AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Not wanting to deplete Candace’s beer supply for Pearce, I had made a run to the grocery store earlier in the day. I met Beau in the living room, with a hot bowl of popcorn and two cold beers. I handed one to him.
He laughed. “I see you got screw tops. Nice.”
I twisted the lid and tossed it on the coffee table. I wasn’t going to spend one second of this night looking like an idiot—twist cap lids were my first smooth move.
“Cheers.” I held up the beer and we clinked the bottles.
The realization hit me that I wasn’t sure what to do next. Nestle into the crook of his shoulder? Wait and let him make the first move? Sit close, but not too close? My mind raced with possible places to sit that would let him know I wanted to be near him, but only if he felt the same way. His leg was thrown up so that his ankle rested across his knee. There was a perfect spot for me to maneuver so that I was under his arm, but I couldn’t decide if it was too suggestive to slide against his body like that.
He turned the volume louder with the remote. “Hi, I’m your host, Mitch Henderson. On tonight’s episode of Love Match, Victoria has a heartbreaking decision to make.”
“Are you watching this with me?” Beau reached out with his left arm, hooked it around my waist, and pulled me so that I was pressed into his side. Crook of the shoulder it is.
Mitch Henderson continued, not knowing I had just cleared my first obstacle of the night. “One of the bachelors has been keeping a secret. It’s a shocking revelation that will bring our bachelorette to tears.”
“I don’t care what we decided to do with the project; I still think this show is ridiculous.” I looked at Beau as he drank his beer.
He laughed. “I won’t argue.”
I tried to relax into his arm as the episode began. It had never been this hard to concentrate on Love Match before. Victoria and her date were dressed in medieval costumes and were climbing the stairs of a castle in Scotland. The guy looked absurd in a velvet floppy hat. I wasn’t paying enough attention to know why they had on costumes. Beau had moved his hand to my leg and every few seconds his palm pressed into my thigh and ran smoothly toward my knee.
“Good. It’s a commercial.” He shifted my hair from the side of my neck and his lips began roaming the space closest to my shoulder.
I closed my eyes and leaned into his chest. My hands had exploring of their own to do. I grabbed the inside of his leg and worked my hand up until I elicited a full groan from his lips. Beau wasn’t a bad boy, but sneaking around like this felt a little dangerous and naughty—it was definitely a turn on. My mind heard the keys rattling in the door, but my body was elevated by the kisses Beau was firing down my neck.
“Dammit,” Nina muttered on the other side of the door. It sounded like her keys hit the porch.
Climbing out of the heat, I pushed against Beau, kicking one of the beers over in my panic. “Nina’s home. Shit.”
Nina opened the door with a surprised smile on her face. I was on the floor, scrambling for the beer bottle before more ended up under the couch.
“Hey, y’all. What’s up?”
“Uh. I’m such a klutz. Spilled my beer.” I smothered a giggle as I saw Beau reach for Ugly Quilt and throw it over his waist. I ran to the kitchen to grab a few paper towels.
I called back to Nina, “I thought you were out with Derek.”
“Ugh.” She sank into the recliner. “No. He said he wanted to write tonight. Alone. Can you believe that? We have one night off from the play and he wants to write. Wha
t are doing?”
Beau watched me as I sopped the sticky mess. “Love Match. Class project.” He pointed to the TV.
“Oh. Good. I hope I didn’t miss much. I totally forgot to record it tonight. What’s the big secret?” Nina eyed me.
I froze. Oh, God. She already knew. I was stupid to think I would be able to keep this from my best friend. She had probably seen something through the window.
Beau answered before I could form a clear sentence. “Don’t know yet. Victoria and one of the bachelors went to a castle to reenact one of the medieval love stories from the town. She hasn’t gone on the second date yet.”
That must be why they had on the costumes. How could he pay attention to the show while he was sending me over the edge?
“Cool. Can I have some popcorn?” Nina reached into the bowl that was resting, untouched on the table. “I’m Nina, by the way. We haven’t officially met.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Beau.”
Beau smiled at me. Hiding this relationship was going to be a lot harder than I thought and it was going to take a lot more than Ugly Quilt to do it.
Date Five: Hunted Love
