Page 14 of Always Bayou

She frowned. “I don’t…well, okay then. I want to know for sure.”

“You should just be upfront. You should askhimout.” He didn’t want that. At all. But it was the truth. If she wanted to know how this guy felt, she should just fucking ask him.

She nodded. “I think you’re right. I should be upfront with him. Find out how he feels once and for all.”

“Okay, then. Great. Good luck with that.” He started to turn away again.

“Which is why I need you.”

There was that gut clench again. A bad one. “What do you mean?”

“I need you for something. And I can’t ask anyone else.”

“I… Okay.” It wasn’t like there was a chance in hell he’d say no to her. Especially when she put it like that. “But me calling him up and asking him how he feels about you is kind of third grade, don’t you think?”

She laughed and came toward him, reaching for his hand and tugging him further into the room. “Yes, I agree. Let’s not do that.”

“Then what?”

She stood directly in front of him and pressed her lips together. Then she took both of his hands in hers and said, “I need to practice kissing.”

If Beau had been given a million dollars to guess the next five words out of Becca’s mouth, those five would have never crossed his mind.

“Beau?” She looked up into his face with concern. “Did you hear me?”

He nodded stupidly.

“So, will you help me?”

“I—” He cleared his throat. “Define ‘help’,” he said.

Then he started praying. Though he wasn’t sure if he was praying for her to say she wanted him to help her find someone else to practice with or if she wanted to practice with him.

Because both answers would kill him.

“I need you to let me kiss you,” she said softly.

He blew out a breath.

Well, fuck.

His gaze dropped from her eyes to her mouth. Then to her cheek. His gaze traveled down her neck to her collarbone, then across her shoulder.

And he realizedthiswas how glitter was going to be his demise.

Her skin was dusted with glitter. And that made him lift his hand and draw his thumb over her collarbone to attempt to wipe it away. And his touch made her suck in a little breath. Which made his gaze fly back to hers. And when their eyes met again, he realized that he was definitely going to kiss Rebecca Jean Bollier.

And that was going to change everything.

“And then what?” he asked, his voice gruff.

“Tell me how to be better at it.”

A terrible thought occurred to him and his hand dropped away from her shoulder. “Did you kiss Luke?” Had that fucker told her she was a bad kisser?

“No.”

He took a breath.

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