Chapter 7
BECKETT
IFELT HIM before I saw him.
It was the shift in Sawyer’s body that gave him away. He went completely, utterly still, and for a moment I wondered if he was even breathing.
I kept my eyes on him, ready to follow his lead, and it seemed his family wasn’t quite sure what to do in this situation either. His moms glanced at each other, Hudson glared past us at the entrance, and Rome’s amused smile flipped like a switch to something a lot more calculating.
“I thought the welcome party wasn’t until later,” came a deep voice. I turned to see whom it belonged to, because it wasn’t at all what I’d expected from this “Peter” I’d heard so much about.
And that was when I realized the voice didn’t belong to Peter. It belonged to the man beside him. He was older, closer to Sawyer’s parents’ age, silver lightly threaded through his jet-black hair, and he carried himself with a confidence that came from one thing—money. A lot of it.
His hand rested low at Peter’s back in a possessive way as they walked toward the group, and I didn’t miss how Sawyer’s eyes zeroed in on that small detail like it mattered more than anything else happening in the room.
That told me everything I needed to know about where he stood.
His mama, Lily, moved first, greeting the man with a double air kiss. “Alec, I’m so glad you could make it.” She stepped back and forced a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “And Peter…what a surprise.”
“Couldn’t miss your big day, Mama Lily.” Peter wrapped her in a hug that seemed to take her off guard, and I instantly formed my opinion about Sawyer’s ex.
He was a dick. A total dick.
He looked about Sawyer’s age, but there was something about him that felt a little too carefully curated.
His coat, his posture, his polished smile.
He came off as a guy who knew how to take up space, which was clear in the way he gave no fucks about barging in on personal bubbles and intruding on this entire week.
It felt performative, and I’d only been in his presence for about sixty seconds.
“And C-Mom.” He hugged Catherine—or C-Mom—next, but she didn’t exactly melt into that embrace. “You look great—did you cut your hair?”
“No,” she said, pulling back. I almost laughed at the look on her face, the one Peter seemed oblivious to. She had to be where Hudson got his directness from, because her unimpressed expression spoke volumes. “Alec? A word.”
“Later, Catherine, we just arri—”
But she was already halfway across the lobby, not interested in having that conversation where the rest of us could hear it.
“Be right back,” he said, then pressed a kiss to Peter’s temple before following after her, Lily close behind.
Leaving Peter to the wolves.
“Ballsy,” Rome muttered, just loud enough for those of us closest to hear.
“Unwelcome,” Hudson corrected him, his gaze never leaving Peter.
Peter shifted, like he could feel it, and with nowhere else to focus his attention, he shoved his hands in his pockets and finally looked at Sawyer. “Hey.”
“Peter,” Sawyer said, his voice even and not trembling at all—unlike the hand I still held tightly.
“Didn’t realize you’d be here already.”
“We just got in.”
Whether it was the word “we” or the fact that I hadn’t taken my eyes off him since he walked in, Peter shifted his gaze from Sawyer to me, and then down to our joined hands.
It was subtle, but I could see the slight movement between his brows that he quickly smoothed over as he locked eyes with me.
“And you are?”
Oh, that was loaded. The expression on his face might’ve been polite enough, but his eyes were assessing and comparing.
“I’m Beckett,” I said. “Sawyer’s boyfriend.”
I let those words settle between us and, with my thumb, soothed the death grip that was Sawyer’s fingers clenching mine.
“Boyfriend,” Peter repeated.
“Yeah,” Sawyer said, wetting his lips. “Beckett and I… We’ve been seeing each other.”
Peter’s gaze flicked between us again. “Since when?”
“That’s none of your business anymore,” Hudson snapped. I got the feeling he wanted to say more, but held himself back.
Or, rather, Drew held him back, his arm tightening around Hudson’s waist so he couldn’t do anything crazy, like punch the guy.
Though I would’ve liked to see that.
But Hudson had gotten his point across, because Peter blinked in surprise and nodded slowly. “Right. That’s…new.”
“People move on,” Sawyer said, a little bite lacing his words.
Good for him.
Peter pursed his lips and glanced at our joined hands again. “Yeah. They do.”
The awkward silence fell again, longer this time, and I shifted closer to Sawyer to let my shoulder brush against his. Just in case he needed it.
Then I decided to take control of the situation.
“Long drive,” I said. “We’re gonna get settled.”
Peter’s attention snapped back to me, that same flicker of something unreadable crossing his face before it disappeared.
“Of course,” he said. “We’ll catch up later.”
No doubt about that.
I gave a small nod, then guided Sawyer away, stopping at check-in only long enough to get our cabin key before heading out a different exit to the one his moms were currently posted outside of.
We walked in silence down the gravel path, illuminated on either side with soft light. I didn’t let go of his hand in case anyone was still watching…and also because he was still clinging to mine like he might fall over without it.
Up ahead, the small cabin was lit up, waiting for our arrival. As soon as Sawyer saw it, he exhaled slowly and let go of my hand.
“Okay, that was…something,” he said.
“You did great.”
He snorted. “You don’t have to lie.”
“I’m not. You held your own.” I fished the key out of my pocket as we walked up the stairs to the cabin.
“God.” Sawyer stopped, leaned against the wood railing, and dragged his hand through his hair. “I’m so glad you’re here. Is that weird to say? I know we don’t know each other, but I can’t do that again without some serious emotional support, and you…you were great back there.”
“That’s why I’m here.” I unlocked the door, but when I realized Sawyer wasn’t behind me, I turned to where he was still letting the railing hold him up.
“I didn’t even have to say the code word and you knew…” He gave me a soft smile, a grateful one. “You knew to get us out of there.”
“I figured we should get out before your brother decided Peter’s face would make a good punching bag.”
“Who, Hudson?”
“Mmhmm. Not a fan of Peter, is he?”
“Um. Maybe not anymore.” He pushed off the rail and climbed the rest of the stairs to join me. “But he’s a lover, not a fighter.”
“I think you underestimate him.”
“Nah, his version of fighting is with a pen, although I’d love to see him put that damn tie to better use.”
“You want him to tie Peter up?”
“More like strangle.” Sawyer’s grin came a little quicker now that we were alone and the threat had passed. “Buuut that would probably overshadow the anniversary, don’t you think?”
“Maybe so.”
The wind whipped up, leaves swirling around us on the porch. One landed on the shoulder of Sawyer’s polo, and without thinking, I reached up and brushed it off.
“The worst part is over,” I said. “You faced him and got it over with.”
“Yeah…yeah, I did, huh? So maybe it’ll be smooth sailing from here on out. Yes. Good. No worries. He didn’t even look that good in that stupid jacket anyway.”
I bit back a smirk. “Not at all.”
“Good. This is good.” He moved past me, stepping into the cabin, still giving himself a pep talk. “See, I can do this. This is—” He stopped abruptly, his head on a slow swivel. “Uh, no. This is not good.”
I followed his gaze around the cabin. It was cozy and warm, with soft blankets across the bed, the couch, and a fireplace in the corner. “Is there a problem?”
“Of course there’s only one bed,” he muttered to himself. “Of course there is. Why would anything in my life be simple?”
Oh. Right. The bed situation.
I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about sleeping arrangements before tonight. I had no reservations whatsoever about sharing a bed with Sawyer, but clearly he hadn’t thought this through.
“It’s manageable,” I said.
“Is it?” he asked, turning to face me. “Because I feel like this is where I should ask—and maybe I should’ve thought to ask sooner—but…what do you usually do in this situation?”
I had no idea what an actual escort would do or say. What was considered appropriate. I could only go by the here and now without letting my own selfish desires get in the way.
“I…adjust.”
“Like for the client?”
“For the situation.”
His brow furrowed as he studied me, like he was trying to figure out if I was dodging the question or if that was actually the answer.
Truthfully, it was both.
“Okay, well,” he said. “We’ll figure something out. I can take the floor. Or the couch. I mean, you’re doing me a favor, so I’ll sleep in the car before I make this weird.”
“It’s not weird.”
“It’s a little weird.”
“It doesn’t have to be.”
He opened his mouth to respond, but something stopped him. I didn’t miss the way his eyes quickly trailed down my body or how he bit his lip before looking back at the bed.
“Right,” he said. “Yeah. Okay. This is fine. Everything’s fine.”
The silence that followed wasn’t uncomfortable, but it felt a little different. Awareness, maybe? Of the private space. The bed.
Each other.
Now that we were here, really doing this, it occurred to me what I’d gotten myself into. Here I was, with a guy I’d just met, pretending to be someone I wasn’t, all under the guise of doing a job. Helping him out.
I’d like to think I was that selfless, but it wasn’t the full truth. There was no way in hell I would be here if I weren’t attracted to the man currently unzipping his suitcase to avoid the elephant in the room.
His raw emotions made him all that more attractive, and I wondered, briefly, if I’d done this to torture myself. He wasn’t over his ex, that much was obvious.
Rebounds weren’t my thing—were they anybody’s thing?—but I’d meant what I said. I could help Sawyer. But just how far would I go to do that to my own detriment?
Sawyer cleared his throat, a leather toiletry bag in hand. “So, um, we should probably get ready for the welcome party.”
“Of course.”
He nodded and started for the bathroom before turning back around. “Beckett?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
He didn’t wait for me to respond, turning on his heel and closing the bathroom door with a soft click.
And as everything from the last ten minutes ran through my mind now that I was alone, one thing became very clear. This wasn’t going to stay simple. Not for him.
And definitely not for me.