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He smiled again. “Precisely.” Beau rubbed the stubble on his chin. “Did you happen to see the way the bloke she was with glared at me?”
“I didn’t.”
“I wanted to tell him I was certainly no threat.”
“It’s odd she was here, though, wasn’t it?”
Beau shook his head. “She loves Vegas.”
“Does she always stay here? I mean, if she is staying here.”
“If you’re asking about this hotel, yes. Her father is also an owner, as is mine.”
I don’t know why that bothered me, but it did. It was another connection the two had. Whichwouldbother me if I was interested in him romantically, and Iwasn’t.
“Here you go,” said the bartender from behind us. I spun around, suddenly so hungry I couldn’t wait another minute. When I took a bite, I groaned. I picked up the napkin and covered my mouth. “This is the best burger I’ve ever had.”
“I told you to trust me.”
We were both quiet, focusing our attention on our food. When Beau finished his, he ordered a second. “Fancy another?” he asked.
“I’m full, but thanks.” I should probably leave well enough alone, but I had to ask. “You and Daphne have broken up and gotten back together in the past. What’s different this time?”
Beau’s eyes bored into mine. “Everything.”
8
BEAU
Iloved Daphne. However, I was not in love with her. I doubted I had ever been. It was a conversation I’d had with my mum that made me realize our so-called relationship wasn’t healthy for either of us.
“The two of you use each other to avoid forming attachments with other people. One day, you’ll wake up and realize you want love in your life. And while I adore Daph and she’s like a daughter to me, a long-term relationship wouldn’t work between you. If it was meant to be, it would’ve happened by now. Let each other go, Beau.” The conversation had taken place in early November of last year. God knew the last I expected was for my mum to be gone two months later.
She had been my touchstone. If only I could ring her now and get her advice about Sam. Would she say the same thing, that we were friends and if we were meant to be more, it would’ve happened by now? Worse, would she accuse me of using her like she had with Daph?
“What are you thinking about?” Sam asked, resting her hand on my arm.
I rolled my shoulders. “My mum.”
“I know it’s hard. I miss mine too. I can’t help but wish she was still alive so I could ask if she knew anything about Cena Covert or how the woman knew me.”
I chuckled, but not because I found anything amusing about the conversation. “I find myself wondering if I made a single decision—at least a good one—without her input.”
“That wasn’t the case for my mom and me. Most of the time, I felt more like the parent than the child.”
“I recall.”
“Were you talking about your mom when you said everything was different?”
I nodded, but it wasn’t what I’d meant at all. Sam was the everything I was talking about. I had to sort out my feelings for her. More than anything, Ineededher. Was it just the loss of my mother, or was there more to it? Again, if only she was still around for me to ask. But then, if she was, Sam and I wouldn’t be sitting in a bar, eating burgers, drinking beer, and watching a drag show. Or would we?
Would she still have called and asked for my help when she received the couriered package? I had no reason to think she wouldn’t have. As often as she reminded me Addison was her best friend, not me, she wouldn’t have turned to her for help with something like this. Would I have responded the way I was now? Maybe, and that was the issue. Was what I was doing for Samantha altruistic or self-serving? There wasn’t anyone I could ask, given one I would have was dead and the other was the woman in question.
Sam covered her mouth and yawned at the same time my second burger arrived. I practically inhaled it, not because I was still as hungry as I had been when we arrived at Mary’s, but because I knew how tired she was. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if she fell asleep on the cab ride back to the hotel. I signaled the barmaid for the check after Sam refused when I asked if she wanted another beer.
As I predicted,Sam was out within minutes of our departure from the bar. She woke on her own when we pulled into the hotel’s valet area.
“Sorry,” she muttered with hooded eyes.
