Chapter 3
Chapter Three
SKYLA
“T here you are,” Blake Blackwell says with a charming smile. “I found Riley by himself, and I was worried.”
“I was training him.” I narrow my eyes and prop my hands on my hips. “It was an exercise for him.”
“Oops,” the one with the beard says, cringing. “You messed up, bro.”
“I apologize, Skyla,” Blake says, shaking his head.
“Did he just follow you over here?” I’m eyeing Riley, who won’t look me in the eyes because he knows he’s in deep shite.
“Yeah,” Blake says. “He did.”
“You and I are going to have a long conversation,” I inform the dog, who whines and lowers his head.
“He knows,” Beard says with a grin. “Hi, I’m Beckett.”
“Skyla,” I reply and accept his offered hand. A zing moves up my arm at the contact, and Beckett’s eyes narrow slightly as he examines me. He’s impressive, I’ll give him that. Even though he’s sitting, I can see that he’s tall and muscular with dark hair and eyes, and that beard isn’t too long, trimmed nicely, and would feel so good…
Whoa, we’re not going there.
“That’s Bridger,” Blake says, pointing at a man on the other side of the table wearing a Bitterroot Valley Fire Department shirt.
“Dani’s husband?” I ask.
“That’s me,” Bridger replies with a grin. “Dani talks about you all the time.”
“I’m so sorry I had to miss the wedding.” I frown when Beckett reaches out and pets Riley, and Riley lets him.
This dog is in trouble.
“The photos are beautiful, and it’s pleased I am for both of you. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there.”
“Thanks,” Bridger says with a smile. My friend’s right. Her husband is swoony.
“And I’m Brooks. The oldest and best looking.” Brooks stands and reaches over to shake my hand, making me smile.
“So connecting the dots, you’re Billie’s brothers, then?” I ask as I make Riley get off the bench. He still won’t look me in the eyes, but he sits dutifully at my side. These Blackwells have incredibly gorgeous genes to be sure. They all resemble each other, and the brothers are all handsome as sin.
When Beckett shifts in his chair to face me and give me his attention, it makes my lady bits take notice. They’re indeed all ridiculously good-looking, but this bearded man sets my body on fire.
“We are,” Beckett replies with that deep timbre that just begs for me to shiver.
“I’ve heard a few stories from Billie. She’s one of my very good mates here in Montana.”
“You’re welcome to join us.” Blake gestures to the empty seat between him and Beckett, but I shake my head. “We can call Billie and have her join us, too.”
“I won’t interrupt your brothers’ night out. It’s grateful I am that you broke my very expensive, supposedly trained dog.” I laugh as I pull away. “Good night to you.”
I spare Riley a glance.
“Heel,” I tell him, and he follows me dutifully out of the pub toward my car. “I can’t believe you went with Blake. You know better than that, Riley Gallagher. You can’t just follow handsome men around, you know. And we can’t tell Uncle Connor about it, or he’ll be surely good and pissed.”
He stops abruptly and turns, alerting me to footsteps behind me. He lets out a low growl as I turn to see Beckett approaching. Okay, so my dog is still doing his job.
Beckett stops short and holds his hands up. “He’s trained after all.”
“Quite well,” I agree and hold my hand up, giving Riley the sign to stand down. Immediately, my boy stops growling and sits next to me. Maybe we’ll get some training tonight despite how the evening ended.
“I didn’t mean to startle you.” His eyes fall to where I’ve fisted my hand at my side, and I intentionally loosen those muscles before he pins me in his gaze again. “I wanted to ask for your phone number when my nosy-as-hell brothers aren’t listening in. I don’t want them watching while I try to charm a beautiful woman.”
My brows rise in surprise. Beckett is not simply handsome. That’s much too drab of a word for this man. He’s…powerful. His jawline is sharp beneath that beard, and his dark eyes look lighter, almost like whiskey out here in the soft glow of the car park lights.
And when he smiles at me, it moves through me like molasses, from my head to my toes. I want more of those smiles. Even if I know I won’t allow myself to indulge in that pleasure.
Beckett Blackwell is sadly a person I’ll need to avoid. I’m not entirely sure I’ll ever be willing to be vulnerable to a man again.
Not yet anyway.
“Thank you for asking,” I finally reply when he shoves his hands in his pockets, waiting and watching. “But I’ll have to decline.”
Those whiskey eyes narrow on me, and I almost want to take the words back.
“It’s nothing personal,” I rush on to assure him. If I were anyone else, if I didn’t have such a fecked-up past, I’d absolutely date Beckett Blackwell. “I’m sure you’re a lovely man.”
“Yeah.” He nods, then chuckles, running his hand through his hair. “That’s how I’ve been described often. Lovely.”
I laugh with him and shrug a shoulder. “I’m simply not on the market.”
All humor leaves his face. “I apologize. I didn’t realize that you had someone.”
“Oh, I don’t.” I shake my head and notice that his shoulders relax. Great, so he’s sexy as sin and a nice person. “And I’m not looking for a … someone.”
“Fair enough.” He takes a step back, and I breathe a little easier. “Have a nice evening.”
When he turns to walk back into the pub, I have a moment of regret.
Perhaps it would be nice to get to know someone like Beckett. There’s no denying that I’m attracted to him. A woman would have to have no pulse to ignore the charisma and sex appeal this man exudes.
But I was also attracted to the arsehole , and that ended in a nightmare.
Feeling slight melancholy and definite disappointment— I hate this so much —I watch Beckett go back inside and lead Riley to the car.
“This is for the best,” I say to both of us before I close the door and climb into the driver’s seat. After starting the vehicle and pulling out to head home, I eye the dog in the mirror. “Now, you do realize that you failed that training, right? I can’t believe you went with Blake. You know better than that.”
Riley lies down with a huff, and I shake my head.
“We’ll try that one again soon.”
* * *
Tonight is my favorite night of the month.
Spicy Girls Book Club.
Bee hosts it at her bookshop, and we’re up to about fifteen members now, which is a lot of fun. But I’ve grown closest to the original members.
Bee and Dani are my tightest friends. Dani’s twin sister, Alex, and Millie Wild, the owner of the coffee shop next door, are also wonderful.
But I enjoy all of the ladies who have joined. So many of them have known each other most of their lives, thanks to living in a small town, but that didn’t stop them from graciously welcoming me into their fold and making me feel right at home.
“I brought chocolate cupcakes,” Jackie, the owner of The Sugar Studio, announces as she walks through the door. “And I actually read the book this time.”
With a laugh, we all gather around to talk about this month’s book club read, Love, Utley by S.J. Tilly. We started reading a mafia series by the same author last winter and loved her so much that we decided to keep going. I’m so glad we did.
“This book was a masterpiece,” I tell the group. “It was so heart-wrenching and sexy, all at the same time. But my favorite bit was early in the book when she had the wee fender bender after lunch with her coworkers. She’s frightened and having a moment, and Maddox doesn’t even look her way. He simply puts his hand out for hers, and she slides her palm into his. My heart gave such a heavy sigh at that moment.”
“Hot as hell,” Bee agrees, as the others nod. “We love a man who takes charge. Who knows what he wants and doesn’t play any bullshit games.”
As long as it’s consensual, yes.
But I don’t say that out loud.
We spend the next hour discussing the book and eating cupcakes. It’s always so wonderful to spend time with these girls.
As is typical, once most of the other members have left, our group remains for any last-minute gossip.
“I have some news.” I smile when I see that I have everyone’s attention.
“Tell us,” Alex says, leaning toward me. “Don’t leave anything out.”
“I had an interesting encounter the other night.” I briefly tell them about meeting the Blackwell brothers. “You have an impressive family, Bee.”
“They’re all a major pain in the ass,” Bee replies.
“Hey, one of those is my husband,” Dani reminds her.
“I stand behind my statement.” Bee shrugs.
“Well, Beckett asked for my number.” I press my lips together, and I can feel my face flush as the others watch me.
“Did you give it to him?” Millie asks. “Do you have a date? Oh my God, we need details.”
“No, I turned him down.” I shake my head, still feeling the regret in my chest.
“Why?” Dani asks.
Even though this amazing group of women has been my friends for so many months, I haven’t confided in them about what happened in New York City. Maybe now is a good time to share a few details because I need some bloody advice.
“You all know that I used to be a dancer in New York City.” It still stings to use those words. Used to be. “Well, it’s true that I can’t dance anymore, professionally anyway, because of my ankle. But I also left because I had, well, a situation.”
“What kind of a situation?” Bee draws her eyebrows together.
“A stalker. An unhinged man, who I dated very briefly. When I told him it wasn’t going to work for us, he wouldn’t take no for an answer. He’s unstable but smart enough not to break any laws.”
“For fuck’s sake.” Millie scowls. “What a piece of shit.”
“Yes, he is. I haven’t heard a word from him since I got here, so I hope that’s a good omen.”
“But what does that have to do with Beckett?” Alex asks.
“My instincts for choosing men are broken.” I reach down to pet Riley, who nudges my hand. “I’m a bad judge of character, obviously. That experience did a number on me, so in addition to not choosing good men, I can’t imagine anyone wanting to take on my baggage. Baggage I won’t bore you with here, but let’s just say it’s hard-sided luggage you have to pay extra for because it’s always over the weight limit.”
Baggage that includes nightmares and a fear of being in the dark so badly that I need an emotional support dog to help me through.
They’re quiet for a moment, then Bee says, “Well, I can tell you for certain that Beck isn’t an asshole. If you tell him no, the answer’s no, and that’s the end of it.”
The others nod in agreement.
“I’m sure he’s not a certifiable stalker,” I reply. “But I just don’t trust myself. Or men, for that matter. There’s an attraction there, don’t misunderstand. He’s handsome, and he was kind to me.”
“But?” This comes from Dani, who’s watching me with eyes full of concern.
“But I don’t think it’s a good idea even though he’s the first man I’ve been attracted to in any way for the better part of three bloody years.”
“Then the answer’s no.” Alex nods. “You have to be comfortable, babe. That’s the bottom line.”
“It doesn’t hurt my feelings,” Bee says, pushing her pretty hair over her shoulder. “My brothers tend to be on the alpha side. Bossy. Take charge.”
Oh, I don’t think I’d mind that so much. It’s when they go too far, when it isn’t consensual, that I have a problem.
“Then again,” Bee continues, “I’ve found alpha men do give some good orgasms.”
“Like your foreigner last winter?” Dani asks with a grin, and we all nod, enjoying this story. Bee had a one-night stand with a handsome tourist last year. She never exchanged names with him, so we don’t know who it was, but from what she’s told us, it was hot.
Clearly, because it’s still on her mind.
“I mean,” Bee adds, “he was pretty take-charge and alpha, and I have no complaints about that.”
“Thanks for listening to me.” I smile at my new friends. “I needed to talk it out. Not because I thought I made a mistake, but I did have a moment of regret as Beckett walked away. He was the first man I’d even partially considered wanting to try with, you know? But I just couldn’t.”
I trusted him. That’s what surprised me. Yes, there was an attraction there, but I simply trusted him.
“He was kind. Handsome.” Tempting.
“He’s both of those things,” Millie agrees. “But Alex is right. If it doesn’t feel right to you, then you did the right thing. And the beautiful thing is, he lives here, so if you change your mind, any one of us can give you his number.”
“I hadn’t thought of that.” I bite my lower lip, pondering that idea. “It’s good to have as a backup plan, just in case. Also, don’t forget the recital in just three days. Most of you have little ones who will want to see you there.”
“We wouldn’t miss it,” Millie declares. “When do we get to see you dance?”
I shake my head. “Those days have passed. But maybe sometime I can demonstrate what I used to do.”
“We would love that,” Dani says. “Please do.”
* * *
There’s a car in my driveway when Riley and I get home. A black SUV with tinted windows and an armed man standing next to the driver’s door, hands crossed at his waist, blank expression on his face.
“Riley, Uncle Connor’s here!”
I jump out of the driver’s side and let Riley out, smiling at the bodyguard as I walk past.
“Hi, Miller,” I say. “And how are you then?”
“Just fine, miss. The boss is inside.”
The door is unlocked when I push through, running past the living room to the kitchen, where my brother sits at the island, eating a bowl of my stew. He’s in black slacks and a black dress shirt, sleeves rolled up, the top button undone at his neck. His suit coat and tie are draped over the back of my couch.
“I didn’t know you were coming to town already.”
“Yet you had the stew on for me, I see.” His green eyes are full of mischief as he pops a spoonful in his mouth. I run around to give him a proper hug. “Where were you tonight, a stór ?”
“My book club meeting,” I reply as I pull away and grab myself some water. “It’s monthly, and I enjoy it.”
“Good. It’s glad I am that you’re making friends.” He finishes his stew and sets the bowl in the sink. “Your alarm passcode needs to be reset.”
“Why?” I frown up at him as I dish myself a small ladle of the stew.
“Because it’s the same as the last time I was in town, so it needs to be changed.”
“You’re so bossy.” I sit on a stool and eat. “I shouldn’t have this. I had a chocolate cupcake at the club meeting.”
“You can eat whatever you want now,” he reminds me.
“No more maintaining a certain weight,” I agree. “No more going hungry. But if Mik saw me, he’d tell me to take off ten pounds.”
“And you can tell Mik to go feck himself,” Connor replies easily as he types something on his phone.
“You like Mik.”
“I do, yes. Very much. But he’s not the boss of your body.”
“I know.” Despite how he used to nag me about my weight, I miss my friend. It’s the first time we’ve been apart from each other in a decade. Phone calls never seem like enough. “Anyway, how long will you be here? At least three days because of the recital.” I narrow my eyes at him, daring him to tell me he’ll miss it.
“Why do I have to go to the recital to see a bunch of children who aren’t mine twirl and fling themselves about?”
“Because it’s your sister who’s taught them to do those twirls and that flinging, and I’ll be there, too. Plus, you’re an investor, so you should see what I’m doing there.”
“You’re teaching dance, Skyla.”
I let out a gusty, dramatic sigh. “Connor.”
“Fine. I’m going.” He leans against the counter and crosses his arms over his chest. “I came here from Galway. Ma and Da send their love.”
“Is everything all right there?”
“They’re fine. I just wanted to pop in and see them. I had business in Dublin anyway.”
My brother never sits still. “Do you ever actually see the inside of your penthouse in New York City?”
Connor pushes his hand through his hair. He doesn’t love being called out on his habits, but despite being so much younger than him, I worry about him. “I haven’t been there in more than three months.”
I stop chewing and frown at him. “What? Why not?”
“Because I’ve been busy.”
Connor is a hotelier, the third generation in our family to head Gallagher Hotels and Resorts. Because of this, he’s constantly on the go, from location to location, to oversee renovations or new builds and make sure things are running smoothly. But I hate that he doesn’t have roots anywhere, that he doesn’t really have a home.
“You could hire someone for a lot of what you do. You need to learn to delegate.”
“No.” He shakes his head in that stubborn way he’s done since we were kids and pushes his glasses up his nose. “I want to be a hands-on CEO.”
“At the expense of literally never being at home?”
He shrugs. “What do I have to go home to?”
I blink at him and feel guilt set in.
“No, don’t you dare go there,” he says, then swears under his breath and paces the kitchen. “It’s not because of you that I’m never in New York.”
“It partially is,” I counter. “Because you’d typically spend time in New York to see my shows and check in on me. Because you’re really old, and you still think of me as a baby.”
His eyes narrow, and his lips quirk up into a smile he can’t fight off, making me laugh. Making my big brother smile is my favorite thing.
“I’m not fecking old. I also have four resorts in that city,” he reminds me. “So you’re not the only reason to go there.”
I shrug. “You’re right. But now, instead of going home , you come here to check on me. Hey, what’s the investment opportunity you mentioned on the phone?”
My brother shakes his head. “I don’t want to discuss it until I know with certainty that it will happen. I should know soon.”
“So mysterious.” I set my bowl in the sink, and Riley raises his head from his bed in the corner of the room.
I’m not going to tell Connor about Riley’s escapade the other night at the pub. It’ll only make him angry, and he’ll remind me that I should have chosen a different dog.
“Where are you staying? Here? My guest room’s ready for you.”
“I have a place.”
I frown at him. “Where? The resort burned down.” My eyes widen. “Hey, are you going to rebuild the resort? Oh, you absolutely should . That would be bloody brilliant, Connor!”
The ski resort burned down last Thanksgiving, and it’s been empty ever since. The old owners didn’t want to rebuild, so it would make sense that my brother would take on that project. Something like this is what he’s most passionate about. He would rock it.
“I didn’t say I was going to do any of that.”
“I’m not an idiot, you know.”
“I bought a house,” he says, not commenting on my idiot claim.
“You bought a house? Connor Gallagher, you’re going to rebuild that resort, and you’re going to live here while you do it. Just admit it.”
“I love you, a stór .” He kisses me on the head. “I’ll take you out for breakfast in the morning.”
“We’re not done talking about this.”
“Aye, we are. For now.” He winks at me as he grabs his jacket to leave.
“Do you want to take some stew for Miller and anyone else you have with you?”
“They’ve been fed,” he states as he walks through my house. “Sleep well. Change the alarm code.”
“Yes, sir,” I call back after him, and I can hear him chuckle as he closes the door.