Free Coming Home to You (The Rockport Beach Series Book 1) by Claire Raye

you.” I swallow hard and choke back the feeling of
tears, but there’s no stopping them when his voice turns quiet and he says, “I’m
really proud of you.”
    I can’t look at him, so I head through the
door putting on a straight face, ready to start my day. Bella trots in ahead of
me and goes right for her usual spot behind the desk.
    As soon as I enter the lobby, there’s Erin
in that stupid chair, scowling at me. I forgot I was supposed to meet her this
morning for coffee.
    “Sorry,” I say, and she’s anything but
forgiving.
    “Nope, not today, girly. You know what
today was?” she demands. “I’ll tell you. It’s the day that the bakery starts
making those cream cheese filled muffins and I missed it. I missed it because
of your ass.”
    “I know, I’m so sorry. I swear I’ll make it
up to you. I’ll have a dozen delivered tomorrow morning and you and I can chat
and you can eat till your heart’s content.”
    She begins to cave a little and I smile at
her. “Fine,” she concedes. “But you have to promise—” Erin stops suddenly
and her eyes grow wide. When I turn around Beck is standing behind me and he
closes the distance between us and puts his hand on the small of my back. I can
feel the warmth through my shirt and when he slips his fingers under my shirt
and trails them against my bare skin, I feel like I’m on fire.
    “Erin,” I manage to choke out. “You
remember Beck, right?”
    Before I know it, Erin is yanking me by the
wrist, away from Beck’s hand and away from the overwhelming feeling that has
taken over. She pulls me into my office and slams the door.
    “Fuck the cream cheese muffins!” she
shouts. “Tell me you fucked him!”
    “Erin!”
    “What?” she asks sounding appalled. “You
failed to mention he was here and you also failed to mention that he looks like that now.” Erin shakes her ass a
little and opens her mouth letting out a moan. “I mean I kinda guessed
considering what Finn looks like, but oh my god. Time has been good to that
boy.”
    “Erin, I know you want all the details, but
I’m so late for work and I have a ton of shit to do today. I promise I’ll have
your muffins tomorrow and I’ll spill it all then, okay?”
    “Fine, but you never answered my question,”
she says slightly annoyed with my brush-off.
    “What question?”
    “Did you fuck him?”
    I laugh and shake my head and Erin seems
completely disappointed in me.
    “Why not?”
    “I don’t know because fuck, he looks
amazing, right?”
    “Totes,” she says as we both leave the
office.
    I re-introduce Beck and Erin and this time
it goes a little better, but Beck is strangely quiet. It’s been a long time
since they last saw each other, but that doesn’t mean I’m not nervous. At least
this time Beck keeps his hands to himself and Erin is, well, Erin. A little too
friendly, a little too loud and a little too crass, but what can I do?
    We don’t have much time for a reunion, so
Erin heads out and I get to work. After meeting with my day manager, I find out
that one of my maids has called in sick and three rooms need to be cleaned. I
might be the owner, but I’m not above this kind of work.
    I grab the maid’s cart from the closet,
along with a few clean sets of sheets and make my way to the rooms that need to
get done.
    I open the first room and push the cart
against the wall in the hallway. I begin to strip the bed, tossing the sheets
to the side as I feel Beck’s eyes trail along my body.
    I wasn’t expecting to be cleaning rooms
today, so I’m not dressed for it. My skirt begins to ride up and I have now
piled my hair on top of my head in a messy knot. I’m winded, so I take a break
and when I turn around, I can’t help but take him in.
    He’s leaning against the doorjamb with that
smile on his face, the one that makes my panties wet and my nipples strain
against my bra. My mouth falls open slightly and I wet my suddenly dry lips.
    Beck steps into the room and my