“Esther,” Roger called from across the room, “what are you whispering about?”
Esther turned back to the food containers she was packing. “Nothing.”
Becket’s gaze returned to the window. He straightened. There was a broken slat of wood in the fence between Sky’s yard and her other neighbor…and he could’ve sworn a shadow moved past just as he looked up.
Without a word, he lowered the plates he was holding and went outside. Sky obviously didn’t hear him coming, because when he reached her right as she turned, she cried out before pressing a hand to her chest.
“Good God, Becket, you scared me to death!”
“How long has that been broken?” he asked, nodding at the fence.
“Um, maybe a few months. It happened after a storm.”
“Who lives there?”
“Just an older woman. She’s a bit of a recluse. I don’t see her very often. I think she may have dementia. And the few times I’ve knocked on her door, she didn’t seem to care for the company. Why?”
He moved over to the fence and stuck his head through. The yard was overgrown, with big bushes and trees, but no sign of anyone.
“Becket.” She touched his shoulder, and he straightened. “What’s going on?”
“I saw a shadow when I was inside.”
Her brows rose. “On the other side of the fence? No. She wouldn’t be out this late. It’s too dark and cold.”
His thoughts too.
A cool breeze rolled through the air, as if to prove her point, and Sky visibly shivered.
He needed to get her inside. He slid an arm around her waist and nudged her toward the door. “Come on.”
They took three steps before she stopped and turned toward him. “Wait, I need to ask you something.”
“Can this wait until we get inside?”
She shook her head. “No. My parents and Tony are in there.”
“I know.”
“They think we’re together.”
“I know that too.”
“Tonight, Mom hasn’t brought up me dying alone once, Dad didn’t make me sit next to Tony, and Tony hasn’t touched or hit on me…well, apart from whatever that thing was in the hall.”
Jesus, the guy was an asshole.
She shuffled her feet, wrapping her arms around her waist as goose bumps pebbled her skin. “So, I was wondering…can we do this for a bit longer?”
He lifted his brows. “This?”
“Date. No, not date…pretend to date. Just until Tony leaves town.”
“Yes.”
Her eyes widened. “Yes? Just like that?”
“Yeah.”
