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“Go right ahead,” I said, wondering how the subject could possibly connect to me.
“My company recently acquired a new building here in the city. A retail-slash-office space, pretty flexible in the exact use. We’ll be bringing in some shops and that sort of thing, but I’d like to include an aspect that’ll give back to the community as well. I was thinking maybe a pro bono medical clinic if I can get that working. Your expertise might be useful in figuring out how to approach the project.”
A flutter passed through my chest, both at the thought of his generosity and the possibility that I could help bring it to life. “That would be amazing. There’ve got to be so many people who could use that.”
Beckett nodded eagerly. “What demographics do you think we’d want to focus on targeting? I’d like to make sure we have staff who’ll cater to their needs as well as possible.”
A little anxiety tangled with my excitement. “I hope I’m not the only person you’re consulting. I’m not an expert.”
He nudged me lightly with his elbow. “You’re on your way to becoming one. And I know that you’ll answer totally based on what’s good for the community, not your own self interests. Don’t worry—I won’t leap without doing more research. Your feedback is just a starting point.”
Well, in that case… A thrill passed through me at the thought of all the people who’d benefit from the kind of endeavor he was proposing.
“I don’t know the city that well yet,” I said. “But in general, you’d want to target low-income neighborhoods. And the elderly—they can end up in a bad spot once they’ve retired, especially if they had pre-existing conditions. But if you’re looking to get sponsorships to help fund the clinic, focusing on how it’ll help children in need is a great angle too. They’re often overlooked if their parents are afraid of the medical expenses, since they can’t advocate for themselves.”
“That gives me a few different avenues to focus on,” Beckett said. “Perfect. This is exactly why I wanted to get your opinion. It definitely sounds like it’d be a worthwhile project with a lot of people who could benefit from it.”
“Yes, absolutely.” As I polished off the last of my ice cream, I looked at him with affection swelling in my chest. He really was a great guy, not just to me but with good intentions in general. How many businessmen would go out of their way to set up something that would spend their money rather than earning more, just because it’d help people?
A jab of guilt cut through my admiration. He was sharing his plans so freely, asking me for my input, and I hadn’t told him about such a huge factor in my life. Hell, I hadn’t even told Summer when she’d been right in front of me begging for answers. If Beckett had any idea what kind of secret I was keeping from him, I suspected he’d be just as upset.
But keeping my mouth shut protected him and Summer way more than it did me. I couldn’t let my guilty conscience convince me that it was better to confess than to keep them out of the line of fire.
A gust of wind swept over me, more intense than before. It seemed to cut right through my jacket. I tugged it tighter around me, but my teeth momentarily chattered anyway.
As we walked on, the breeze settled for a minute and then picked up again. When it blasted me with a frigid smack, tossing my hair and seeming to sink right into my skin, I couldn’t hold back a shudder.
Beckett tugged me to him. “It’s getting colder. Are you all right? You look chilled.”
“I’ll be okay,” I said, but the wind kept whipping around us, washing the chill deeper into my limbs. I tucked myself closer to Beckett instinctively.
He slipped his arm around my shoulders. “Let’s get back to the car. I didn’t expect the weather to take this sharp a turn.”
I stuffed my increasingly icy hands into my pockets and let myself absorb as much heat from his body as I could as we hustled back to the parking lot. The bottom of Beckett’s suit jacket flapped with the rising wind, but it appeared to be thick enough that the cold wasn’t bothering him as much as it was me.
I managed a giggle. “This might win the world record for shortest stroll around a park.”
“Hey, at least we got some delicious ice cream in before everything else cooled off.” Beckett gave my shoulder a comforting squeeze.
When we made it to the lot, the other cars had gone. The wind and the chill had cleared out anyone who’d thought it might be a nice day for a walk. As Beckett ushered me over to the car, shivers started to wrack my body.
To my surprise, he guided me to the back seat. When I got in, he slid in after me. He hit a button on his key fob to start the motor running and send heat wafting from the vents, and then pulled me right to him. He lifted my legs over his lap and wrapped both of his arms around me in a tight embrace.
“I can get you warm faster this way,” he murmured with a tickle of breath against the side of my face.
Oh, I was getting warmed up all right, and from the inside as well as the outside. Especially as his hands stroked up and down over my arm, my side, and my back. The numbing parts of my body thawed, and a tingle of anticipation spread through every inch of me, remembering what had happened the last time I’d been anywhere near this close to the man holding me.
Apparently our position had stirred up similar thoughts in Beckett. He raised one hand to my cheek and traced his thumb along my cheekbone, his gaze seeking out mine. This close, the mix of fondness and desire in his eyes made my heart skip a beat.
“We haven’t talked about what happened the last time we were together,” he said quietly. “Before you got that awful phone call.”
“We haven’t,” I agreed, wetting my lips. “But the other stuff definitely wasn’t awful.”
His mouth curved into a pleased smile. “You’re not having any second thoughts about the whole multiple boyfriend thing, then?”
I couldn’t help smirking back at him. “My second and third and all additional thoughts on the subject have been that it’s an incredibly good deal for me.” My attention dropped to his mouth with its assured smile, and a surge of confidence raced through me. “Also, I’d really like to finish what we started before that, when we were on our own the other night.”
From the arch of Beckett’s eyebrows, I could tell he knew I was talking about when we’d made out under the statue outside the science exhibition. “What exactly would that be?”
