Chapter 27
CHAPTER 27
S ky tipped her head back and let the soothing shower water run down her chest. She’d been in the shower far too long, but she was distracted. Distracted by everything Becket had said…and the fear that had accompanied it.
But it hadn’t just been fear she’d felt. There’d also been a feeling of safety when his arms had been wrapped around her. Safety that had left her pretty damn quickly the second she was alone and cold reality had set in…
Someone could be targeting her. Someone could have followed her here all the way from Cheyenne.
Despite the warmth of the water, a deep shiver ran down her spine.
There’d always been this voice in the back of her head that whispered that was likely the case. But she’d shut it down or ignored it. Because that was too malicious. Too vindictive to believe.
It was natural to feel anger over the way Eloise had died. But to blame Sky to the point of wanting to murder her? She couldn’t fathom it.
Her heart thumped. She blamed herself too. It was an awful feeling, knowing she’d lived and someone else had died in her place. But for someone to then target her? Who? The boyfriend? Eloise had talked about him a lot. A firefighter she’d been dating since high school. Apparently, he’d been on the scene that day.
The thought made her feel sick. She couldn’t imagine being called out for a fire, only to discover your partner was trapped inside the structure.
She was drying off when a text dinged from her phone.
Becket? Staying away from him was so hard. And today he’d been perfect. Helping for almost the entire fundraiser. Cleaning up. God, he didn’t even like dogs!
There was also something about such a big alpha man washing small dogs that was ridiculously sexy.
Argh. She wrapped a towel around her chest and stepped into the bedroom. She hadn’t looked at her phone all afternoon, and there were four messages waiting for her.
Kristina: Great day today. I hope you raised lots of money.
Clara: What a fun fundraiser! Thank you for letting me join. Squishing those puppies’ little wet faces was the best.
Mom: Congratulations, darling. Today was wonderful. And so nice to see Becket there. Did he stay until the end?
Becket: Can you message me before you go to bed, so I know you’re safe?
Her belly gave a little kick at the last message.
Taking a breath, she responded to each text, thanking Kristina and Clara for volunteering their time, and confirming for her mother that Becket had stayed for the remainder of the event but not to read too much into it.
When she got to Becket, she paused. She wrote a text but then scrunched her nose and deleted it. Then she wrote another text, this time hitting send.
Sky: All safe. Will be going to bed soon.
Becket: Good. And you did an amazing job today, Peaches. Charlie’s smiling down at you right now.
She sucked in a sharp breath at the mention of Charlie.
Sky: If my house fire in Cheyenne was arson, do you think they knew Charlie was in there?
Tears pressed at her eyes. That would make them a monster.
Becket: I hope not.
Sky: Me too.
Becket: Get some rest, honey.
She nodded, even though he wasn’t here. And suddenly, despite all the pushing away and avoiding of Becket that she’d done over the last week, she wished he was there.
With a shake of her head, she plugged her phone into the charger and changed into pajamas. Well, not actually pajamas. A T-shirt Becket had left here during one of his stays. Yes, it was kind of pathetic. She should have returned it to him. That’s what most normal people would do. Not her. She was the insane, wear-an-ex’s-shirt-to-bed kind of woman.
And yet, no one could have paid her to take it off.
She left her bedroom and was halfway down the stairs when she stopped at the sound of movement. From her kitchen?
The fine hairs on her arms stood on end and every muscle in her body locked. Not again!
Had she really heard it? Or was everything that had happened just messing with her head?
For a moment, she didn’t move. Just stood there on the stairs, waiting. A part of her wanted to go down and check. But the other part? The part that had already experienced someone breaking into her home screamed run .
She took one more step down—and the second she did, the click of her back door opening sounded.
A deadly mix of fear and panic swirled in her belly, and she ran.
Sprinted down the stairs without even glancing behind her and pushed out of her front door.
The door that had been locked—and was now unlocked.
She sprinted toward Becket’s house, not stopping until she reached his front door, then frantically banged her fist against the wood.
“ Becket! ” She hit the wood again and again, her throat actually hurting from screaming his name just once.
The door flew open. “Sky? What’s wrong?”
“Someone’s in my house!”
His eyes narrowed, darkness slipping over his features. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her inside his house before locking the door.
“Wait here.”
She opened her mouth to ask where he was going, but he’d already disappeared down the hall. When he returned, he held a gun.
He stopped in front of her and cupped her cheek. “Lock the door after me, Peaches.”
Then he was gone.
* * *
Becket ran quickly and quietly across the lawn to Sky’s front door. As he moved, he scanned the street, spotting an unfamiliar blue Ford sedan. Not parked directly in front of Sky’s house, but across the road and a house back.
So they wouldn’t be seen?
The door was open when he got there. Because Sky had left it open or because the asshole had run?
He inched inside, Glock at the ready.
Silence. It surrounded him. Dim light filtered into the living room from the kitchen, but he heard no movement.
He didn’t make a sound as he crossed the living area into the kitchen. The back door was closed and nothing seemed to be out of place. He stilled and listened. Again, there was nothing. Not even the sound of a breeze from an open window.
He turned and made his way up the stairs, where he checked every room and every closet.
There was no one up there. And every window was locked.
When he returned downstairs, he pulled out his phone and accessed his external cameras, playing over the last few minutes.
His muscles contracted at the sight of a man climbing out of the blue Ford. He wore a black jacket with a hood pulled over his head. That, in combination with the darkness, made it impossible to see his face.
The man knocked on Sky’s door, but he only waited for a second before lifting a pot on the porch.
Fuck. He knew exactly where her spare key was. And he used it to unlock the door and step right in. Why the hell hadn’t Becket made sure Sky removed the spare key?
Suddenly, there was the click of the back door, loud in the otherwise quiet house.
Becket pushed his phone into his pocket and moved into the kitchen, aiming his gun at the back door as it opened.
The second the man stepped through, Becket grabbed his arm and spun him around.
The guy cried out.
“Who are you and what the fuck are you doing here?” Becket yelled, forcing the man over the counter.
“Get off me!”
Becket scowled. He knew that voice.
He spun the guy and yanked his hood down. “Tony?”
A gasp sounded by the front door, and Becket turned, keeping one hand on Tony’s arm. He cursed. “Sky! What the hell are you doing? I told you to stay at my house.”
She held a big knife in her hand and her eyes were wide. “I was worried! You were taking a long time.” She stepped closer, eyes on Tony. “Why are you in my house?”
“I’ll tell you once he gets off me.”
“No,” Becket growled. “Tell us why you broke into Sky’s house first.”
“I didn’t break in! I knocked. No one answered. So I used the spare key her dad told me about. Her car was in the drive and the lights were on, so I was worried when she didn’t answer the door. When she wasn’t downstairs, I went to check outside.”
“You don’t just enter a fucking house,” Becket said through gritted teeth, barely holding on to his damn temper.
Sky crossed the room, knife still in hand. “Tony, just tell me why you’re here.”
He scowled at Becket before looking at Sky. “I’m leaving tomorrow morning. Going home. And I just wanted to say goodbye.”
Her brows flickered.
“You broke into her house to say goodbye?” Becket growled.
“I didn’t break in ,” Tony pushed. “I used the spare key!”
“Becket…let him go,” Sky said quietly.
That was the last fucking thing he wanted to do. In fact, he was tempted to call his brother to have the asshole arrested.
“Please.”
How the hell was he supposed to say no to that? Becket released the asshole, and Tony straightened and looked back at Sky. “Can I talk to you?”
“You are talking to me.”
“Alone.”
Fuck no. He opened his mouth to tell the guy that, but Sky spoke first. “Anything you have to say to me, you can say in front of Becket.”
Tony’s lips thinned. “Fine. I came to tell you that even though I’d hoped things would end differently between us, and your dad made me think there was still a chance…I get it. For some reason, you’re into him. So I’m leaving, and I won’t be back.”
Finally! The jerk finally got it.
“I’m sorry my dad led you to believe things might be different between us.”
Tony just grunted. “I’ll see myself out.”
Sky followed him to the door, and Becket didn’t take his fucking eyes off them. When she touched his arm, Becket’s muscles tensed, but the guy just stepped out and Sky locked the door behind him.
She turned and sighed. “Thank God.”
He eyed the knife in her hand. “You came over to stab the intruder?”
“Why do you say it like it’s a bad thing?” She crossed into the kitchen. “Would you have preferred me to come over unarmed?”
“I’d prefer you hadn’t come at all. Do you know how close you have to be to stab someone?”
“I could hazard a guess.”
“Too close.” He lowered the gun and slipped the knife from her fingers. “Next time, you stay locked in my house. You don’t go looking for a fight.”
“I wasn’t looking for a fight. I was trying to protect you.”
Jesus Christ. He was a former fucking Navy SEAL and she’d come over here with a kitchen knife to protect him.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. “We’re getting rid of that spare key.”
“I know. I should have done it already. Sorry about running over to your house like a crazy person.”
“I’m not.” When her eyes lowered, he touched her chin, tilting her head up so he could see those beautiful eyes. “I always want you to come to me if you feel unsafe or need help.”
Her gaze shifted between his eyes. His hand itched to curve over her cheek. Every part of him wanted to kiss her. The need was like a living, breathing thing inside him, consuming his every breath.
“Becket…” The soft whisper of her voice called to him.
He inched closer, his thighs touching hers. “I miss you.”
“It hasn’t been that long.”
“It has.” Far too fucking long. Unable to stop himself, he lowered his head, grazing her cheek with his lips. “Tell me I can kiss you.”
Her breathing grew louder. “I can’t.”
“You can. Trust me to be able to protect us both.”
He kissed a spot behind her ear, feeling the shudder roll down her body.
“What if something happens to you, like it happened to Charlie?” Sky whispered.
“It’s possible.”
She started to draw back, but he slipped an arm around her waist and tugged her back to him.
“But it’s not likely, because I can take care of both of us.” Another kiss, this time on her cheek. “I’m going crazy without you.”
When she touched his chest, he thought she was going to push him away. But a few seconds later, she ran her palms over him like she was exploring.
Another kiss, this time closer to her mouth. Then her hands wrapped around his neck and she pulled his mouth to hers.
Immediately, he slipped his tongue inside, tasting her. Refamiliarizing himself with all that was Sky. The kiss was everything he’d been missing in the last week and more.
He gripped her waist and lifted her, spinning her around and setting her onto the counter. Her thighs hugged him, bringing him closer.
He wanted to touch all of her but also wanted to keep his arms so tightly around her that there was no space for her to get away.
The hands on her waist slipped beneath her shirt, sliding up.
She groaned and leaned into him, the sound so fucking sweet he wanted to bottle it up.
When he reached one of her bare breasts, he cupped her, feeling the hard peak of her nipple pushing into his palm. This was heaven. Sky and the feel of her in his arms and her taste. It was everything he both wanted and needed. Everything he’d craved.
He started to graze his hand down her belly when she suddenly pressed at his chest.
He wanted to groan. No part of him wanted to let her go. But he did. He lifted his head and took her in with his eyes.
“We shouldn’t be doing this,” she whispered.
“Why not?” And if she said something about keeping him safe, he was going to fight her on it until his last breath. It was his job to keep her safe, not the other way around.
“Becket, my head’s a mess. So much of me is screaming yes, but there’s still this hesitation and I don’t know how to move past it.”
He fucking hated that. “Okay, Peaches. Not tonight. Would you like me to go?”
Say no . Not just because he liked being close to her, but because with everything going on, he needed to be close.
She nibbled her bottom lip like she wasn’t sure.
He lifted a lock of hair from her face. “Let me sleep on your couch.”
Another short beat of silence passed before, finally, she nodded. “Okay. I’d like that.”
Thank God.