I WOKE UP wrapped in Beau’s arms. The sense of security and safety that filled me was unlike anything else. Things were back on the track they should have been on all along if not for the misunderstandings that had torn us apart.
And we had almost a year together to figure out where we would be going from there. I snuggled backward so my body was flush against his. In response, his arms tightened around me. His hand came to rest against my cheek.
“Beau,” I whispered around his palm, trying to rouse him.
He mumbled something unintelligible against my nape but clutched me tighter, as if unwilling to let me go, so I figured he was more awake than he was letting on.
I spun in his hold and wrapped my arms around his neck. There was laughter on my lips—heck, buried deep in my soul. I hadn’t been so happy since the last time I was with him.
“I have to go back home today.”
“Nope.” He buried his nose into the hair around my neck. “You’re gonna stay here. With me.”
“Tempting.”
He rolled over, shifting me to the side as he did so I was underneath him. His gaze found mine and a smile lit his face.
“Even more tempting,” I said.
His lips pressed to mine. Once. Twice. Soft little kisses that had me longing for more—even though we’d shared everything the night before.
I threaded my fingers into his hair and dragged him closer to me. He granted me another soft kiss, but once again pulled away too soon.
A growl of frustration built in my throat—echoing my growing need for him.
“Tell me you’ll stay, and I’ll give ya more.”
I pouted. “That’s not fair. You know I can’t. I’m due for a shoot and interview today and I’m already going to be late.”
“It ain’t fair. I just got ya back, and ya wanna leave again.”
I wrapped my legs around his waist. The move left his hard cock resting against my wanting pussy. “I don’t want to leave. I have to leave.”
He trailed a line of kisses from my lips to my throat. “I ain’t ready to say goodbye.”
“It’s not a goodbye. It’s a see you when you’re ready to come home.”
“I got so much to do here still, I ain’t gonna be back in Mooresville before the first race. I’ll probably drive straight down to Florida from here. Stay with me till then. Please? I know Dale ain’t gonna mind one bit.”
I shook my head. “You need time to grieve properly.”
“Copin’ with it all’s easier with you here beside me. I can’t tell ya how much you’ve helped me, darlin’.”
“I know, and I’d stay if I could. But I can’t let this thing between us interfere with work. I’m going to have a hard enough time convincing Mum and Dad that you and I are okay without dodging out on my responsibilities.”
“D’ya think maybe ya can come back here when you’re done?”
It was something that hadn’t occurred to me. But why not? Once I was done with the shoot and interview, I was free again until the lead-up and race preparation in Daytona. It wasn’t a long time, just a couple of days, but long enough that we could talk and work out our stories before turning up for the race with the rest of the team.
“I’ll think about it,” I teased. “Maybe you need to give me an incentive to come back though.”
“Ain’t I incentive enough?” He thrust his hips forward, earning a moan.
“I’d say you’re maybe, hmm, three quarters of the way.”
He moved to kiss the other side of my neck, the curls at the end of his hair tickling against my skin. My hands found his back, running over the muscles that flickered and twitched under my fingertips.
“Is this getting me over the line?” he asked.
“It’s edging you closer.”
“What’s it gonna take to get a yes, d’ya think?”
“Oh, I think you know.” I curled my hand over his cheek. “I just need a reminder of what you want me to come back to.”
He leaned all his weight onto one arm. With his free hand, he reached for my hand and placed it over his heart. “I want ya to come back for this. I’m always gonna want ya comin’ back for this. It’s yours, darlin’. It has been since the first time I caught sight of those stunning seafoam eyes of yours.”
The wordlessness that had come over me the night before struck me again, and I couldn’t respond. I drew down a breath and tried to stow away the tears that threatened before they could fall. How had I gotten so lucky? Things had gone from being so shit to being more than I could have ever imagined in just a few short weeks. The fairy tale was back on track, and better than anything I could have hoped for. “Beau, I—”
He pressed his lips to mine and cut off my words. “Tell me when you come back.”
I wrapped my arms around his neck and nodded against him. “I will. I’ll tell you everything. The whole truth.”
“When d’ya need to leave?”
After a quick glance at the clock, I frowned. “Half hour or so. Maybe just over an hour if I get ready for the interview before I leave and head straight there.”
“Well, then, I insist you get ready here then. D’ya mind if I get Joe to grab your stuff from your room and bring it here?”
I thought about how I’d left my room, and shook my head. It wasn’t messy. There weren’t bits and pieces lying all around the place. If it meant more time with Beau, it was worth the mild embarrassment of having someone else sort out my stuff.
Beau reached for his phone and fired off a quick text. “He’ll be here in half an hour, and he’ll bring us some breakfast when he comes.”
“I guess that means we should get a hurry on.” I brought my lips to his again, only this time he didn’t pull away.
HOURS LATER, tired and exhausted from a day of driving to Richard’s Racing, interviews, and a photo shoot that had included my bike in some impromptu poses, I was finally ready to go home, wash and repack my clothes, and get some sleep. My plan was to head back to Beau’s place in Georgia early the next morning.
Before anything else though, I was going to go up to my apartment and eat. I hadn’t had anything besides the small breakfast delivered to Beau’s house before I’d left that morning.
My plans went out the window when I hit my street.
Xavier’s car was in front of my building. Part of me was glad he didn’t still have a key; that wouldn’t have been a pleasant surprise.
The last thing I needed was to have a face-to-face conversation about the way things had gone down. Who knew how long he’d been waiting for me too. How irate he might be. One thing was almost guaranteed—the conversation would be a difficult one. But necessary.
By the time I’d parked my car, guilt twisted my stomach. He’d never asked for me to drag him into my shit. He’d done nothing but been supportive. I really owed him far more than I’d offered—and the start to making up for it was to buck up and face the music. However unpleasant it might be.
With a sigh, I headed straight out of the front of my building and found my way to the door of his car. I knocked on the window to let him know I was home. My knuckles had barely grazed the glass when he shoved the door open. I had to leap backward to avoid copping a door to my nose.
“Phoebe, I need to talk to you.” The red rims around his eyes twisted the knife in my heart. What had I done to him? I’d been off making love to Beau while Xavier had been nursing a broken heart.
“I know. Did you want to come upstairs and chat?”
“Please.” His voice cracked as he said the word.
The lift ride was awkward as we stood stiffly side by side, neither of us saying a word. Xavier stared straight ahead. His face held some sort of resolve. With every extra second, his breathing steadied a little more. I hoped it meant his understanding of the situation was deepening. Beau had been able to tell with a single look that we were free to be together; had Xavier noticed I wore that longing for someone else?
“I really am sorry you got
caught in the middle of all this, Xav. If I could go back and have my time over again, I’d do it differently. I’d fight harder for Beau and leave you out of it. You didn’t deserve to get hurt.”
“Are you saying there’s no hope for you and me?” he asked. His tone was almost casual, but a slight tremor in his words belied his calm. I buried my head in my hand as he poured two glasses of Coke. I was glad that despite everything, he was still willing to be friendly. At least more than he had been on the phone. Before I could answer, he pushed one of the glasses in front of me.
I thanked him with a nod and a sip before wrapping my hands around the glass, letting my fingers play in the condensation. “No. I wish that wasn’t the answer, I really do, but Beau’s had me wrapped up since the first time I saw him. If it wasn’t for a few misunderstandings, you and I would never have had the chance to be more than just friends. We weren’t meant to be. I do still want to be your friend though. If you want that too, of course.”
“I meant it when I said I loved you. I still do. I’m not gonna get over that as quickly as you have.”
I swallowed down some of the Coke, giving me an excuse not to answer straight away. It didn’t help to ease the pounding in my head or the dryness in my mouth. “And I wouldn’t expect you to. If you need time away from me, let me know. I don’t want this—” I waved my hands between him and me “—descending into something it doesn’t need to be.”
“I don’t want that either.” With the focus he gave to the drink in my hand, I wondered if the words were as hard for him to hear as they were for me to say. “I just wish it hadn’t come to this.”
It was amazing how much easier it was to deal with the awkwardness with Xavier than it had been to face Beau in similar circumstances. His words didn’t raise my hackles. His presence didn’t make me long for something more. The difference was clear. As much as I’d wanted to give Xavier my heart when it was hurting, I hadn’t been able to.
It had always belonged to Beau, and now he’d claimed it back.
Unable to find any words that might help, I focused on my drink—tossing back the rest in just a couple of mouthfuls. “I hope we can still be friends.”
“I thought we had something special,” Xavier whispered. His gaze was laser focused on the drink in front of him as he traced a finger over the condensation on the glass. “I ain't fixing to just be friends with you.”
I buried my head in my hands, wishing I could find some magic word to fix everything.
“I’m sorry.” It was totally inadequate, but I hoped it might be a start.
He rounded the bench to my side. Cautiously, he lifted his hand to my cheek. His fingers were ice-cold. “We’re perfect for each other. Why can’t you see that?”
Despite the heaviness of the conversation, which should have kept me focused, my eyes were dragging closed. The ride home from Georgia, the emotions that had pressed on me for the last few weeks—everything—was all weighing on me, leaving me exhausted.
“Please don’t make this more difficult than it has to be,” I begged as I dragged my cheek away from his hand. My head felt heavy, and my eyes sank closed for a beat longer than normal.
His other hand shifted onto my face, cupping my cheeks and forcing me to hold his gaze. “I’m not letting go, Phoebe. I told you I’m no good at giving up the things I love.”
“You don’t have a choice.” Each word was thicker in my mouth than the last. “Beau’n’I, we’re meant t’be.” My words ran into each other as my tongue rolled over the syllables ineffectively.
I slid from the stool to try to shake the feeling of lethargy seeping into my every pore, but as soon as my feet hit the floor, my knees buckled.
Xavier caught me around the waist, slowly lowering me to the ground. “Shh. Relax. I got you.” His voice was calmer than before.
My eyelids were too heavy to hold open for even a moment more, so I tried to blink. Only, they wouldn’t close or open as fast as I intended. My brain struggled to keep up with what was happening. My heart beat was slow, but rapped against my ribs so hard every beat echoed through my mind.
“Xav,” I muttered, trying to infuse my tone with the questions that wouldn’t come.
“You ain't hearing me right, Phoebe. It ain’t a choice; I ain’t letting you go. I ain’t saying goodbye. I ain’t gonna let Beau claim your heart—not when it belongs to me.”
“Wha’?”
He grabbed the small suitcase I’d packed to go to Georgia and threw the rest of the medications I had into the front pocket.
“How long have you got left on these prescriptions?”
My gaze travelled a slow path between the suitcase and his face as I struggled to understand what he meant. The words wouldn’t register in my mind.
A sigh left him as he stopped his task and paced back to my side. An instant later, his hand smacked across my cheek. The sharp sting that rose on my cheek was enough to focus my concentration for a split second before the fog closed in again.
Fuck, I was in trouble.
“How long?” he asked again, lifting his hand in a threat.
“Uh—” I couldn’t think. Couldn’t do the maths. The cotton wool that filled my mind made everything else white noise.
He pinched my already tender cheek. “Don’t make me hurt you, Phoebe. I really don’t wanna.”
I stared up at him, trying to use my eyes to plead with him to stop.
“But I will for us, my love. I’ll do whatever I have to for us. For our future.”
We don’t have a future! It was clear in my head, but all that fell from my lips was a jumble of random sounds.
He examined my eyes more closely. “Hmm, seems that drink went to your head a little quicker than Bee warned me it might.”
His fingers stroked my cheek in an almost tender trail. Combined with his words, it made my stomach twist. I jerked away from him and reached for my pocket—determined to call someone to help me. The instant my fingers closed around the device, Xavier snatched it from me.
“Uh-uh. I ain’t letting anyone else come between us again. It has to be just you and me from now on.”
With a whimper, I reached out above me, trying to drag myself to the door—to freedom. He chuckled as he watched my slow progress, each second draining more of the precious little energy I had left.
“Where do you think you’re going, Phoebe?” he taunted.
I’d barely managed to drag myself half a body length when the weight of my head grew too heavy to hold up even a moment more.
“Sleep now, sweetheart. We can discuss your medication when you wake up.”
Following his instruction was the last thing I wanted to do, but that didn’t stop me from sinking into the blackness a few seconds later.
TO BE CONTINUED . . .
STAY TUNED FOR MORE OF PHOEBE REEDE: THE UNTOLD STORY
BEASTLY
PHOEBE REEDE: THE UNTOLD STORY #3
FEBRUARY 2017
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