Page 57 of Love on the Run

Beau

Beau downed the last bit of coffee in his mug and glanced toward the bathroom. He should have known it would take Anna an hour to get ready to go snowboarding. The woman could do literally nothing and still look good. All the time she spent getting ready to go out was unnecessary.

His phone on the table beside his Bible lit up, flashing his sister’s name on the screen along with a smiling photo of her cuddling a fluffy brown chicken to her face.

He answered the call and sat on the couch that doubled as his bed. “What?”

“Good morning. How are you?” Olivia said in an oddly stern and professional tone.

Beau pulled the phone away from his ear. Yep. That was definitely his sister on the other end of theline. “I’m fine.”

“Do you have to sound like the Beast fromBeauty and the Beastwhen you say it?” she asked.

“What do you want?” Olivia wasn’t calling to check on him. She had an ulterior motive, and he didn’t like beating around the bush.

“I want to make sure you’re being good to Anna. How is she?”

“Fine.”

Happy.

Fun.

Annoyingly attractive.

Olivia paused before softening her tone. “She said you’ve been good to her.”

“Did you think I’d leave her at a truck stop or something? I wouldn’t be mean to her.”

“I know. I’m just… surprised.”

Shoot. Maybe he was a little on the rough side, but surely Liv didn’t think he’d be mean to Anna on this trip. His sister and everyone else he spent time with on a regular basis understood he just wasn’t the frills and bows kind.

Some called it abrasive. Some called it assertive. Some called him a grump or a jerk or other words that weren’t polite to use in mixed company, but he’d never cared what anyone else thought of him.

Until now. Until Olivia thought he might hurt Anna after she’d just found out her stupid fiancé was cheating on her on the morning ofher wedding.

“Why did you send me on this trip?” he asked. “Why’d you push for me to go?”

“Because I trust you, and despite what people say about you, you have a good heart.”

Beau pushed a hand through his hair, but his movements were restricted by the layers he was wearing. “Please don’t get sappy on me. I promised to protect her, and I’ll do that.”

“I know you will. But she could also use a friend.”

“I’m not a shoulder to cry on, Liv.”

“Just… be your usual, honest self. Okay? But be nice.”

“I am being nice.”

“What do you think about her?” Olivia asked.

Nope. Not going there. “I don’t think about her.”

Olivia hummed. “I think you’re lying.”

Whatever. He didn’t care if she knew he was lying. This conversation wasn’t happening. “I have to go.”

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