Being Neighborly (8 page)

“It’s okay
, son. You can take it,” my dad says after witnessing my hesitation to answer it.

After pressing
accept, I hold the phone to my ear. “Hello.”

I push back from the table and slowly make my way down to the pond.

“I just landed. I’m still on the plane. There’s another plane at the gate we’re supposed to pull up to so we’re just sitting on the runway until it moves.”

“How was your flight?”

“Good until now,” she grumbles.

“Are your parents picking you up from the airport?”

“My mom is. Oh, we’re moving.”

“That’s good.” I hesitate, knowing now is not the time but my curiosity gets the better of me. “Why didn’t you tell me you were engaged?”

Her gasp is clear through the phone. “How did you—”

“Bess told me
,” I cut her off.

“It’s a long story.”

“One you trusted Bess with but not me.”

“It’s not something I like to talk about.”

A firefly lights up not far from where I stand, painfully reminding me of the night we laughed and chased them behind her house.

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Beau—” she starts.

“I hope you have a nice visit with your parents
, Bethany. I should go now.”

“I see.”

“Goodbye.”

I end the call after I hear her s
ubdued voice in return.

“Bye,” she whispers.

Chapter Seven

“You want me to what?”

“You heard me
,” I groan.

“W
hy can’t you pick her up? She’s expecting you.”

Bethany and I haven’t spoken since
the call where I asked her about her engagement. She’d called a couple times but I ignored them. I wasn’t prepared to deal with what she had to say.

“I just can’t.”

Bess stands, wiping her hands on her apron. “This behavior is not the Beau I know.”

“What’s that supposed to m
ean?” I stand firm.

“When I told you about her fiancé
, it wasn’t for you to push her away. It was to explain why she was acting the way she was.”

“
Your plan backfired, Bess. All it did was make me question why she never told me about this guy. What? Does he want her back?” I snap.

“I can see now it was a mistake to say anything at all
, but just so you know, her fiancé passed away two months before they were supposed to get married.”

“He what?”

“You heard me,” she throws my own words back in my face.

Here I was acting all jealous and insecure over a ghost. “I’m an asshole.”

She doesn’t even fuss at me for swearing. “Sometimes.”

“I won’t be needing you to pick her up from the airport.”

“I figured as much.”

Hell, I’ve made a big mess out of everything. First, I pushed Bethany away for caring about me.  Now, I’ve distanced myself even more because I don’t feel good enough for her. It’s about time I got over my shit and started acting like a man worthy of the attention Bethany was giving me.

I have a lot to think about on the drive to the airport. Whether the outcome be good or bad, I need to tell Bethany how much she means to me and the reason I pushed her away in the first place. I’m scared, scared I’m not man enough for her after the bite, and scared she will leave me after I found out she had been engaged before. Those were embarrassing things to admit to myself, let alone her.

I made good time on my drive
, and since I beat her plane, I decided to park and meet her at the baggage claim instead of on the curb. Walking around on paved surfaces is much easier than almost anywhere on the farm. I focus on taking my time. That, plus the smooth walkways makes my limp less noticeable.

Once I find the carousel her luggage is being sent to
, I wait. There’s a rush of people; I’m assuming from her plane, but I don’t see her. It’s when I head in the direction of the gates. That’s when I find her, walking slowly, pulling an extra bag for an older gentleman. He’s walking with a walker peacefully chatting with her as they make their way to baggage claim.

She looks
amazing, her long pale green sundress showing a hint of her ankle with every step she takes. Her auburn curls shine as they frame her beautiful face. I’m a fool for pushing this stunning creature away.

That’s when it hits me
; this is just who she is, a caring person. How lucky am I that she cares for me! How blessed I should feel that she wants to be with me and how stupid would I be to not treasure the gift of it. I meet them halfway.

“Bethany.”

She seems surprised to see me, smiling, widely. “Beau.”

“Here
, let me help you with that extra bag.”

She passes it to me quietly, a small smile hinting around the corners of her mouth. “This is Mr. Williamson. We met on the plane.”

I dip my head. “Nice to meet you, sir.”

He glances between us. “This your boyfriend?”

I answer for her, bending down to kiss her cheek before I offer him my hand. “Yes, sir. Beau Hamilton.”

He lifts one hand from his walker to shake mine. “You have a very sweet girlfriend
, Beau.”

I nod, my eyes on Bethany as I reach for her hand. There’s still plenty for us to discuss
, but this is the first time I have acknowledged myself publicly as her boyfriend. She doesn’t correct me. I don’t know if that’s for my benefit or for Mr. Williamson’s, but we’ll have about an hour alone together in my truck for me to find out.

When we reach the carousel
, a relative of Mr. Williamson meets him and I pass over his rolling bag. He shakes my hand a second time telling me to take care of Bethany. She smiles widely and gives him a hug before he leaves. I reclaim her hand as we stand together waiting for her suitcase.

We walk in a comfortable silence back to my truck once we’ve retrieved it. It’s once I’ve loaded it into the back and we’re both seated that I break the silence.

“I’m sorry I’ve been acting like an ass.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about my engagement
,” she replies, lifting my hand into hers.

“You don’t have to
tell me if you don’t want to. I don’t want you to feel pressured.”

She sighs, turning her head to
look out the front windshield. “It’s hard to talk about, and that’s why I haven’t brought it up before. I told Bess while we were waiting for you to wake up at the hospital. What happened with you reminded me of what happened with Kurt. He wasn’t bitten by a snake though. He had been in a car accident. Waiting for you to wake up brought me right back to when I waited for him to wake up; only in his case, he didn’t.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Life goes on. His death inspired me to make so many changes in my life. A part of me will always mourn the life we never had, but I’m also grateful that I still have the opportunity to live mine. I don’t know if I ever would have been brave enough to leave my job and move out here. If I hadn’t have done that, I never would have met you, Beau.”

“You are so brave.”

“I’m just trying to live my live without regrets. I don’t want to look back and wish I would have done something but was too scared to.”

“That’s sorta how I feel right now. I’ve been scared since the bite that now you don’t think I’m man enough for you. Then, after finding out you were engaged
, I let that push me even further away. I was scared there was something wrong with me and that’s why you hadn’t told me. I’m realizing now what an idiot I was.”

She squeezes my hand. “We’re human
, Beau. We’re all going to make mistakes. I only ask that you talk to me first next time and I’ll do the same.”

I lift her knuckles to my lips. “Deal.”

“I noticed you didn’t correct Mr. Williamson about being my boyfriend.”

I nod, my eyes flicking from the road to hers. “I’d like to be. My stupid streak seems to be over for the time being and I’d like to take advantage of it and make you my girlfriend
. Also, I want you to know I love you.”

I’ve known I was in love with Bethany for a while
; I was not planning to just spit it out like that though. Terrified, I wait for her reaction, hoping she feels the same way.

She leans
across the seat and kisses my cheek. “I love you, too.”

Without the tension that’s been holding me down
, I feel lighter than I have in days. We laugh and joke the whole ride back to her house. The moment I kill the engine though, the mood shifts from lighthearted to something more intense.

“I’ve missed you.” The husky tone of her voice lets me know just how much.

“We’ve got some catching up to do.”

She makes it to her front door before me, but squeals when I swoop her up into my arms. “Your foot?”

I shake my head. “Don’t you worry about a thing.”

Concentrating
on lifting my leg high enough takes most of my attention as I carry her up the stairs to her bedroom. The way she nips at and kisses my neck on the way has me wondering if she’d be cool with me taking her right on her stairs. I’d do it too if spreading her out across her bed was a temptation I could pass.

It ha
s been too long since I was inside her and a quickie on the stairs is not what I have in mind. Patience is a virtue, right? Sure the Good Lord probably meant waiting till marriage, not waiting till you reached her bedroom though.

I’m no philosopher and
am more interested in the willing woman I am quickly falling in love with than anything else. Gently setting her on her bed, I kneel before her, slipping her dainty silver sandals from her feet. Using my hands and my mouth, I drown myself in the pleasure that is the silken softness of her skin. Sliding her dress up as I go, from ankle to thigh, I leave no inch unloved.

Save a pair of lace panties
, she’s bare to me from the waist down. She’s restlessly waiting for my next move. Her body arches for my touch while I sit back and admire her. Over waiting, she stands, one foot on either side of me and pulls her dress off over her head. Her panties taunt me, shielding me from her. I drag them off as she lifts one leg, then the other for me to rid her of them fully.

She sinks into my lap, kissing me as she unbuttons my shirt.
Once it’s off, she pushes me back onto the floor before moving to remove my shoes and jeans. Before long I’m naked beneath her. All I want is to taste her and start to move her until she hovers over me. I start to kiss her thighs when she turns around and takes my cock into her hand and then her mouth.

Groaning at the sensation
, I attack her with my tongue. She wiggles against my face and I wrap my arms around her thighs so she can’t move. My hips lift as I rock into and out of her mouth, her fingers pumping me. I release one of her legs to ease my finger inside of her. The sensation is too much for her; she lifts her head from my cock and groans loudly as she comes. I lap at her clit until her body stops shuddering. Once it has, I lift her, shifting her in my arms so I can capture her lips with mine.

“You are so beautiful.”

She blushes at my words and I stand, Bethany in my arms, to lay her across her bed. She’s almost limp, sated as she lazily grins up at me. I quickly sheath myself before spreading her legs and driving myself into her. My eyes roll back at the feel of her. Her body seems made for mine, fitting me like a glove. She alone seems able to lift me to the highest levels of pleasure.

I’ve missed not only her, but also the physical connection we’ve shared. She is the first woman I’ve craved body and soul. I want it all, her laughter, her tears, her smiles,
and her ecstasy. I will be the man deserving of the gift that is her company. Taking her lips once more, I groan as I find my release. I shift onto my side, pulling her with me, tightly in my arms.

“That was one hell of a homecoming
,” she teases.

“
I’d greet you this way every time I saw you if I wouldn’t get thrown in jail for public indecency.”

“We’ll just have to limit ourselves to private property.”

That gave me an idea. “Have you ever camped out?”

She grimaces. “I wouldn’t really call it camping
, but when I was younger, I went to a Girl Scout summer camp.”

“You were a Girl Scout?” I grin.

She nods. “Sold cookies and everything.”

“You taste better than any cookie I’ve ever had
,” I joke, nibbling her neck.

“I doubt that
, but whatever you’re doing feels good so don’t stop.”

“I have no intention of ever stopping when it comes to you
, Bethany.”

Her fingers thread my hair as she pulls my mo
uth up to hers. Travelling and our unique way of making up, exhaust her. Even though it’s barely past nine, she curls up on her bed and falls asleep. I take the time to go back out to my truck and collect her suitcase. In our haste to get inside, we forgot it earlier. Since she’s asleep, I move slowly up the stairs with it, careful not to bump it against anything and wake her up. I want to take care of her, just like her impulse is to take care of me.