I do have to admit that I would sooo rather walk on the beach tonight. I love my family, but I’m not in the mood for a crowd tonight. Surf and starlight sound like heaven.”
“I could kidnap you,” Trevor offered.
“My uncle and Landon would hunt you down,” she laughed. “We’ll do it sometime soon. I promise.”
“I’ll sweep you off your feet yet, sugar. Just wait,” he threatened.
“You don’t have a big enough broom, Trev. These feet are firmly planted,” Becki said lifting her leg to put one foot on the dashboard and wiggle her painted toenails.
“Doll;” Trevor drawled, “my ‘broom’ is more than big enough. I’ll be glad to demonstrate--anytime you say the word.”
Laughing Becki straightened in her seat and said regretfully, “You had better take me back Trev, I still have to get ready. I haven’t seen the girls for a few days, so I want to spend some time with them before dinner. Since they always seem to run away somewhere right after we eat, I need to corner them before the food is ready. I guess hanging with us is just not cool enough anymore. Oh, to be that age again.”
“Yes, because you are soooo old,” Trevor teased.
Leaning her head back and turning to watch the scenery outside the passenger window, Becki said softly, “Some days I feel old, Trev, old and tired.”
“Come on doll, what’s up? Talk to me.”
“Nothing really. Today has been one of those days. I just--” Becki took a deep breath, and heaved a heavy sigh. “I don’t understand it, so I can’t begin to explain it to anyone else. I just seriously wish I didn’t have to put on my happy face and do this thing tonight with my family.”
When he had spotted Becki with one of the ART members earlier, his heart sank. How in the hell had she managed to get hooked up with St. John? They had seemed pretty cozy, but Trevor was willing to place money on the fact that Becki’s melancholy mood was directly related to the scene earlier. He had been surprised when she asked him to give her lift and even more surprised when she had practically jumped into the car.
Becki embodied everything a man could ever wish for: an enthusiastic zeal for life, ingrained honesty, goodness, and sexy as hell. Becki was the type of woman who made a guy believe in white picket fences.
Trevor loved to hear her laugh, and see her eyes sparkle with joy at the simplest things. In contrast, those things had no place in his life; he merely existed. His life was a lie. He wasn’t honorable. Truthfully, he did not deserve to breathe the same air as Becki. He hoped that he could track down the coin, keep her from getting hurt in this tangled mess, and get out of town before she found out how undeserving he was of her friendship. The coin was his main concern, and he needed to get on with it.
Trevor had just missed the coin in Savannah, but had managed to stumble onto evidence pointing toward Charleston as the new location of the coin. He had scouted around the city for a while and then decided to take a drive to blow the cobwebs away. A few miles from town, he had stopped at a local pub for a sandwich and drink.
Becki was waiting tables that day, and he immediately fell in love with her big chocolate brown eyes, dimpled smile, and infectious laugh. She had walked over to take his order and whispered that the ‘Reuben was the safest bet’ because their cook had called in sick that day.
Trevor had closed his menu and immediately ordered the Reuben. They had ended up having a drink at the close of her shift, and she was now the closest thing to a friend he had ever known. Still, his mission was to recover the coin, and he had orders to eliminate anyone who got in the way-- friend or foe. Not that he would personally take care of the deed. Trevor drew the line at taking a life, human or otherwise.
“So, your mystery man is just passing through?” Trevor prompted.
“Here on business, something about finding missing coins. He acts like it is such a big important thing; he’s so secretive about it. Do you remember hearing about a coin collection that got stolen a few years ago?”