Chapter 10 #3
Ghost’s eyebrows touched. “I hadn’t even noticed.”
Becks snorted, which was not the reaction he was expecting.
“Look, I know we’re newlyweds and in the ‘honeymoon’ phase of not only the start of our marriage but also the start of our relationship, but we’re human, Ghost. I don’t expect you not to look.
I’m not going to get crazy jealous if you check out another woman.
I will get fucking pissed and shank you with a dull spoon if you touch another woman. ”
Ghost folded the menu and put it down. “There are no other women, Becks. My ring might not be on your finger just yet, but that doesn’t change the vows we made.”
“Technically we didn’t make any vows,” she reminded him with a small smile.
“I don’t give a damn. I am not some frat boy who made a drunken mistake by marrying a girl he just met.
I’m a man, a former SEAL, and the president of a motorcycle club.
I take my vows and my promises seriously, and I never go back on my word.
” He pointed between them. “This isn’t some fling for me, Becks, and if you ever see me checking out another woman, feel free to use that spoon. ”
She studied him for a long moment. “You really didn’t notice, did you?”
“Not even a little bit,” he swore. Then pointed to her menu, “Now, can we order instead of talking about other women? I’m starving. I don’t know if you noticed, but I worked up an appetite yesterday.”
Becks wasn’t sure how she felt about stopping by the Knoxville hotel on their way to Mount Grove to visit a prostitute.
Not sure if that was politically correct, Becks wondered if she needed to switch to ‘sex worker’.
But it wasn’t like she planned on saying anything to the woman’s face about her profession.
It was just weird that Ghost had spent the night with her, the sex worker.
He claimed nothing happened, and she believed him.
He wasn’t the sort to lie. Liam and Ghost might be on the outs—which was something Becks still needed to deal with because men were ridiculously stubborn creatures—but she knew her brother would never be friends with someone untrustworthy.
Additionally, from what little she knew of the motorcycle club, they were honorable men, and they wouldn’t have voted someone in to lead them who wasn’t the most honorable of them all.
That thought made her snort, which had Ghost glancing down at her.
Becks waved him off, because there was no way in hell she was telling her husband of two days that she’d just made a semi-Snow White reference about him in her head.
Which also reminded her that she still needed to question her brother why he would keep his military moniker a secret from his club.
She hadn’t thought he was embarrassed by it.
He’d laughed when he’d told them about it while he was still at basic training.
The hotel wasn’t overly fancy, but wasn’t a run-down, pay-by-the-hour motel either. Becks didn’t think Ghost had come here specifically the other night, and the way he told the story of Sandy approaching him, he hadn’t sought her out.
Which he was doing now.
Becks still didn’t understand how he knew Sandy was still going to be at that hotel—unless he did know her more than he was leading on.
She’d been meaning to ask, but couldn’t figure out the words without sounding either like a jealous bitch or a distrustful wife.
And since Ghost was bringing her along on this excursion to visit said-sex worker, Becks also figured she would get a feel for the two of them in person rather than her mind making assumptions.
Hand-in-hand, Ghost led her through the lobby, and then off to the side where a bar and dining area were.
There were only three tables occupied, plus two men sitting at the bar.
It was after two in the afternoon, since she and Ghost had had a late start, so Becks wasn’t surprised the place wasn’t packed.
Ghost barely had to survey the room before he was pulling Becks through the tables towards one where a black-haired woman sat with a man in a business suit.
She had her long legs crossed, allowing the toes of her heeled foot to graze his shin under the table.
She wore a dark gray tube dress with a high slit up the side.
The pointed sweetheart neckline revealed her perfect cleavage and long gold necklace.
After their talk at the restaurant yesterday, Becks had been feeling pretty good about the fact that her husband only had eyes for her. But after looking at this woman? Yeah, Becks was definitely making comparisons in her head. Had the woman ever eaten a carb in her life?
Wincing at her internal question, Becks scolded herself. Just as she wouldn’t want someone else body shaming her for her size, she should not be doing so to this woman. Even silently. It was rude, and Becks felt embarrassed she’d even had the thought.
The table was set for two. Both Sandy and the man she was dining with had half-drunk glasses of wine in front of them. The man had a hand wrapped around the stem while Sandy had both elbows on the table and was sensually petting the man’s covered arm.
As soon as she spotted Ghost headed for her table, Sandy sat up straighter and smiled. “Well, well, well,” she practically purred. “Look who got the girl.”
The man did not look happy about the interruption.
Ghost, though, never paused in his stride.
He walked right up to the table, pulling Becks behind him.
He pulled out one of the two empty chairs and gestured for Becks to sit.
Not sure what else to do, she did so. Then Ghost pulled out the chair directly across from Sandy and sat himself down.
He turned to the man. “You can leave.”
“Hey! I was here first—”
“And that wedding ring on your finger suggests you shouldn’t be here at all,” Ghost threw back at him. “Leave or I have my tech wizard of a brother find you via facial recognition and then send videos of your time at this hotel to your wife.”
The man blanched, and couldn’t run away fast enough.
Though Sandy didn’t seem pissed at losing a customer, she did say, “I don’t appreciate you running away business. People talk.”
“Did you really want to have sex with him anyway?”
Becks’ eyes widened at Ghost’s intrusively blunt question.
Sandy just shrugged. “Girl’s gotta eat. Sometimes the pickings are slim, and married men are awfully desperate.” She turned her attention to Becks. “I have to say, I’m impressed. I didn’t think he actually had it in him to be so selfish as to steal another man’s bride.”
Becks stiffened, feeling defensive. “I was already leaving before he arrived.”
That answer made Sandy smile. “Good for you.” She gestured towards Ghost. “He’s never going to introduce us, by the way.” Holding her hand out to Becks, she said, “I’m Sandy.”
Not wanting the other woman to think she was rude, Becks shook the offered hand. “Becks.”
“Nice to meet you. Though, surprised,” she added. “Wasn’t expecting to see him again, let alone meet the woman he was brooding over.”
“I wasn’t brooding,” Ghost argued.
“He was,” Sandy assured her, which made Becks smile. “So what brings you back to my neck of the woods?”
Damn it, Becks actually was starting to like Sandy. She had a strong backbone, and Becks liked that she was talking directly to her rather than Ghost. Like she was silently telling Becks that she wasn’t competition. It wasn’t what Becks expected.
“Honestly, I’m not sure,” Becks answered. She threw a thumb to the side. “He wanted to come back here to thank you. And honestly,” she admitted to both Sandy and herself, “so do I.”
Sandy raised an eyebrow. “I’ve done a lot of things in my line of work. Receiving gratitude from a client’s girlfriend—”
“Wife,” Ghost corrected, even though Sandy wasn’t talking to him.
“—wife,” Sandy repeated without missing a beat, “has never been one of them. Call me intrigued.” She sat back with her wine glass in hand.
“I don’t know what you said to him, but whatever it was, it made him come back for me.
Saved me time from having to track him down,” Becks threw in with a smile.
Sandy smiled back. “When he first said he wanted to come back here to see you, I wasn’t sure what to expect.
And maybe it’s mean of me, but I was kind of hoping you’d be ugly. ”
Sandy laughed, nearly choking on her wine. “Oh, honey, you don’t need to worry about that. You weren’t even in the room, and that man only had eyes for you.”
Becks’ cheeks flushed as she beamed at the other woman, who in many ways was a professional seductress. “Well, anyway, thank you for knocking some sense into him.”
Sandy gave her an appreciative nod. “I have to say, a few nights ago was a first for me. But it was pleasant, and a change of pace. I didn’t realize how much I needed that either. So, honestly, I should be the one thanking you.”
Ghost cleared his throat. “I was the one who paid the bill.”
Both Becks and Sandy waved off that minor detail. Becks adjusted her chair to be closer to the table, and a little closer to Sandy too. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Of course.” Sandy didn’t seem nervous about the possibly intrusive inquiry coming her way.
“Why didn’t you sleep with him?”
Sandy raised an eyebrow as Ghost made a choking sound. “He paid me to talk.”
Becks nodded. “Yes, I know. But you still could have pushed it. He was in a low place, and I know this because I was. If you’d tried, it probably wouldn’t have taken much. But you didn’t, and I’m curious why.”