AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Looking for a reason to make this last as long as it can.
I’ve never felt so at ease with anyone else, ever.
The fact he’s the sexiest man alive, obviously wealthy, and knows how to cook… those are just the cherry on top.
His look intensifies and I feel his hand hover over mine like he wants to take it in his.
He blushes slightly, smiling. “No, you’re not keeping me from anything. In fact, I kinda like the way today’s panning out, don’t you?” he adds, his smile taking on the same glint of mischief in his eyes.
I have to agree, but I don’t know anything about him, and he really has no idea about me.
If he did, I wonder if he’d still… I mean, he did almost kiss me, right?
“Tell me about yourself,” he asks, reading my mind again as well as beating me to it. I want to know everything about him, about his house and his amazing life.
I feel pretty boring and very plain by comparison.
“At least a little,” he encourages me, “maybe your last name. Where you live, that sort of thing?”
I laugh a little too loudly but feel myself relaxing even more. I don’t have to give him my life story, just some small talk, I can handle that.
“Rachel Beckett,” I tell him and notice he doesn’t even flinch once he knows I’m from the poor side of town either.
“But, we’re moving!” I rush to add, watching his face fall. “Dad’s got a new job and so we’re moving up to…” I hear my own voice trailing off.
I can hear myself saying it out loud and it’s the last thing in the world I want right now.
I don’t want to move. I don’t want to go anywhere.
I want to stay here, forever.
With Valentine the wolf-dog and Conor the greatest man alive.
I feel myself choking up again, and Conor’s expression isn’t helping.
He takes a deep breath and collects his thoughts, wiping his mouth with a napkin before forcing a friendly smile.
“Moving, huh? Sounds exciting.” I feel my stomach drop, thinking maybe he doesn’t care after all.
Maybe I have imagined he feels.
“When?” he adds firmly, his eyes growing intense like he’s actually not very happy about the idea after all.
I shiver a breath, feeling once again how beautifully complicated my life has become today, and all because I went for a walk instead of arguing with my dad.
“This weekend,” I murmur, jumping when Conor’s knife and fork slam down onto the table.
I almost feel like apologizing. Like I need to explain things so Conor doesn’t hate my dad.
So he doesn’t hate me when I have to go, something I’m trying to wrap my head around but I just can’t picture it.
I can’t see myself moving upstate, away from Conor and Valentine. The whole idea seems suddenly ludicrous.
But at the same time, I don’t have a choice. I’ve got nowhere else to go. No job, no money, nothing.
If I don’t live with my dad, then what?
I can almost hear the gears of Conor’s mind turning as he stares at me intently.
He’s not mad with me, but his face is set with the expression of a man who’s been handed a challenge.
A challenge he’s not going to back away from. At least, I think that’s what he’s thinking.
“Beckett…” he muses to himself, turning the word in his mind as his eyes leave mine and focus on something outside the windows.
“What was your dad’s name again?” he finally asks, breaking a long silence.
“Uh… David. David Beckett,” I tell him, not remembering him asking me a first time.
For the second time today, I watch Conor’s face fall, his huge shoulders dipping too like a sudden weight is crushing him, pulling him down from the inside.
“What’s the matter?” I ask, noticing how worried I sound. A ripple of nerves runs across my belly and I suddenly don’t feel like eating anymore.
I don’t know what it is this time, but Conor and I seem to be swinging from almost gravitating towards each other with passion, and then being spun apart again, leaving us both hurt and confused.
“Nothing,” he says reassuringly after a moment, and I finally feel his hand over mine.
He gives it a gentle squeeze and creases another smile. “Nothing,” he says again, but I can tell it’s not nothing.
Determined not to let anything ruin however much time I have left, I decide to change the subject for both our sakes.
“Enough about me, how about you?” I ask. “This house is amazing. You must be… No! Don’t tell me, let me guess,” I gush, trying too hard to change the mood glad to see it’s working when Conor leans back and gives me the floor.
Waiting to see just how accurate my impressions of him are so far.
I think hard for a moment, surveying him again and wishing I could see more of him, that pant bulge for one.
