In Rides Trouble (Black Knights Inc. #2)(71)

“The sex was wonderful, beyond wonderful,” she mumbled into the scarred surface of the table. “It was transhen-transcendent really.”

Transcendent sex. Another thing Eve couldn’t imagine. “So, then, explain the awful part.”

“The awful part happened this morning!” Becky wailed. “When I met the woman I thought was just a friend with benefits! But she’s not that. She’s so much more, and I think he must love her because they have a little boy together! Oh, God!” She buried her nose in the crook of her arm to stifle the sound of her hard sobs.

What? “Back up. Back way, way up. He’s in love with another woman?”

Becky nodded into her arm, sniffling loudly.

“Well then, I don’t understand what the heck he was doing having sex with you.”

“I sedush-seduced him, Eve,” Becky admitted tearfully, raising her head and blinking so quickly Eve knew she was having trouble focusing. “He came to my room to talk to me about some stupid reporter and I…I stripped.”

“What?”

“Yep.” Becky wiped her nose with the back of her hand again. “I just whipped off my sh-shirt and shorts and stood there in my birthday s-suit, all but daring him to walk away.”

“You stripped in front of him?”

“That’s what I just said.”

“I know. I know, it’s just…” Eve shook her head, having a hard time imagining anybody, even Becky, being that audacious. Wow. “Uh, okay. So you stripped in front of him, all but daring him to walk away, and I guess he…I guess he didn’t?”

“Nope.”

Yes, because what man would? Becky was lovely and, despite her chosen career, infinitely feminine. Plus she had that rebellious streak and a couple of tattoos, so she pretty much embodied that quintessential combination of good girl and bad girl that all men found irresistible…

“But he’s in love with someone else? Did you know about her?”

“Sort of.”

“What? What does that mean?”

“It means I knew he was seeing someone. He’s…he’s,” Becky hiccupped again and made a face of frustration at her body’s inability to control itself, “he’s been seeing her for a few years. But I figured it c-couldn’t be that serious. I figured maybe it was just a friends-with-benefits type deal, and hey, if that’s the case, why couldn’t that friend be me, you know? But then, as we were all waiting to see him after he came out of his shoulder surgery, I met her and she’s…she’s…” Becky buried her head in the crook of her arm again, muffling her voice. “She’s really beautiful, Eve. And nice. And funny. And did I mention he must love her because they have a s-son together? But I didn’t know. I swear I didn’t know or I never would’ve…How could I have known? He was supposed to list them with JSOC back when he was still with the Teams, but he didn’t!” When she looked up, her expression was devastated.

“What do you mean he was supposed to list them—”

“Doesn’t matter.” Becky cut her off. “What matters is that he has a son. And the little guy looks just like him, just like him.” In her mind’s eye, Eve saw a little boy with linebacker shoulders and a bevy of scars. “Well, he looks like Frank must’ve looked at about three or four. All rough and tumble with these huge, soulful gray eyes…”

“Geez Louise, Becky.”

“I know! And to make matter w-worse, come to find out Frank thought he was going to die today so…yep, that explains everything.”

“What?” Was it Eve’s imagination or had she been using that word a lot during this conversation?

“According to Michelle, that’s her name by the way, Michelle, just like that Beatles song, ‘Michelle ma Belle,’ and she is, Eve.”

“You aren’t making a lick of sense.”

“Belle. Pretty. She’s so pretty.”

“Becky, that hardly has anything to do with anything at this point.” Eve wasn’t sure if it was her level of drunkenness or Becky’s level of drunkenness, but this was one of the most difficult conversations she’d ever tried to follow. “Why did Frank think he was going to die today?”

“Oh yeah, uh…because he did once before.”

“Did what once before?”

“Die. Are you paying any attention to what I’m saying?”

“I’m trying.” Lord knows she was trying but—

“I guess he’s got some weird allergy or something, and he’s had a bad reaction to anesthesia before and ended up flatlining only to be brought back, so he convinced himself he wasn’t going to live through this surgery, which is why he…why we…oh, sweet Jesus!” Becky covered her face with her hands, choking on a sob.

Cheese and rice, and Eve thought her love life was a disaster…

“I’m going to have to quit, “ Becky said after a few minutes. “I can’t see him every day, know he’s sleeping down the hall from me and—” Her voice broke, but this time she didn’t give in to her grief, didn’t let another teardrop fall.

Leave it to Becky to only allow herself about ten minutes to fall to pieces before she started cementing herself together again. The woman gave new meaning to the phrase, “tough as nails.”