Page 52 of Keeping it Local

“Something that’s actually viable?” I didn’t want to get my hopes up if there was no way out of this mess.

“Not sure. Give me a couple days.”

I looked from him to Megan, then back again. I guess I’d have to wait.

“Okay. Appreciate it, man. Let me know.”

Lane asked what I wanted to eat, then walked away put in our breakfast orders. As he sat back down in the booth, we shot the shit for a while. I knew he was attempting to change the subject to something more lighthearted after the funding news, and I appreciated it.

He leaned in after finishing his food and cleared his throat. “So, how’s Beth doing? Keep seeing you guys together.”

I raised my eyebrows at him, smirking into my coffee. As much as he was a man of few words, he got into gossip like the rest of this town.

“Ugh. Yeah, about that.”

“Yeah, what?” he asked.

“I like her.”

“You said that before, but I thought you were just hooking up with her. Isn’t she leaving in a few weeks?”

I put my head in my hands. “Yeah, soon after the festival.”

“And?”

“And I have no idea what I’m going to do about it. We agreed to be casual. But…” I paused, cutting myself off.

He just looked at me with an unreadable expression.

“I told her about Anne. It actually felt good to tell her too. I don’t know, man. We have this connection.”

He huffed. “I have to say I’m more than a little surprised. Aren’t you the one who said you wanted to focus on your business and growing everything out, not wanting to get wrapped up with another woman who could, and I quote, ‘Cut you off at the knees?’”

“Yup. I said that.” I nodded, looking into my almost empty mug. “It’s hard to stick with that though when this feels different. I don’t know. Maybe I was being too quick to make a decision there.”

“Hey, you can do whatever you want.” Lane raised his hands at me. “I just want you to take care of yourself. And from my vantage point, Beth seems like a great girl, but she’s leaving. Doesn’t seem like a smart decision to try for anything more. But hell, what do I know?”

“We both know she’s moving back to Randall after the festival. No promises made, nothing like that. Just having fun.”

All I could think about was the feel of her soft body up against mine when we laid in bed together. The feel of her lips on mine, and the way she made my chest tight.

Lane nodded.

“Guess I should spend a bit more time focusing on the loan anyway. Don’t worry about me. It’s just a summer thing.”

And as I said that, I tried to convince myself it was true, even though she made me feel like things could have been different.

Chapter 20

Johnny

Beth’s dark hair blew in the wind as she skipped down the driveway and pulled open the door to my truck. She wore her signature cut-off jeans and a tank top, and as she smiled up at me, my chest grew tight. I didn’t want the heartache that I knew was coming, but I couldn’t pull myself away from her—not while she was still in Port St. Clair.

“Hey, boy,” she said, rubbing Oberon behind his ears as his tongue wagged out at her.

“Ready to roll?” I asked.

“Absolutely. I can’t believe I haven’t done this yet.”