Page 101 of Unlawful Seduction

The location was gorgeous, so much so I took a few seconds to admire the lobby. It was quaint yet modern, warm and inviting yet colorful with an incredible vibe. I could imagine spending several days here.

My legs were stiff as I walked toward the reservation desk, waiting my turn while a couple obviously very much in love checked in.

“Hi. How can I help you?”

I stared at the girl behind the desk before clearing my throat. I sensed she was becoming as anxious as I felt. “Can you tell me which is Beckett Callum’s room?”

“Certainly, let me see.”

As I waited, I continued to glance at the incredible lobby. It was easy to see why the location had so many five-star ratings.

“He’s in the Viking suite, room five ten, but he’s not there.”

The Viking suite? I couldn’t believe he’d remembered the silly conversation we’d had. Or perhaps I was reading too much into it. “Do you know where he is?”

“Yes, actually. He’s in a meeting in our bar, which is right down the hallway. You could certainly wait if you’d like or leave your name and number and I’ll be happy to give it to him.”

I wasn’t in the mood to wait, but at this point, if I left, I knew I’d likely not return. “Thank you. Maybe I’ll have a drink.” I headed down the hallway, surprised to hear as many voices coming from inside the bar as I did.

I’d been clueless how popular the location was. Maybe I did need to get out more. As I headed into the room, I was pleasantly surprised at the beautiful surroundings, including a full wall of glass highlighting the incredible lit garden behind the floor-to-ceiling panes.

I scanned the room, finally catching the sound of Beckett’s voice. Exhaling, I carefully walked a little closer to the sound, peering around a group of live trees extending to the atrium ceiling.

Jax was right by his side, curled next to the man’s chair. But he sensed my arrival, lifting his furry head. I immediately pressed my fingers against my lips to try to keep him quiet. His tailthumped once, but he returned to his resting position and I was able to breathe a sigh of relief.

From where I stood, I could see one side of Beckett’s face. He was tense as I’d always seen him, sitting up on the edge of his seat while talking to someone across from him. In the third seat was the attorney. Whatever was going on, this looked like a rather tense business meeting.

Maybe he’d already sold the house.

Jax shifted again, lifting his head just by a couple of inches. That forced me to slink behind the potted plants.

I forced myself to head to the bar, trying to maintain my cool the best I could. A glass of wine might help.

The bartender was nice, even a man I’d consider handsome, but he sensed immediately I wasn’t sitting at the bar for chitchat. I ordered and he simply placed a cocktail napkin in front of me. I took a few deep breaths, trying to booster my courage while the bartender yanked a bottle of wine from one of the shelves.

With the wine in front of me, I tried to go through the list of questions I’d developed for the tenth time, maybe more. It was impossible to ask everything that was necessary. I’d purposely left the file in the truck. While using it to prompt the right questions wasn’t a bad idea, I didn’t want him thinking I was talking to him because I had any interest in the money. I just didn’t. But I didn’t have a clue what I wanted.

A few minutes passed and I did my best to sip the wine even though I wanted to gulp it. A sudden prickle of electricity forced the hair to stand up on the back of my neck. I dared myself to swivel on the chair, doing so on the third mental prod.

Before I even had a chance to glance in Beckett’s direction, another white-hot lick of electricity coursed through me. As soon as I lifted my gaze, we locked eyes. For a few seconds, we were back in the cabin where no one else existed but the two of us.

Jax was now on full alert and the only movement Beckett made was to whisper something to his beloved companion. Jax didn’t seem willing to back down, almost standing before Beckett pressed his hand on the dog’s back.

He didn’t make a move to come any closer. He didn’t make a single gesture, finally leaning toward the men he was sitting with and saying something to them. When he rose to his feet, collecting his drink, I tensed in awaiting his arrival.

Jax greeted me first, nuzzling against my leg.

“Jax. No.”

Woof.

Jax wasn’t inclined to honor his master and I smiled hearing Beckett’s frustrated sigh. “He prefers to be treated like a human.” I don’t know why I’d bothered other than the memories flooding my mind. Hell, Jax hadn’t left my side for three full months, coming with me to work, to the grocery store. To the morgue. I’d wondered why he’d acted funny when we were both faced with the body bag. Now I knew.

“That so?” Beckett asked. His voice seemed deeper than before, perhaps more thoughtful. But there was no remorse or guilt that I could hear. That irritated the hell out of me.

“Yep. That’s so. Of course you wouldn’t care what others thought. Would you?”

The way he sighed again indicated his own frustration. We could easily get under each other’s skin and I had no desire to go easy on him.

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