32. Elouise
Elouise
When I catch myself checking my hair in the rearview mirror for the third time, I squeeze my eyes shut and turn off the car.
“Just get out.” I tell myself. “It’s fine.”
Shoving my phone into my purse, I climb out and cross the street.
It’s Friday night in downtown Darling Lake and the block is predictably quiet.
Beckett sent me a text Monday night after parting ways at the Science Fair, asking me out on a date. I said yes. Of course, I said yes. And even though we’ve… done stuff , I’m still nervous.
The fact he’s had his hand in my pants, and his mouth on my tits, doesn’t make me feel more confident about tonight. Honestly, there’s a part of me that hardly believes that night in the tent even happened. Like maybe I made it all up.
Which is dumb. But that’s brains for you. They’re dumb.
My reflection looks back at me as I approach the glass storefront, my carefully straightened hair flying all over in the cool breeze.
Since we decided to meet at BeanBag for coffee, I went for casual. Casual, but it still took me two hours and dozens of combinations to find something I felt comfortable in.
I ended up in a pair of distressed jeans that hug my ass in a way that keeps the jiggling to a minimum, a low cut – and kind of snug – black tank top, and a thick multicolored cardigan.
It’s low key enough that I’d wear it out with friends, and the tank is more revealing than something I’d wear to work.
All in all, I feel pretty. And when the tiny voice in the back of my head reminds me how smoking hot Beckett is, I shove that voice into a box and wedge it into the shadowed corner of my mind.
Because he seems to want me just as much as I want him.
Pushing the door open, I’m greeted with the soft tinkling of a rain stick filled with coffee beans and the scents of coffee and cinnamon bread.
The shop is expectedly quiet. There’s a college aged girl sitting at one of the tables, laptop open, headphones on. And there’s an elderly gentleman sitting near the crackling fireplace, with an honest-to-god newspaper in his lap.
Before I start towards a table, I spot a familiar head of black curls.
“Maddie!” I hiss out her name.
From her spot near the register, her head whips in my direction. “Hey,” she lifts her hand in a little wave.
At least she has the grace to look guilty, hunching her shoulders and cringing.
I hurry to the counter, looking over my shoulder to make sure Beckett’s not about to walk in.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, keeping my voice low so the employee stacking cups further down the counter doesn’t overhear – not that she’s paying any attention to us.
Maddie leans over the counter towards me, staying just as quiet, “I needed to come in to do some paperwork. I’m not spying on you!”
I roll my eyes, “Bullshit. I know as well as you do that your paperwork can be done from your laptop at home.”
After having worked here since we were 15, Maddie became the proud owner of this location a few years ago after BeanBag decided to go the franchise route. Which is a whole other story, but the point is that I know how she runs this business. And I know she wouldn’t be here unless she wanted to be.
“Okay, fine!” Maddie huffs, “I want to see Beckett. So, shoot me!”
“You did see him! At the restaurant!” I remind her.
She shakes her head, “That doesn’t count. I only got a glimpse at him. He was too far away, and I was too much of a chicken to try and walk past his table when I left. Plus,” she holds up a finger, “I was planning to be in my car before you got here. I was just gonna watch him walk in.”
I snort, “Creeper.”
We stare at each other for a moment, then both break out in grins.
Maddie glances at her watch, “Which, I might add, you’d never even know about if you weren’t so freaking early.”
Catching myself a moment before I scrub my palms over my face and mess up my makeup, I drop my hands to my sides. “I’ve been dying of nerves all freaking day and didn’t want to be late.”
Maddie snorts, “So you left a half hour early for a three-minute drive?”
“Basically.”
Her smile turns soft, “Don’t be nervous. This might feel like a first date, but you two already know each other. Think of it more like catching up.”
I bite my lip. “I know. You’re right.”
“And, I mean, he’s already petted your kitty. So…”
We stand in silence, blinking at each other before we both fall into laughter.
I can feel the tension leave my body with each shake of my shoulders. Even though I picked this time because I knew Maddie wouldn’t be here to stare at us, talking to her is exactly what I needed to relax.
“What’s so funny?”
The deep voice startles a yelp out of me.
Beckett’s large hand presses softly against my lower back and I can feel the warmth even through my thick sweater.
My eyes catch the stunned look on Maddie’s face before I look up at Beckett, and I completely understand the wide-eyed stare my best friend is giving him.
In a black t-shirt, black zip up hoodie, and the same worn jeans I saw him in on Monday, Beckett looks as hot as he always does.
I don’t even understand how someone can look so good, all the time, but I can’t tear my eyes away.
I clasp my hands together to stop myself from reaching up to stroke the stubble covering his handsome face. I know what his hands feel like, but I’m dying to experience that beard between my thighs.
He clears his throat, “Evening, Smoky.”
“Hi, Beckett,” my voice comes out breathy, and if Maddie wasn’t so mesmerized by Beckett, she’d probably make fun of me.
The smile he gives me sends a tendril of warmth all throughout my body as his hand slides across my back, until he’s palming my hip and pulling me into his side.
Good god, why are we even here? I should’ve just invited him straight to my bedroom.
Beckett’s chest expands, “You look nice.”
Usually nice wouldn’t be a word I’d preen over, but the way he says it…
Welp, that’s it. One minute in and my panties are already toast.
“Thanks,” I lean a little harder into his side. “You don’t look so bad yourself.”
The smirk on his face is so cocky, I’m tempted to pinch him.
“Umm, you guys want some coffee?” Maddie’s timid voice reminds me we aren’t alone.
“Oh, uh, Beckett, this is-”
“Maddie, right?” he cuts me off, holding out his hand.
Maddie’s cheeks flame a brighter red than I’ve seen in years. Her mouth opens, but instead of responding she snaps it closed again and shakes his hand with a quick nod.
Beckett’s easy smile tells me this isn’t the first time a woman’s been rendered speechless by his looks.
“Nice to see you again,” I don’t know if he’s referring to the restaurant last weekend, or if he remembers her from all those years ago, but Maddie doesn’t seem to care, she just keeps staring.
I look to Beckett, “I know what I’d like, if you’re ready to order.”
He dips his chin, “You first.”
Straightening myself to face Maddie, I ask her for a caramel latte and Beckett requests a black coffee.
Maddie’s biting her lip so hard when she takes his credit card, I’m worried she’ll start bleeding any second.
When she hands it back, she musters the courage to speak again. “ Go ahead and sit down, I’ll bring these over when they’re ready.”
Maddie’s wide-eyed gaze is on me, but I catch Beckett slipping a twenty into the tip jar on the counter. It’s a nice gesture, and it’s not lost on me that he did it when he thought no one would see him. Never mind the fact that Maddie will send all the money home with the other employee.
Leading the way, I weave between a smattering of tables towards the private back corner. The round table is scarred, small and my favorite seat in the house.
I’m reaching for one of the chairs when Beckett’s hand tightens in the fabric of my cardigan across my back.
Forced to stop, I stand still while Beckett reaches past me and pulls the chair out from the table, “Allow me.”
Taking the offered seat, I can’t stop the smile spreading across my face, “Why thank you.”
Seating himself across from me, Beckett rests his elbows on the table, “I might be a prick some of the time, but I know how to behave on a date.”
“I’ll be sure to tell your mom she raised you right.”
Beckett laughs, “Hell,” he shakes his head, “she’ll have a field day when she hears about this.”
My brows raise, “You gonna tell her?”
He rolls his eyes, “If I don’t, I’m sure my cousin will.”
The thought of Beckett’s female family giving him a hard time fills me with delight.
“Do they still live around here? Your parents?” I ask.
He nods, “Yep. I know the day is coming that they’ll eventually have to move out of that house and into a senior housing type place, but they’re still both active as ever.”
I smile. I don’t know his parents well, but because of our brothers’ friendship, I’ve met them plenty of times.
Maddie’s approach halts our conversation, and we exchange a chorus of thank you’s as she sets down our drinks.
After I promise we don’t need anything else, Maddie backs away from our table, putting herself behind Beckett so only I can see her. With her eyes wide, she fans her face and pretends to pant .
I do my best to ignore her, wrapping my hands around the warm latte in front of me.
“What about your parents?” Beckett taps the side of his coffee with his fingertips. “You said you bought your old house?”
Maddie stands behind him and feigns a faint, then finally spins and walks away.
“I did,” I purse my lips to keep from laughing at my friend. “I think it’s been… two years already.” I shake my head. “That seems crazy.”
“Did they just want to downsize, or what made them move?”
“Oh, they downsized alright.” I roll my eyes, “They bought an RV and have been terrorizing the entire countryside with their antics ever since.”
“They’re having fun I take it?” Beckett asks with a crooked grin.
“That they are,” I nod. “They head to the southern states during the winter, then travel back north in the summer. Keeps them out of my hair for half the year at least.”
“There is that,” Beckett agrees.
There’s a moment of silence while we both sip our beverages.
“So how about James? What’s he up to?”
My mouth pulls up in a half smile, thinking about my brother. “He’s exactly the same.”
Beckett laughs, “No surprise there.”
“He’s got a pretty nice apartment in downtown Saint Paul that’s walking distance from the bank he manages. And because James never stops complaining about it, I know Tony still lives in Seattle, and that they never get to see each other.”
Beckett smirks, “I hear those same complaints from my mother. You’d think Tony moved to another planet for how she acts.”
“Mothers will be like that,” I slowly spin my coffee cup between my hands.
Beckett must sense I’m about to ask a question so he stays quiet, waiting for me to continue.
“You said you’re staying with your cousin and helping out with Clint…
” there’s no good way to ask this, and it’s not like it really matters, but I’m curious.
“Are you, um, are you working anywhere?”
When Beckett doesn’t answer right away, I drag my eyes up from the tabletop and find him grinning .
“What?” I ask, exasperated at his look.
“Smoky, are you asking if I have a job?”
The grin on his face makes me think that he must, but he still hasn’t answered the question.
I sit back in my chair, “It’s a fair question.”
“It is,” the fool is still grinning.
I cross my arms, “I just want to know if I should feel guilty about letting you pay for my coffee.”
My comment must catch him off guard because he lets out a bark of laughter.
“Because I can, you know, pay for my own stuff. Teachers might get paid shit, but I don’t need you to buy me things.”
His tone softens, “I know, Elouise.”
Elouise.
The syllables feel like satin on my skin.
My arms uncross and I lean forward, resting my hands on the tabletop.
Matching my movement, Beckett reaches across, placing his large palms over the backs of my hands. “I kinda love the fact that you don’t need me.” His thumb rubs across the sensitive skin of my wrist. “It means you’re here with me because you want to be.”
I raise one of my shoulders in a half shrug, “I’m caught up on my shows. And you aren’t terrible to look at.”
He narrows his eyes, “Cute.” His fingers encircle my wrists, holding my hands in place. “And to answer your question, yes, I’m gainfully employed. I actually moved back to Minnesota because of work. I was ready to be done with Chicago and the timing felt right.”
We kinda talked about this, back in my classroom, but I clearly needed this added reassurance that he’s back to stay. I don’t consider myself a fragile flower, but I can feel myself slipping under his spell already and I’m happy he won’t be disappearing.
“Is your work near here?”
He makes a noncommittal sound, “My main office is in Minneapolis, so not too far. We do property management, so unless I’m needed at a job site, I can usually work from wherever. The glory of laptops, virtual meetings and all that. ”
I sigh. “Must be nice.”
He chuckles, “It is. Unfortunately for you, being a teacher is kind of an in-person career.”
“True. I can’t even imagine trying to teach a bunch of 9 and 10-year-olds online. But I do get summers off, so there’s that.”
Beckett’s eyes hold mine, “Sleeping in. Breakfast in bed. Afternoons lounging in the sun. I can picture it now.”
Darkness has settled outside, but I swear I can feel the warmth of the sun on my skin as he speaks. Because in this image he’s painting, it sounds like he’s there with me. Like he’s already planning on it. Even though summer is months away.
Needing to touch him, like he’s touching me, I rotate my hands until they’re palm up.
His hold on me tightens, “I don’t want to rush you.”
“You’re not,” I cut him off before he tries to make excuses for this pull between us.
“Good. Because every night when I shut my eyes, I see you.” He leans in closer.
“I see you, underneath me, with my cock buried in your throat.” That heat builds between my legs, flashing out into the rest of my body.
“I see you writhing and moaning and swallowing me down.” I’m panting.
I think I’m panting. “And I need to see that again. Only this time,” he tugs on my hands, bending me over the table towards him, “I’m going to do it with my cock sunk deep inside your pussy. ”
Releasing one of my hands, Beckett cups the side of my face, holding me still as he closes the distance between us.
It’s only for an instant, but when his lips press against mine every nerve ending I have alights with pleasure.
“Tell me you want that too,” his words ghost over my mouth.
“I want that, too,” I whisper back.
“That’s my girl. Now invite me over.”
Not realizing my eyes had closed, I open them, finding Beckett’s golden gaze staring back at me, “Will you come home with me, Beckett Stoleman?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”