“And you remembered that despite everything else that happened?”
“I filed it away.”
“Because you’re like a shark.” He lightly tapped the side of my head. “You never stop.”
“I’m the shark in Jaws.”
He smirked. “So, what’s the deal with Beau Burton? Who is he?”
“A scam artist. He owned a car dealership for a time ... and, like, ten other businesses. He always sold them when they got into financial trouble, leaving the mess for somebody else to clean up. He also started romancing older women in the country club set ... multiples at the same time.”
“You mean he was a grifter.”
“Pretty much. He dated them until they lost interest in giving him money. A few times he secured significant loans from these women — nothing with a contract of course — and then broke up with them and cut off contact. When called on the carpet about his behavior, he denied getting the loans and painted the women as desperate and lonely.”
“Sounds like a peach of a guy.” Eliot propped himself on an elbow. “Do you think he was one of the guys in the Santa suits?”
“Jake didn’t come right out and say that, but it sounds feasible.”
“What happened to this Beau guy regarding the women? If there’s a news story, I’m guessing he went to jail.”
I shook my head. “He was charged and brought to trial, but the jury let him off. The prosecutor was going to go after him a second time, with a different set of charges, but it never came to fruition. That was at least a year ago, maybe longer. I’d forgotten about it.”
“So how did he end up in a Santa suit by the train tracks?”
“That’s a very good question.”
He was silent a moment, and then he snagged the tablet from me. “It’s a question you can start your quest to answer tomorrow.”
“Hey!” I protested. “I was reading that.”
“You can read more tomorrow.” He slipped his arms under my legs and grunted as he stood, rolling my body against his chest. “It’s bedtime.”
“Maybe I’m not ready for bed.”
“I’ll make it worth your while.” He trudged toward the bedroom. “Just think, once you say yes to my proposal, this will be a regular occurrence.”
I made a face. “I get sex all the time and we’re not married. That’s not much of a selling point.”
He laughed. “I meant carrying you to bed. If you’re a good girl, play your cards right, I might be convinced to do this every night for the rest of our lives.”
“I am capable of walking.”
“You’re also a lot of work.” He paused in the doorway that led to our bedroom. “Did I mention I’m going to put up mistletoe from one end of the house to the other tomorrow? Wherever you are, you’ll have to stop and kiss me.”
“I don’t believe that’s a law or anything.”
“It’s the mistletoe rule. You can’t break the mistletoe rule.”
“I’m Avery Shaw. I break all the rules.”
His grin widened. “That’s why I love you.”
He was so earnest all I could do was acquiesce. “Fine. Romance me. I’m chasing those dead Santas hard tomorrow, though.”
“I expect nothing less.”
6 Six
Eliot was watching me when I opened my eyes the next morning. Instinctively, I wiped at my face and tried to wrap my head around a new day.
“Drool?”
He smirked. “Maybe a little. It’s okay. I like being drooled on.”
“Then you must love spending time with me.”
“More than anything.”
His response was so earnest it tugged a sigh out of me. “You’re going to wear me down, aren’t you?”
His grin was lightning quick, mischievous. “That’s not the plan. I want you to want this, not accept it.”
He had a full day’s worth of beard that needed shaving, even though he was more handsome than usual. The fact that he was being so open and honest with his feelings these days should’ve been welcome.
Instead I felt antsy.
“Eliot ....”
“Shh.” He admonished me with a kiss before I could start complaining. “It’s how I feel. I won’t apologize for it.”
“I didn’t say I wanted you to apologize. It’s just ... what if I’m bad at it?” I finally put a name to the fear that plagued me most. What if, after a year of marriage, Eliot decided he’d made a mistake?
“Bad at what?”
“This.” I used a big hand gesture to indicate the two of us. “What if I’m bad at being married?”
He snickered. “Are you planning on suddenly becoming a different person?”
“No.”
“Then why would you be bad at marriage?”
“Because ... I’m Avery Shaw.”
“I know who you are.” He tickled my ribs, causing me to squirm. “I fell in love with Avery Shaw. She’s my favorite person in the world.”
“But ....”
He waited, and when my silence continued, he sighed. “Avery, I told you last night — and a hundred other times — that marriage won’t change our lives. I need it. I want a promise from you, and I want to make a promise in return. I’m not asking you to be anything other than who you are.”
“What if you change your mind?”
“I won’t. You’re all I want.”
That was a sweet sentiment, but I wasn’t sure it would stick. “What if, a year from now, you decide that you don’t like it when I dig into a case and find trouble?”
His grin widened. “I already don’t like it when you find trouble. But that’s who you are. I took on the whole package when I decided I couldn’t live without you.”
I licked my lips, determined to proceed. “Yeah, but what if you’re only able to swallow it now because we’re still building to something. It’s possible, after the wedding, that you won’t want to work for it anymore.”
He feigned patience — or maybe he really was that patient, which would be just like him — as he brushed my hair from my face.
