Opening his eyes, he was saved from either fate when he saw her luggage coming down the baggage carousel. Releasing his arms from around her, he stepped forward and reached out, grabbing both easily.
“My, my, my. Isn’t that chivalrous?” an older woman who was standing next to Becca observed, smiling up at Brian, her deep-set eyes sparkling with life and surrounded by wrinkled skin.
“He’s not my boyfriend,” Becca blurted out.
Brian glanced down at her, his brows raised in surprise. He’d heard her say those same four words at least a hundred times over the years, but never had they held such a defensive tone before.
Looking up at him with a sheepish expression on her porcelain face, Becca brushed her hair behind her ear and shook her head a little. “Sorry. Brian, this is Stella. Stella, this is my friend Brian.”
After setting one of the suitcases he’d just retrieved from the rotating conveyor belt down on the linoleum floor, Brian extended his hand. “Nice to meet you, Stella.”
“Oooh, and manners, too. This one is a keeper.” Stella winked and smiled as she placed her hand in Brian’s.
Becca sighed and shrugged in resignation, clearly conveying that she was giving up. He wasn’t exactly sure what the conversation had been leading up to his arrival, but something told him that what he’d heard had not been the first time Becca had informed Stella of their relationship status.
“Thanks.” Becca’s vivid blue eyes peeked up at him from beneath thick, dark lashes as her hand gestured to the bags he’d gotten for her.
Brian smiled down at her with every intention of saying, “You’re welcome.” But as his eyes drifted down past her button nose to her cherry-red lips of their own accord, he completely lost his train of thought. He was drawn to her mouth like a moth to a flame. Like her lips were the pied piper and he would mindlessly follow them anywhere. He didn’t want to look but he didn’t seem to have control over his optical nerves at the moment.
“Brian?” Hearing his name on Becca’s lips, even in a questioning tone, was one of the sweetest sounds in the world.
Forcing himself to push on and move through the lust fog that had rolled in the harbor of his brain, he managed to raise his gaze up as he asked, “You ready?”
He was met with a look of confusion.
“Yeah,” Becca answered slowly. “It was great meeting you,” she said warmly as she turned and hugged Stella goodbye. “Are you okay? Is there someone meeting you?”
Brian had always loved the way Becca connected with people. Every time they went anywhere, she would learn someone’s life story. If she hadn’t always wanted to be a pediatrician, Brian would have suggested that she go into counseling. People trusted her, opened up to her, and she really and truly cared about each person who came across her path.
Stella returned her hug. Then, as she pulled away, she patted Becca’s cheek affectionately. “Oh, you sweet dear. Yes, my Robbie is parking the car. He texted me while you two lovebirds were saying hello.”
“We’re not lovebird—” Becca started but then sighed, mumbling under her breath, “Oh forget it.” Grabbing the carry-on that was sitting by her feet, Becca lifted her hand in a little wave, “Let me know how everything goes.”
“I will, dear.” Stella nodded somberly.
As they began walking away, Brian waved as well. “Nice meeting you.”
“You too.” Stella raised her hand and wiggled her fingers.
“Everything okay?” Brian asked as they made their way through the crowded airport.
“Yeah, why?” Becca asked. Again, her tone was a tad on the defensive side.
“Nothing, I just… You asked her to tell you how everything goes,” Brian explained, not really sure where her attitude was coming from.
“Oh, that.” Relief fell over Becca’s face, which made Brian suspect that everything was not okay and that she absolutely did not want to talk about it with him. “She’s here to go to see an oncologist at Grace Memorial to run some tests.”
“Oh.” Brian nodded. He’d just met the woman, but he felt his chest tighten. Both his parent’s health had not been so great over the years, and he hated thinking of anyone suffering.
“Yeah. Her son Robbie is a second-year resident there,” Becca smiled. “Luckily, I think the distraction of getting to see where her son, her doctor son, spends ninety-plus hours a week is working to help offset some of the fears she has.”
“That’s good,” Brian said as they walked through the sliding doors into the hot, muggy air that instantly caused sweat to form on the back of his neck.
“Oh man. I’m gonna call Riley and Chelle to see if they mind me taking a dip in their pool when I get home. This heat is no joke.” Becca stuck out her bottom lip and blew a puff of breath up so that the hair that had fallen in her face lifted up off her forehead.
As much as Brian would love to invite himself over to swim at Becca’s cousin’s house, if not for the sole purpose of being able to spend time with a bikini-clad Becca, he, unfortunately, had other plans.
“Actually, I was kind of wondering if you could go with me to this thing—an audition. They are seeing people until eight, so I can take you home and come back, but if you wouldn’t mind hanging out—”
Becca’s brilliant, blue eyes widened. “Of course I will. I’m not going to have you drive all the way to Harper’s Crossing and then drive back to the city. That’s ridiculous.”
“Are you sure?” Brian didn’t mind the drive. And it wasn’t like he really wanted to book this gig, but it did pay good money, and with his student loans coming due since he’d had to take so much time off to care for his parents, he felt like he at least had to go and check it out. Plus, the gig would give him an excuse to be out of Harper’s Crossing the majority of the time Becca would be home this summer.
“Yes!” she enthused as they walked through the parking garage. “What’s it for? I didn’t even know you were still pursuing acting.”
He wasn’t. Brian had briefly considered being an actor his senior year of high school, but after booking two commercials and a small part in a pilot that didn’t get picked up, he’d spent enough time on sets to see that what he really wanted to do was direct. Directors were the ones who not only set the tone for the entire project, but also, in most cases, had the greatest creative control.
“It’s not really acting. It’s a reality show, and I’m only going to check it out because the prize is half a million dollars,” Brian explained as he pulled out his fob and clicked the unlock button for his Jeep.
“A half million dollars,” Becca repeated slowly.
“Yep,” Brian confirmed as he picked up her largest piece of luggage and threw it in the back.
As she clapped her hands together, her face was shining with support and excitement, and she said encouragingly, “That’s awesome! You could pay off your student loans.”
“Yeah. That’s what I was thinking. But I’d have to get cast first, and then I’d actually have to win.” Brian didn’t mean to be a downer, but he was a realist, and the chances of that happening were slim to none.
“Of course they’re going to cast you. Look at you.” Becca waved her hands up and down. He knew that she was just being supportive, but he still liked it. A lot. “And it doesn’t matter what challenges or races or whatever they throw at you are. You’re good at everything. Remember, at the summer festival, they disqualified us from participating in the egg toss, the three-legged race, and you from the obstacle course when we were ten because everything you entered you’d won since you were six. And you were going up against fourteen-year-olds.”
The corners of Brian’s mouth turned up as he remembered how angry Becca had gotten that he’d been, in her words, “punished for being awesome.” She’d always had a strong sense of right and wrong and had never had an issue speaking up if she felt there was an injustice occurring.
“We made a good team.” He opened the door for Becca, and as she hopped into the passenge
r side of his Jeep, she spun around.
“No, I was just along for the ride. You were the athletic one. You’re totally gonna walk away with that money,” she declared as if it were a done deal.
Brian shut the door, walked around to his side and climbed behind the wheel.
As he put the key in the ignition, Becca asked, “So what is the show about? Is it like Survivor or Top Chef?”
“No. I wish.” Brian would actually not mind competing on a show like that, where there was actual skill involved and real competition. “It’s a dating show, kind of like The Bachelor meets Temptation Island. The spin on this one is it’s set in a castle and everyone who is cast will either be a princess or a prince. And wait for it…” He paused and looked over at her. “The name of it is…drumroll…Fairytale Love.”
Brian waited for Becca to laugh and tell him how cheesy that sounded. Instead, her already-pale skin looked as though it had grown even paler in the last few seconds.
“You’re going on a dating show?” she asked, the excitement and support that had been radiating off of her in waves was gone, drained from her body.
Brian searched her eyes, trying to figure out what could have happened in barely a minute or two. As his eyes studied her, he recognized her expression from the time she thought she’d lost his pet turtle. They’d found Slowpoke under the porch, but Becca had been beside herself for the short time he was missing. She’d looked devastated then, and she looked devastated now.
“Well, I’m going to audition for a dating show. I have no idea if I’ll be on one,” he said as he grew concerned. Maybe she wasn’t feeling well. Sometimes after flights, she would get nauseated. She hated flying. Maybe he should just take her home. “You know what? Why don’t I run you home and get you settled? If I have time, I’ll come back out.”
“No,” she quickly said, and a broad smile appeared on her face. “That’s silly. Let’s go. This is exciting.” She spoke with what seemed like forced enthusiasm.
“Ooookay,” Brian agreed as he looked behind him and began backing out of the space.
He honestly had no idea what was going on with Becca, but something was up. If he didn’t know better, he would think that she didn’t like the idea of him being on dating show. That she was jealous.
But that was a ridiculous notion. Becca had always been the first one to make sure everyone had known that they were ‘just friends.’ She’d just said that very thing to Stella. Brian shook his head as he pulled the parking ticket out of his pocket. He was probably just projecting what he was feeling on to her. Because, like Becca was the first one to point out, they were just friends.
Chapter Three
Becca shifted uncomfortably in her chair. She tried not to let the fact that Brian’s muscular thigh was pressed up against hers and that his arm was oh-so-casually draped across the back of her chair affect her—outwardly, at least.
“You okay?” his deep voice asked as his thumb ran up and down her shoulder, sending a chill throughout her entire body.
“Yep,” she said, trying to scoot away from his touch without seeming obvious.
“Are you cold?” Brian’s voice was filled with concern.
Why?
Why did he have to be so in tune with every movement, every look, every mood shift?
“I’m fine.” Becca sounded fake and overly chipper even to her own ears. But in her defense, the fact that she’d been able to speak at all with Brian surrounding her was a fairly impressive feat in and of itself.
As his panty-melting brown eyes searched hers, she knew that, behind those sexy, soul-searching peepers, Brian was trying to work out what was going on with her like an intuitive jigsaw puzzle. The thing that made her heart beat even more rapidly than his smell, his stare, and his touch was the fact that she knew if he looked deep and long enough he would absolutely put all the pieces together. Where Brian was concerned, Becca was an open book. Always had been.
Her lips turned up, in what she hoped was a convincing smile, as she tried to casually dismiss her mood. “I’m just tired. My finals were killer this semester.”
He nodded, still not looking completely convinced, and turned his attention back down to the sheet he’d picked up when he’d signed in. She knew that he was only momentarily dropping this subject—and that it would, definitely, be coming up again.
Shoot.
Becca needed to figure out how to go back to the way things had been and she needed to do it fast. For years, years, she’d looked at Brian as exactly what he was—her best friend. She just needed to get her head, hormones, and heart back in that place. Back in the friend zone.
The zone where his gaze didn’t make her heart rate speed up so fast that it was like she was on amphetamines. Where his touch was innocent and comforting, not heated and causing flames of lust to ignite like a four-alarm fire. Where his voice soothed and calmed her, instead of aroused and excited her.
What was wrong with her?
Maybe it was just that she hadn’t had a serious boyfriend for almost two years. Not that any of her relationships really could have been classified as serious. They weren’t. But she’d definitely had boyfriends. Relationships she’d enjoyed, a couple she’d even briefly thought might have led to something.
But, after witnessing, first, her cousins and, then, her sisters all drink Love Potion #9, get bit by the love bug, fall head over heels in love, Becca knew that she hadn’t even been close to the real thing. She’d always been the one to end the relationships she’d been in, and it was usually for the same reason: she just didn’t have time for them.
Well, she didn’t have time to lust after her best friend either, but she was quickly learning that, as much as people might think they have control over what they feel, what they think, who they love…they don’t. As a matter of fact, Becca was beginning to consider the possibility that her lifelong belief that, if you put your mind to something and worked hard then anything was possible, was actually not the case.
Although maybe she just wasn’t trying hard enough.
The small waiting room she was seated beside Brian in was filled to the brim with nothing but guys. As she looked around, she saw that she was surrounded by good-looking, age-appropriate, and most likely—since they were here to audition for a dating show—available men. Becca’s eyes bounced from one to the next, and although she appreciated the fact that some of them were extremely good-looking, she felt absolutely nothing inside. No spark. No interest. No attraction.
Great.
It wasn’t helping that, every time the rough pad of Brian’s thumb brushed across her sensitive skin, it left a burning trail of desire in its wake. Taking a moment while Brian’s attentions were focused solely on the paper he held in his hand, Becca tried to look at him objectively and see her friend, not the current star of all of her not-so-innocent fantasies.
He was still…Brian. She saw what she always had. He had all-American good looks. Light-brown, shaggy hair. Brown eyes. Strong jawline. The difference was that, now, Becca also noticed other things. Things like his full lips that made her own tingle. The sprinkling of stubble across his jaw that made her fingers itch to reach out and touch him. His long, dark eyelashes that framed his light, caramel-colored eyes. The slope of his neck beneath his chin that she wanted to lick.
Stop!
This had to stop. It was getting ridiculous. Becca’s entire body was alive with awareness, a deep pulsing had begun in her lower belly, and her heart was pounding so hard that she was sure that Brian could hear it.
“Brian Scott,” a young woman called.
Thank God!
“Wish me luck.” Brian winked at Becca before leaning down and kissing her on the top of the head. She felt the kiss all the way down to her toes and everywhere in between on its journey down south.
Brian stood and started towards the pretty girl holding the clipboard in her hands, and Becca noticed how the girl’s dark-brown eyes widened and her face became flushed the closer that Br
ian got. Becca knew exactly what was happening. Brian was one of those guys who looked attractive from a distance, but his real appeal became evident when you got up close to him.
When you could see the two tones of his mesmerizing eyes, the dark outline surrounding his lighter-brown irises. When you could fully appreciate the shape of his sensual lips. When you could smell him. Even before Becca’s unfortunate trip into not-so-friendly territories, she’d always loved the way Brian smelled. It was a heady combination of fresh, clean, and all male.
From across the room, it was impossible to hear what Brian said to Clipboard Girl, but whatever it was had her giggling and flipping her blond ponytail behind her shoulder. Becca refrained from rolling her eyes, but only because she knew she had zero reason to be upset. It used to amuse her when girls got all giggly and flirty around Brian. It had made her proud, even, that her friend was so popular with the ladies. Now, amusement and pride had been replaced with irritation and jealousy.
Lovely. Just lovely.
After reaching into her purse, she pulled out the book she’d packed for her flight. The moment she touched it, she felt a little bit of the stress melt away. Books had always had that effect on her. They calmed her. Centered her.
She opened the book to where the dog-eared page had kept her place and began to read. Her skin quivered beneath his touch as the Duke’s hand slid higher up her creamy thigh.
Okay. Maybe this was neither the time nor the place to read her romance novel. Once she’d closed it, she placed it back in her purse. Frustration filled her. Reading was her escape. It always had been. When she’d started college, a friend of hers had recommended Erica Jong’s Fear of Flying. That had been her first romance novel, but it had not been her last.
Fairytale Love - Becca & Brian Page 3