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Becca raised an eyebrow at her. She liked Piper maybe the most out of all of them, and the way she kept calling her Becs just made her like her more. That she called her by the same nickname her family did make it feel like she knew who she really was – that she understood her somehow.
Piper smiled. “I know how you feel. When I first met Cameron, he had the same kind of reputation as Jacob – he was something of a womanizer.”
Becca’s heart sank. She didn’t like to think of Jacob that way, but she couldn’t deny it was the truth.
Piper squeezed her arm. “I know. It sucks to hear it; it sucks to think about it. But what you have to hold onto is that he’s not like that with you. He’s different with you because he feels differently about you.”
Mary Ellen nodded. “It was the same with Antonio – he was probably the biggest womanizer of all of them. We get it, Becca. You just have to believe that with guys like them, when they fall, they fall hard. It’s like they change overnight when they meet the right woman. All that attention they used to give out to so many women gets focused on just one woman.” She chuckled. “It can be a bit overwhelming, but you’ll never doubt that he loves you and only you.”
Piper nodded. “That’s all true, but what you guys don’t get, not even you, Mary El, is how it feels to be on the outside – to feel as though you come from a different world. You guys grew up on the inside.” She nodded at Chelsea, Molly, and Hannah. “And even you, Mary El, you were a part of Antonio’s world and group of friends for years before you got together. But it’s different for Becca and me.”
Becca raised an eyebrow. She knew that Piper was a pilot; she flew the Hamilton-Groves company jet. And she knew that she’d met Cameron because her best friend, Laura, was married to Cameron and Chelsea’s older brother, Smoke. So, while she appreciated the attempt at showing her some solidarity, she didn’t think that Piper knew how out of place she felt amongst them.
Piper laughed. “I know you don’t believe me, but it’s true. You feellessersomehow because you’reonlya schoolteacher and you grew up in small-town Kansas on a farm. How do you think I felt? I was only an unemployed cargo pilot and if that sounds even the tiniest bit glamorous because it’s still a pilot, it means I used to fly forty-year-old planes full of packages from one dump of an airport to another, live in cheap motels, and eat in greasy spoon diners. And a small-town Kansas farm sounds like a fairy tale to the daughter of a single mom living in a trailer park in Texas.”
“Oh.”
Piper laughed. “Yeah, oh. Now, do you believe me that I know where you’re coming from?”
Becca nodded. “Yeah. I guess, you seem so … I don’t know, sophisticated and …” she shrugged, feeling embarrassed.
“I’m about as far from sophisticated as it gets. I just learned what I need to do to be by Cameron’s side for the things he needs me for.” Piper held Becca’s gaze for a long moment. “And more importantly than that, I stopped putting myself on the outside. I was my own worst enemy at first – feeling like I didn’t belong because I was somehow lesser, but I wasn’t, and I’m not, and neither are you. Molly could have put it better, but she’s right; a lot of women have tried to make Jacob Jacobs fall for them. But none of them succeeded. You didn’t even need to try. He fell for you because you’re you. So, just keep being you; you don’t need to be anything else.”
“Thanks.”
“Hear, hear.” Molly smiled at Becca. “Sorry if I put it wrong, but I meant the same thing that Piper just said. You’re awesome.”
“Aww, thank you.”
Piper slid her arm through Becca’s. “Come on. We can walk each other to our cars. Where are you parked?”
Piper squeezed her arm when they reached the Range Rover. “I meant what I said. Don’t go thinking that you’re lesser than anyone – in any way.”
“Thanks.”
“And don’t be a stranger. You’ve got my number. Call me anytime. We can get together when I’m not flying and you’re not teaching. But call me when you want someone to talk to, okay?”
“Thanks. I’d like that.”
“Okay. You get on home to Jacob, and I’ll head on home to Cameron.” Piper waggled her eyebrows. “I didn’t like to say it in there, but guys like ours lived the way they did because they have a lot of love to give – if you know what I mean.”
Becca had to laugh; she knew exactly what she meant.
Chapter Sixteen
Jacob smiled before he even opened his eyes. He liked Saturday mornings. They meant that he'd get a few hours to himself at the office. He liked the peace and quiet and being able to work without interruption.
He tightened his arm around Becca’s waist. At least that was what they used to be about. He liked them even more now. He’d enjoyed the last few Saturday mornings more than ever before. Instead of going into the office, he’d been staying at home with Becca – sleeping in, or at least, staying in bed late.
He lifted his head to look out at the vineyards; it looked like it was going to be a beautiful day, but the day could wait. He rested his head back on the pillow and nuzzled his lips into her neck. She was the most beautiful thing about the day – about all his days, now.
She turned over without opening her eyes and burrowed into his chest. “Is it morning?”
He chuckled and hugged her closer. “No. Not yet. You don’t need to wake up.”
He rubbed her back, letting his fingers trace up and down her spine, unable to resist cupping her neck when he reached the top and her ass when he reached the bottom.
She let out a little sigh. “I might notneedto wake up, but I have no choice when you do that.”
