin spreads across my face. “I mean, I’d like that.”
“Nice save,” Sophia snickers from my side.
“You hungry?” he asks, taking one of my hands in his, and a lick of fire spreads across my skin when his dark eyes meet my own. “We can grab some food at the diner, and then I’ll drop you off before I head to the airport.”
“And that’s my cue,” my best friend says, beginning to walk backwards. “I’ll see you at home. Have fun, but not too much fun. Wolf, don’t keep her out too late.”
He mock salutes her, and I roll my eyes. “Shall we?”