“I was hoping you’d take my number.” Wasp sounded relieved and genuinely happy to hear from me, which made me feel all sorts of things I shouldn’t. “Is everything okay?”
“Um… yeah. But Trent and I were wondering if that offer to hang out today still stands.”
He hesitated. “Actually, something came up.”
After seeing the way barflies flung themselves at Wasp,somethingprobably meantsomeone. No doubt she was gorgeous and funny, and had given him her phone number the first time he’d asked for it. A surprising wave of jealousy washed over me, threatening to take me under. Why the hell would I be jealous when I couldn’t be with Wasp? I didn’t even want Wasp, and now he was evoking this weird emotion. Calling him had been a stupid idea. Forcing my smile to stay fixed on my face for Trent’s sake, I replied, “Okay, thanks anyway.”
I went to hang up, but Wasp shouted, “Wait! Carly? You still there?”
Putting the phone back up to my ear, I answered with a hesitant, “Yes.”
“I was going to say, I’m almost done checking my friend into rehab. Let me make sure he’s squared away, then I’ll come pick you both up. Glad I brought my Jeep today. Where are you guys?”
So, Wasp wasn’t with a woman after all. He was trying to help a friend get clean. I loved everything about that, way too much. Becca could have benefited from having a friend like Wasp, but she’d been saddled with me instead, and I’d abandoned her when she’d needed me most. Guilt threatened to drown me. I swam through it, taking a deep breath when I finally surfaced.
“We’re at a little sub shop across the street from the downtown YMCA,” I said. “There’s an ice cream shop about a block south of here. We’ll wait for you there.”
“I know the place. I’ll be there in about fifteen minutes.”
We hung up and I dropped my phone into my purse before looking up at Trent. The first smile I’d seen all day stretched across his face, lighting up his eyes. “Wasp is coming?”
I nodded, hoping I was doing the right thing. Trent’s smile was infectious, though, and I felt my own lips curve up in response. “We’re gonna hang out with him for a while.”
“Yay!” Trent punched the air so hard he bounced off his chair and almost fell.
We cleaned up our mess and headed to the ice cream shop to wait. Trent got ice cream, but my stomach was too unsettled for sweets. I was nervous. I’d actually enjoyed talking to Wasp last night, and that scared the crap out of me. I needed to reinforce my walls against this guy, but his very presence was a battering ram. And now I’d invited him into our lives…
Wasp pulled up in a blue Jeep, somehow getting a parking spot right in front of us. Trying not to look too interested, I watched out of the corner of my eye as he got out. Without his biker vest on, his tight T-shirt revealed every sexy pectoral and abdominal muscle known to man. Straight blond hair swept across his shoulder blades, and his jeans hugged the muscular curves of his legs.
Like some sort of Greek statue, Wasp’s body was a work of art.
His gait was commanding, powerful. Just his presence made me feel safer,andin so much danger that death was eminent. He immediately got the attention of the table of women beside me, and their low whispers of appreciation reminded me that he could have any woman he wanted. The bikers usually did.
Falling for him would only lead to tears, and I was sick and tired of crying.
“Wasp!” Trent shouted, jumping and waving to get his attention.
“Hey T-man. How the heck are you?” Wasp caught Trent midleap and pulled him in for a hug.
Trying not to get all mushy at the nickname he’d given my son, I stood. “Watch his ice cream,” I cautioned as the dripping cone closed in on Wasp’s beautiful bicep.
Too late. Trent pulled back his cone only to leave a melting blob behind. “Oops,” he said, wrinkling his face up. “Sorry.”
“Don’t sweat it. It’s just ice cream.” Wasp brought his arm to his mouth and licked it off. “Mm. Mint chip. One of my favorites.”
The two women sitting at the next table over whimpered. I understood completely, because my mouth was suddenly super dry, and the area between my legs was all hot and bothered.
Wasp gave me a smirk that said he knew exactly what he did to my body. What he did to the body of every woman within a ten-block radius. “Hey, Carly. You look nice.”
Knowing Trent and I would be going swimming, I’d thrown a floral off-the-shoulder sundress over my tankini and slipped on a pair of sandals. I’m sure my messy pool hair looked anything but nice, but I thanked him for his compliment and stood.
“Hurry and finish your ice cream so we can go,” I said to Trent. Belatedly, I remembered my manners and asked, “Do you want anything, Wasp?”
“No, thanks. I ate at the club. Do you have some sort of seat for Trent?”
His concern over my kid’s safety was like a wrecking ball, smashing against my defenses.
Trent’s own father had been awful about using car seats, always insisting that he was a safe driver. I caught him without strapping Trent in so many times I stopped trusting him to take our boy anywhere. I’d never understood why Robbie would take the chance when buckling a seatbelt took one second.
