“We could meet for a drink after dinner. I have dinner plans.”
He frowns. “With?”
“None of your business. Drinks after,” I repeat. His eyes flash as I rise to stand.
He walks me to the door of the building, Ernie trotting at our heels.
“It’s a date,” Harrison calls.
“It’s drinks, asshole.”
His slow grin is smug, as if our banter gives him divine pleasure he’s been denied for too long. With a look that steals my breath, he turns and heads back inside
My fingers tighten on Ernie’s leash, and as I head across the parking lot, I call Harrison King every filthy name I know.
5
Rae
“Come on, baby. Give it to me,” I mutter.
“All you had to do was ask.”
I glance over my shoulder as Beck enters the kitchen in shorts and nothing else.
“Your coffee maker’s acting up.” The gleaming silver machine is the same brand Harrison bought in Ibiza.
“When sweet talk fails…” He bangs a hand on the side. “Try now.”
I do, and it runs. “Huh.”
He winks. “That’s what I’m here for.”
“I decided to go to Kian’s wedding. Maybe I can put the past behind me.”
“Need a plus one?”
“Nope. I’m not inviting anyone into that cesspool.”
“Rae, there’s a lot of ugly in this world. You can’t handle your own family, maybe you’re not ready for it.”
I fold my arms. “Nothing ever happened to you in your past that you wouldn’t want to revisit, or have dragged out, or have connected to who you are now?”
He frowns. “I’m not hiding anything. Are you?”
Steam erupts from the coffee machine, and I attend to it. My stomach knots, and I force myself to keep breathing. “I’d rather think about my future.”
“Wouldn’t we all.” Beck barks out a laugh as he grabs a mug from the cabinet.
The huge silver fridge is stocked with healthy prepped foods. Beck won’t let me contribute to the mortgage, but I hacked his grocery delivery account and switched it to my credit card.
When I first met Beck through Annie in college, I never could’ve predicted I’d be staying with him now, sharing coffee, not to mention a roof.
Beck’s good at making friends and keeping them. I’m suspicious of everyone’s motives, waiting for them to bail, but he’s the opposite—he expects the best and often finds it. He has a knack for seeing through someone’s defenses to what’s underneath. But unlike many, he doesn’t use it against people.
That’s probably why I find myself letting him in a bit at a time and why he’s often my go-to hang-out partner.
Beck’s phone buzzes, and he grabs it, reading the notification with a grin.