Knight In Shining Armor
BECKER
My feet follow her on autopilot. All that’s going through my head is that I don’t want to say goodbye just yet.
“Are you closing down?” I ask when she holds the door open, waiting for me to walk through it.
The corners of her lips lift at my question, but she doesn’t tease me for being obvious. “I am.”
“Can I walk you to your car? I know you can take care of yourself, but it’s late and everything else is closed out there.” I step outside, pointing to the row of closed doors and windows of the other establishments on the pier.
“I’m not driving.” Talia says.
Maybe someone is picking her up? A boyfriend? I hope not. “How are you getting home, then?”
“I’m walking.” She sighs. “My parents don’t live too far from here.”
I look around again, and the offer leaves my lips without even thinking about it. “Let me walk you then.”
She doesn’t say yes, but she doesn’t shoot me down either. “You didn’t drive either?”
“I took an Uber. I was planning on drinking before a certain bartender didn’t believe that my fake ID was real.” I chuckle.
“Ok, then. Give me a sec to get my things and I’ll be right out.”
I watch as she dips back into the empty bar.
True to her word, Talia is back a few minutes later. The lights go out right before she comes out, and I wait as she locks the front door.
“This way.”
We walk past a parking lot right outside the entrance of the pier, but rather than walking toward the main road my Uber took on the way here, we turn in the opposite direction.
The road is parallel to the beach for about half a mile. A railway bridge creates an underpass, and Talia is headed toward it.
While the road and the bridge itself are illuminated, the underpass stares at us like a pitch black hole.
When Talia turns on the light on her phone, I do the same and follow her under the bridge.
I spot some graffiti on the walls and ceiling, but my attention is focused on the pretty bartender. “Your boyfriend should have come to pick you up.” I bite out. “The way to your house doesn’t look very safe.”
Am I fishing for information about her dating status? Fuck, yeah.
“I grew up here and I know everyone.” Luckily, she doesn’t take my observation the wrong way. “Star Cove is a relatively safe town.”
“Relatively doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence. And it’s not just the townies you need to watch out for. What if those three fuckers from earlier had followed you?”
To my surprise, Talia doesn’t argue with me on that. “You’re right. Maybe I should have taken the long way home. But this shortcut cuts a twenty-minute walk in half.”
“You should have someone walk you home then. Can’t your boyfriend pick you up from work?” I insist.
Talia sees straight through my fishing expedition, at least judging by the way she smiles at me when she puts me out of my misery.
“Yeah, that would be great if I had a boyfriend. But since I don’t, it’s my job to keep myself out of trouble when I don’t meet a nice stranger willing to be my knight in shining armor.”
Knowing that Talia is single is the best thing I’ve heard in a long time. I also love the idea of being her knight in shining armor. I know she doesn’t need me to protect her. She can kick ass all on her own. But the caveman inside me feels incredibly protective right now.
We walk for a few more minutes in a comfortable silence that envelops us like a warm blanket on this late summer night.
Truth be told, I have a zillion questions I’d like to ask her.
But I’m too distracted by all kinds of intrusive thoughts to make conversation.
I want to hold her hand. I want to tell her that I don’t know what’s happening to me because I’ve never felt this attracted to a woman before.
The crazy part? It isn’t just because she’s obviously stunning.
It’s the way she smiles. The hint of snark in her tone when something makes her laugh.
The unmissable kindness in the way she interacts with others, unless they’re being creeps. And the way she stands up for herself.
I’m dying to get closer, but I hesitate. We’re strangers. What if she’s just being friendly, but she doesn’t find me as attractive as I find her?
There’s only one way to find out. Shoot your shot, Becks. You know, if Mack were in your shoes, he would have already kissed her.
I grind my teeth at the voice in my head, because he’s right. Mack is one of the most confident people I know. Not that it’s hard for him to be when he aces everything he ever does.
I love my big brother, but growing up in his shadow hasn’t been easy. I’ve always had something to prove. To our parents, to our coaches, to the fucking world.
Even with women. Whenever we went somewhere together, he would be the center of attention without even trying.
If he were the one walking Talia home, he wouldn’t hesitate to let her know that he wanted her.
Fuck it. I’m going to try to hold her hand, and if she doesn’t tell me to get lost, I’ll kiss her.
“We’re home.” She says.
I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I didn’t notice the sprawling apartment complex that came into view.
Talia stops by a tall, wrought-iron gate. A sign announces that we’re at The Cove Bungalows.
“Thank you for walking me home, Becks.”
It’s obvious from her tone that this is goodbye, and all of a sudden, I’m not ready to try my luck with her. I just need a little more time.
“Is your apartment right at the front of the complex?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “No, it’s actually at the very back.”
“Then let me walk you to your door.”
Talia
I like that Becks doesn’t feel the need to fill every second with conversation. Having grown up with Tucker, who’s a total chatterbox, I appreciate a comfortable silence.
We leave the downtown area and walk past the old marina, heading to one of the newest residential areas of town.
I catch him looking at me when he thinks I’m not paying attention.
It feels like he’s about to say something a couple of times, but he must change his mind because after he asks if I have a boyfriend, he’s mostly quiet.
Maybe he was asking because he doesn’t want me to think his walking me home is a flirty move?
I hope not. It would be nice if a hot guy like Becks found me attractive.
But I don’t think he does. I think he’s just being nice and making sure I’m safe after what happened earlier with those drunk customers.
If he felt any attraction, he would walk closer to me, not leave two feet between us.
I think I need to accept that he isn’t into me. After all, he’s hot enough that he could have any woman he set his sights on.
“We’re home.” I say as we come into view of the wrought-iron gate of the apartment complex my family has recently moved into. “Thank you for walking me home, Becks.”
I try to look at it through his eyes. It’s obvious from the clothes he’s wearing that Becks isn’t hurting for money. The denim that hugs perfectly his thick, strong thighs and the shirt that stretches over his muscular chest look expensive.
I bet he lives somewhere way more upmarket than the Cove Bungalows.
This used to be an old industrial area that has been recently developed to house some of the tourists who love to come to Star Cove in the summer, but also some of the locals.
It’s mostly apartment complexes, nothing like the mansions on the hills or the military housing on the other side of the cove. These accommodations aren’t luxurious, but they’re new and clean.
It’s what my parents keep saying over and over. Probably to convince themselves that they don’t miss our family home after the bank foreclosed on it after Dad lost his job.
I can’t help but miss the house I grew up in, but I’m not ashamed.
Becks looks around over the gate as if he were expecting masked robbers to jump out of the decorative shrubs that border the entrance of the complex.
“Is your apartment right at the front of the complex?” He asks.
I shake my head. “No, it’s actually at the very back.”
“Then let me walk you to your door.”
I don’t have the heart to say no, but I wish Becks was a little clearer about his intentions. If he likes me, why not make it a little more obvious?
“So you said you live with your parents?” He asks as we stop right by the front door of my parents’ new apartment.
“Just until I can move back into my accommodation on campus.” I rush to say. I don’t want him to think I’m a loser who still lives with her parents.
His lips curl up in that barely there smile again. “So you go to college here? Or are you just visiting your family during summer break?”
“I’m a senior at Star Cove College.”
“That’s awesome.” Becks says. “I’m a sophomore. I just transferred to Star Cove.”
I want to ask him where he transferred from and what he’s majoring in, but my tongue is tied. I’m a little lost in the blue depths of his eyes.
It’s the way he’s staring at me, with his eyes drifting down to my lips for just a split second before they return to look into mine. I think he’s about to kiss me, and I’m surprised by how much I want him to.
Usually, I wouldn’t even look at a younger guy. But there’s something about Becks that draws me in. It isn’t just that he’s handsome. It’s his quiet confidence. The way he saw me.
Becks understood more about me by observing me for a couple of hours in a crowded bar than my family has in a lifetime.
My tongue peaks out to lick my bottom lip, and Becks tracks the move, his blue eyes darkening.
He finally moves; his face comes closer as he leans in.
I can’t wait to find out if his lips feel as soft as they look, but a series of giggles cause him to freeze. His lips are still way too far as his eyes dart left and right to make sure we’re still alone.
A part of me wants to grab the front of his shirt and pull him to me, closing the distance between us.
But I catch a movement in the corner of my eye. Light filters through a gap in the curtains of the front window. More giggles echo in the otherwise quiet night.
I know the moment is ruined even before I hear my mom’s voice. “What are you two doing still up?”
The front door bursts open, revealing my two younger brothers and my mom.
“See?” Tommy, the youngest, giggles. “Talia is home. Told you.”
“She was out here, making out with a boy.” Terry’s tone is teasing.
My youngest brothers are eleven and nine-years-old. I should know better than to get into an argument with them. Especially with Becks standing right next to me, his eyes wide like the proverbial deer in front of headlights.
But my frustration at being cockblocked has the best of me. “We weren’t making out. And Mom is right. You two should be in bed. And you shouldn’t know anything about making out, anyway.”
My mom comes to my rescue, or at least she tries to. “Tommy, Terry, leave your sister alone. She’s an adult and if she wants to make out with a boy—”
Just when I think the situation couldn’t get any more embarrassing, my dad’s voice comes from behind her. “Liz, boys. Who’s making out? Oh, hey princess.” Dad’s smile fades, his eyes narrowing with curiosity when he spots Becks next to me. “And who do we have here?”
“That’s the boy Talia was making out with,” Terry tattles.
“We weren’t making out.” I snap. “And you two should be in bed. It’s one in the morning.”
Dad’s gaze zeroes in on Becks. “So if you weren’t making out with my daughter, who are you? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”
“I walked your daughter home after work, sir.” Becks doesn’t sound intimidated by my dad, but I feel absolutely mortified about him being subjected to a third degree interrogation.
“Tyson!” Mom scolds him. “Go back to bed. You too, boys. Leave your sister alone.”
But Dad’s eyes are locked in on Becks. “I’ll be right behind you, Liz. I just wanted to get to know Talia’s new friend.”
If I ever had any doubts about where Tucker takes his overprotective streak, there it is. Exhibit A. My dad is even worse than my big brother.
“Come on, Ty,” Mom insists. “You aren’t going to get to know anyone at one in the morning.”
“If he,” Dad growls in Becks’s direction. “Can get to know my daughter at one a.m., then I—”
“They were totally kissing.” Tommy intervenes.
I open my mouth to correct him, but they all start speaking over each other, discussing what I was doing outside, and there’s no way they would hear me unless I yelled.
And it is night-time, and I’m pretty sure our new neighbors are trying to sleep.
The bickering keeps escalating with every passing second.
God help me out.
I’ve always thought that people who wished for the ground to open up and swallow them whole were being overdramatic.
But my family has no concept of privacy.
And if that had been a problem when they lived in a spacious, six-bedroom house, it’s become painfully more evident in this three-bedroom apartment where I’ve had to crash on the couch.
“Enough, everyone.” Mom whisper-yells. “Kids, you go back to bed right now. I’m coming to check on you in fifteen minutes, and I better find the lights off. Leave your sister alone.”
If only.
“You’re quite welcome to come in … I don’t think I caught your name.”
“My name’s Becker, ma’am. And thank you for the invitation, but it’s getting late. I should get going. Night, Talia. I hope to see you around.”
My shoulders sag as I watch Becks’s form becoming smaller and smaller as he walks away.
I can’t help but notice that his butt is as perfect as I had imagined in his jeans.
As I close the front door behind me, the realization hits me that he didn’t even ask for my number.
It shouldn’t surprise me that Becks took the first chance to get away from the chaos my family was able to cause in a matter of minutes.
Star Cove is a big campus with lots of students. And to add insult to injury, I’m a senior and he’s a sophomore, so having classes in common isn’t impossible but not very likely.
We might never cross paths on campus, and even if we did, Tucker would probably finish the job my family started tonight and scare Becks off for good.
I’m not even one hundred percent sure he was going to kiss me before the front door opened and all hell broke loose.
If he wanted to see me again, he knows where my family lives, but I wouldn’t blame him if he stayed away from this madhouse.
He knows where I work, too. I guess I’ll know if I was the only one who felt this flirty vibe between us if he comes back to Joe’s looking for me.