by Jett Munroe
“That’s weird?” Morgan rolled her eyes. “The entire encounter was freaky, if you ask me.”
Going to the sofa, Delaney put a knee to the cushions so she could peer out the window and watch him. He stalked to a fairly nondescript-looking, light-blue sedan and climbed behind the wheel. When he backed out of the parking lot, he did it in a fast, jerky way that told her he was pissed off.
She let out a low whistle. “Wow,” she said to Morgan as she turned and settled onto the sofa. “Where did that come from?”
“I know, right? Who did that guy think he was, coming on to you when he clearly already knew you’re in to Beck and he’s in to you?”
Delaney stared at her sister. “I meant you, Morgan. You were rude.”
Morgan’s perfectly groomed eyebrows shot up. “I was rude? I was? He told me I needed to eat more sandwiches!”
He wasn’t wrong. Morgan would look better if she put on another ten or even fifteen pounds. But Delaney knew her sister’s handlers and others in the modeling industry would start telling her she was fat if she couldn’t fit into a size zero.
“But you escalated it,” she said. People were still glancing their way, and it made her uncomfortable to be the center of attention.
Morgan waved that off and plopped down onto the couch. She grabbed one of the coffees. “He had some nerve. Why is it people have to make it about appearance when they want to be hurtful?” She glowered at the paper cup in her hand. “Is this one mine?”
“Yes,” Delaney said. “Now that you’ve glared it into submission, you can have it.”
“Har-har-hardy-har-har.” Morgan took a cautious sip. Her eyes widened and she drank more. “Wow, this is good.”
“Try a muffin. It’s not a sandwich, I know.” Delaney shrugged. “But it’ll have to do for now.”
“Oh, snap.” Morgan leaned forward and set her cup on the table, then opened the bag and took out one of the muffins and a napkin.
Just then Colbie and Rachel walked up. Colbie saw Morgan trying to take the paper off the muffin without getting crumbs everywhere and said, “Hold on a sec. I’ll get you both plates.”
She placed her coffee cup and plated muffin—a blueberry bran, by the looks of it—onto the small table by the armchair to one side of the sofa. With a flourish she turned and made her way to the front of the shop.
When she returned, she asked Morgan, “So, how was your first day back in town? Do anything exciting?”
“Not unless you count almost driving off Mount Lemmon,” she said. At their exclamations she told them what happened the day before. “But Lay-Lay kept her cool,” she finished. “Coasted us to a stop on the side of the road before she let her freak fly.”
Delaney made an eek face. “She’s not wrong. I did pretty much freak out.”
“But you’re all right? Both of you?” Rachel asked.
Morgan nodded.
Delaney did too, but said, “I had a nightmare last night.”
“What?” Morgan, about to take a bite of muffin, twisted to face her, her hand suspended in front of her mouth. “You didn’t say anything.”
“I knew we’d probably end up talking about it here, and I didn’t want to talk about it twice,” she told her sister in a soft voice. “And I had just the one.”
“And?”
She closed her eyes and leaned back against the sofa. “Crumpled, fiery ball of metal in a ravine,” was all she said.
Morgan transferred her muffin to the other hand and slipped her arm around Delaney’s shoulders. “I’m so sorry, sweetie. You should’ve woken me up.”
“No, I was all right. I did have to check on you, though, just to make sure you were okay.” She glanced at her friends then said to her sister, “Just sayin’, once Beck’s home, your sleeping attire needs to change.”
Morgan seemed confused, blinking at Delaney; then a wide grin split her face. “No problem. I got hot last night.”
“Oh, I reset the thermostat. Beck had it programmed to go down to sixty-five at night. I like it cold, but not that cold. When he’s back you’ll be asking for blankets. And a granny flannel nightgown.”
They all laughed and settled in for a good visit. After about twenty minutes Lily and Andi came out from the back and joined them. Morgan told them about the close call they’d had on the mountain and gave them the snippet of Delaney’s dream. Then she told the rest of the women about Edmond coming on to Delaney.
“You would not believe the smarm coming off that guy,” she said, disgust hardening her voice.
“And when Morgan basically told him that a little town outside of Quebec is hardly the definition of cosmopolitan, he told her she needed to eat more sandwiches.” Delaney started laughing. “Like that’s the best thing he could come up with? A gorgeous, intelligent, talented woman needs to eat more sandwiches?”
Morgan laughed right along with her. “I know, right? If I knew the guy and cared about his opinion, that might have stung a little. But I don’t know him, and I don’t care what he thinks. Besides, I eat sandwiches. Look at me now, eating a muffin.” She took a big bite and mumbled around it, “My agent’s gonna have a conniption when I put on weight from being home, but since I do every time I make it back to Tucson I guess he’ll get over it.”
Delaney jostled her shoulder against her sister’s and finished off her own muffin.
“You trying to be a good example for your younger sister?” Lily asked. “I noticed you didn’t get your usual.”
Delaney tried to look indignantly righteous. “I’ll have you know I don’t always get the carrot cake muffin. Sometimes I’m health conscious.”
Her sister and friends laughed.
Okay, so maybe a muffin that had bacon and cheese in it wasn’t quite as health conscious as it should be. And she did miss the taste of that yummy cream cheese frosting. “Maybe I’ll just get one to go,” she added amidst renewed laughter. Delaney stood to go for another coffee when her cell phone trilled “Hanging by a Moment” by Lifehouse. “Excuse me,” she said to the others who looked at her with knowing grins. Now she knew what it meant to quiver from excitement because her insides were break dancing. “Hey,” she said softly into the phone as she walked away from the group.
“What’s this I hear from Gabe about the brakes on your car failing?” Beck’s voice was not quiet.
“Um…” She decided maybe outside was a better place to have this conversation if his opening was anything to go by. She pushed open the door and walked into the humidity of the monsoon season, making sure she stayed in the limited shade provided by a narrow awning. “The brakes on my car failed.”
“I know that, sweetheart. What I want to know is why I had to hear it from Gabe and didn’t hear it from you.” He sounded even unhappier with her than before. “You knew I had my phone back.”
She frowned. “I wanted to call you, Beck, but you couldn’t have done anything because you weren’t here. I’m just lucky Gabe was able to drop everything and help us out.”
“Damn it.” Underneath the anger in his voice she heard frustration.
She thought she understood. He was more upset that he hadn’t been around when she needed him than he was that she hadn’t called. “We’re okay, honey,” she soothed.
“You should have called me. Let me know what was going on with you.”
“Next time I will.”
There was a moment of silence then his voice came across with wry humor. “I really hope there is no next time, baby.”
“Oh, right,” she whispered. There she went, being a dork.
“Be right there,” he said, and from the way his voice was muffled, she could tell he was talking to someone else. “We’re about to board our flight, Laney,” he told her. “I should be at TIA by six tonight.”
“Do you want me to pick you up?”
“Would love
it, babe, but I left my SUV at the airport. So I’ll see you at home, yeah? And we’ll have dinner together. Something simple, like pizza. So don’t cook.” His voice dropped an octave when he added, “I want you well rested for what comes after dinner.”
So did she. As fire started burning low in her belly, she squeezed her thighs together to try to douse the flames. “Okay.” Then she remembered something and for the first time in her adult life felt disappointment that her sister was in town. “Um, Morgan’s here.”
“I know. Gabe told me. It’s no problem; she can have dinner with us too.”
“You don’t mind?”
“What’m I gonna do, tell her she’s on her own?” By the tone of his voice she could tell he was grinning. “It’s fine. But after dinner, she’s definitely on. Her. Own.”
“Okay,” she whispered, getting even hotter at what she knew would happen after dinner.
“All right, I gotta go, baby. I’ll see you around six thirty or so.”
“Okay. I—” She stopped herself. Automatically she’d been about to tell him she loved him. She wasn’t ready for that, and she was pretty sure he wasn’t ready to hear it, either, not after only a matter of weeks together. “I’ll see you later,” she finished, letting out a sigh when he gave her a quiet goodbye. She ended the call and went back into the coffee shop. The cool air was a welcome relief from the sticky heat outside.
“Beck’s coming home tonight,” she announced to her girls as she retook her seat.
“That explains that cat-with-the-cream look on your face,” Rachel teased.
An idea struck, a fabulous idea. “Why don’t you all come over for dinner?” She’d love to see her friends as well as her sister interacting with her guy. Plus, truth be told, she was a bit nervous about being alone with him again. He’d been gone longer than the amount of time they’d actually been together. What if something had changed? She needed someone there as a buffer.
Well, she thought she might.
The women looked at each other; then Lily said, “Uh, don’t you think Beck will want you all to himself? I mean, he has been gone awhile.”
Delaney felt a blush spread across her cheeks. “That’s for after dinner,” she whispered. “We’re just going to order pizza. Besides, Morgan will be there.”
“No, I won’t.” Her sister crossed her arms. “You give me a key to the condo and I’ll let myself in. Like, after midnight when I can be fairly certain you two have done the nasty and are resting.”
Delaney’s face flamed even hotter. “You can’t get into the building,” she reminded Morgan primly. “The key only works the door to the condo. For anything else you have to use the biometric scanner or be buzzed in.”
“I forgot about that.” Morgan thought a moment then held up an index finger and announced, “I’ll check into a hotel.”
“You will not!” Delaney shook her head. “You’re my sister. You stay with me.”
“I appreciate that, sweetie, but Beck might not want me there. It is his place.”
“No, it’s our place. I’m sure if I want my sister to stay with us, he’ll be fine with that. After all, he’s expecting you for dinner.”
Her sister snorted in a very unmodel-like fashion. “Expecting me for dinner and expecting me to live there are two different things.”
Just as Delaney opened her mouth to rebut Morgan’s statement, Andi jumped in. “Look,” she said, “I have a spare bedroom. Why don’t you spend the night at my house? I know my daughter would love to see you.”
“Done!” Morgan grinned. “I thought maybe you’d bring Emma with you. Where is she?”
“She’s with her dad. He’ll be dropping her off later tonight.”
Andi had gotten a divorce at around the same time that Delaney had, but she and her husband remained on amicable terms, mainly because of the daughter they both loved to distraction.
“How old is Emma now?” Morgan asked. “Five?”
“Six,” Andi said with the proud look of a mother. “She’s in first grade.”
“Wow.” Morgan sat back against the sofa. “She must be so big now.”
“Big for her britches,” her loving mother returned with a laugh and a shake of her head.
“So it’s settled, then,” Morgan announced. “I’ll stay with Andi tonight. That way you and Beck can have uninterrupted reunion time.”
Heat flooded into Delaney’s face all over again. She knew her sister and friends were all quite aware that her relationship with Beck had progressed to a physical one. She just wasn’t all that comfortable with them talking about it.
“Well,” she said as she bounded to her feet. “I really hate to break this up…” She didn’t, not really. Not when they all looked like they were about to start talking about her and Beck’s relationship and just how physical it might be. “But I thought I’d take Morgan for a drive through the Sam Hughes District to look at houses. Maybe even try a couple of the other historic neighborhoods.”
“You should definitely try Barrio Santa Rosa off Sixth,” Lily offered. “They have some Sonoran row houses that are just spectacular.”
“All righty then.” Delaney raised her eyebrows at Morgan, who was still sitting on the couch. “Why are you not moving? We have places to go.”
Morgan grinned and stood. “It was good to see you all again.”
“Yeah.” Andi looked at Delaney. “I took a drive by your building the other day,” she said with a waggle of her brows. “You’re doin’ all right for yourself.”
“It’s Beck’s building.” Delaney heaved a sigh and looked at her sister. “Are you sure you won’t have dinner with us?”
“I think Beck’s homecoming needs to be private. I’ll meet him tomorrow.”
Delaney looked at Andi. “Morgan will be over at around five or five thirty, if that’s okay.”
“Fine by me,” her friend answered.
Delaney did the whole hugs and air kisses with her friends while Morgan stood back smiling. Then with a jaunty wave, she and her sister left the coffee shop and headed to the rental car.
“I hope there are some houses for sale that have information flyers out,” Morgan said as she buckled her seat belt. “I’d really like to be in a bungalow.”
“Well, I guess we’ll see,” Delaney mumbled inanely. What she really wanted was for it to be six thirty and for Beck to be home. She glanced at the clock display set into the dash. Only another six and a half hours. “After we look at houses, do you want to grab some lunch somewhere? Maybe get a sandwich?”
Morgan rolled her eyes. “Yes, but I’ll have a salad, thank you very much. I know I’ll put on some weight, but I can’t afford to put on too much or they won’t work me. It’s amazing how these designers can sniff out ounces, I kid you not.”
In less than ten minutes Delaney guided the car slowly down the streets of the Sam Hughes District. At Morgan’s insistence, she pulled over in front of a brick bungalow. “This one’s not for sale,” she told her sister as she put the car in Park.
“I know. But how much do you think it would be if it were?”
Delaney shrugged. “Probably close to five hundred grand. I’ve looked at online realty sites, and just for shits and giggles checked into the historic districts. Most of the houses in this neighborhood, unless they’re fixer-uppers, go for upwards of four hundred thousand dollars.” She peered at the bungalow. “This one looks like it’s in good shape, so I’d think at least four fifty. Probably more.”
Morgan sighed but a smile curved her lips. “I like it.”
“Me too.”
They sat there awhile longer before Morgan motioned her to go on.
Over the next two hours they toured the rest of Sam Hughes and, following Lily’s advice, drove around the Santa Rosa neighborhood too. The homes there were an eclectic collection of styles, ranging from 1950s b
rick ranches to turn-of-the-century territorial to the Sonoran row houses with their brightly painted doors that Lily had mentioned.
They grabbed lunch at a place with a salad bar. Delaney figured it would be good for her to eat healthy for once. Plus she didn’t want to have too much on her stomach because she knew the closer it got to Beck’s return, the more her nerves would kick up. He’d left town right after they started dating. Tonight might feel like they were starting all over again.
Chapter Thirteen
Delaney added the last swirl of frosting to the two-layer chocolate and vanilla cake she’d made in celebration of Beck’s homecoming just as she heard the key in the front door. She set the knife in the sink and walked into the foyer, hard-pressed to keep from bouncing, she was so excited.
“No, come on in. You can have dinner with us. Besides, Quincy, I want you to meet Laney,” Beck was saying as he walked in.
Dear God, he looked good. He had two days’ or so of beard growth that just made him look hotter than he normally did. Dressed in jeans and a worn T-shirt, the only kind he seemed to have, with his Harley boots and leather belt with a big silver buckle. His T-shirt was caught behind the buckle but remained otherwise untucked. He was the epitome of the typical American warrior, even in T-shirt and jeans, and he made it look so sexy.
Her heart banged behind her ribs, its beat echoing in her throat. She stopped herself from jumping on him because right on his heels was a man she’d never seen before, followed by Rafe and Ty. Her smile fell. The private homecoming she’d envisioned obviously wasn’t going to happen, at least not until later. Shoot, her friends should have come over. That way at least the testosterone would be balanced by some estrogen. As it was, she wasn’t sure how she’d be able to get through dinner with Beck and the hot bunch he’d just led through the door, because the newcomer was just as freakingly handsome as the others.
His dark-blond hair, worn a little on the long side, curled over the collar of the button-down shirt he wore. He was as tall as Beck, with a long torso and long legs, and big feet encased in cowboy boots. Bright-blue eyes gleamed in his tanned face.
