Chapter Eighteen – Love You Tonight #2
He glanced down at the towel and the swell of my breasts above it before fastening me with a heated stare. If possible, his voice got even deeper as he said, “I think I’m finally getting how tempting it can be.”
As he stepped farther away, my breath escaped, and my stomach unclenched.
“You might appreciate a romantic-suspense novel more than that,” I said.
“I’ve got three more after this, right? You can recommend one. For now, let’s see”—he read the back—“how the Duke of Thornton manages with Miss Danvers.”
The more space he put between us and the more he teased, the more it allowed me to regain my wits. “Fine. But don’t judge all romance by one historical, even if it is a really great one.”
“You forget, Maise, I’ve already read a couple of romance books.”
I scoffed. “You didn’t really read The Marriage Solution when you lost that bet, did you?”
His dimple popped. “Someday, you can quiz me on it and find out.” At the door, he turned back and looked at my nearly naked body. “I feel like I should get extra points for not touching you right now. It took an inhuman amount of effort.”
I wished I had something to toss at him. Instead, I said, “I’m going to the Emporium for fajita fixings. Can I get you anything?”
His brow raised, and a little growl escaped him, tantalizing me all over again.
“Get your mind out of the gutter, Fireball.”
“You’re lucky I can think at all, darlin’, after what I saw under that towel.”
My pulse rocketed again. My mouth turned dry, and for two seconds, I couldn’t remember why we were denying ourselves what our bodies clearly wanted.
All humor faded from Beckett’s face, and he was the one who finally looked away. “I promised Tejas drinks the other night and then forgot to meet up with him. He insists I now owe him dinner and drinks for leaving him hanging.” He hesitated. “So don’t plan on me for dinner. I’ll likely be late.”
I looked down at my toes, noticing the polish was chipped.
“You don’t owe me any explanations, Beckett. We’re not actually in a relationship. Go do whatever it is you need to do.”
When he was silent for far too long, I risked looking at him.
Not even a hint of his smile remained. His lips were flat.
His expression grave. “I’m not going out to try to get laid, Maisey.
The entire town thinks we’re getting married, and I’ll damn well show you the respect you deserve while that’s the case—show us both the respect we deserve.
I may not have ever seen myself as married, but I’d never cheat on my spouse if I were. ”
It shouldn’t hurt, because it was exactly what he’d said—respectful—and yet, for some reason, it did. It was because, stupidly, in my secret heart of hearts, I wished it wasn’t pretend.
“Well, at least be a good wingman, then, and help Tejas get laid.”
“Tejas doesn’t need the assist, but if Leon shows up, that kid needs all the help he can get.” He looked at his dog. “You staying here?”
The dog thumped his tail without budging.
“Vader and Dorothy have bonded,” I told him.
Beckett groaned. “You actually named her? I told you not to name her.”
I laughed. “Vader deserves companionship.”
Our eyes met again, a flare of longing zipping back across the room.
“Good luck getting him to clean the litter box,” Beckett teased.
Then, he walked out the door with my romance book in his hand and his humor and smile restored.
? ? ?
I’d finished cleaning the dinner dishes, and Dad and I were into our second round of King’s Corners, when Vader sat up and barked two seconds before a fist pounded on the front door.
My body froze before I heard Fallon’s voice demanding to be let in. I swung the door open to find my friend waving a bottle of margarita mix and a bakery box while Andie stood right behind her with a bottle of tequila.
My brows raised. “What’s this?”
“Celebration,” Fallon said, eyes drifting toward Andie and back. “Andie wanted to celebrate with you and make some plans for the wedding. We need to get the date on the ranch’s event calendar before we book up.”
My tension, which had slowly ebbed away during our uneventful evening, crept back up.
I couldn’t tell Andie the truth. I liked her, would even say we’d become good friends since the three of us had started a book club together last fall, but this secret had to remain just that, at least until Beckett got the chief’s job.
Dad looked up as the three of us entered the kitchen. “Fallon! Good to see you!”
He got up to hug her, and Fallon squeezed him back. “How’s the hand?”
“Better than my brain. It’s all whacked up these days,” Dad said with a self-deprecating laugh.
“We’re interrupting a game,” Andie’s voice held an apology. “What were you playing?”
“King’s Corners,” Dad responded. “You play?”
“I’m a bit addicted to cards, but I haven’t played that game before.”
Andie sat down across from him, and while Dad was explaining how to play, Fallon and I moved off to make the margaritas. When the blender was going, she whispered, “Sorry, I didn’t know how to get out of it without blowing your cover.”
“It’s fine. We’ll just consider it a girls’ night.” I shrugged.
“She’s already got plans forming and several dates in mind,” Fallon told me with a little grimace.
“As long as she doesn’t spend any money or ask me to hand over a deposit, she can do whatever she wants.”
When we got back to the table, Dad had set up a new game for the four of us.
Only Andie and I had tequila in our margaritas—Dad was still recovering, and Fallon claimed she needed to drive—but by the time we’d been at the game for a few hours, it was clear that, even tipsy, Andie was a ruthless player.
Dad was tickled, acting like a proud teacher every time she went out with a bang.
When his laughter filled the kitchen, the tension and heartache of the last few days eased away once again, and I was suddenly very grateful my friends had shown up.
After Andie trounced us several more times, Dad called it quits.
“That’s it for me. I’ve created a monster.” He winked at Andie. “I need some rest, and the three of you have girl things to discuss.”
He kissed me on the cheek, hugged Fallon, and patted Andie on the shoulder before heading down the hall.
When Andie shuffled the deck one-handed and started to deal another round, Fallon groaned. “No more! I had no clue you were such a card shark.”
The humor on Andie’s face faded, and a faraway look came over her. “I haven’t played in a really long time.” She purposefully changed the subject. “So, what time of year were you thinking of for the wedding?”
I swallowed the rest of my margarita. I’d need more alcohol to get through this discussion.
When I went to retrieve the pitcher, the room spun a bit, and a warning screamed through me.
I was dangerously close to drunk, meaning I was too far away from the clear head I needed while staying with Beckett, but I ignored caution and poured myself another glass.
After all, I’d earned this drunk with the week I’d had.
“I’m not ready to set a date, Andie. This”—I waved my hand around the house—“is already more than I can handle at the moment.”
Andie straightened her perfect bun. She looked like she was ready to walk into a business meeting with her silk tank and pressed slacks. Even her shoes were business-worthy little peep-toed heels. I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen Andie in jeans and a T-shirt.
“I want to make sure your wedding is perfect. Everything you dreamed,” she insisted. “And next year, our weekends are nearly full, and the year after that is booking up fast.”
I took another sip of the margarita, disregarding the way my heart panged at the idea of having a dream wedding with Beckett.
“We don’t need a big venue. It’s not like either Beckett or I have a huge family that’ll show up.
We could hold the wedding here in the backyard if we needed to.
” Beckett just had him and his dad. No grandparents, aunts, uncles, or cousins had ever come around.
And my parents had both been only children.
My grandparents on both sides had all passed when I was little, well before my mom had died.
“You do have family,” Andie insisted, startling me. “Just think about the crew at the fire station and the hospital staff. You add in their plus-ones and Fallon’s family, and you’re going to need a bigger space than the backyard.”
It hit me hard how right she was. Beckett and I had made families for ourselves. I wasn’t sure the hospital staff were people I could count on, but Fallon and her family absolutely were.
But thinking about putting together a big wedding, even just to keep up the pretense, made my head hurt. Maybe the way Fallon and Parker had done it, eloping in Vegas and then throwing a celebration months later, was the better way to go. Way less pressure.
“Just put me down for whatever date is available and let me know.” Andie’s mouth dropped open, and I asked, “What?”
“I was sure you were going to keep putting me off. I was sure you weren’t really engaged.”
“What? Why?”
“Most of the town is talking about it. While everyone knew you two were friends—good friends, maybe even friends-with-benefits kind of friends—you’ve never been openly affectionate.
No one’s caught you kissing. And now, with the mumblings about the chief retiring and the city council wanting a married man in the position, everyone has been wondering if that’s why you two decided to get hitched.
” As if realizing what she’d just spilled out, Andie blushed.
“I’m sorry.” She looked down at the empty margarita glass.
“I shouldn’t have drunk so much. It makes me say things I’d normally filter. ”
My cheeks flushed at the idea of people talking about Beckett and me being friends with benefits and nothing more.
I was pretty sure Delilah was the source of the gossip, but if Andie had heard the rumor, it meant the entire town had heard the same thing.
It meant Beckett and I would have to do a lot more to convince Nattingly and the city council that our relationship was real.
The entire idea of it made the alcohol I’d drunk churn uncomfortably.
“That’s just Delilah being nasty,” I said. “Just like the notes she’s been leaving us.”
That caught Fallon’s attention. “What notes?”
I pressed my hand to my stomach, realizing my slip. I didn’t really want to tell my friends about the notes, but at least it would switch the subject from weddings and love, so I caught them up on what had happened.
“This is serious, Maise,” Fallon said. “What did Delilah have to say for herself when Josh talked to her?”
I frowned. “I don’t know. We haven’t heard from him today.”
Fallon’s brows raised, and she smirked. “How upset was Josh when he found out you’re getting married to Beckett?”
“What do you mean?” I asked, and my friend rolled her eyes.
“You know he’s had a crush on you for most of our lives. Since you moved back to Rivers, he’s been pining away, hoping you’d finally say yes to a date.”
I waved a dismissive hand at her. “I mean, sure, in high school, Josh asked me out, but that was just because we were friends. It wouldn’t have been a date-date.
Truth is, it would have been smarter for me to go to homecoming with him rather than Carter ‘The Jerkwad’ Smythe.
But that was years ago. Josh doesn’t like me that way.
I’ve been home for three years, and he hasn’t asked me out. ”
But an inkling of doubt winged in. Had I been so busy avoiding whatever this was with Beckett that I hadn’t even noticed Josh was interested in more than friendship?
If I continued down this pretend path with Beckett, if we convinced the town we were actually engaged, and then we ended the fake relationship, would that somehow make me a pariah in the Swift Rivers dating world?
Would I lose not only Beckett but also any chance of a happily ever after?
“It would have been hard for him to ask you out with Beckett always hovering around you,” Andie said.
Surprise shifted through me. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, look at Sweeney. That guy has made no bones about being attracted to you, and Beckett shuts it down every single time.”
“Sweeney?” I squeaked.
“I told you,” Fallon said, exchanging a look with Andie. “Maisey is completely in the dark when it comes to guys liking her. She has no clue how beautiful she is. How beautiful she’s always been, regardless of the issues she had with her jaw.”
A flush crept over me again. I needed to change the subject again—fast.
As if he’d heard my silent call for help, the front door opened, and Beckett strode in, halting the conversation and causing my heart to leap at the sight of him.
Maybe it was the alcohol, or maybe it was Andie’s words about the town doubting our relationship, but I found myself rushing over to him on unsteady feet. Before I’d really thought it through, I’d looped my arms behind his neck and pressed my lips to his.
For two seconds, I felt his hesitation before his arms surrounded me, one hand settling on my lower back and pushing me into him so we were perfectly aligned. My lips tingled, my body flamed, and I knew I’d made a mistake, but I didn’t care.
For two seconds, he was mine, and I was his, and the entire town of Swift Rivers was wrong. When we were tucked together like this, we were far more than friends. We were one heart, one soul, rejoining after being separated for far too long.
We were the forever after I’d always wanted us to be.