7. Beck
CHAPTER 7
Beck
As soon as Sebastian left, I took a quick shower, pulled on my sweats, and slid under the covers of my Cal King.
I stared at the wall across from me. We’d officially been in the house a week. It had been twenty-four hours since I'd unceremoniously dropped Alice off with Luna.
The woman lived on the other side of that wall.
Technically , I didn't know where her bedroom was, but I suspected her upstairs layout mirrored my own.
Luna fucking Marks.
The woman who stirred something in me. Something I hadn't felt with anyone else.
That night we met had been the most memorable sexual experience of my life. But it wasn't just about the sex. No, it was her .
The way her red hair fell in a curtain around her face. The blunt bangs gave her an edge that I found intriguing. The quirk in her smile even more so.
Luna Marks was the kind of woman who knew what she wanted. Her success wasn't by accident. No, she worked hard in business, honing her image and she knew her mind.
And that night I thought our minds had been as in sync as our bodies.
I thought she was the fucking one for me.
The giddy smile I wore the day after made my face ache, and I didn't even care.
Then I called her that night, after thinking about her all day. The line trilled, and I knew exactly what I wanted to say to her. I'd been practicing it in my head all day.
The line trilled and trilled some more.
“Paccino’s Pizza. May I take your order?” a man answered.
My smile faltered.
I glanced down at my phone, my brows furrowed. “Sorry, wrong number.”
I ended the call and then glanced at the contact information I’d input. I read the digits one by one, comparing them to the Sharpie on my arm where I’d written the number as Luna relayed it to me post orgasm.
“We have to do this again. Listen up, buttercup,” she had said to me. Then Luna proceeded to rattle off her digits, but my phone was buried under my clothes somewhere in the entryway of my apartment where I had shed them earlier.
Too far. They'd been too far, so I used the nearest tool at my disposal. I grabbed the Sharpie from my nightstand and wrote it on my arm and transferred it to my phone later.
After calling the number again and getting the same result, I realized what happened.
She gave me a fake number.
What a slap in the face.
I nursed beer after beer that night…
An incessant knock on the front door pulled me out of the past, thrusting me back into the present.
Took her long enough.
I threw my covers off, padding down the hallway and the stairs.
The Steele Cyber Security app on my phone confirmed my suspicions.
I opened the door wide. “Hello, Marks.”
She glared. “Bennet.”
We stood there, staring at each other. She was as beautiful as ever, even though her makeup had been wiped clean from her face. Her hair pulled back in a messy high bun on top of her head.
What the fuck was she wearing? I couldn't help myself as my eyes traveled down her tight and toned body. She'd encased it in black leggings, which served as a second skin. Her breasts strained against the black crop top she’d paired with the tight leggings.
Christ, I could see her nipples through the fabric.
I stopped myself from scrubbing a hand down my face. “You're late.”
Her glare faltered. “Late for what?”
“My scolding.” I reached forward, closing the front door behind her. “Come.”
I headed for the kitchen. It was set in the back of the first story of the house, farther away from the stairs, which meant Alice was less likely to wake up.
It was a good thing Luna hadn't woken her too, because I’d applied the you break it you buy it rules when it comes to Alice and her bedtime routine. If you wake up my sleeping kid, you're officially responsible for putting her back to bed.
“Can I get you something to drink?” I asked, back turned to her as I opened the fridge and pulled out another beer.
“I'll have tea.”
“Okay.” Not what I was expecting, but then again, I never knew what to expect when it came to Luna Marks. That's half her charm.
I opened cabinet after cabinet.
“Something wrong?” Luna asked, arms crossed as if ready to jump back into our verbal volleys.
I scrubbed a hand across my scruff. “I don't actually have tea.”
A hint of amusement crossed her face, disappearing so quickly, I’d almost thought I imagined it.
She dropped her hands to her sides. “What do you have? Decaf coffee? Sparkling water..?”
“Juice box?” I held one up. The green box with the little plastic straw fastened to the back.
This time the corner of her lips twitched. There was no doubt about it.
I ignored the seed of satisfaction that bloomed in my chest.
I went to put the juice box back in the fridge.
“Fine. If that's the best thing you have to offer, I'll take it.” Luna lunged forward, swiping it from my hand. Well, she tried to. She was fast. I was faster.
I lifted the box in an iron grip above my head.
Luna tried to reach for it, her chest brushing against mine before realizing it was futile. I had almost a foot on her. Especially since she’d left her heels at home.
Just when I thought she’d given up, she jumped again, her body coming flush against mine.
Fuck her nipples were hard.
I let go and the box fell to the floor. She didn’t catch it in time.
The box burst on impact, splashing juice everywhere.
We both froze as if a bomb had detonated. Then, breath held, we looked up as if waiting for the pitter patter of tiny feet.
“Daddy?” Alice called from upstairs.
“Shit,” Luna swore.
I dragged a hand across the top of my head, not ready to be done with Luna. To hash things out. To find some footing…
“Daddy, are you there?” Alice sounded scared this time.
Right now my baby girl came first.
“I'll clean that up later,” I said to Luna, pointing to the mess on the wood floor, before turning toward the stairs. “Everything is fine, Alice. Just a little spill. Nothing to worry about.”
Alice was my first priority. And to think if things had gone right with Luna in the first place, I might not have Alice.
“I'm coming,” I told Alice again. “Rain check on this conversation?” I asked Luna.
Luna nodded her soft gaze hardening when it returned to meet mine.
“An eight-year rain check?” she muttered, striding towards the door.
I got there first, her comments razing my hackles. “At least I know I have the right phone number this time.”