CHAPTER 26
I t had been forty-eight hours since his best friend punched him in the face, and Beckett wasn’t sure what to do. He’d promised himself he’d give both Lawson siblings space, which didn’t sit right with him. He wasn’t used to being back without any contact from either of them, yet here he was.
Beckett took some time in the orchards though, the trees bringing him a sense of purpose he didn’t know he was missing. He’d reached out to the former foreman about getting the crew back for the next season. This farm, these trees, were his grandparent’s legacy; he wasn’t going to squander that a moment longer. If he was coming out of mourning, then the land was too.
Unwilling to go back to his apartment, he’d stayed at the farm house and busied himself with pottering around. Since the orchards got some much-needed attention, the house deserved the same treatment. He’d fixed the last shutter without falling to his death, a huge bonus, and now he was working on a loose floorboard on the porch. With his ear buds in, he hadn’t heard Evan’s car as it drove down the gravel driveway, and only his shadow blocking his work caused him to pause.
Popping his ear buds out, he lifted his head to Evan, shielding his eyes with his free hand. “If you came here for a rematch, can I at least finish this plank? I’d hate to leave this project unfinished.”
Evan held out a hand to help Beckett to his feet, his expression unreadable. “Thanks,” Beckett said, letting the hammer drop to his feet with a thud. He dusted his hands on his pant legs before building up the courage to meet his friend’s eye.
“I’m sorry I punched you.” Evan’s blue gaze was not on Beckett’s face, but somewhere off his shoulder. It was hardly the best apology he’d ever received, but he wasn’t about to complain either. Evan was here, and he wasn’t currently beating the snot out of him. That counted for something, right?
“Apology accepted. I can’t say I wouldn’t do the same if the shoe were on the other foot.”
Evan shook his head. “It doesn’t matter, it wasn’t the right thing to do. CeCe and Mal both read me the riot act about it.” A huff escaped him as his shoulders slumped. He looked truly dejected. “I’m sorry for hitting you. It doesn’t sit right with me, Foxy.”
Beckett deflated at the sound of his nickname, a kernel of hope popping in his chest. Maybe all wasn’t lost with Evan after all. “Seriously, Lawless. Don’t worry about.”
Evan smirked at the sound of his own nickname and toed the hammer on the porch floor. “Need a little help with this?”
“I wouldn’t say no.” Beckett thrust his hands on his hips. “You mind a little woodworking?”
Without another word, Evan got down on all-fours, the hammer already prying up the warped board. “Hand me the new board and some of the longer nails.” Beckett did as he was told and the pair worked in companionable silence until the new boards were installed. While it wasn’t a difficult task, having his buddy’s help saved Beckett at least an hour.
“Thanks, man. This really saved me some time.”
Evan helped Beckett collect their tools and followed him inside the house and into the kitchen. Beckett poured two glasses of water and kicked out a chair for Evan to sit. “You thinking of selling this place?” Evan spun the glass in his hands, swirling a pattern in the condensation.
Beckett took a drink and eased back into his chair. “Honestly, I don’t think I can. I know it’s a little isolated out here, but this is my home. I like my apartment in Buckeye Falls, but I couldn’t handle someone else living here.” He traced a line on the table with his finger, feeling himself relax at the truth. “I reached out to our old foreman, and he’s going to have a crew ready for next season. It’s time for this place to feel like home again.”
This was his home, no matter what happened with Mallory. His grandparents left the house to him, and it was his responsibility to make it a home for the next generation of Foxes. He just hoped they had startling blue eyes and thick, chocolaty hair...or at least better vision than their father. The thought made Beckett adjust his glasses, leaving a spot of water on the frame.
“I’m glad, seriously. There’s a lot of good memories in this old place.” Evan’s expression took on a wistful quality.
It was impossible not to go down Memory Lane with Evan here. Thinking about the old times, from mud fights outside to helping Gramps with the fencing in the spring, to apple picking in the fall with Gram, the pair had so many good times on this property. “There certainly are.” Beckett agreed, letting out a sigh. He was about to change the subject when Evan cleared his throat.
“See, here’s the thing.”
“Yeah?” His friend’s tone had changed just enough to make Beckett nervous. He didn’t think he’d get another slug to the face, but these days, who the hell knew?
“If you hurt her, I’m going to have to kill you.”
Beckett stilled, unsure how to react. The very last thing he wanted to do was hurt Mallory again. He’d sooner take a bullet. Yet to have Evan address the elephant in the room, it took his breath away. “Totally understandable,” he replied.
Evan rubbed the back of his neck, his lips turning down in the corners. “I know we don’t like”—he hesitated, flapping his hands between them—“talk about the women in our lives in detail.”
Beckett nodded, biting back a laugh. Not only had Evan bored him to death with CeCe chatter over the last year, but he’d texted Beckett at all hours when they had temporarily broken up. If he hadn’t been on the road for work, he would have been with Mallory knocking some sense into his friend. Yet he knew what Evan was getting at.
With Beckett’s previous girlfriends, who were admittedly few and far between, he wasn’t big on spilling the beans. Practically, he understood it was because the girls were place holders, keeping him distracted until Mallory was back in his orbit. Of course, they were nice girls, women he still considered friends, but they weren’t end game.
They weren’t Mallory Lawson.
“You’re right, we don’t really go into details, huh?”
Evan drained the last of his water, the grimace on his face proving he needed something stronger. “I, uh, don’t need to know how things are...” he groaned and shook his head. “Like, I just need to know that things are like, good with you two.”
Beckett bit his bottom lip, which shook with the need to laugh. “Totally understandable.”
“And like,” Evan continued, although he started to turn a worrisome shade of green. “If you’re going to ask Mal out again, you’ll have to be serious about this. No messing around.”
“I won’t, mess around I mean. When I ask her again, that is it for me.”
Evan exhaled, yet the muscles in his jaw were as tight as a drum. “So that means, you’ll have to marry her.” Evan finally caught his gaze, his lips quirking up in the corner. “I’m assuming you’ve already thought about this?”
Beckett adjusted his glasses and blinked a few times, debating how honest to be with his best friend. But he was done keeping secrets, done lying about how he felt about Mallory.
“Let me put it to you this way, Lawless. Do you still have that ring?”
Evan threw his head back and barked out a laugh. “Thank God.” He chuckled as he fished in his pocket. Sliding a small black box across the kitchen table, he let out a long breath. “I can’t say I’m used to the idea of you and Mal together, but CeCe reminded me she could do a hell of a lot worse.” Waiting a moment, he added, “And so could you.”
Beckett was not an emotional guy, but his eyes burned with tears. After years of worrying how Evan would react, he’d just been given his blessing to not only date Mallory, but marry her.
“Thank you.” Beckett’s throat tightened, and he drank the rest of his water, willing the tears to stay at bay. “I promise I’ll do right by Mallory, and I’m sorry I wasn’t honest with you before. To be honest, I didn’t want to jeopardize our friendship. Especially after Gramps died, you guys are all I have left.”
Evan clapped a hand on Beckett’s shoulder and squeezed. “That’s not true, Foxy. You’ve got a whole town who loves you. You’re a Buckeye now, like it or not.”
Beckett liked it, a whole hell of a lot.
After he opened the ring box, the ruby glinted in the waning sunlight. He’d waited his whole life to touch this ring again, to slide it onto Mallory’s hand one last time. “You know what’s crazy?” he asked, an unmistakable tremor in his voice.
Evan shook his head, not interrupting the moment.
“I’ve been waiting for this moment, having the ring back. The last time I had it, we were playing up in the orchards.”
“Holy crap,” Evan breathed, his eyes doubling in size. “You mean that time I pretended to marry you and Mallory?”
Beckett nodded, his grin unmistakable. “Yeah, that was it for me. I know we were kids, but there was something about it all. A rightness that settled over me on that hill.”
Evan rubbed at his eyes with his sleeve and muttered something to himself before he finally met Beckett’s gaze again. “I’m sorry I got in the way of you two.”
Scoffing, Beckett shook his head. “No, Lawless, we got in our own way.”
“She’s crazy about you. You know that, right?”
“Let’s hope she’ll give me one more chance.”
Evan pushed back his chair and got to his feet. The sun hung low in the sky, and he had places to be. “She has to, Foxy. Now that the cat’s out of the bag, you two need to get together.”
When they reached the front door, Evan pulled Beckett in for a quick bro hug.
“Thanks for the ring, Evan.” He stilled at the sound of his given name, but he didn’t flinch. “I’m sorry I wasn’t honest with you.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t give you the chance.” Evan smiled, his face morphing into its usual happy default. His golden retriever best friend was back, thank the Lord. “Now enough of this love talk. I’m going to go home to my fiancée, who finally has the ring she wants. You need to call Mal, and if she isn’t your date to the rehearsal dinner, I’ll have to uninvite you both.” He winked and opened the door.
Both men stopped dead in their tracks when they found Mallory on the porch, her hand raised like she was about to knock. “Oh,” she exhaled, and Beckett nearly pushed Evan out of the way to get to her. “Please tell me there weren’t any more fisticuffs.” Her voice dripped with fatigue.
Evan lightly punched her in the arm and rolled his eyes. “Get over yourself, Mal.” Turning to Beckett he added, “Later, Foxy.” After bounding down the porch steps, he slid behind the wheel and disappeared in a cloud of dust and K-Pop.
Beckett pivoted, facing Mallory and studying her lovely face. Her eyes were still wide, sizing him up as well. Her hair was up, looped around her head in a crown of braids. She looked like she could be on the box of hot cocoa mix. “Can I come in?” she asked, eyebrow raised.
“Yeah,” he said, stepping back and waving her inside. He caught a whiff of her familiar blackberry scent as she stepped over the threshold into the house. Since he hadn’t turned on many lights, the house felt dark yet cozy. “Let me get some lights and—” He took a step back, but Mallory’s arm shot out to stop his escape.
She didn’t say a word but tugged him back to her. Tentatively, she reached up and touched the delicate skin around his swollen eye. “Does it hurt?” Her question wasn’t clinical, yet he didn’t have an answer.
He didn’t have any words as her fingers grazed down his face and rested on his shoulders. Beckett dipped his head, resting it on her forehead as they simply enjoyed the moment of closeness. He hadn’t held Mallory in his arms for an eternity, and he planned to savor the opportunity. They had so much to discuss, but words seemed useless right now. Now wasn’t the time for planning, now was the time for holding her.
Enveloping her in a hug, he cradled Mallory like the delicate treasure she was. “It doesn’t hurt anymore,” he said, only referring to his eye slightly. The gaping chasm in his ribcage closed, leaving Beckett feeling almost whole again. Sure, he’d always grieve the loss of his grandparents, but at least Evan wasn’t going anywhere. And judging by how tightly Mallory held on to him, she wasn’t either.
“I want to show you something,” he said, pressing a tender kiss to her forehead before reluctantly stepping back. “Go for a walk with me?”
If she was surprised by his request, she didn’t show it. “Sure.”
Beckett smiled down at Mallory, clad in leggings and sneakers. She was dressed perfectly for what he had planned. “Meet me on the porch in one minute.” He kissed her temple before stepping back and jogging into the kitchen.
Grateful that Mallory hadn’t followed him, Beckett scooped up the ring box and tucked it into his jeans’ pocket. On his way out the door, he grabbed his hoodie and met Mallory on the porch. She stood with her back to him, hugging herself against the cooling September air. “Here,” he said as he flung the unzipped hoodie over her shoulders. “Follow me.”
Linking their hands together, Beckett stepped off the porch and into his future. Regardless of what was about to happen, he knew it would all work out for the best. Mallory was here, and he was more than ready for them to start the next chapter.