If he didn’t kiss me in the next three seconds I planned to remedy that, but then his phone rang, startling us both. Clay pulled it from his pocket and frowned, tilting the screen so I could see. It was Parker.
23
___________
Clay
Of course, Lauren wanted to hear the conversation. It was like me talking to her dad while holding her all over again. Lauren’s breath on my neck was quite distracting, along with her hands resting on my lower back, but I tuned her out the best I could and answered, trying to sound casual.
“Hey, Parker.”
“Hey, where are you?”
I had to assume the question stemmed from him showing up at my house and not finding me there, or planning to go to my house, and in either case, I needed to decide where I was. “Running errands.” It was as close to the truth as I could give him right now. I had filled up my gas tank on the way over, and I was now on my most important errand of the day—spending as much time as possible with Lauren.
“So, I had this idea. I got these broken-down four-wheelers for a song, and I thought it might make a good little niche business if we actually rented these out. You know, going into recreational equipment in addition to construction equipment. But I’d need your help seeing what all this entails before I tell John or Lauren I bought them. You can only imagine the grief she’d give me. I’ve worked on these types of engines a little bit, but you’re better at cost and time breakdowns. I want to know the damage before I go into battle on this.”
Why couldn’t he just be asking to borrow money like a normal friend? I glanced at Lauren. She may have only caught half of what he said, but it was enough that her expression had turned wary. For the last little bit, we’d been living in a Clay and Lauren bubble, the type that could pop at any moment.
Well, I wasn’t going to make the same mistake that Noah idiot did. I had my priorities straight for once, and if there was anything I’d learned from hearing Lauren’s roommate storming in here, it was that you couldn’t please everyone, and if you tried, it was a sure way to please no one.
“I can’t today, Parker. But that does sound promising.”
“Not at all today? What’s going on?”
“I’ve sort of got a secret project of my own, and I can’t tell you about it yet. But maybe I can help you work on those tomorrow?”
“Crap. What do I do with the four-wheelers until then? I was hoping to hide them in your garage.”
Of course he was. I kept my garage clean and organized. It was something I was almost obsessive about. The last thing I wanted was a bunch of dead four-wheelers likely crawling with spiders parked in my space. Spiders loved the undersides of broken-down vehicles. You could almost hear their thinking.I’ll just live here since you’re never getting around to this.But compromises would have to be made.
“I have a key hidden in a fake rock behind the hibiscus bushes. Go put the four wheelers in my garage. But don’t make a mess, okay? How many did you buy?”
“Five.”
Five? I’d kill him later.
Lauren’s eyes widened, and I shook my head at her. I knew the lecture she was dying to give. Heck, I had it memorized. So did Parker, not that it did any good.
After I hung up, I dropped my phone on the bed and pulled her into me, hugging her tight. I wanted to kiss her so badly, but after her panic last night and the lackluster response she’d given to me telling her how I felt about her, I realized I needed to dial it in a little.
“You told him you had a secret project of your own,” she murmured against my throat. I held in a groan. Her lips were like heat-seeking missiles. Or maybe mine were, and I had to change their trajectory before I got myself in trouble.
“At some point we have to tell him,” I said, immediately regretting even saying that much. I felt her tense against me. “But not today. Let’s go. Are you driving or am I?”
It was the perfect question to get her moving. Lauren had an unholy love for her truck. She immediately ran for her keys while I gathered up what we’d need.
She helped me carry everything down, and once we loaded up, I hopped in the passenger seat of her truck and put my seatbelt on. As much as I’d enjoy a tug-o-war over making me wear it, I wanted to show her my guard was down. Today, I wasn’t Parker’s annoying friend who liked to tease his little sister. Today, I was boyfriend material.
“Contemplating the universe over there?” Lauren asked, before starting up her truck.
“Something like that.”
I paid attention to the route she took, trying to guess our destination, and I finally realized we were heading for Star Tower Park. I’d only ever been there once, to watch a friend’s soccer match years ago.
It was a good running spot. Mature trees for shade, grassy hills, and not too crowded. She parked on the far side, away from the playground and skate park. We were lucky to have a bit of a breeze today, making it cooler than it would usually be this late in April.
I hopped out and retrieved my bags from the back of her truck. Lauren came over and relieved me of several of them, taking the opportunity to study what I’d brought while we walked. She fingered the thick quilt in the top of one of the bags. “What’s this for?”
