Page 53 of Make it a Double

It was my fault, you know, for falling into bed with a man like Beckett. The smile he gave let loose a swarm of fluttering wings in my belly, reminding me of baby boy’s first movements. If Liv hadn’t been beside me, I might’ve gone for a full swoon looking at the soda alone.

“Beckett, what’re you doing here?” I asked, stepping toward him. Thankfully for both of us, Liv didn’t follow. I did, however, feel her keeping a close watch on me as she touched tables around the room.

He patted the case next to him. “You promised our son one of these bad boys if he moved for me the other night. Seemed rude not to pay up.” He paused, glancing around nervously. “I’m just sorry it took so long.”

Our son.

Those two words nearly sent me to the ground. They were nothing new, nothing I didn’t already know, but hearing them fall so easily from his lips was another thing entirely. It got that pitiful part of me perking back up as I took in his earnest expression.

“Y-Yeah,” I stammered, clearing my throat. “He doesn’t play when it comes to his soda. It’s one of the few things other than water that doesn’t make him angry.” I placed my hand over my belly. “Thank you. I was actually going to pick some up at the store after work.”

“Don’t mention it. I was getting those,” he said, pointing toward the flowers, “when I remembered your little bargain.”

I glanced toward the bouquet, admiring the fresh foliage. Roses, chrysanthemums, a handful of lilies, and delphiniums blended together in a beautiful blend of pinks and purples. I leaned in, inhaling the sweet aroma, and sighed.

During my twenty-four years of life, no one had ever bought me flowers. I’d never minded before. Why waste all that money on something that was going to die in a matter of weeks? But now, as I watched Beckett nervously shift in his seat, I understood they were just as much a gift for the other person as they were for me. This was an olive branch of sorts. A way to break the tension after a less-than-ideal ending to our night.

It seemed like such a silly thing to grow emotional about, but tears lined the rim of my lashes. I blinked them away before they fell, but Beckett saw all the same.

“They’re beautiful,” I said, lifting the corner of my lips. “Delphiniums are my favorite.”

A flush of color came back into his cheeks as he blew out a breath. The self-assured version of Beckett was hot, but seeing him unabashedly show the barest hint of vulnerability was sexier than it had any right being. If I weren’t already pregnant, I would’ve been at risk.

Rubbing the back of his neck, he said, “Thank god. This old woman found me standing in front of the flower section at the store like an idiot and offered to help. She seemed a little…” he paused, furrowing his brows. “Uh, how do I say this nicely? Eccentric?”

“Oh, you met Margaret,” I said, chuckling. That was one of the perks of living in a small town. If you hung around long enough, you could name someone after only hearing a few words. “She has a heart of gold, but she can be a bit overbearing at the best of times.”

“I thought she was never going to let me leave. How does she know so much about flowers? It was like listening to a poorly put-together dissertation.”

“She used to own a flower shop on Main Street. Forget-Me-Not.” My smile faltered as I remembered driving down the strip and seeing the closed sign for the first time. The whole town seemed to mourn right along with her, but there was nothing to be done. Rent increases and a lack of business had put the final nail in the coffin, just as they had half the business on the same street. “That shop was Margaret’s whole life. She inherited it from her father and worked with her daughter until the very last day.”

“What happened to it?” Beckett asked.

I shrugged. “Same thing that happened to most of the businesses around here. People wearing suits came in, bought out leases, and raised rent to astronomical levels that no small business could feasibly manage. It’s the same old song and dance small towns everywhere are subjected to. No one's bought it yet, but it won’t be long now.”

Beckett pulled his bottom lip between his teeth. His fingers tapped against the worn wood in quick rhythmic succession before he shook his head and forced a smile. “Well, hopefully her knowledge still bears weight. If you don’t like them, blame her.”

“I’ll be sure to tell her how quickly you threw her under the bus.”

“Don’t do that. I don’t want her coming after me with that cane of hers.” He leaned forward, lowering his voice. “Did you see the thorns carved into the wood? One whack with that thing and I’d be a goner.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time she’s threatened to take someone out with that thing,” I confessed. “Even Duke caught her wrath when it came to the flowers for his and Liv’s wedding. Liv’s brother had to carefully extract the weapon from Margaret’s hand in this very room when she realized he hadn’t asked her to help.”

“That would’ve been a sight.” Beckett grinned. “Something tells me Duke doesn’t scare easily.”

“I don’t,” the man in question said. He came up behind Beckett and clapped him on the shoulder. Hard. “But that woman scares the shit out of me. Just like that one over there.”

I glanced over my shoulder, smiling as I realized he was pointing at Olivia. She had her hand planted on the back of a customer’s chair, head thrown back in laughter at something one of our regulars said.

Duke might have been a man of few words, but he used every single one of them to shower Liv and their girls with more love than most could ever dream of.

“Hello to you too, Duke,” Beckett muttered, wincing as my boss squeezed tightly before letting go.

He took the seat next to Beckett, gaze skipping between the two of us. “Is this going to become a regular thing? I can’t have you disrupting my staff during working hours.”

I struggled to keep my eyes from rolling back in my head. He had the best of intentions, but my overbearing boss was about to find out how disagreeable I could become if he started breathing down my neck. “Duke, it’s two in the afternoon. We’ve had a grand total of ten people come in, all of whom have been checked on by your very capable wife.”

“We could get a rush,” he grumbled.