Didn’t look or feel like you needed my help before, Evan thought as he spun around, his eyes searching for the offending sight. He was relieved to see that Drew had found some clothing and had a polo shirt pulled over his chest. Even if said polo shirt was stretched taut across the other man’s thick pecs. A quick glance at Becca confirmed she didn’t share his relief at Drew’s newly-clothed status. In fact, she looked downright disappointed.
“I’m sorry, Becca, I didn’t realize you’d brought a date.”
Evan found himself staring at Drew. Even his teeth are perfect.
“He’s not a date. He’s just a friend. We met on a photography forum.” She looked at Evan, who swayed a little while he met Drew’s perfect version of hazel irises—more blue and warm than his own muddy-brown color. “In fact, he’s gay.”
“What?” Evan’s head just about snapped off his shoulder as he spun it to glare at Becca. “Who said that?”
Becca offered a grin which said she was having way too much fun with her lie. No doubt it was payback for his drinking. The worst thing was, he couldn’t even call her on it without embarrassing her in front of Drew and despite everything, he didn’t want to do that. He’d have to play along.
“Oh, sweetie,” Becca purred. “No one had to tell me. It was obvious.”
Drew’s eyes turned to Evan and for a moment, Evan thought he felt a spike of some new emotion, but it passed quickly. It was too fleeting for Evan to get a good hold on what it might have been—especially with Becca’s emotions so close and . . . overwhelming.
“Well, each to their own.” Drew shrugged. “Are you both having a good time today?”
He turned to Becca as he asked the question, giving Evan the distinct impression that although he referred to them both, he was far more interested in her response.
“It’s been great,” Becca said, moving closer to Drew and placing one hand on his chest. “Especially seeing you here.”
Oh boy, Evan thought as he rolled his eyes.
“I know exactly what you mean.” Drew clutched Becca’s hand, pressing it tighter against his chest for a moment before lifting it to his lips. “I didn’t expect to see you here either, but I was pleasantly surprised.”
Becca giggled like a school-girl and Evan resisted the urge to roll his eyes again. As the emotions in the air swirled around and drowned the effects of the alcohol in his system, he found himself unpleasantly surprised by the strength of the desire in both Becca and Drew and his own negative reaction to it.
I should be happy for her, Evan thought to himself. He seems like a decent enough guy. Under any other circumstance, I would consider this an unqualified success.
So why do I feel like vomiting?
“You don’t mind if I steal Becca away for a while do you?” Drew asked.
How was Evan supposed to answer that? He did mind, he minded so much that it was a physical ache. But he shouldn’t have minded. Drew and Becca had the sort of fledgling relationship that most of his assignments would have given almost anything for. He should have been encouraging it and then moving on to the next name on his list until the next pivotal moment in Becca’s life. No new names offered themselves to him though, neither could he feel any strong attachment to his previous assignments, which meant he was stuck watching Becca and Drew despite how terrible that felt.
“Of course he doesn’t,” Becca answered for him, before turning and flashing Evan a smile that was the equivalent of a thumbs-up.
He forced his face into an expression that could almost pass for friendly and nodded.
Drew linked his arm around Becca and the two of them went off to find some private corner. Evan fought the disgust that rose in his stomach at the sight of them.
“So you’ve got it bad for her, huh?”
Evan hadn’t even heard Becca’s friend, Cathy, approach, so her voice startled him.
“What? No, I told you before, we’re just friends.”
“Sure, ‘cause friends always look like someone just kicked their puppy when one leaves on someone else’s arm.”
“I don’t look like that.” He wished there was a mirror or some sort of reflective surface nearby. He pressed his fingers to his cheeks to see whether he could feel what his expression might look like. “Do I?”
Cathy laughed. “It’s a shame. I think you could be good for her.”
The statement made Evan feel instantly better. It shouldn’t have, but it did.
“See, that smile right there is what makes me convinced that I’m right. I know about these things. It’s what makes me such a great matchmaker.”
The word “matchmaker” was a bucket of ice-water tossed over his growing smile. He was there to matchmake and, intentional or not, that was what he’d done. “Seriously, Becca and I are just friends.”
“You know they’re just old friends catching up, don’t you?”
He wanted to laugh. For a self-proclaimed matchmaker she was a little blind to budding romance when it was right in front of her.
“I think it’s a little more than that.” He nodded over toward the house where Becca and Drew were edging closer to each other.
“Yeah, maybe,” Cathy relented.
Drew’s fingers trailed along the outside of Becca’s leg and it was more than Evan could stand to watch. “You know, I think I might be heading off now.”
“No, you have to stay. I’m sure there are some eligible women I could introduce you to, someone to take away the sting of a broken heart.”
You’re about fifty years too late, he thought. “It’s okay,” he said. “I’m really happy for her; I just need to be getting back. My photos aren’t going to develop themselves,” he said, hoping he sounded like he knew what he was talking about.
“Didn’t you come with Becca?”
“Yeah, but I’m not too far from here,” he lied. “That way Becca will be free to leave when she’s ready without having to worry about dropping me home.”
“Okay, well it was nice meeting you . . . Evan, wasn’t it?”
He mumbled out a nice meeting you too before sneaking out the side gate of the party. As soon as he was certain he was alone and no one was watching, he focused on his last bride, on Karen-of-the-lavish-ceremony, and tried to travel the distance back to her side. Instead, he found himself in Becca’s basement darkroom.
He wasn’t sure why his ability to teleport was broken, but figured it was something to do with the knots in his stomach at the thought of Becca spending time alone with Drew.
You need to get a hold of yourself, he chastised. You’re acting like a love-sick teenager.
CHAPTER TEN
Becca decided that she liked the feeling of having Drew’s hands on her. No, she loved the feeling. As they had their hushed conversation that covered the gambit of their lives—everything from the mutual friends they’d had in middle school through to what had set them on their career paths—Drew’s hands had begun to wander. Nothing inappropriate—much to Becca’s frustration—but his fingers brushed her skin in frequent, innocent caresses. Each one caused Becca’s desire to ramp up to new levels. She knew if nothing else, her dreams would be filled with illicit images once more.
Despite that, she noticed when Evan left. It was as if her body was screaming for Drew—loudly and almost inappropriately—while her heart called for Evan. She wondered where he’d gone to and started to stress that maybe he’d moved on to his next assignment.
Surely he wouldn’t just leave without saying goodbye?
“Becca?”
She turned to stare at Drew’s lips. He’d asked her something, but for the life of her she couldn’t remember what. “Sorry?”
“I was asking whether you wanted to meet for dinner after my first shift at the hospital tomorrow night.”
“Like a date?” Becca’s libido soared.
“Well, no—”
And plummeted back to the ground.
“Not like a date. An actual date.”
Before so
aring to new heights again.
She ducked her head again, tucking her hair behind her ear. “Yeah, I’d love to.”
“I’m glad I decided to come live with Dad for a while.”
“Me too.”
His hand lifted to caress her cheek. “You really have grown into such a beautiful woman.”
“You too,” she whispered as she stared into his eyes. The blue seemed more pronounced as his desire grew.
He chuckled. “I grew into a beautiful woman?”
“No, I, shit. I meant you grew up too. I mean you grew up great.” Becca continued to stumble over her words, feeling like each extra syllable that issued from her only served to make matters worse. Her cheeks scorched hotter as her embarrassment over her tongue-tied state increased with each second.
Her babbling was silenced a moment later when Drew touched his lips to hers. Although a perfectly innocent kiss to start off with, it didn’t take long for it to ignite into something more. His tongue brushed over her pout, seeking entrance which she willingly granted. She breathed a small moan into his mouth as the perfection of what was happening stole her senses. Wow, wow, wow!
“I’ve wanted to do that since eighth grade,” he muttered as they broke apart.
“Really?”
“You had to have known I was in love with you back then?”
“I really didn’t,” she said. “It never even crossed my mind that you might like me that way. I always just thought we were friends.” Not even friends really, more casual acquaintances. He’d been in the grade above her, but had hung out with her group of friends. Now she understood why that might have been the case.
“I was so certain you tormented me deliberately.” He chuckled and the deep sound made Becca’s stomach twist and lurch in a delightful way. She squirmed slightly in her seat. He leaned forward until his lips brushed her ear. “You were the subject of many of my teenage fantasies.”
An image of him in the shower fantasizing about her as he pleasured himself came unbidden to Becca’s mind and she had to bite back the moan that almost reached the back of her throat. It wasn’t the eighth grade Drew she pictured though, with his braces, pimples and permanently greasy hair. Instead, it was the dream guy in front of her. She could easily visualize his bicep flexing as he stroked himself repeatedly. Before she had a chance to stop it, her daydream included herself joining him in the shower and she squirmed in her seat.
Doctor Petersen called Drew away from Becca, which was probably a good thing considering how ready and willing she was to indulge in her fantasy with him. Despite their history, Becca knew it wasn’t a great idea to fall straight into bed with the guy—even though she was certain he’d be able to scratch all of the itches in her body.
“Sorry, even though I’d love to sit here with you for the rest of tonight, I shouldn’t really neglect everyone else here.”
“It’s okay, I was thinking about heading home anyway.”
Drew pouted. “Won’t you stay a little longer?”
Although part of her wanted to give into Drew’s puppy-dog eyes, the truth was she was anxious to see whether Evan had returned to her house or left town entirely.
How does it work when someone finds a love connection? she wondered. Does he leave straight away?
She knew she was getting ahead of herself thinking of Drew as her love connection. They were still to go on their first date, but surely a cupid was only there for the initial spark. Anything after that was up to the couple, wasn’t it?
And what if it didn’t work out? Would Evan be back? Or was it a one-time offer. She wanted answers to all of those questions and could only hope that Evan was still around to provide them. At least, that was what she told herself when she said goodbye to Drew with a quick kiss on his cheek and a promise of meeting him for dinner for their first date.
She raced to Millie and took off down the streets with her destination firm in her mind but her heart filled with doubt about whether she’d find her cupid at her house or not. She thought it was strange that she felt such a sense of panic over the thought of him being gone. Even after such a short time, she’d come to think of Evan as a bit of a fixture in her life. Not having him on hand to digest the goings on of her day would be strange. She wasn’t up to that level of sharing with Drew, not after their brief afternoon together.
As Becca pulled into her garage, she recognized the fear for what it was—she really didn’t want to go back to being lonely. Evan had filled a void in her life that she’d barely known had existed; and he’d done it so seamlessly that it felt as though he’d always been there. Despite the short time they’d spent together, he fit perfectly into her life. So perfectly in fact that she was certain she’d miss him when he eventually had to go, even if Drew could take his place. With the losses she’d already suffered in her life, she should have known better than to grow too attached, especially in a friendship that had an expiry date on it before it even started.
Pushing the front door open, she caught Evan leaping up from the sofa and let out a breath of relief.
“I thought you might have left,” she admitted when he raised an eyebrow at her in question over her reaction.
“I thought you’d be gone a little longer,” he said in response. His tone was almost dismissive of her words, which hurt her a little.
The hurt soon raged to anger and she stalked past Evan and into the kitchen. “I thought you’d be in a better mood after my day went so well.”
She tossed the car keys onto the counter.
Evan appeared suddenly, sitting on the counter directly beside where she’d thrown her keys.
“Shit!” she exclaimed in a rush, as she jumped back from the counter. She tried to slow her heartbeat after her scare. “I thought we agreed you weren’t going to do that anymore?”
“Sorry, I just wanted to find out more about your afternoon.” He rested his hands on either side of him and started to kick his legs. His heels tapped an uneven tempo against the cupboard doors beneath him, at least until she turned her gaze on the wayward limbs. Then he stopped and sighed. “You know, to improve my mood.”
A smile spread across Becca’s face and as she felt her cheeks warm she became certain that they were glowing with a blush. “It was really good. I’d barely given Drew a second thought after he left to go live with his mom. I mean, he was something of a friend in middle school I guess, but that was all.” At least, I thought that was all.
“I’m happy for you. It’s exactly the sort of connection we hope for in my business. The sort of thing that doesn’t happen very often.”
Becca got the distinct impression that although he was saying he was glad, he was really anything but. She started to doubt whether she was right picking Drew.
Does Evan know something I don’t?
“He’s a good guy, isn’t he?” She’d started the sentence in defense of Drew, but had ended it full of doubt over Evan’s attitude.
Evan nodded. “He is. He’s perfect for you.” He pushed himself off the counter and moved to walk back into the living room.
Becca’s heart clenched, thinking that he was getting ready to go. Will he leave right now? She had to know.
“Does that mean you’re leaving?” The thought was depressing. The more certain she grew that he must be leaving soon, the more the thought hurt. She wasn’t ready to say goodbye so soon. What if things fizzled with Drew? What if she still needed a cupid? Truthfully those weren’t the only reasons she didn’t want to say goodbye, but they were the only ones she could admit to herself.
“Not just yet. I’ll hang around until you’ve been on a few dates. You never know when things might need a helping hand.” He smiled, but again Becca felt that it didn’t really seem as genuine as it had on previous occasions.
I wonder what his problem is, she thought. “Does that mean you’ll be stalking me on our dates?”
He frowned at her and she wondered what was going through his head. “Not if you don’t want me to.”<
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“I don’t think I do.”
“Maybe I should be going then? I mean if you don’t think you’ll need me . . .” he seemed to deliberate trailed off, as if waiting for her reaction.
“No!” The word came too fast and too loud, but Becca couldn’t reel it in.
Evan’s eyes lit up with excitement and his smile lifted whatever weight he’d been carrying around since she’d arrived home.
His happiness at her desire for him to stay made Becca even more determined to keep him in her life for as long as she could.
“I want you to stay,” she said. “I mean, if you can. Do you have someone to consult about it? A boss or something?” Her eyes lifted toward the roof. She’d never given much stock to Heaven and Hell, but now, she wasn’t sure what to believe.
“It’s complicated,” he said. “But I’m sure I can swing it.”
“I’m glad.” Becca yawned. “I think I’m going to go shower and then spend some time in the darkroom, if you’d like to join me?”
Evan gulped. “In the shower?”
“Ha ha. You’re funny, funnyman. In the darkroom. We can develop the film from the other day. I’ve been a little distracted lately and haven’t worked down there nearly enough.”
“I’m sorry. I’ve been the distraction, haven’t I?”
She walked over and tousled his hair. “Yeah, but I’m not complaining.”
With a grin, she headed for her bedroom to get a change of clothes.
Evan headed down the stairs to the basement, getting ready to wait for Becca in her darkroom. He was excited about watching her work again, far more excited than he’s been about having to listen to her talk about how wonderful the almighty Drew was.
Evan wondered how he’d be able to cope with Becca and her new beau actually going on dates.
The time he’d spent alone at Becca’s house that afternoon had been enough for him come to a sudden, and slightly horrified, realization. The nauseated sensation he’d got when he was around Drew and Becca together—the one that seemed to rise again when Becca started to gush about her possible romance—was the result of an emotion that originated in Evan himself. The flavor of it was familiar, even though it had been a while since he’d tasted that particular feeling. Discovering the source of it though, had thrown him entirely.
Happily Evan After (Fall For You Book 1) Page 11