Page 42 of Make it a Double

I wasn’t sure why I felt a surge of possessive jealousy toward a man I’d been trying to firmly place in the no-fly zone, but it needed to go away. I could not, under any circumstances, let her actions make me lose my cool.

“Is this booth okay?” she asked, putting a bit more twang in her voice than moments ago. That was saying something since she could’ve been mistaken for Dolly Parton if you closed your eyes and disbanded reality for a moment.

“It’s great. Thank you,” Beckett said. He paid her no mind as he held his hand out for me to scoot in, before taking the bench across the table.

She slowly placed both menus on his side and gave him a toothy grin. “Patty will be your waitress today, but if you need anything, let me know.”

I rolled my eyes and scoffed. The innuendo was not lost on me in the slightest. Even though this wasn’t a date—and I was still adamant about that—she didn’t know that. To flirt with Beckett in front of me was so rude. And any man who’d reciprocate that while on a date with someone else wasn’t worth the energy it took to tell him goodbye. Save your breath, babe.

Thankfully, I didn’t have that problem with my friend.

When Beckett took the menu and passed it toward me instead of acknowledging her, she snapped her mouth shut and slowly walked away. She swung her hips as she went, as though he might magically sense that she was putting on a show for him and turn around to watch.

“Well, she’s going to spit in my food, for sure,” I said, sighing and opening the menu.

Beckett’s lips twitched as he did the same. “I’m sure that’s not true.”

“Do your eyes not work? She was staring at you like you were a piece of meat.”

I could feel his gaze boring into me as he lowered his menu and leaned across the table. “They work,” he said, watching carefully as I grabbed my glass and brought it to my lips. On instinct, my thighs squeezed together as flashbacks of that night played in my mind. I’d seen that look in his eyes when he saw me naked for the first time. Just like then, the full weight of his attention was going to crush me. “I was just too busy staring at someone else to notice her.”

Water trickled out of my mouth as I choked on the sip I’d just taken. God, help me. I never stood a chance, did I? This dinner had just started, and we were already veering into dangerous territory. To make matters worse, Beckett was clearly pleased with himself as he grabbed a napkin and slid it over to me with a shit-eating grin.

“You can’t just say things like that,” I hissed, dabbing at the moisture on my chest.

“Why not?” he asked, shrugging. “It’s the truth. I couldn’t even pick the girl out of a lineup.”

My cheeks flushed with embarrassment as I turned my attention back to the menu. “Now, you’re being ridiculous.” Beckett sighed and plucked it from my fingers. “Hey! Give that back.”

He shook his head. “So you can hide? Absolutely not. Listen to me, Sawyer. You are gorgeous. You outshine any woman here ten times over. When I say I only have eyes for you, that’s what I mean.” I opened my mouth to protest, because he absolutely could not feel that way, but Beckett barrelled through without stopping. “And you may call that ridiculous, but I don’t. I call it knowing what I want.”

His words should have calmed me. After all, that was exactly what I’d always hoped for, wasn’t it? I mean, at the end of the day, I wanted to be wanted. Especially by him. But I couldn’t help feeling like a fraud. This dinner was supposed to be a chance to come clean and hope we could find a way to navigate this little situation we’d gotten ourselves in, not dive deeper into something we had no business exploring.

I should’ve told him sooner. I should’ve been up front before ever agreeing to go out on this stupid dinner with him.

Closing my eyes, I sucked in a breath. “Beckett, I need to tell you something.”

“There’s nothing you need to tell me. I know you don’t think I’m capable of a mature, romantic relationship, but⁠—”

I was going to throw up. “Beckett, please stop talking.”

“—I’ll be your friend if that’s what you need, but you should know I’d like to be more if you feel like giving me a⁠—”

Patty stepped up to the table, a wide smile spread across her face, and her eyes flicked between Beckett and me. “Sawyer! It’s so good to see you out and about these days. Who is this charming fellow? He’s quite handsome.”

I could see this spiraling out of control before I could stop it. An epic car crash I’d likely never recover from.

“Beckett, ma’am. I’m Sawyer’s friend. And thank you,” he said, dipping his chin. “Nothing on Sawyer, though.”

“Friend?” Patty frowned, gaze dipping to my belly. Oh my god. “So, you’re not the father?”

No, no, no, no. This was not good. Saliva pooled in my mouth as nausea turned my stomach. I needed to get out of here. Needed to find a bathroom.

At her words, Beckett laughed, but there was a strange look on his face. “Father?”

The words came tumbling out of Patty’s mouth before I could register what was happening. “The baby’s father, of course.”

The world slowed.