Page 95 of Somebody to Save
He hummed and dropped his mouth to my ear. “She really likes you,” he whispered and held me tighter.
“Does she?”
“Yes,” he said quickly. “She made sure to pull me aside before we sat down. She said you were great, and she was excited to get to know you better. And that she understood why I was so smitten.”
We danced past another older couple who waved andgrabbed Beckett’s attention to congratulate him. He graciously thanked them but quickly turned back to me.
Chewing on my lower lip, those nervous butterflies in my stomach started up again. Beckett peered down at me like he could see all the thoughts I was contemplating, and I figured he probably could. Like usual, they were likely playing out all over my face. And with that, I couldn’t keep them to myself, so either I had to come up with a good lie or tell him what I was really thinking.
The latter felt like a scary prospect. But turning points in relationships always felt a little scary, right?
Dropping my eyes and his hand, I pressed my palm to his shirt and stared at one of the white buttons as I spoke. “I mean, you said it earlier. You told me that…that they wouldloveme almost as much as you do.”
We didn’t stop moving and continued dancing in circles around the floor and past other couples. He led, and I followed as my words and the insinuation heavy within them hung around us. I didn’t look up from where I was staring at his shirt until he forced me to. Fingers against my jaw, he braced his thumb underneath my chin to tilt my head higher.
Our steps slowed but didn’t stop as our eyes met. There were shallow lines at the corner of his and light in the warm, golden depths. My breath caught in the back of my throat, lodged around emotion and the anxiety of what he might say next.
“I did say that,” he agreed.
“And you meant it?” I asked quickly, and his smile widened at my spitfire question.
With a chuckle, he nodded. “Of course, baby girl. I always mean what I say, but you look like you’re prepared to sprint off the dance floor.”
A surprised laugh bubbled out of me as I shook my head. I hadn’t experienced it before, but I’d heard it described so many times. How it feels like time had been suspended and the rest of the world disappeared.
The party around us quieted, and I lost myself in his touch and in his gaze.
“No,” I whispered, struggling to swallow. “Not running, just thinking that it’s nice to know we both feel the same way.”
He smiled, and I felt it everywhere. His fingers ran down the side of my neck, and the music changed to something much slower, which better matched the speed of our steps.
“How fucking lucky am I to be loved by someone as incredible as you?”
“Really lucky,” I joked, and he shook his head, leaning forward and brushing his lips against mine.
“You’re right. So fucking lucky,” he said, and I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him. Trying to be mindful of where we were and those around us, I struggled to keep our kiss chaste and not climb him like a damn tree.
We’d all but stopped in the middle of the floor, and thankfully, Beckett had the wherewithal to pull away because I didn’tthink I could.
“I love you, Addison.”
“I love you, too,” I whispered, letting my hands fall back to his arms that were steadfast against my hips. It felt so different from every other time I’d uttered those words to someone I’d been dating. I wasn’t pressured to return the sentiment, and I didn’t even have to consider it.
It felt as second nature as breathing to utter those words.
But our moment was quickly broken when someone cleared their throat next to us.
We both glanced in that direction to where Beckett’s dad was standing.
“Sorry to interrupt, but we’ve got a situation. Bill showed up demanding to speak to us. Do you mind if I steal him away, Addie?”
Beckett’s jaw worked, and I took a step back. “Of course not. I’ll find you later.”
I could tell he didn’t want to walk away, but it was also important that they deescalate the situation with Bill as quickly as possible. And Beckett was the person to do it.
“I’ll be back before you know it,” Beckett said. He leaned down and kissed me quickly, then slid my phone into my hand. The simple, thoughtful gesture made me smile. He threw me a wink before the two men rounded the dance floor and headed toward the door.
An angry, red-faced man was standing in the hallway, glaring at Beckett and his dad, being held back by security. Beckett held out his hands and motioned for them to go back toward the front door of the hotel. Bill looked like he started yelling, but the band was playing too loudly and drowned out the sound.
