Just For A Moment by Kate Carley

Chapter 8

Would you like to join us for dinner tonight?Beck’s question played through Grace’s mind about a thousand times.

His question was sweet, and she knew from their earlier conversation that the ‘us’ he was referring to included his young daughter. Grace wasn’t sure what this dinner thing was. Likely nothing more than a friend asking another friend to share a meal. In her limited experience, most single parents she knew didn’t introduce their children to a person they were interested in dating until things had been solidly established. With that fact in mind, she assumed this was nothing more than Beck being nice to Win’s relative.

She pulled up at the address he’d texted her. The small ranch style home sat in the middle of an older neighborhood. When he had texted the address, he’d indicated she should go around back. So with dessert in hand, she hiked up the driveway and circled around the side of the house, following the sidewalk there. When she reached the back, she mounted the three steps to a small deck and knocked on the back door.

From within, she heard a child’s excited shouts, “Grace is here, Daddy!” An exuberant girl with tight black curls bouncing around her face arrived at the screen door. “Come in. My dad is gonna give you some beer.”

Grace couldn’t help but laugh as she stepped inside, glancing over Piper’s head and catching Beck’s smile.

“Hi, Grace.” The bouncing girl eagerly said, vying for Grace’s attention. “My name is Piper Beckett. It’s nice to meet you.” Piper stuck out her small hand in a polite gesture, and Grace quickly shook the girl’s hand.

“Well, Miss Piper, it is a pleasure to meet you.”

“How did you know?”

“Know what?”

“Win always called me Miss Piper.” Piper’s expression was filled with shock and a touch of sorrow.

“Well, that is quite the coincidence, isn’t it?” Grace kept her voice light and happy. It was how she wanted to remember her granddad, and she hoped it would help Piper, too. “Do you want to know what he called me?”

“Umm, was it Miss Grace?”

“Good guess, but no. Win called me Gracie Jane.”

“That’s cute.” Piper turned and skipped out of the room.

Grace slipped off her shoes, stepped farther into the compact kitchen—a perfect size for Beck and his daughter—and came face-to-face with Beck’s intense gaze. He was studying her, and that look seemed to suck all the oxygen out of the room.

Out of her lungs.

Breathe, she reminded herself.

“Thanks for inviting me to dinner.” She pasted on a smile and tried her best to act as if she wasn’t struggling to behave normally. As if she wasn’t completely turned on by his presence. She placed the pan of brownies on the countertop and handed him the container of ice cream.

“No problem.” He turned and tucked the ice cream into the freezer. “It’ll give us more time to talk about Win’s request regarding the planes.”

Disappointment dared to rush in, but his gaze hadn’t wandered from her face. Although, his choice of topic was about a million miles from what she was thinking.

But with his commitment to her granddad, Grace liked Aaron Beckett just a little bit more.

As if she needed more reasons to find the ruggedly handsome aircraft mechanic attractive.

Right now, he was giving her his full attention, with those stunning green eyes framed by the longest black lashes she’d ever seen. It both unnerved her at the same time it ignited a sexual longing deep within her.

But unaware of Grace’s revved up libido, Beck said, “And as Piper was pointing out before you arrived, this is our best meal. So, why not share it with someone new to town? Would you like a beer?”

“Love one.” Grace leaned against the counter closest to the back door while Beck pulled open the refrigerator and ducked his head inside to grab two bottles of beer. “Have you ever been in Win’s house?”

“Yes. He was quite the collector. He talked for years about downsizing. About giving all those great antiques to different organizations.” He held up two bottles of Corona, and she nodded her approval. “A museum in Iron Mountain specializes in WWII memorabilia. Plus, there’s another one in Milwaukee and a couple in Minnesota.” With a bottle opener, Beck popped the top off each and then handed one to Grace.

“Did he ever mention an auction house?” Grace lifted the bottle to her lips and took a small sip.

“Yes, he talked about that option, too. I think it’s a good one.”

“I want to do what’s best. Much of the basics I’ll donate. That’s the easy part.”

“You’ve got your work cut out for you.”

“I know. Win wasn’t a hoarder, but it’s amazing how much a person accumulates in a lifetime. Then, on top of that, you add in all the antiques and collectibles. How do you know what to do with them?” Beck scratched at his beard as if searching for the perfect answer to her question. “How do you determine the condition of an antique? Very fine? Fine? Good?”

Beck laughed. “Yeah, you’re going to need to talk to someone who has a clue about that kind of thing.”

“It seems like if they’re unique items and in good shape, someone would be interested in them.”

“Call an auction house. With all that you’ve got there, it might be your best bet.”

Letting out a sigh, Grace stepped toward the table and set her bottle down. “I planned to make some calls when I got back home this afternoon. I tried to focus, but I just couldn’t.”

“Why not? What’s going on?” Beck was at her side in a blink, his hand rested on her lower back. It was an intimate gesture she hadn’t expected.

“I ran into Marianne Strausberg at the market. She mentioned that no one had forgotten about what happened with my sister.”

“Hmm.” Beck’s fingers played along her back, stroking in a gentle pattern.

Bracing herself, Grace tilted her face upward. He was close enough that she could see the flecks of emerald floating in the lighter spring green. Close enough to kiss him.

“What do you think she meant? That everyone blames Caroline? Still?”

“I think people still remember the deaths of three of their own. I wasn’t here, Grace. But Mel talked about that day. So did her folks. It was a tragedy in everyone’s mind. But I’ve never heard anything that sounded like people blamed Caroline. More like the girls were distracted.”

Distracted?

Hell, yes, Grace was distracted, gazing at him. Standing close enough to breathe in his masculine scent, one of soap and clean man, one she was quickly associating with him. Her biggest distraction stroked her back with the gentlest of touches. And she wanted more.

Quickly, she cleared her throat and said, “That’s what my mom always believed. That Caroline took her eyes off the road, just for a moment, and everything went to hell.”

“Likely. But no one is ever going to know what really happened in the car that night.”

Years ago, talking about Caroline like this had sliced at Grace’s heart, leaving fresh, painful wounds each and every time. Nowadays, it simply reminded her of all she’d lost. But today, with Beck’s body so near hers, her heart beat wildly, reminding her of all that remained and all there was to live for.

The pressure of Beck’s hand at her back increased, and his gaze dipped to her lips. Kissing him had been at the forefront of her mind for several days, and it was happening. Right. Now.

“Dad! When will supper be ready?”

The bellow from the next room drew Beck’s head up, and he dropped his arm and took one step backward just as Piper raced into the kitchen and up to his side. He wrapped an arm around his daughter’s slight figure, and she cuddled against him.

Just one more second, and it would’ve happened. Grace caught her lower lip with her front teeth, considering how it would have felt.

“I’m hungry,” Piper announced.

“We don’t want to be rude. Let’s ask our company. Grace, are you hungry?” He lifted his eyebrows in a playful expression.

And she knew her expression said she was hungry for more than dinner at the Beckett house. So, she simply nodded.

“Well, then, let’s eat.” Beck pulled some items from the refrigerator and took two pans off the stovetop. “We’re having burrito bowls with chicken and cilantro lime rice.”

“Don’t worry, you don’t have to put onions on top if you don’t want to,” Piper said in a loud stage whisper.

“Good to know,” Grace whispered back, catching Beck’s eye as she stepped forward to grab the plate he offered.