I started brushing out my damp hair before asking, as casually as possible, “Who are you texting?”
He looked up, his hazel eyes locking onto mine, and grinned. “Mary Beth.”
I huffed nonchalantly, “Sounds hot.”
“ Hmmm,” he said, drawing his gaze down to my bare legs and then back to his phone.
“ Are you guys dating?”
His grin widened, but he didn’t look up at me. “It’s not like that.”
“ Oh.”
“ You seem overly curious about me texting another girl.” He quirked an eyebrow.
I shrugged and shifted slightly so that I could look at the hotel mirror propped above the desk. From my vantage point, I could see Beck watching me brush my hair. “Not in the least,” I answered.
“ Alright,” he answered confidently, running a hand through his now disastrously-messy hair.
“ How do you know her?”
He narrowed one eye, tilting his head back in thought. “Let’s see… she made me a baby blanket when I was little, but I don’t really remember our first meeting.”
I loosened my hold on the brush, only then realizing I’d been tensing every muscle in my body. “Oh. Is she your grandmother?”
Cue the adorable half-smile that made my heart skip a beat. “The one and only. Grandmother aka Grammy.”
I scrunched my nose. “Hah. So you aren’t sexting?” I thought I’d win with that comment, but Beck never let me win.
“ I didn’t say that.”
I laughed and shook my head. He wiggled his eyebrows playfully and tossed his phone down onto the bed. A second later, he started tugging his t-shirt off and I was left gaping like an idiot. The way his muscles stretched as he lifted his arms…the hard lines of his six-pack.
“ I’m going to shower. If the pizzas get here will you pay with the cash I left out on the desk?” He walked away and I was left gaping like a sad guppy.
“ Mhmm,” I murmured dumbly. I wish I could say that seeing him strip didn’t faze me, but it was so unexpected. We’d gone swimming together, yes, but being half naked in a hotel room felt much different.
I was still sitting there on the edge of our bed, with my hand wrapped loosely around my hairbrush, when a knock sounded at the door.
“ Coming!” I yelled as I clambered off the bed and reached for my wallet. Like hell I was going to use Beck’s cash with him not around; it was finally my turn to pay for something.
Ten minutes later, the shower cut off and I heard Beck drying off. My body was relaxed against the headboard with my pizza box propped on my lap. It felt scandalous to be eating on the bed, but just as my first bite was an inch away from my mouth, Beck walked out of the bathroom wearing nothing but a towel around his hips. It was sitting just under his stone-hard abs and angled dangerously low.
Ahhh .
“ Seriously?! Seriously. Who just walks around like that?” I commented, dropping the slice back into the box and clapping my hands over my eyes.
He laughed and my fingers parted so that I could peek through them. I wasn’t being subtle. There was just so much to look at it. His shoulders were impossibly broad and I could smell his body wash, clean and woodsy, from across the room.
“ Some of us are trying to eat, you know…”
He laughed and shook his head. “What are you doing, Abby?” he asked, reaching into his bag for clothes and holding his towel together with the other hand. Oh god, please let it fall open. Please let it fall open. Wait, no. I’m not watching. I’m enjoying my pizza.
“ Abby?” Beck prodded, peering over his shoulder at me.
Realizing I’d been caught peeking through my fingers, I scrunched them back together quickly. “I’m protecting my womanly sensibilities,” I answered. “What are you doing?”