Page 126 of Full Mountie

Another text comes in. This one is a threat, and completely justified.

Lachlan: Remember, you made her cry. Don’t do it again.

Direct hit. If she calls me for coffee, or anything else, I won’t be able to say no now.

Well played, Ross. Well played.

44

Beth

July

IspendCanada Day by myself, doing a month’s worth of meal prep. Living the damn life, I am. In the end, Lachlan flew out to Vancouver, and I don’t blame him. Gavin and Ellie are going to to a public parade today, and the turnout is going to be crazy.

His first priority has to be to keep the PM safe, and while he trusts his team, it’s not the same as if he’s walking six feet behind the man himself.

So I’ve got the first weekend of July to myself, and by Sunday, I’m going squirrelly.

Sasha calls and when she picks up on the fact I’m in the dumps, she suggests retail therapy.

I can’t afford retail therapy, Sasha-style, so I beg off and tear my closet apart instead. I ask myself if each piece brings me joy, and pretty soon I have a massive pile of stuff to donate.

Maybe when one of your boyfriends has shut you out for stupid, makes-no-sense reasons isn’t the best time to do a joy-test on clothing.

But I’m on a roll, so I go to my dresser next.

The first thing I see is that bra and panties set I bought last month. That I took pictures of and sent to Hugh.

Damn him.

Without overthinking it, I reach for my phone.

Beth: I miss you.

Of coursehe doesn’t reply. So, hands shaking, I take a picture.

No lingerie. Just me, bare and wanting him. My arm across my breasts, the curve of my neck, the side of my lip caught in my teeth.

I hit send.

He shows upforty-five minutes later, freshly showered. His eyes are dark and haunted.

“This is a bad idea,” he says roughly as he follows me down the hallway and into my living room.

I put on a robe to answer the door, just in case, but he came in. He let that door shut behind him.

I drop the robe. “Is it?”

“Beth…”

“I miss you. That’s all.” I swallow hard. That’s a lie. “This doesn’t have to mean anything.”

“Of course it means something.” He’s closer now.

I want to glare at him, to jut my chin and tell him I know.It means everything.But something scared him off. We need to walkusback to a place he can handle.

A place where we’re naked and laughing and love is a hazy threat still in the future.

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