Chapter 10 #2
Seeing his smirk make another appearance settles me. It’s a familiar distraction that I’ll accept just this once.
“Is that what you think I do all day? Do you think I’ve got nothing else going for myself?” he teases, an eyebrow notched.
My chest goes warm before the feeling spreads up my neck. “That’s all I know about you.”
“We could change that.”
“What would be the purpose of that? I’m not looking for a boyfriend, and I doubt you’re interested in having a girlfriend.”
“There’s that confidence again, Quinn.” He rolls his lips before dragging his palm over them. When his hand falls, he’s smiling. It’s soft, almost shy. “What about a friend, then? You got room in your life for one of those?”
“A friend,” I repeat, the word tasting out of place.
“Yes.”
“So, you’ll give up on the whole taking-me-out thing, then?”
His cheek twitches before settling as he swallows. “For now.”
I grip the back of the chair and lean my weight against it. “What do you get from being my friend, Beck? We both know you don’t need to beg anyone for anything, let alone a woman. This has all started to feel like some sort of high school joke.”
I’d know, considering what his friends did to me back then. Though it’s becoming more obvious every day I see him that he doesn’t remember the things the way I do. If at all. Because if he did . . . he wouldn’t be here doing this.
“Is that why you keep saying no? Because you think I’m joking?” he asks, an unfamiliar rigidness twisting his features.
I lift my chin stubbornly. “Aren’t you? This can’t be serious. If you’re looking to win some bet, I can do what you need me to so you can win and then move on. I’m trying to run a business here, not be a punchline.”
The silence is deafening.
I dig my blunt nails into the chair and keep my gaze on the small indent between his nose and the tip of his upper lip. His nostrils flare, and my stomach tumbles. I try to prepare myself for what he’s going to say. For the appreciation of my offer and the confirmation that I was right all along.
I’m not an idealistic person, and right now, I’m grateful for it.
He clears his throat, but there’s movement in my peripheral vision. “That’s not—”
“You’ll be happy to know that I’m finally done and going to head home now. Are you going to introduce me to your friend before I leave?”
Ruthie’s voice causes me to jerk as though I’ve been electrocuted. I replay those words in my head and realize quickly that she’s gone months without seeing him with her early hours. That’s one of the reasons I felt comfortable enough using him as the man behind my inability to date her grandson.
I thought she’d never know any better because she wouldn’t be around to have to meet him.
Fuck.
“Ruthie,” I say, but that’s as far as I get because what the hell am I supposed to say?
“I’m Beck, ma’am. Beckett, if you want to use my full name. I’m not picky.”
My heart clunks awkwardly in my chest as I look up at him. I’m already caught off guard, and this immediate kindness doesn’t help.
“Hello, Beckett. I’m happy to finally meet the guy who has gotten Quinn so interested.
I should have known you’d be this handsome.
And those muscles . . . I could use your help to move a few things around my condo, that’s for sure.
How could I have expected this one here to be open to the idea of looking elsewhere? ”
Eyes widening, I twirl toward her. What are you doing? I mouth, but she’s not looking at me. The entire weight of her attention is on the guy beside me, still lurking like a bad smell. Anxiety thrums through me, turning my skin to ice.
Reality drops like a weight onto my head, crushing me bit by bit. With a slow, tense turn of my head, I mutter a string of words that I never imagined saying to him.
“Touch me.”
His voice is ragged as he physically jerks. “What?”
“Shut up and touch me. Now.”
Despite the slim moment of preparation, I still jerk when he palms my hip.
It’s light at first, easy enough to ignore.
But then he presses down, and his fingers form around my curves, finding a place there and settling in.
I sip in a breath and try desperately to ignore the way all the blood in my body has pooled directly beneath his warm touch.
“You caught me,” I choke out, wincing a smile before I fix it into something less shaky.
Beck’s thumb sweeps beneath the side of my apron, the gesture having a calming effect, as if maybe he can feel just how close I am to snapping in half.
“She’s been talking about me, has she?”
“Oh, I don’t kiss and tell. But I will say that I’m not surprised she turned my grandson down. Not now that I’ve seen you. I guess it makes sense after all,” Ruthie says, smiling widely.
The wrinkles that line her face pull harder as she watches us, the light in her eyes shining brightly.
It should make me happy to see her like this, but there’s too much guilt inside of me.
I might very well start choking on it. This teeny little fib has grown into a giant lie in the blink of an eye.
“Beck was actually just leaving,” I blurt out.
His hand climbs an inch up my side, then stalls when he realizes that my top is moving with it. “I’ll be back, though. Soon. I’d love to talk to you more. Especially about Quinn. I bet you know all of her secrets.”
I fight back a glare. “None that needs to be shared.”
“Oh, give the guy a break. I’m here every morning, Beck. If you come by early enough, I’d love to chat with you,” Ruthie says, though she’s staring at me pointedly, like she’s making sure I know that I’m being too rude to him.
“You got it.”
“Well, if that’s all. Have a good rest of your day, Ruthie. Call if you need anything.”
“Here you go worrying again. I’m just fine,” she tells me as she readjusts the canvas bag on her shoulder.
“I’ll stop worrying when you give me a reason to. One that isn’t just you telling me to.”
Beck laughs softly, reminding me that he’s here, as if his hand on my waist wasn’t enough. I pull my shoulders back before letting them fall when Ruthie starts our way. The door at our backs feels like it’s a million miles away as she drops her gaze to the way Beck’s touching me on her way past.
His thumb moves again, repeating that soothing motion.
“Another day, then, Beckett,” she says, patting him on the arm before fixing me a look. “And I’ll see you in the morning.”
I roll my eyes. “Don’t sound so excited.”
Beck’s hand drops, leaving the skin beneath it fighting a cold breeze.
He wraps it around the door handle instead as he pulls it open for her and gives her his million-dollar smile.
Even the old woman has a hard time keeping her cheeks from burning with a flush.
She steps outside and, after patting his arm one last time, starts down the sidewalk.
I tug on the loop of my apron at the back of my neck, already thinking about what I’m going to say to explain myself to Beck. The café isn’t completely empty, but it might as well be. I wish it were packed full right now.
“I’ll be right back.”
Beck doesn’t wait for me to reply before he’s taking off in the direction of the bathroom. I blink at the space where he was just standing, my brain completely fried.
The door swings open again, and Eli steps inside.
Relief smacks me hard and fast. I jump at the chance to get the hell out of here and quickly snag a box of water from the cooler.
Grabbing a marker from the counter, I scribble my number on the side of it, hoping Beck sees it before it winds up in the trash.
He’s still in the washroom when I finish. I glance back out the window to the car that’s parked in the worst possible spot. The idea comes to me in a rush. The chance to distract him from what happened is pathetic, really. But I’m desperate. And air-deprived due to the sudden shrinkage of my lungs.
I drop to a crouch and grab the small baggy full of stickers that Callie keeps for moments just like this.
Beck clearly isn’t the type of guy to get pissed off easily, so maybe this will help if he’s angry with me for what just happened.
Especially when he finds out that I’ve run away instead of dealing with it.
After taking a quick look around the café, I snag a sticker and rush to the door.
“Hey. I’m heading out for a bit. Lunch. I’m starving. It’s been really slow today so far. Call me if you need anything,” I ramble to Eli, cutting past him before he has the chance to reply.
The sun burns my eyes when I step out onto the sidewalk and to the car parked alongside it. A paid parking sign sits only one car length ahead of where he’s parked, and I almost laugh at the fact that he parked far enough away from it to get away without paying.
I uncurl my palm and peel the back off the parking violation sticker before slapping it onto his passenger window. The bright green colour of it is almost identical to the rubber gloves he brought with him earlier.
Maybe he’ll listen and park somewhere else tomorrow. Or not.
Right now, I can’t afford to care.