Free Beautiful by Ella Bordeaux Page B

congratulations I’ve ever gotten.”
    Skylar’s face blushed. “Oh, that was just hello. I figured we could save congratulations for later.”
    My dick jumped in my pants. I knew she wasn’t talking about sex, but just the idea of her hands anywhere on my body caused an immediate reaction.
    I reached for her hand and called over my shoulder to Mitch and Michelle, “Behave, you two. We’re out of here.”
    Mitch wasn’t going to the stupid party Mike Barnes was throwing. He had a special night planned for Michelle. The less I knew, the better.
    As Skylar and I walked to my truck, hand in hand, I glanced over at Jacob. His eyes burned a hole straight through me. I hoped the asshole had seen the kiss, and it’d set him straight.
    Tomorrow, he and I were going to have a come-to-Jesus moment. There was no way we could continue to play together with how things had been left.
    “Did anything happen in the locker room? Mike Barnes walked by and made a comment to me.”
    My heart dropped. “What did he say?”
    She frowned as she looked up at me. “He said something about you and Jacob being in a cockfight.”
    Damn you, Mike.
    “It was nothing we can’t work out.”
    Not saying another word, we walked in silence the rest of the way to my truck.
    When I opened the door for her, Skylar stopped and faced me. “You don’t have to defend me, Wyatt. I’ve been doing fine this whole time.”
    I placed my hand on the side of her face. My heart warmed when she leaned into it. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for Skylar. I’d never felt this way before about anyone. “It’s hard to let people talk about someone you care about.”
    Her eyes lit up while a soft smile appeared. “I care about you, too. Wyatt, I need you to know that I’m not ready to take things…further.”
    “I need you to know that I’m not on a time schedule, Sky. Things will work out how they work out. I will never push you into anything you’re not comfortable with.”
    A single tear made its way down her cheek. I took my thumb and gently wiped it away.
    “I wish I had met you before…before…”
    My other hand cupped her face while I brought her eyes up to meet mine. “Do you know what I think you need?”
    “What?”
    “Dairy Queen.”
    Skylar busted out laughing. I quickly kissed her lips, dropped my hands, and motioned for her to get into the truck. Mitch had mentioned that, when Skylar was feeling down, he would take her to Dairy Queen. One Peanut Buster Parfait, and she would be much happier.
    Walking around the truck, I couldn’t help but notice Jenny staring. Why that girl couldn’t just drop things, I’d never know.
    Once I was in the truck, I looked at Skylar and smiled.
    “How did you know DQ was my weakness?”
    “Your brother.”
    She giggled and shook her head. “Wyatt, did you want to hang out with the team or anything? I mean, you know you don’t have to hang out with me.”
    I pulled out of the parking lot, and I reached for her hand. “Don’t be silly. Hanging out with you is my favorite thing to do.”
    We spent the rest of the night sitting in Dairy Queen, talking about everything.
    Skylar was still holding something back. I could see it in her eyes. I wanted desperately for her to trust me, but I wasn’t going to push.
    “Is there anything you’d like to do?” I asked as we walked out of Dairy Queen.
    With a shrug, Skylar looked around. I noticed she did that all the time. She was either nervous or worried that someone would see us together.
    “Want to go to our spot?” I asked.
    Glancing up at me, she grinned. “I did promise to congratulate you. I can’t stop thinking about how nice it feels when you kiss me.”
    My heart was pounding in my chest. Looking into her eyes, I took her hand in mine and brought the back of it up to my lips. “Who am I to deprive you of that?”

Skylar
    Wyatt had a way of making me laugh when all I really wanted to do was cry. After the whole encounter with Russell and