“When you confront people in the field before law enforcement arrives. You do it all the time. And sometimes it scares me.”
Eden was taken aback, and she scanned her memory. “I do that because I’ve had training, and because it puts distance between us and the creeps. Letting them know we’re not going to take their shit keeps both us and our patients safe.”
“Which is exactly what Beckett does on the ice. He’s had training too. And making sure the other teams know there will be consequences if they come down too hard on his players keeps everyone safer. You don’t bring your hostility home. You don’t confront random people in the streets. You certainly don’t turn your anger on those closest to you. So why do you assume Beckett will?”
She exhaled, crossed her arms, and stared at the floor. Tears stung her eyes. “I really like him,” she said softly. “And I’m really scared of that. I understand what you’re saying, but no numbers are ever going to make me feel safe when violence is a way of life for him. And maybe that’s a sign that I’m not ready.”
Tori shrugged. “Only you can decide.”
Eden recognized the look of pity on her face, and she couldn’t take it. She opened the bedroom door, and voices from the kitchen signaled shift change. She hiked her duffel over her shoulder, and Tori followed her into the front room, where Eden said good-bye to the two other EMTs in the kitchen.
Tori walked out front with Eden. “You have to be comfortable with your decision, but sometimes you also have to stretch your comfort zones a little.”
Eden sighed and shrugged, her mind already drifting to whether she should walk to Metro or catch a bus at the corner. She glanced toward the street to check traffic, and the sight at the curb pounded a stab of shock through her gut.
Beckett leaned on a car at the curb. Waiting.
Her heart kicked into a double beat. Fear tightened her gut and pulled at the muscles along her shoulders. Eden reflexively took a step back. She cut a look in every direction, taking in her surroundings and her quickest exits.
Tori stopped short next to her. “Is that—”
“Yes,” she nearly hissed the word.
Tori frowned. “Did you know—”
“No.”
“Dayum,” Tori said. “He’s way hotter in person.” Tori glanced at Eden, then turned to fully face her with narrowed eyes. “Eden, stop.” The bite in Tori’s voice cut into Eden’s rising panic. “Look at me.”
Eden tore her gaze from Beckett and focused on Tori.
“He is not John. He is a major public figure who would suffer horrible repercussions if he abused a woman. He’s here because he’s hot for you and because you didn’t answer his texts.”
Eden fought to clear the panic from her head.
“Breathe.”
Eden took a deep breath, feeling like she’d regressed years. “I’m okay.”
“Good, because if you look a little closer”—Tori’s grin returned along with a spark of excitement in her eyes—“you’ll see he’s leaning against a Porsche.”
She didn’t see a Porsche anywhere near Beckett, but now that Tori had knocked her head back into place, Eden was kinda focused on the smile lifting his full mouth. He pulled sunglasses off and tucked one arm of the shades into the collar of his Rough Riders jersey.
God, he looked great. So handsome and vibrant. Not a trace of the fury he showed on the ice. She never expected him to make this kind of effort to see her again.
He straightened away from an SUV but didn’t approach.
She needed to make a decision. She needed to tell him their one night was over and she didn’t want to see him again. Or… Or she had to actually try to give life more effort than a cursory one-night stand.
She swore under her breath.
Tori frowned at her. “How the hell did you ever get into bed with him?”
“Loneliness, desperation, and alcohol?”
Tori rolled her eyes, then turned and approached Beckett, hand held out. “I’m Tori.”
Beckett shook Tori’s hand. And his smile… His smile made Eden feel like she’d plummeted down the steepest slope of a roller coaster.