Something ugly stirs in my chest as she smiles at him, and I immediately feel shame over it. I glance away and catch Becks watching me, an unreadable expression on his face, but it feels like he knows exactly what I’m feeling right now. Under the table, his leg gently bumps into mine.
“If the Order is off the table, then we have to come up with something else,” Becks says, and there are nods all around.
We spend the next two hours throwing out ideas, each one worse than the last. My good mood starts to slowly dwindle, and by the time we call it quits I feel like a deflated balloon. When I rise, Becks lays a hand on my shoulder, giving it a squeeze.
Leaning over, he whispers in my ear, “Don’t worry. We’ll figure something out.”
I give him what I hope passes as a thankful smile, though it feels a little weak.
Locklyn catches my eye before I turn to go, offering a wan smile and a small nod. It’s not exactly reassuring, but I appreciate the effort. I’m about to leave when I hear her ask Becks if they can talk.
“Sure,” he says easily. When I glance back, his gaze finds mine. “I’ll come check on you later,” he adds with a smile, and there’s a gleam in his eye that starts my stomach flipping.
“Sounds good,” I manage, heading down the hall, trying not to think about the two of them talking alone.
I tell myself I don’t care what they’re discussing, that it’s their business and none of mine, but unease creeps in all the same. Something about the way Locklyn has watched Becks and me these last few days feels off.
Becks and I haven’t gone public with our relationship, doing our best not to touch or be too obvious about our attraction in front of my parents or her or Talon, but I can’t shake the feeling that she knows, and disapproves.
As I walk away, the thought of the two of them talking alone leaves me feeling unsettled, like there’s a piece of the puzzle I’m not seeing.
Twenty-Three
BECKS
The door clicks shut behind Haven, and I glance over my shoulder to see that everyone else has left. It’s just me and Locklyn now. My gut clenches before she even utters a word. I know exactly what’s coming.
I turn to face her. Might as well get this over with.
Locklyn lifts her chin in the defiant way I’ve seen her do a million times before. It tells me she’s gearing up for a fight. Or at least expecting one from me. And she may be right.
“I want to talk to you about whatever it is that’s going on between you and Haven.”
Yep, there it is.
For a moment, I consider pretending like I don’t know exactly what she’s getting at, but then sigh. Although Haven and I haven’t been overt about our growing relationship, we haven’t exactly been very careful either.
This conversation is going to have to happen at some time or another. No real point in putting it off. I’m actually surprised her dad hasn’t cornered me yet to ask what my intentions are with his daughter.
Leaning back against the table, I cross my arms and wait. Just because I knew this conversation was coming doesn’t mean I have to make it easy on her.
“So . . .” she says, trying to get me to start talking, but I just raise my eyebrows.
I understand why she feels like she needs to talk to me about this, but at the end of the day, this is between me and Haven, not her. I plan to only say enough to get her to drop it and move on. Nothing more.
“It seems like you and Haven have gotten close over the last couple of weeks,” she fishes. “Being alone for that much time, you’ve probably gotten to know each other pretty well.”
“Sure,” I say, playing it cool.
A flicker of annoyance flashes on Locklyn’s face. “What exactly is she to you, Becks?”
“Haven’s great,” I say, avoiding the question altogether.
She presses her lips together in a hard line, clearly pissed.
“Great as in useful in a fight and easy to work with, or great as in I stuck my tongue down her throat already and plan to do it again?”
My mouth drops open. “I can’t believe you just said that.”
