Chapter 3
A week passed faster than Riley had expected, and she still hasn't fulfilled her promise to the Scotsman. As she got into her truck to go to Beck's house, knowing that she had to do this to keep on paying the rent, her phone rang. She looked at the ID and it was Beck.
"Denver…" she said with a tone really harsh.
"Come on, girl. We had a fight, ok? I wanted to say sorry and everythin' but I wanted ya to come over. I feel really guilty and everythin'…" he muttered.
"When?" still no emotion.
"Now? Or are ya busy?"
"No, it's fine. See you in a few," she replied coldly and hung up.
As soon as she arrived at Beck's sadness filled her. And she remembered what Simi had said. She remembered every time she had to go there, and how every time she'd needed someone he was always around. She remembered that when he told her about her late dad she'd slapped him and recoiled from his touch. Now she was confused. She came to love him in those months, and he'd confided in her, but only as a friend. Now, as she walked up onto his front porch, she wasn't sure. I love you Beck. More than a friend should… NO! What am I thinking? He's only a friend to me, and anyway it's not like he would like me that way. She shook the thought away and knocked on his door. As soon as the door opened, she found herself pulled in and then caught in someone's arms. Beck. She was really confused, but still hugged him back.
"Beck? Are you ok?" she asked worried now. He'd never greeted her like this…
"Riley, I'm really sorry. I know I shouldn't have said anythin' of the sort. It's just, I…" he took a deep breath. "I… I- Never mind…" he said, letting go. But she wasn't going to let him do this again, not this time.
"No, Beck. Keep going. Now that you've started, go ahead. Come on, guy, spill it!" she pushed, knowing this might backfire and he might explode. Another deep breath. And another.
"It's just when Paul… Ya know… I was alone; ya hated me, Sadie was an obvious no, and where else could I go? I drank myself away, hopin' that getting' wasted would drown out my sorrow, but…" his cheeks flushed with colour as he took yet another deep breath. "But then we became quite close. Ya started to like me, as a friend, and everythin' started goin' uphill. And now… Now I…" but he didn't finish his sentence. He looked at her, sadness mixing with love in his deep brown eyes. He stepped closer to her, and she didn't draw back. Surprising herself, she leaned in too. She was so close to him, she could smell his aftershave, and feel his breath in her hair. Soon enough she could only see his eyes. Beck lifted a hand and brushed her cheek with it lightly, and it was shaking. She closed her eyes, to tell him that it's ok, waiting to feel his lips against hers. Just as she felt the faint touch of his lips brushing hers, his cell phone rang.
They sprang apart, wide-eyed, knowing that this intimate moment was ruined. Beck answered his phone as he cleared his throat. As he turned away, Riley glared up at the ceiling. Damn! Really? Ori, is this your doing? What could ONE little kiss have hurt?! She was really annoyed, but she tried her best not to show it.
"Riley, the Scotsman wants us both down at his place. Didn't say why, though… Ya know anythin'?" he asked, the colour in his cheeks still there.
"No… Wait, yes," she sighed. He deserved to know. "When we had that fight, I called the Scotsman to ask him to switch someone. You know, to look after you. And he guessed that we fought and he told me that we'd better have it sorted by today or he'd basically suspend us from trapping for a while," when his expression hardened, she knew what he was going to say so she rushed to finish, "And I was on my way here this morning, going to sort it out," she said in one breath. His expression relaxed a lot.
"Well then, should we get goin' then?"
