Honor Unraveled (15 page)

“They are friggin’ medieval,” Eden commented, perched on the arm of Fiona’s chair. “It’s just noise. Let them play their little game. If he passes the gauntlet they’re gonna make him run,” she shrugged, “then you know he’s worthy.”

“The only thing tonight’s little bully session will prove, if he is still interested in seeing me again afterward, is that he’s either clueless or stubborn. Neither of which do I really want to know at this point.”

“Or that he isn’t easily intimidated—and that he’s willing to face some daunting obstacles for you. You want a guy who’ll fight for you.” Mandy smiled at her.
 

Ivy rolled her head back and shut her eyes as she heaved a sigh. “Tell me they aren’t going to actually fight.”

The doorbell rang. A nervous glance zinged from woman to woman. “I think we should crash their party,” Fiona said with a grin. “Why do they get to have all the fun?”

Eden stood up. “Someone needs to back up the good doctor.”

Ivy ran her hands down the cool folds of her cotton dress. The sleeveless bodice was fitted down to the waist, then the skirt flared out, hitting a little above her knees. It was a light and breezy flower pattern, a dress she’d bought in the spring but hadn’t worn yet. “Should I wear sandals or boots?”

“You’re going to Winchester’s?” Mandy asked. Ivy nodded.

“Definitely the boots,” Fee decided. “How’d you meet him, anyway?”

Ivy shrugged. “The diner. He’s a frequent customer. I think he’s been trying to screw up the courage to ask me out for a while.”

“How’s Kit taking it?” Mandy asked.

Ivy looked at Mandy. “Better than you might expect.”

“Do you still have feelings for Kit?” Fee asked. She looked as innocent as Ivy’s own daughter. She’d been touched by tragedy, but thanks to the guys, sheltered and protected too. Somehow, Ivy couldn’t buffalo her way through a lie to Fee.

Ivy sat down on the corner of the bed. “I do. It’s like we were never apart.” She looked Mandy. “How can that be with everything that’s happened?”

“I think the heart makes up its own rules,” Mandy told her.

“So why are you dating, then?” Fee persisted.

“Because I need the time that this month and seeing other guys will give me to know for sure that being with Kit’s is right.” She looked at Fee. “If you’ve only ever driven one car, you don’t know another car might fit you better.”

“That’s not what Kelan thinks. He believes in soulmates. He thinks you drop everything and join with your soulmate when you find each other.”

“Yes, but how do you know when the one you’ve found is your soulmate?”

Fiona shook her head. “I don’t know. I guess it just feels different.”

“And if the universe weren’t so cryptic, we’d never have to struggle. Or wonder if we were doing the right thing. And we’d never make mistakes that we could learn from.” Mandy reached over squeezed Ivy’s arm. “You guys will sort it out. I know you’ll make the right choice. I want to see you happy. Both of you. And I like Dr. Beck. Everyone in town does. So forget worrying and have fun tonight.”

Eden opened the door. “Right. We ready? I think we’ve left him at the mercy of the guys long enough.”

Fiona snatched up Ivy’s sweater and handed it to her. Wolf Creek Bend was at an elevation of seven-thousand feet. Even in the summer, the nights could be chilly. As they passed the kitchen, Eden dragged Fiona inside with her.
 

“What are you doing?” Fee asked.
 

“We can’t all go in together. It’ll look like we were in a huddle.”

“We were in a huddle,” Fee pointed out, waving to Ivy.

“We’ll meander in from the dining room. Act casual.”

Ivy squared her shoulders and drew a deep breath as she and Mandy stepped out of the hallway, into the living room. All the guys, except for Max, had gathered in the room, even Owen. Beck was standing with Ty and Greer. He had a couple of the guys laughing about something. Well, at least he wasn’t easily intimidated.

She smiled as he turned to greet her. He took her hand and kissed her cheek. She kept her gaze trained on his shoulder, refusing to let herself search the room for Kit. She didn’t need to. She knew exactly where he stood, his arms crossed, a boot braced against the wall.
 

“Wow. You look great,” Beck told her. “Sorry to make you wait so long. We had a broken arm come in just as I was supposed to get off shift. Hope you’re hungry still. I’m dying for a steak.” He drew his phone out of his sports coat. “See? The phone’s off. I’m not on call. The night’s yours.”
 

A stillness shivered through the room, emanating from Kit. Ivy quickly broke the strange silence. “Nice. Let’s not waste it, then. Ready?”

“You bet.” He gestured for her to walk out ahead of him. “Great to meet you guys. Good luck with your work,” he said to the room at large.

It was nearing 8 p.m. when they got to Winchester’s. Families were thinning out, leaving the place to the night crowd. Ivy enjoyed Beck’s easygoing manner. He laughed freely and had an endless variety of funny stories from his time in the medical field. She appreciated the fact that he didn’t depend on her to carry the conversation. She found herself comparing his cheerful approach to life to Kit’s somber, thorough distrust of it.

She wondered what sex with Beck would be like. He wasn’t built like Kit, nor was he as tall. But given that she was barely five foot three, that wasn’t a deal breaker. He had straight brown hair, and even white teeth. He was polite and engaging, and pulled her out of herself.

“Why is it that you’re still single, Beck?” Ivy asked after the waitress brought over a slice of chocolate torte and a couple of coffees to finish out their meal.

He smiled and looked at her. “Med school took a long time. And you have no personal life as a resident. Then whittling my two hundred Gs of student loans down didn’t leave me much time or value to offer a prospective wife.” He looked at her. “I guess I wasn’t ready to settle down until now. I still have a chunk of student loans to work on, but I like Wolf Creek Bend. I’m enjoying my practice here. There aren’t many single women here. That’s why I was excited to meet you. You’re gorgeous, a great mom, and you’re settling in here. The few ladies I’ve met want out of town as soon as possible. What about you? You ever have a serious relationship?” Several people walked into the room. Their number and size caught Ivy’s attention. It was Kit and the guys. Ivy gritted her teeth and sank a little lower in her seat. Beck followed her gaze. “Lately, I mean?”

Ivy looked at him, curious about the answer that popped into her mind.
Serious, like you wanted to die when it ended?
“I’ve been in a similar situation as you. Not med school, of course, but needing to get my legs under me. And because I have a daughter, I have to be pretty selective about who I date. A lot of guys don’t want to get bogged down with a pre-existing family. Besides, I wanted a strong financial foundation of my own before I took the leap into the dating pool. Took me almost eight years to get my degree.” She shrugged. “With Casey, work, and school, there wasn’t much ‘me’ time.”

“I know what you mean. It’s nice being at this end of that hard work.” He reached over and threaded his fingers with hers.
 

Ivy smiled at him, trying not to stiffen at the contact of his hand entwined with hers. She looked over to see if Kit had noticed them yet. And, of course, he had. He was sipping his beer and glaring at her.

Beck pulled his hand back. He took a bite of torte. “I have to ask, are things over with you and Kit?”

Ivy’s eyes widened. “How did you know that he…that we….”

“I did my homework.” Beck smiled at her. “I didn’t want to throw unwelcome attention at you if you weren’t available. Maven at the diner gave me the lowdown.”

“Until this summer, I hadn’t seen him since high school. We’re over.”

“Huh. ’Cause there’s this tight wire strung between you two. One of you’s pulling, the other’s retreating. I wasn’t sure which end you were holding.”

God, was it that visible? “He’s Casey’s dad.”

“I wondered. He supporting her?” As soon as he asked that question, he looked as if he wished he could pull it back. “Forget I asked that. It’s none of my business.”

It wasn’t, but she wanted to be honest with him. “He is. And very generously, too.”

“Good.” He took her fork and sliced a bit of the torte, then lifted it to her mouth. “Try this. It’s unbelievable with the coffee.”

There was no band in the house that night, but the digital jukebox was belting out tunes. When a slow song came on, he reached for her hand. “C’mon. Give me a dance. There’s nothing like a girl in a gorgeous dress on a hot summer night to give a man all kinds of fresh thoughts.”

She smiled as he led her to the dance floor. “You really are a nice guy, Beck.”

“I am.” He met her smile. “And if things with Kit don’t work out, you know where to find me. I’m not above picking up the pieces.”

Kit sat at the end of the table Val had reserved for them. The room was crowded, as usual. Val must have worked some magic to have a table waiting for them. Eden had come with Blade, and since she’d come, they’d relented and let Fiona join them—provided she was one of their DDs. Rocco and Owen had stayed at the house. Max was still with the WKBers. Thank fuck this wasn’t one of their nights in town.
 

Kit looked across the room, his eyes searching for and finding Ivy with her date. They were laughing. Holding hands.
 

“Val! You made it!” The shrill voice of a waitress brought his attention back to his team. The woman hurried over to their table. She set her tray down on the table and slid into Val’s lap to give him a hug.
 

“I told you I would.” He grinned at her as his hands moved to her bottom. “Thanks for saving the table. Hope you didn’t get in trouble.”

“It was no trouble. Hal’s easily bought, as bar owners go.”

“Nice. Can you get my friends and me some drinks? The little blonde’s one of our DDs—keep it non-alcoholic for her.”
 

The waitress leaned forward to whisper something to Val. He grinned. Their next words were lost in the noise of the room. Whatever Val said to the girl made her giggle. She hugged him and slid off his lap. Picking up her tray, she faced the rest of the table.

“Fiona! It’s great to see you! What have you been up to this summer? I usually run into you around town, but I haven’t lately. I guess you know these guys.”

“I live with them up at Ty’s place. I’m working for them this summer.”

The waitress’ jaw dropped. “Not fair. Maybe they have another room I could rent?” she asked, sending a pleading look toward Val.

Val grinned and looked down the table toward Kit, who promptly dashed the waitress’ dreams with a firm “Negative.”

“Oh. Well, no worries. This is a pretty good gig—at least when Val comes in.” She smiled at him. “How about I take your drink orders. I know what you want,” she said to Val.
 

“You think you do? Can you make it a double?”

“You know I can.” She sent a measuring glance over at Fiona, her eyes brightening. Kelan leaned forward, blocking her view of Fiona. He either cleared his throat or growled—Kit couldn’t be sure which, but his money was on the latter.
 

“Friend of yours?” Kelan asked Fiona after the girl left to fill their order.

“She was on my floor at the dorm last year. There’s a few of us in town who are attending Colorado State. She’s nice enough.”

“You’re not joining her for any doubles,” he warned.

Fiona frowned. “Doubles of what?”

Val laughed, pulling a black look from Kelan. He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “Doubles of anything.”

A few minutes later, the girl returned with their drink orders. They’d eaten at the house, but Kit ordered several appetizers to help counteract the liquor they’d be drinking. Someone set a slow song playing on the jukebox. Kit looked over at Ivy in time to see her link hands with Beck and follow him to the dance floor. She was smiling at him, that warm, gut-melting smile she only showed when she was really happy.

He dropped his gaze to his long neck and pretended indifference. Angel and Val went after some girls they could take to the floor. A whole table of females, dressed to the nines, was over on one side of the room. Blade took Eden out to dance. His leg was much improved. He was getting around without his cane. And the slow rhythm wasn’t a strain on him. Fiona dragged Kelan out to the floor. He looked reluctant as hell to put his hands on the girl. She had to drag his arms around her so they could dance. But his eyes—his eyes were all about her. None of the guys doubted that Fiona was Kelan’s, even if he hadn’t yet claimed her. Val still pushed his buttons. The man had no sense of self-preservation.

The waitress returned with their appetizers as the music switched from a slow dance to faster tempo. Kit sought out Ivy and was irritated to see that she was now partnered by a different man. She was smiling at the man—not the same smile she’d shared with Beck, but a warm overture just the same. He wondered whether she was truly enjoying herself or if she was merely being her innately kind self. Whatever. Her smile was her sharpest tool. It cut him coming and going, whether it was real or faked, for him or another man.