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My good mood is entirely thanks to the weekend I just spent with Sierra. There has definitely been a breakthrough in our relationship and for the first time, since she moved in two weeks ago, I’m not worried how she’ll react the next time I run into her. I know things between us are… okay.
She won’t be avoiding me anymore. Conversations won’t be awkward. Sierra and I are cool. This is so much better.
After I picked her up yesterday, I took her to a sushi restaurant for lunch. We sipped on green tea and talked about our jobs over a shared meal of spicy tuna rolls, agedashi tofu, and tempura. As we sat together, I could feel Sierra slowly letting go of thethingshe had been holding against me. It was a relief.
I sat across from her at the small table, mesmerized by her sparkling brown and gold eyes as she told me about her friends in Virginia Beach, the time she broke her leg jumping on a trampoline and all of the Sundays Millie dragged her and Jake to church.
I wanted to kiss her the entire time.
Being around Sierra is like a hit of the best kind of drug; you’re always left wanting more. She’s like sunshine: warm, bright, and good for the soul.
Smiling, I walk past reception and down the hallway back to my office. I stop at Beck’s open door and find him sitting at his desk with his laptop open.
“Hey, Beck. How was your weekend?”
He waves me in, picking up his own coffee mug, taking a sip. “Great. Took Maya to the beach. You should have seen her in the water. Her smile was a big as a slice of watermelon. She’s so damn cute,” he gushes over his 1-year-old daughter. “How was yours?”
The best weekend I’ve had in two years.
“Good. Pretty chill,” I say instead. “Hung around the house.”
He cocks a brow. “You did, did you?” he says with anI’m-not-buying-ittone in his voice. “Did you happen to run into your neighbor?”
I stare back at him.
What does he know?
Fuck, I’m in trouble.
Tucker is full of shit about a lot of things, but he’s right when he says I am a terrible liar. There’s no way I can lie to Beckett.
He sets his mug down on his desk and leans back in his chair with his arms crossed over his chest. I get the feeling he’s not done asking questions.
Beck and I have worked together at The Liberty for the better part of four years. He’d mentored me in the beginning, showing me the ropes, offering me advice and guidance. We eventually became friends, hanging out outside of work, and when he became president, our relationship didn’t change.
“Sierra? Yeah, I saw her around.”
“You more than saw her around.” Beckett cocks a brow with a look that says he’s caught me red-handed. “Bean saw you walking out of Sushi Box with her yesterday. She asked if you guys are dating. What’s up with the two of you?”
Fuck. One of the joys of living in a small town is that everyone knows your business. How did I not see Beck’s sister, Bean?
Not that it matters. Sierra and I weren’t sneaking around, and there is nothing going on between us that we need to hide.
I scrub my hand over my jaw, stepping further into Beck’s office. “We went for lunch. I was trying to be neighborly.”
Becks smiles, pivoting in his chair like he knows there’s more to my story. “You were trying to be neighborly, my ass. You have a thing for her. Admit it, Gray. I saw the way you were staring at her at the ballpark. I’m sure everyone there saw it. Your eyes were glued to her the entire night.”
“It’s not like that. We’re… friends.”
Beckett eyes me for a second. “Have you told Jake about yourfriendshipwith his sister?”
I shrug the question off like it isn’t a big deal. “No.”
“I suggest you don’t, unless you really enjoy pissing him off.”
“I just told you, Beck. We’re friends. That’s all. He can’t be mad at that.”
“Oh, hecanbe, and hewillbe,” he says, picking up a pen from his desk, twirling it in his fingers. “Look, Gray, Sierra is a nice girl.”
