Third Wheel

Bingo fic #7!!

You’re going out with Curt, finally trying to move on from your crush on Beau Arlen. But guess who shows up uninvited? Written for @jacklesversebingo - the prompt for this one was ‘Ruined First Date.’ Hope you enjoy!

Pairing: Beau Arlen x Reader

Word Count: 3757

Warnings: Nothing but some mild smut 😉

You remove your jacket and hang it over your arm as you wait near the entrance of the restaurant. It’s one of the more elegant places in Helena – not big city elegant, but at least it doesn’t have a pool table and jukebox. Your date, Curt, had dropped you off at the door, since it was drizzling rain outside, so points for him on being considerate. It’s your first date with him, and you don’t really know him well, so it’s nice to know he has that going for him.

Curt is an attractive guy – dark hair, glasses, brown eyes, a nice smile. He’s not panty-dropping gorgeous like… You sigh, aiming a stern mental ‘Stop it!’ at yourself. You are deliberately going out with someone to stop thinking about the one you can’t seem to stop thinking about, even though you know you need to stop thinking about him. Beau Arlen.

You met him through your friends, Jenny and Cassie, almost a year ago. Jenny works with him at the Sheriff’s office – he replaced former Sheriff Tubbs – and Cassie has been buddies with him since he moved to Montana, after she helped him fix his Jeep. And, of course, she works with cops in her private investigator job. So your little group had begun to include him when you went out for drinks, or out to eat, or hung out to watch movies. And he’s been the bane of your existence ever since.

Beau is absolutely the most attractive man you’ve ever, well, been attracted to. He’s a tall, lean, bowlegged Texas dream, with the drawl to match. His eyes are the most beautiful shade of green, almost always lit up with humor or mischief, with long lashes and the most adorable crinkles at the corners when he smiles or laughs. That smile – it’s nothing short of stunning, his lips have starred in so many of your fantasies, and Denise (Cassie’s assistant) is not lying when she gushes about how well he fills out his Wranglers.

And there you go again, getting lost in thoughts about that – that man. He has always been flirty and charming with you, but to be honest, that seems to be his default. Because he has never asked you out, or made any kind of attempt to take things further with you than friendship. And you have finally decided it’s time to try and get over the crush you’ve had on him since day one. It’s not going anywhere, and dreaming about him only gets you frustrated and your batteries worn out.

Curt walks in just then, and you shoot him a bright smile. “Still waiting?” he asks, and you nod.

“The hostess must be busy,” you answer, and she appears as if by magic at your words.

“I’m so sorry, we had a little crisis, sorry to keep you waiting,” she gushes, and leads you to your table.

She has you seated and supplied with water and menus in a matter of seconds, takes your drink order and leaves you to cover your first-date jitters by focusing on the menu.

“I haven’t been here before – how is their steak?” you ask, and Curt smiles.

“The sirloin is always good.”

A waitress shows up with your drinks, and you take a swallow of your beer, glad for something to occupy you for even a few seconds. “That sounds great.” You give the waitress a smile and your order, and you try to think of something to say when she leaves. Ugh, dating is so awkward.

After a few minutes, you and Curt have settled into a casual conversation, finally relaxing a little. You’re in the middle of answering a question when a familiar voice interrupts you. “Well, look who you run into when you’re not even lookin’.” You look up, and there he stands – Beau. “Hey, darlin’,” he says, bending to kiss you on the cheek – he has never done that before. He sticks out his hand towards Curt. “Sheriff Beau Arlen.”

Curt introduces himself while you force your mouth to close and try to gather yourself. What is he doing?

“Y’all don’t mind if I join you, do ya?” he asks, not waiting for an answer as he pulls out a chair and plops himself down. “I was supposed to meet a buddy of mine for steaks and beers, but he just called and said he had to cancel. And you know how I hate to eat alone,” he says, flashing you a grin. You have no idea what your expression is saying, but Curt looks completely confused about what exactly is happening.

You are trying to compose yourself, and to keep from punching Beau in his very attractive nose. In the meantime, the oblivious idiot has motioned at the waitress, babbling on like everything is completely normal. He orders a steak dinner for himself, then adds, “We need some appetizers here, maybe some of those jalapeno poppers? All right with you guys? Put a little spice in your life?”

“Don’t think I have to worry about that with you around,” you retort, and Beau looks at you with a kind of sheepish smirk, which morphs into a smile that makes your heart jump a little.

“You look amazing. That dress really brings out the color of your eyes,” he says, and for a second you feel like you’re the only two in the room. But then he turns back towards your date, (who is sitting there with an expression that clearly says ‘wow, I should have been the one to say something like that’) aiming the conversation his way again. “So, Carl, you already know about me, what do you do?”

“It’s Curt,” your date responds.

“Oh, yeah, right – sorry,” Beau answers and you let your eyes close for a second, debating kicking him under the table.

Curt launches into his ‘I’m an investment banker’ monologue, which you’ve already heard once – thanks again, Beau – but at least it’s not awkward silence. Your date is nice enough, but he does seem to be a little self-involved. Of course, you haven’t had the chance to get past that impression and get to know him a little better, since you’ve been invaded by a third wheel. Then Curt looks at you and asks, “So, how did you two meet? He didn’t have to arrest you, right?” He’s trying to lighten the atmosphere, and you laugh a little, but before you can speak, Beau launches into a story about meeting you at the bar with the girls. Curt smiles a little woodenly and looks to Beau, trying to be polite and listen.

Your food arrives, along with the appetizers, and you’re thankful for some kind of interruption. You all dig in, a few comments about the food, and you are thinking this is going to be the longest night in the history of nights. You are burning with the desire to unload on Beau about his rude interruption and his constant yammering, but you have to keep sitting there, eating and smiling and pretending everything is fine.

Beau has just started telling a story about some random case he had in Texas when Curt’s phone rings, and he excuses himself from the table to go towards the entrance where he can hear and have privacy. You glare at Beau, taking a deep breath and gearing up to light into him when he puts his hand over yours and speaks quietly.

“I know right now you wanna shoot me with my own gun, but I have a good reason for being here.” He draws his hand back and you clamp your mouth shut as Curt returns, standing next to you as he stuffs his phone into his pocket.

“I’m sorry, but I have an emergency at work that I’ve got to go deal with,” he says, putting a hand on your shoulder. “We’ll have to go.”

Beau cuts in, looking at you as he speaks. “I can take you…” Your glare snaps his jaw shut. You stand up and grab your jacket, and Beau speaks up again as Curt reaches for his wallet. “Curt, I kinda invited myself, so – it’s my treat.”

Curt thanks him, and you both turn to leave. You don’t say anything else to Beau. He’ll be calling you later, you’re sure of that.

You’re both quiet on the drive back to your house, and Curt pulls into the driveway to drop you off. “Sorry about cutting things short. Rain check? Maybe just the two of us next time?” he asks, and you smile.

“Sure. Sorry about – whatever was going on with him. He’s not normally quite that clueless.” You say your goodnights, and he leans over to brush a kiss on your cheek before you get out of the car. He’s pulling out before you’re at the door, and you can’t help but think that when Beau drops you off, he always waits to make sure you’re inside safely before he leaves. You sigh in irritation at yourself and go inside.

About a half an hour later, you’re sitting on the couch with a glass of wine when there’s a knock at the door. Okay, so he figured this deserved an apology in person, apparently. You uncurl yourself and go to the door, kicking your discarded shoes out of the way so Beau doesn’t trip on them on his way inside. You open the door and look up at him, and he looks like he’s shown up for a beating. “So, am I still allowed to come inside?” he asks. You stare back at him for a couple of seconds, then step back, opening the door wide to let him walk past you and closing it behind him.

“There’s beer in the fridge,” you say, and he nods, heading to the kitchen as you take your place back on the sofa. He comes back, sitting down near you and taking a long pull from the bottle before setting it on the coffee table.

“So, how much trouble am I in? Do you want me to explain now, or should I just shut up and drink my beer?”

“You said there was a good reason. I’m dying to hear it.” You look at him, your irritation clear on your face, and you can see him struggling for words as he stares at the floor. He blows out a breath, then looks you in the eye.

“I’m really sorry, but Curt is gonna be arrested tomorrow by the feds. Embezzlement and a whole lot of other charges, and they’re not fishing – they’ve got piles of evidence.” Your anger is changing quickly into shock, and he reaches over to take hold of your hand. “When we were leaving work tonight, Jenny told me you had a date. I asked her who, and when she told me – I just couldn’t let it go. The feds called our office this afternoon to let me know about the arrest, in case something goes wrong or they need help, normal procedure. And when Jenny told me his name, I knew I had to do something.” He gives your hand a squeeze. “I figured it’d be better for you to be pissed off at me instead of getting attached to somebody that’s going to prison, probably for a good long stretch.”

“Wow.” That’s all you can manage to say at the moment, still trying to absorb the news.

“You okay?” he asks, a concerned frown on his face as you look over at him. When you burst into laughter, his eyebrows shoot up and he slowly starts to smile as you struggle to speak.

“Okay, this…” You can hardly talk, you are laughing so hard you have tears in your eyes. “This has got to be a record for the world’s worst first date.” Beau can’t help laughing along with you, it’s contagious. You finally quiet down, wiping your eyes and leaning back against the couch. “So I guess I should thank you for being the most obnoxious third wheel ever.” You laugh again a little as you go on. “And he asked me for a rain check.”

Beau grins. “Well, I suppose a prison visit could be a date.”

“Yeah, I don’t think so,” you say, taking a drink of your wine. Beau is still holding your hand, and you don’t pull it away. He nervously traces a pattern on the back of your hand with his thumb, then speaks a little hesitantly.

“So, can I be real honest with you?”

You smile up at him. “Of course, always.”

“Okay. Well, here goes.” He clears his throat before he continues. “So, when Jenny told me you were going out tonight, I kinda wanted to break it up even before I knew about what’s-his-name. I’ve been wanting to ask you out for a while now, just hadn’t got the nerve up, and when she told me, I thought maybe I just waited too long.” He looks back at you from his perch on the edge of the sofa, and

the expression on his face makes your breath stutter. “So did I?”

You can’t think for a minute, blurting out, “What?”

“Did I wait too long?”

You stare at him, dumbstruck for a moment, before shaking your head as you squeeze his hand. “No.”

“I was really hoping you’d say that,” he says, and he moves in slowly, leaning close to kiss you, a barely-there brush of his lips on yours. Then he settles in for another, a tender exploration that has you almost dropping your wine glass. He pulls back, laughing softly as he takes it from your hand and sets it on the table next to his beer. “Now, let’s try that again.” You smile, your eyes shining at him as you wrap your arm around his neck and bring him close.

He sits back on the couch and pulls you over, and you tuck your knees up on either side of his hips, his arms wrapped around you as you continue to kiss. His hands are warm through the thin fabric of your dress, and you can feel him getting hard underneath you. You part for a moment, he looks up at you with those amazing eyes, and you know you are lost forever. “So, I should probably go,” he says quietly as you brush the hair back from his forehead.

“What? Why?”

He ducks his head with a self-conscious little smile. “I didn’t bring any protection. Kinda figured the only protection I was gonna need tonight was from you throwin’ things at me.”

You laugh softly, still touching his face, fingers combing over his well-trimmed beard. “First of all, you were never in danger of physical harm. Well, I did think about punching you or kicking you under the table a couple of times, but other than that…” He’s smiling up at you, that twinkle in his eyes that you love so much. “And second of all, I’m on birth control and I’m perfectly healthy. I’m good if you are.”

“Yeah?” he asks hopefully, and you smile down at him before pressing a soft kiss to his lips.

“Yeah.”

He kisses you again, then backs up to look into your eyes. “You sure?”

You sigh with mock frustration. “Beau Arlen. Do you want to have sex with me or not?”

His lips are working to prevent the grin that’s fighting to surface. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Oh, thank god,” you laugh, moving from his lap and standing to reach out your hand. The two of you go to your bedroom, and he sits down on the bench at the foot of your bed to pull off his boots. When he stands and turns around, you are hanging your dress over a nearby chair, and he just looks at you, his lips parted, his eyes taking you in.

“I said you look amazing in that dress, but damn, you look gorgeous out of it. C’mere, darlin’.” You’re cheeks are warm as you come closer, your eyes focused on his shirt and the snaps holding it closed.

“You know, I’ve always wanted to do this,” you say, taking hold of each side of his shirt and giving it a hard yank, popping all the snaps free at once as you laugh at his surprise. “That was very satisfying,” you say with a mischievous grin, and he can’t help but answer back with one of his own.

“You want satisfied? I think we can do better than that,” he says as you shove his shirt off his shoulders, and he shakes it free from his arms before pulling you in for a kiss that sends a wave of heat through your entire body. Then he stops, turning you around and unclasping your bra before he plants one large, warm hand flat against your chest to hold you close to his body, his other pulling the garment free and tossing it aside before he wraps his arm around your waist. He can feel your heart pounding beneath his palm as he lets it drift down, exploring the soft curves of your breasts and brushing over your nipples as you shiver at his touch. “So much better than I imagined,” he whispers, and you let your head drop back against his chest.

“You’ve been imagining this? Us?” you ask breathlessly as he catches a nipple between two fingers and tugs gently.

“Yeah. For a long time.”

You twist in his hold and turn to face him, standing on tiptoe to wrap your arms around his neck, your lips touching his as you whisper, “Me, too.” Then you kiss him, nipping gently at his bottom lip. He groans softly, hefting you up to his waist and walking you towards the bed as you wrap your legs around his hips.

He lowers you down to the bed, still kissing you, working his way from your lips, along your jaw, and down your neck before he stands. He finishes stripping down as you rid yourself of your panties, kicking them off and scooting over to the middle of the bed. By the time Beau is naked you have wrestled the covers and bedspread out of the way, and he wastes no time moving back over you and settling himself between your legs.

His lips and the brush of his soft beard against your skin send shivers down your spine, and his teeth nibbling at your pulse point make you moan, your need for him growing with every second. He glides a hand along your side, over your hip, smoothing down the length of your thigh until he can tuck his hand behind your knee and raise your leg to wrap around his waist. He is rutting his hard cock gently through your slick folds, the head bumping rhythmically against your clit, and you can’t take any more. “Beau – I want you,” you whimper softly, and he responds by crushing your lips beneath his, stealing your breath away with a searing kiss.

“Want you, too,” he mumbles against your lips, reaching down to line himself up and beginning a slow, sweet penetration that has you teetering on the edge. Your legs are trembling as he enters you fully, a low groan that you can feel vibrating in his chest as he presses hot kisses to your neck. “Damn, you feel amazing,” he whispers, beginning to rock slowly into you, and you wrap your arms around him, your fingers digging into the muscle of his back.

You lift your other leg, running your foot down the back of his thigh as he begins to ramp up his thrusts. His kisses are driving you crazy, your nails leaving deep crescents in his skin as you clutch at him desperately, your hips rising to meet his every stroke.

He moves suddenly, pulling you up against his chest as he leans back to rest on his knees. You let out a soft cry as he pierces you a little deeper, and he latches onto the slope of your neck to suck a mark into your soft skin. You grind against him, legs trembling with effort, the impending explosion of your orgasm quickly reaching its peak.

“Uhhhh, fuck,” he growls out as you come, and then he’s crushing you against his chest as you pull him along with you. He drives up into you hard and fast, coming with a long, hoarse groan as you cry out his name. You slowly relax in his arms, whimpering softly when he finally cradles you close and lowers you both back down to the bed.

You come out of the bathroom a little while later, tying the belt of the short, silky robe you normally put on after a shower. Beau is stretched out on the bed, the sheet covering him from the hips down, one arm draped over his stomach and the other still laid out, inviting you to come back and snuggle. His eyes are closed, so when your stomach growls, you decide to head to the kitchen for a snack without waking him.

You reach the bedroom door and his voice stops you. “Where you goin’?” You turn to face him with a smile.

“I’m hungry. Didn’t get to eat much of my steak tonight. I have some leftover pizza in the fridge I was gonna warm up in the oven – want some?”

He stretches, and you watch in appreciation. “Yeah, that sounds great. Didn’t eat much of mine, either. I was too worried about how mad you were at me.” You shake your head with a soft laugh. “I’ll be there in a minute.” You nod, and continue on your way.

You’re just bending over to slide the pizza pan into the oven when Beau walks into the kitchen in his boxer briefs. You close the oven door, and before you can turn around, he wraps his arms around your waist, his face tucked into your neck. “Hey, sweet girl – how you doin’?” That low Texas drawl melts you inside like butter in the sun, and you lean back against him, moaning softly at his lips on your neck.

You turn, putting your arms around him to smile up at him. “I’m good. So good.”

“Yeah. Me, too.” He kisses you, one hand cradling the side of your face and the other slipping under the neck of your robe, fingers tracing patterns on your shoulder. You are good – better than you’ve been in months.

Definitely the best worst first date ever.