Page 30 of Make it a Double

I really needed to invest in slip-ons because it was only going to get harder to tie laces as I got bigger. It already felt like running a damn marathon just to get out the door.

“Stupid fucking laces,” I muttered, ducking down. The sound of footsteps made me groan. Not only was I about to get caught, but I’d interrupted their meeting.

Great, Sawyer. Just fucking great.

I could already hear Duke’s voice in a low reprimand. “What’d I tell you? If you hadn’t been carrying those damn boxes…”

“I know, I know. I’m not supposed to be carrying boxes,” I called. If I could just get ahead of my scolding, maybe I could get out of it. “Consider this a lesson learned.”

Liv’s voice was the first I recognized. “Sawyer! Are you okay?”

“What happened?” Duke said at the same time.

But there was a third voice amongst the fray. One I’d gotten used to hearing in my dreams. It was as smooth as butter and glided over my skin, giving me goosebumps. Or maybe that was just the returning nausea.

Because the moment I looked up and saw Beckett Montgomery standing above me with his lips parted in shock, I knew I was fucked.

BECKETT

For as much as I dug my heels in when my father demanded I return to Pinecrest for his special project, I’d left his office with a renewed sense of purpose and a plan.

No matter what it took, I was going to find the copper-haired beauty and ask her, politely, for a second chance. At what? I wasn’t exactly sure, but I was nothing if not determined. I could figure the rest out later.

Sawyer had been on my mind since I woke up that pivotal morning nearly six months ago to a cold and empty bed, with nothing but her pink cotton panties and a child-sized teddy bear to show for it. At first, I thought I’d find her on the back porch with a cup of coffee in her hand, watching the sun rise over the water. That’d been my plan, had I gotten more than two hours of sleep, anyway. It didn’t take me long to realize she wasn’t outside or downstairs or even hiding in a fucking closet.

She was gone.

No note. No goodbye kiss. No awkward small talk.

If it’d been any other one-night stand, I would’ve been relieved. Hell, I might’ve even rejoiced. It was every bachelor’s dream. But this wasn’t the same, and I couldn’t find a single reason to celebrate her leaving without saying anything.

I didn’t even do overnights, and yet when I walked out of the bathroom after we had sex, I’d been sick to my stomach over the thought of her trying to sneak out so quickly. And then I’d asked her to stay. Begged her, really.

Yet, she left anyway.

And now she was kneeling on the ground before me, surrounded by a mess of scattered boxes in neon pink sweatpants.

“Sawyer?” I asked, staring down in disbelief.

She blinked. Large green doe eyes, rimmed with silver, stared back. When the first tear fell, I couldn’t fucking stand it. I crouched in front of her, taking her shaking hands in mine and helping her up.

She winced, gaze slicing behind me to where Duke was standing at my back in concern. While he’d done nothing but glower at me from the moment I walked into this bar, it was his wife, Olivia, who put me on edge. She glanced between Sawyer and me, as if she was privy to a secret I wasn’t. It was unsettling.

Sawyer didn’t say anything. She dropped my hands and dusted off the dirt on her very bright pink sweatpants. Her eyes swung to Olivia. “I’m sorry, I tried to be quiet.”

“The only thing you need to apologize for is carrying those boxes when you know you aren’t supposed to be,” Olivia said, looking from me to Sawyer. “Mr. Montgomery was supposed to be here earlier, but he ended up running late. I’m so sorry, Sawyer.”

“Totally okay. No worries at all,” Sawyer said, already reaching for her purse. It must have fallen to the ground when she did. I bent down to help, but she snatched everything up before I could do anything. She pointed toward the door, forcing a smile, but it wasn’t enough to cover up a slight tremble in her lip. “I’ll, uh, call you later? We can reschedule our lunch.”

Olivia looked like she wanted to say something, but Sawyer hurried for the door before she could even call out a goodbye. I took one look at the owners of this goddamn bar before following after her.

To hell with the scattered mess around me or the important meeting I’d just run out of. My focus was on Sawyer.

“Sawyer! Hey, wait up!” I called to no avail. She was already stepping into her vehicle. Her eyes met mine through the windshield. All I could see was fear staring right back at me.

Had I done something to put that there? Is that why she had left that night? I wracked my brain, searching for some kind of explanation and finding none.

I stopped near the front of her car, calling after her one more time. Yes, I was in Pinecrest for my own selfish reasons, but I was also there for her. She had to know that.