Fall Into Temptation (Blue Moon #2) (23 page)

Beckett rolled her over to examine her otherwise flawless skin. “That’s what we get for having car sex like teenagers,” his said, his fingers running over the small bruise.

“I hope we didn’t do any permanent damage to your hood,” she teased.

“I’m hoping we did. I’d smile every time I looked at the dent.”

Gia laughed and yawned. “Mmm, so worth it.”

“I’m just glad we didn’t get caught.” He placed a soft kiss on the bruise and another one on the curve of her hip. “So, listen …”

“Uh-oh,” Gia sighed. “This doesn’t sound like I’m going to like it.”

“Well, I was thinking since we told the families and we had our first official date we should probably go public in Blue Moon.” He toyed with a loose curl.

“And how does one do that?”

“I’ve got that covered. I just need you to look surprised and maybe a little giddy.”

“Surprised and giddy?”

Beckett nodded.

“I think I can handle that.”

“Great. I’ll take care of the rest. By noon everyone in town will know that we’re dating.”

* * *

B
y the time
her ten o’clock yoga class began most of Blue Moon already knew. Five minutes before class started, Gia took delivery of a huge bouquet of roses so velvety red they were almost purple. In front of her class of fifteen, she fished the card out of the blooms.

After her ten o’clock, Gia checked the Facebook group and sure enough, there were half a dozen pictures of the flowers from the store to the studio.

The captions ran the gamut from “It’s official,” to “About freaking time!”

As she scrolled the posts, a new one appeared.

She switched over to text messages and typed a quick message.

He responded a minute later.

To him, it was practical. To her, it was a path straight to her heart. Gia found it oddly easy to look giddy for the rest of the morning.

B
eckett hit
send in one window, print in another, and spun his chair around to neatly tuck a stack of papers inside a large envelope. He was an efficiency machine these days. By day, he was filing papers with the courts, structuring trusts, and smoothly sailing the tricky waters of pre-nups.

And in the evenings, he and Gianna eased into playing house. He’d taken to visiting Evan and Aurora on the nights when Gianna was at class. Last night, after a spirited game of laser tag in the yard, Evan had made him a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for dinner. Beckett reciprocated by sneaking them out for dessert at Karma Kustard.

He and Gianna still did some sneaking of their own. Off to bed whenever either of them had a free hour in the mornings or afternoons. He wished they could spend the night together — nothing beat waking up to Gianna Decker wrapped around him — but they had decided that for the sake of the kids, they’d table the sleepovers for now.

She still stunned him. Not just with her beauty, though that hadn’t ceased to affect him, but with the way she moved through life.

Grace, strength, and compassion were her hallmarks. She could never remember if she locked a door or recall where she put her phone, but Gianna could recite entire family trees of her students and always remembered to ask Evan about his friends and teachers.

Everything she did was garnished with an easy physical affection that baffled Beckett. She used her hands to guide her students deeper into poses and to express an unconditional, abiding care for her kids. And for him.

Beckett found himself getting out of bed with a smile every morning. It stayed fixed in place through Ellery’s smug questions about his new tenant. It even held fast — for the most part — when Carter and Jax started speculating how long it would take Franklin to propose to their mother.

Life was good.

He was debating texting Gia to see if she and the kids wanted to come over for grilled chicken that night, when Ellery appeared in his doorway.

“Mr. Pierce?”

With her inky black braids and full-skirted dress, she looked like a 1950s goth Barbie.

“Mr. Pierce?” he repeated.

“Yes, sir. You have a gentleman to see you.”

“I do?” He frowned, trying to recall an appointment on his calendar.

“Mr. Evan Decker,” Ellery said with a twinkle in her eyes.

“Evan to see me?” Understanding her game now, Beckett grinned. “Please show him in.”

Ellery gave a mock curtsy. “Of course. Mr. Decker? Mr. Pierce will see you now.”

Evan strolled into the office in what Beckett assumed was the kid’s version of meeting casual, chinos and a rumpled button down with a striped tie. His hands were shoved in his pockets.

“Come on in, Evan,” Beckett said, gesturing toward his visitors chairs.

“Can I get you something to drink, Mr. Decker?” Ellery offered.

“I’m fine, thanks,” he said. “Unless you have Coke?” He darted a glance at Beckett to see if he would argue.

“I think that can be arranged,” Ellery winked. “Anything for you, Mr. Pierce?”

Beckett hid his grin. “I’ll take a Coke, too.”

He waited until Ellery had shut the door behind her.

“So what brings you to the office, Evan?”

The boy leaned forward in his chair. “I’ve got a proposition for you.”

Beckett’s interest was piqued. “What kind of a proposition?”

Evan interlaced his fingers on the desk in front of him. “As you know, I go to Blue Moon Middle School. What you may not be aware of, is that the school doesn’t have a debate team.”

Beckett, pursed his lips. “I was not aware of that.”

“The high school has one, but that’s a few years away. Some fellow students and I thought it would be a good opportunity to start a middle school team so, by the time we get to high school, we already know the basics and can focus more on competition and fine tuning our tactics.”

Ellery returned with heavy tumblers of ice and soda.

“Thank you, Ellery,” Evan said politely.

She grinned, a dark burgundy lipstick smile. “You’re quite welcome.” She left them again and closed the doors, wiggling her eyebrows at Beckett.

“So, you want to start a middle school debate team,” Beckett recapped.

Evan nodded. “Yeah.”

“And there’s something standing in your way?”

“Just one small obstacle. We need an advisor.”

“And your teachers …”

“Already have their activities. And if we don’t find an outside advisor now, we’ll have to wait until the next school year.”

“I see.”

“So, I thought, given your background on the high school debate team and your current prof —”

“How do you know I was on the debate team?” Beckett asked.

“Carter let me look through his old year books. You were president of the Debate Club.”

He’d also been team captain of the cross-country team, but of course Carter wouldn’t have pointed that out to the kid.

“So you’re looking for an advisor.”

“It would only be an hour of your time a week, after school.” Evan leaned in. “You could give us pointers and help us get ready for some events in the spring.”

“And you want me because everyone else said no?”

Evan shook his head earnestly. “You’re the only one we’ve asked. We want the best.”

How the hell was he supposed to say no to that?
Beckett wondered.

He pinched the bridge of his nose. “An hour a week?”

Evan nodded. “On Wednesdays. I checked with the library and they have meeting space we can use.”

“How many of you are there?”

“Seven. Eight if you count Oceana, but she’s at some wool-spinning workshop for two weeks after Thanksgiving.”

He slid a piece of paper across the desk. “These are the competitions we want to enter in the spring so we need to be good by then.”

Beckett picked it up and studied the list. “Okay.”

“Okay you’ll do it, or okay you’ll think about it?”

“Okay, I’ll do it,” Beckett clarified.

“Cool,” Evan nodded as if he’d expected the yes. “Meetings start the week after Thanksgiving at the library.” He stood up and extended his hand to Beckett.

Beckett rose and shook the boy’s hand.

“You won’t regret it,” Evan said confidently.

“We’ll see about that.”

“Thanks, Beckett. See ya around,” Evan said, draining his glass before he left.

Beckett sat in his chair feeling slightly manipulated and not the least bit upset about it. He saw Evan close the sunroom door behind him on the porch and break into a victory dance.

Nope, Beckett wasn’t the least bit upset about it.

He called Ellery’s desk. “Can you set a reminder for me to call the middle school principal about this debate team thing?”

“Already on your calendar.”

* * *

B
eckett answered
the evening knock on his front door with a beer in one hand and his phone in the other. Gianna had regretfully turned him down for dinner tonight in favor of getting some magazine work done for Summer. So he’d settled for a sexy text exchange while he caught part of the basketball game on TV.

His brothers ranged themselves in the doorway.

“Haven’t seen you in a while,” Carter said, pushing past him into the house.

Jax followed suit, slugging Beckett in the shoulder on his way through the door.

“Got any more of those?” Carter asked over his shoulder, pointing at the beer.

“Fridge.” He followed his brothers down the hall to the kitchen. It had been a while since he’d seen them.

“Don’t get your beard hair on any of my food,” he warned Carter as his brother started to dig through his fridge.

Carter pulled out two beers and handed one to Jax. He stroked a hand through his thick beard. “Sounds like jealousy to me, Jax.”

Familiar with the game, Jax grinned. “Sounds like it. I bet Beckett couldn’t grow more than a sad, scraggly patch or two in a week.”

“What brings you esteemed gentlemen to my kitchen, besides insulting my face?” Beckett asked, letting his gaze skim between them and through the back window. Lights were on all over Gianna’s house.

“He’s got it bad,” Jax sighed, sliding to the left to block Beckett’s view of the window.

“Who’s got what bad?” Beckett asked, playing it cool.

Carter pulled out his phone, skimmed a thumb over the screen.

“Becket Pierce sends flowers, buys car seat, seen smiling in grocery produce aisle,” he read.

“I like grapefruit. They were on special.”

Jax snorted.

“You two didn’t come all the way over here to talk about me and Gianna, did you?”

Carter and Jax shared a look.

“What?”

“Summer kicked us out of the house,” Jax said, rubbing the back of his head. “Something about not being able to concentrate with so much testosterone in the house.”

“What exactly were you doing that earned you an exile?”

Carter shrugged. “We may have been just fooling around wrestling.”

“She got pretty pissed when we kicked over that lamp,” Jax said, taking a sip of beer.

“Was it the lamp or the table she was mad about?” Carter frowned.

Jax shrugged. “All I know is one second we’re just goofing off and the next she’s throwing car keys at us and telling us to get out.”

“Is this pregnancy hormones or bridezilla issues?” Beckett said, pretending that Summer wasn’t perfectly within her rights to evict two overgrown teenagers.

“Man, I think the hormones are double with twins,” Carter sighed.

“Or it could be the fact that you’re smothering the shit out of her,” Jax said affably. “‘Can I get you a pillow, sweetheart? How about you sit down and take a break? Why don’t you let me chew your food for you?’” Jax said in a spot-on, lovesick Carter imitation.

Carter cuffed his brother upside the head, which resulted in another scuffle.

Beckett pulled them both apart by the backs of their shirts. “If you break anything in here I’ll do worse than kick you out,” he said mildly.

Carter straightened his shirt and grinned. “We figured we’d give her some time to cool off, swing by and make fun of you, and maybe hit up Shorty’s for a round and some wings.”

“And if we bring Summer cheese sticks, she’ll forget she was pissed,” Jax added.

“Good call,” Beckett nodded. “I’m in. Let me get my wallet.”

“Just so you two know, this doesn’t count as a bachelor party,” Carter warned.

* * *

B
eckett rapped
on Gianna’s front door, a greasy paper bag wafting the aroma of deep fried onions into the night air. A low key evening with his brothers and getting to drive Jax’s souped up Chevy Nova back from the bar had put him in an even better mood.

Imagining Gianna’s thank you for the snack could potentially make the grin on his face permanent.

Expecting to see her beautiful face or one of the kids grinning up at him, he was surprised when a thin man wearing boot cut jeans and a tight, black button down answered the door.

“Can I help you?”

“Gianna here?” Beckett asked, his eyes narrowing.

“Sure,” he leaned back. “G, babe. Someone here to see you.”

Gianna, her cheeks flushed hurried down the stairs. “Beckett.”

She stopped just inside the door. “Beckett this is Paul, the kids’ dad. Paul this is Beckett, my …”

“Landlord,” Beckett finished for her. He took the hand that Paul offered.

“Cool,” Paul said.

Beckett’s eyes tracked to the bags and suitcases just inside the door and felt the blood in his veins go icy.

“You just get into town?” he asked.

Paul nodded. “Yeah, I was missing the fam,” he said, and tossed an arm around Gianna’s shoulder and pressed a kiss to her temple. “This is a great place you got here, I hope you don’t mind one more in it.”

Gianna’s wide eyes never left his face.

“Daddy!” Aurora’s little voice piped up from the stairs. “Come color with me!” She spotted Beckett and hurled herself down the stairs and jumped into Beckett’s arms. “Bucket! Wanna color with me and Daddy?”

Beckett held on a minute longer than necessary before setting the little girl back on her feet. “Sorry, shortcake. I’ve got to go do big people stuff.”