“But you don’t know who you want,” he finished for her. “And you need time to make a choice.”
“Yes.”
“You need to know me better, because we haven’t spent enough time together for you to be sure we’re a fit.”
“That would help.”
“Take your time. You see, I’ve been around the block enough to realize we’re something special. But you haven’t, and me rushing you isn’t going to help anything. I came here to help Hammer…but I want to be with you. I want to see you. Date you. Kiss you. Take you to bed and fucking never let you go. And we can do all that while you figure out how you feel about Beck. I only ask you to focus on me when we’re together. He doesn’t belong between us. Understood?”
Heavenly blew out a breath. Wow, she hadn’t expected such a huge concession.
Could she even date two men? Heck, she’d never dated one. Both of these men were so self-assured, interesting, and obviously experienced. She was probably in over her head. Was she crazy to try? Maybe, but how was she ever supposed to get experience if she never got brave enough to put herself out there? YOLO and all that… Besides, it was dating, having fun…fooling around. They were just asking her to choose a boyfriend. It shouldn’t be this dramatic.
“You’re okay with that?” she asked.
“I’ve had seven weeks to come to this conclusion. You’ve had fifteen minutes. So I want you to think about it and let me know if you want to see me again.”
“I don’t have to think about that. I’m so happy you’re back. Of course I want to see you. I want to know what could happen between us.”
He leaned in, kissed her nose, and stood. “Then I’m here for you. Call me when you’re ready for the next step and we’ll take it together.”
Two days later, Beck pulled off the paved highway and onto the gravel road, sliding another lingering glance at Heavenly as she sat in the passenger’s seat of his Mercedes and peered out the window at the looming San Gabriel Mountains. “I love getting out of the city and coming up here.”
“It’s beautiful.”
“Not as beautiful as you.”
She dipped her head, gaze falling to her lap, but that didn’t hide the sweet blush rushing up her cheeks. He grinned, loving that a few whispered words always got to her—and that he always had a hint how she felt.
She’d worn exactly what he’d asked her to—yoga pants, a soft, comfortable T-shirt, and athletic shoes. She always looked gorgeous, but seeing her in clothes that hugged her curves shredded his libido. The second he laid eyes on her, dirty fantasies started unraveling in his brain and continued to wreak havoc the entire forty-five-minute drive. But it was her compliance and attention to his detail that stroked his Dominant beast.
“You come here a lot?”
“As often as I can.” He reached for her hand and twined their fingers together. “But I’m enjoying this trip so much more because you’re with me.”
She peered at him from beneath her lashes. “Then I’m glad you invited me today. We haven’t spent any time together in a while. Seeing you away from the hospital is nice.”
“I’ve been looking forward to this day for a long time.” Hell, he would have brought her here a month ago. He’d planned to shortly after their outing to the gallery. Then life had gone to hell.
“Why’s that?”
Because today, he would finally find out how much she trusted him. Today, if all went well, they’d take a big step forward. “You’ll see.”
Just being near her brought a big smile to his face, but he wanted more. He wanted to slam on the brakes and pull her onto his lap, crush her mouth beneath his, and swallow every kitten-soft moan. He wanted to imprint his mouth on hers. He wanted to kiss her so senseless she forgot Seth Cooper existed.
He knew the shithead had come back for Hammer’s sake, but Beck worried Seth intended to stay. Damn it, he was on the cusp of making Heavenly his. He didn’t need the PI returning like a bad case of herpes.
“But I have to admit I’ve been looking forward to staring at your sexy ass while we hike up the mountain.”
She looked surprised for a moment, then sent him a flirty smile. “Have you?”
“Oh, yeah.”
“So you’re taking me hiking? That’s the surprise? I’ve never been.”
“I’ve got something even more fun planned. We’re just hiking until we get there.” And Beck would bet she’d never done what he had in store for her.
“What is it?”
Because he couldn’t stop himself, he leaned in and inhaled her scent. “I’m not telling. Patience, little girl.”
“I haven’t asked in ten whole minutes.”
“And that’s five minutes longer than the time before, but anticipation is still rolling off you. By the way, you’re flirting with me.”
She sent him a ball-churning glance from beneath her lashes. “Do you mind?”
“Not one bit.”
Had she flirted with Seth, too? Wondering drove him batshit crazy.
Gripping the wheel tighter, Beck tried not to dwell on the competition, but he knew Heavenly had seen the bastard yesterday. He’d pulled Raine aside this morning when everyone gathered to figure out how the hell to keep Hammer out of prison now that he’d been arrested…and gotten some scoop about Heavenly’s reunion with Seth. When the raven-haired vixen admitted she’d actually invited the East Coast cock-hole over to see Heavenly, he’d called her a Judas. Not surprisingly, she’d rolled her eyes and assured him that she was an equal-opportunity matchmaker. Sneaky little wench…
Beck still wasn’t sure if Heavenly had welcomed the silver-tongued bastard back into her life or told him to go pound sand. He had only one way to find out…
“So I guess Seth is back in town.”
She nodded. “We talked yesterday.”
“You were pretty upset when he left last December. Did you…”
