Bet on It (62)

Not that her words weren’t comforting, but Walker hadn’t been seeking them. He wasn’t entirely sure why he’d shared this with her. Maybe seeing the baby photos had gotten his emotions high and acknowledging the why of it had lessened the pressure in his head. Maybe he just … wanted to be open with her. Wanted her to know parts of him that weren’t always easy for him to access himself. It had probably been a bit of both. He didn’t tell her everything. Couldn’t really. There was only so much of himself he could cut open and flay at a time while still managing to have enough left behind to stand upright.

Even if some tiny part of him wanted to keep going, he stopped himself. It was supposed to be a good afternoon. Warm and sunny and celebratory. And as dark as his mood had gotten, he didn’t want to darken more. His time with Aja had become precious to him and he wanted it to be filled with good, happy things.

“It’s … it’s not a big deal.” He rasped through his lie.

“Of course it is.” She rubbed her thumb across the warm skin of his upper arm, and his eyelids drooped.

Walker shook his head, trying desperately to gain some control of the moment. “It’s in the past,” he insisted. “I’m … I’m a grown man. I’m over it. I should be over it.”

“Walker, it’s not—”

He shook his head, pulling away again, still seeking control. “Aja, please. I promise it’s fine. I’ve had enough days in my life ruined by the Abbott family mess, I’m not tryin’ to add this one to the list.”

Her smile was kind but still full of too much sadness for his liking. “You haven’t ruined anything.”

She was lying, but he was so eager for the moment to be over that he plastered a smile on his face. “Anything else you want to do in here before we join the masses? I could reveal the incredibly humiliating story of how I lost my virginity, maybe? Since I’m dead set on embarrassing myself in front of you.”

“Walker, this just makes us even.” She finally took her eyes off him, and he let out a breath. “I’d like to do a little more snooping, actually. I’m still not over how wild this room is.”

Walker barked out a laugh that was much too loud and shakier than he’d intended. “Snoop away, Peaches.”

She let her feet carry her down the length of the wall, looking at all the photos. Once she reached the end she kept going, her fingers dancing over the large built-in bookshelves that took up the wall to the right of the mayor’s desk.

“It’s really cool in here.” She pulled a book out of its place, looking at the cover and turning it face up before sliding it back in.

Walker watched her, his eyes hungry to take in every move she made. The way her thighs flexed when she stood on her toes to fiddle with a trinket, the way her eyes danced like she was discovering something new. He was unabashed in his staring. If he was going to be without her soon, he was going to get his fill.

“If you think this is cool, you should see the shelves they have in the sitting room next door,”

Her eyes lit up. “Can we go in there?”

“You’re tryin’ to get me in trouble.…”

“If we get caught, we can say we were looking for the bathroom. Plus, we can be quick, in and out, I promise. I just want to see.”

He had no intention of denying her but left her hanging in anticipation for a few seconds. He loved the hopeful look on her face too much to let it slip by.

“All right.” He held his hand out and she took it easily, linking their fingers. “Come on.”





Chapter 20


The mayor’s sitting room had a type of old-school opulence that bordered on downright gaudy. Completely separated from the other living areas, it was the type of place where the men retreated after dinner parties to “talk business” and gossip. There was a large wood-burning fireplace topped with a giant portrait of Greenbelt’s founding mayor. The couches were largely ornamental, all dark wood and red patterned upholstering. There was even a chandelier, glittering gold, hanging in the center of the room. Aja didn’t appear to care about the sparkly trinkets or excess; the only thing she seemed interested in was the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves covering nearly every inch of wall space in the room.

“You must really love books.” Saying it felt ridiculous, but it was the only thing that came to mind as he watched her survey their surroundings.

“No,” she stammered. “I mean … kind of. I definitely don’t read often enough to call myself a regular reader but … I kind of have this thing about bookshelves. I like seeing how people decorate them, what they put there, how they’re organized. I can’t really explain it. It’s just really cool knowing that all these books were somewhere else once. That they were picked out specifically to be read and kept according to someone’s particular tastes.”

He looked around at the hundreds of books that filled the room. She was right—it was cool as hell to think about.

Instead of rushing her out of the house and back to their spot under the tree, he decided to give her a few minutes. Everyone was distracted anyway, so it wasn’t like anybody would be looking for them. As long as they stayed quiet in the sitting room, no one would suspect a thing. He sat down on the largest couch, surprised when it was more comfortable than he’d expected. He spread his thighs some, his arms splaying out over the back.