And I spend all night dreaming of teaching her all the things she wants to know.
But only here and only for me.
28
Bailey
Beau: Cade called me out early. You were out cold, so I didn’t wake you. But I didn’t want you to think I just ditched you either.
Bailey: You left me breakfast and a note on the kitchen island. Why would I think you ditched me?
Beau: Thought you might see this first when you checked your messages. Didn’t want you to think I’d do that to you.
Bailey: I just didn’t check. You’re the only person who messages me. Thank you.
“Where’s Beau this morning?” Summer looks up at me from behind the front desk of her athletic club. She’s fresh-faced, sporting a topknot with damp hair by her temples, and she’s wearing a branded Hamilton Athletics tank top stretched tight over her chest.
“He said Cade called, and he had to run out and help with something at the ranch.” I try to keep my voice bright, taking in the wide-open gym with high ceilings and perfectly polished mirrors.
Truthfully, I wasn’t sure what to make of the fact that he was gone when I woke up. Couldn’t tell if he really had work or was making an excuse. This all started out as a show, but the things that are happening behind closed doors make it feel like a hell of a lot more.
There’s something fractured about Beau. About his spirit. Like he’s torn between so many versions of himself and doesn’t know which one to pick.
I wish he knew it’s okay to be all of them with me.
He swaps from solemn and brooding to playful and flirtatious, to sensual and domineering, to introspective and sensitive. Frankly, it’s becoming difficult to keep up with which version he’s going to give me each day.
It’s becoming difficult to not want them all.
We’re intimate and he walks away like nothing happened. I’m unfamiliar with how to navigate relationships with men, and I’m realizing I picked a complicated one to get my feet wet.
“Okay, well, I’ll show you around and get you acquainted with everyone and the space.” She takes a swig of water and smiles at me. “When do you want to start?”
“Anytime. Literally any time. Today?” Am I coming off as desperate? Maybe, but I don’t care. I am desperate. “Monday?”
Her head tilts in question. “I thought you worked at the bar on weekdays?”
I shrug. “Yeah, I do.” But that makes no difference. I’m used to working hard. “I don’t mind, though.”
“You’re going to work both jobs on those days?” She seems slightly alarmed.
“I need the money,” I confess.
“You don’t have to explain yourself to me.” She twists the cap back onto the bottle. “I just … I figured Beau would give you a bit of a leg up.”
I keep my face blank.
“He’s done well as a single guy with next to no expenses. Invested well. He’s—”
I scoff and wave a hand. “Oh, totally. I just don’t want to rely on him, you know? I’ve been forced to be super independent my entire life, so it’s hard to escape that.” My explanation really isn’t much of a reach. I pride myself on how hard I work, on busting my ass to be different from the people who raised me.
“Well, why don’t we work your shifts around your current schedule so you can still have a couple of days off? Be with your man.” Summer winks at me, like we’re two girls who know what the other is up to.
I feel instant guilt. She’s been so kind to me, and I’m lying to her face and using her brother-in-law to get ahead.
My brain cycles back to where it did earlier, and I wonder again …
“Did Beau ask you to do this?”
Summer rears back. “Do what?”
I shift on the spot, suddenly nervous. Asking that was probably a bad idea, but I don’t back down. I asked, and I meant it. “Hire me.”
The other woman eyes me speculatively, and we stare at each other, but not for long. She catches me off guard when she laughs. “That’s funny, because Beau would absolutely do something like that. Those Eaton boys are a protective bunch, but no. If I started letting those meatheads make my business decisions, they’d take over the damn place. Beau hasn’t asked me to do anything for you, Bailey.”
My eyes skim over her face, and then I nod. “Okay.”
She mimics the motion and replies back with her own, “Okay.”
Then I spend the next couple of hours learning the ropes at Hamilton Athletics.