by T Gephart
“I wish I could, but I can’t.” His lips moved back to my neck before shaking his head. “I left a bit of a situation last night and I need to make sure it’s squared away. My phone has been blowing up all morning, and if I don’t answer it soon Riley will probably send out a uniform to find me.”
We hadn’t really spoken about his night when he’d called. I knew he’d been out at a club, and he’d said he’d been with friends. But other than those sketchy details, I had no idea what he’d been doing. Hell, not sure I remembered much other than being a big ball of emotions. Then there was mind-blowing sex when we got to my place.
“Was something wrong? You know you didn’t have—”
“Stop that.” His finger rested on my lips. “I absolutely had to see you last night. And it wasn’t only the right choice, but the best choice. For me, Hayden. I wanted to be with you. And the guys had it handled, but I need to check in this morning.”
It was hard not to believe him, his eyes so intense and decisive that I didn’t know if Mack was capable of doing something he didn’t want to. So leaving his friends, and being with me, had most definitely been his choice.
“Is it Quinn and the baby?” I asked, still not knowing what the emergency was.
“Nope. If it was Quinn and the baby, Riley wouldn’t have been so patient.” He kissed my shoulder before sitting up. “One of my other guys, Tibbs. His sister Presley has an ex-boyfriend, who on top of being an asshole, isn’t very smart. We were at her club last night making sure he didn’t turn up and start trouble.”
There was so much in that, I wasn’t even sure how to process. And sadly—because I’m clearly messed up—was wondering what kind of club. If maybe Presley was a stripper. Surely her brother wouldn’t have been sitting in the audience if she—“Was she hurt?” I finally asked a logical question, and what I should have been most concerned about.
“No, he broke in when she wasn’t home. She’s tough, and can handle herself, but we don’t like to leave that shit to chance. And Tibbs isn’t the kind to let someone mess with his sister and let it go. Not that I blame him, and off the record, I’d do the exact same thing.”
He didn’t even have to tell me the last part, knowing exactly the kind of man he was. I had no doubt that if anyone hurt someone he loved, he’d tear them limb from limb. And as much as I hated to admit it, I was a little jealous of Presley. Not sure I’d ever had one person willing to do that for me, and she had a whole team.
“Coffee. I’ll make you coffee then.” I pushed down the covers and got out of bed. As much as I wanted to selfishly keep him, he was too kindhearted to turn his back on a friend in need. And I didn’t want to be the reason he started. “Get dressed and I’ll get the coffee started.”
He leaned forward, stopping me from getting too far. “Don’t forget about tonight. We still have plans.”
“Of course. 90’s night. Club Retro. I promise I will be there.” I crossed my heart, not needing the reminder. I couldn’t think of a better way to spend my night, probably spending the rest of my day counting down the hours like a lovesick fool.
He nodded, letting my arm go. “Good, I better go get my clothes and my phone.”
Like it had been summoned, a faint ringtone echoed from my living room. I assumed it had been in his pocket, discarded with the rest of his clothes when we walked in and attacked each other like animals. Not that I was mad, happy my night had ended as amazing as it did. I probably had a few missed calls myself, Penny probably looking for the scoop with my Uber driver.
“Better go get that.” He winked, planting his feet on the floor and walking out of my bedroom completely naked. I’d probably do the same if I had his body, silently wishing I had that kind of confidence. The light of day didn’t do wonders for my jiggly bits, settling for only getting half-dressed and shoving a long sleep shirt over my head before heading out to make coffee.
He’d pulled on his boxer briefs, scrolling through his phone when I emerged. I could get used to that view giving him a playful wolf-whistle as I walked past. “It’s even more impressive in the daylight. Seriously, Mack, your body is crazy.”
“So that’s why you’re with me.” He chuckled, picking up his pants and putting them on. “Glad I know where I stand.”
“Yep, just the body.” I lied, heading to the kitchen and turning on my coffee machine. I let him finish getting dressed, hearing him go into my bathroom while I waited for the coffee to brew. It had just finished when I felt the weight of his stare on me, turning to see him leaning against the counter, watching as I reached for a cup.
“Okay so this is probably a terrible idea.” His eyes fixed on mine. “But how would you feel about coming with me?”
I froze mid task, the gurgling of the coffee pot reminding me why I had a cup in my hand. “With you? Where?”
“To check on Tibbs and Leighton, make sure neither of them is in a holding cell somewhere. Look, I know the idea of tagging along while I run errands sounds terrible, and as far as being fun, it probably won’t be. But the last time you left before we got to have breakfast, and this time, I’m doing it. It just doesn’t sit right with me. I’m hoping we can get something on the way. And while it’s not the romantic morning after you deserve, I’ll feel less like a low life.”
He was adorable and thoughtful, and I wasn’t sure what to feel. “Mack, you couldn’t be a low life if you tried. But I’m sure you need to go soon and I’m—” I looked down at my sleep shirt, thankful I couldn’t see the disaster that was my hair. “It will take me a while before I’m ready to leave.”
“Why? Just put on some clothes and we can leave. I can wait a few minutes.” He looked genuinely perplexed why it would take so long. Like we were all blessed like he was, and could throw on yesterday’s clothes and look great.
“Mack, I’m going to be meeting people you work with and your friends for the first time.” I poured the coffee, needing a strong hit of it myself. “It’s gonna take a little more than a couple of minutes.”
He shook his head. “Just answer me this. Do you want to come? Or not?”
“Of course I want to come. As tragic as it is to admit, I don’t want you to leave. Even though I know I’m seeing you tonight. But if you don’t have time for breakfast, you won’t have time for me to get ready. And I don’t want to make you late.” Or turn up looking like a hot mess and have your friends wonder what the hell you’re doing with me, I didn’t finish out loud.
I had no idea what feelings I had for Mack. If it was infatuation, or appreciation or I was just so drunk from so many orgasms I couldn’t see straight.
But I liked him.
I liked him more than I wanted to.
So naturally I cared what his friends thought of me, and wanted to make a good impression. Surely that wasn’t such a hard concept to understand.
“Hayden.” He moved closer, taking the cup out of my hands and resting it on the counter. “I don’t want to leave either. And if we both can agree on that, then go get ready and come with me. I’ll wait.”
It was tempting to argue, or just be honest and tell him that I didn’t have time to make myself look the way I wanted to. But part of me didn’t want to, instead push those feelings to the side for a minute and just go.
I wanted to go with him.
Wanted to spend the day together, and as much as I wasn’t ready to meet his friends, it was either get over it or sit at home by myself. And if I could remember back to the last fifteen or twenty years, there was a time I wouldn’t have even thought twice. I’d have met his friends just wearing the sleep Tee I had on and not cared what they thought.
God, I missed that girl.
“Okay, but I’m going to need a few minutes. I promise I’ll go as fast as I can but I’m not walking out of here with unbrushed hair and morning breath.” I pushed playfully against his chest. “And clothes. Proper clothes, so if it’s going to take too long, you should probably leave now.”
He laughed, “Not leavi
ng. Go get ready and I’ll get myself the coffee you promised me.”
I ran to the bathroom, trying to tame my hair while brushing my teeth. It didn’t look good. My night of reckless abandon didn’t help my cause, my rebellious curls giving Medusa a run for her money. Doing the best I could—with some anti frizz serum and a heated styling brush I bought from a Facebook ad—I threw on some foundation, a lashing of mascara, and some lip gloss. It was nowhere near good enough, but I didn’t look downright scary either. And, it had only taken me ten minutes, sprinting to my bedroom while mentally going through my wardrobe choices.
I’d decided on those new jeans and a top, Mack sitting on my freshly made bed while I pulled open my closet doors and tried to go faster. “You made my bed?” I threw one leg into the skinny jeans and then the other, hopping in place as I shimmied them up my thighs and hips.
“Seemed fair since I helped mess it up.” He watched with amusement as I zipped and buttoned my jeans and then ripped off my sleep shirt. “And if I get to see you bouncing around while you get dressed as a thank you, I’ll come make it every morning.”
I rolled my eyes, slipping on a bra before pulling on a fitted shirt. “I need to work these jeans over my ass, trust me, bouncing is the most efficient way.”
Grabbing a pair of boots and socks, I joined him on the bed. It was quicker than I’d anticipated but still longer than I’m sure he wanted to stay, the digital numbers of my clock seeming to change faster than usual. “I’m almost done.”
“It’s fine, I’ve checked in with North and Tibbs and they’re meeting us at a coffee shop. No one has heard from Leighton yet, but apparently he didn’t come home last night.”
Trying to digest all those names and finishing putting on my boots, I tried not to be concerned I was going to be meeting them all for the first time. Nor did I worry about how inappropriate it was that I turn up—a stranger they’d probably never heard of—to a meeting to discuss something private and personal. Okay, so maybe I was worried about that, but maybe men didn’t think like we did. And if Mack thought it was fine then I was going to trust him. After all, he knew these guys a lot better than I did.
“Ready?” he asked, standing up and holding out his hand. “And in case you’re wondering, you look amazing.”
“Well you’re delusional. But we’re already running late so let’s get out of here.” I motioned to the door.
He laughed, taking my hand as we left my condo and walked to the front door. “If there’s anyone who’s delusional, it’s you, but you’re right. Let’s get out of here.”
Hayden
IT WAS STILL early, joggers out on the sidewalks as we got into his truck and drove back to Midtown.
It should have felt weird, me being in a car with a man I had unexplained feelings for, going to see his friends I’d never met. It was well and truly not what I’d envisioned when Gayle and I had signed me up for that dating site. And wasn’t even close to the casual one-night stand I’d planned. But it didn’t feel anything but amazing, my body relaxed as we drove to the inner city.
Gayle had texted me, checking in to see how my “fun” night out with the youngsters had gone. I had begged her to come with me but she’d told me she wasn’t crazy enough to try and keep up. I still needed to tell her everything that had happened with Mack, the quick response I sent while in the car not enough to catch her up on the happenings of the last few days.
“All good?” Mack smiled, watching as I shoved my phone in my pocket. He hadn’t even asked me who it was, or given me any suspicious sideway glances. He was clearly secure in himself or really trusted me. I liked he didn’t crowd me, those small gestures of kindness making me feel so incredibly special.
“It was my sister-in-law, Gayle. My two nephews take up a lot of her time, so we don’t get as much girl time as I would like. But she’s probably my best friend. It feels weird that she doesn’t know about you, she’s the one who helped me put that profile up in the first place. We’ll have to set up a meeting.”
She knew I’d gone out with Mack—and consequently slept with Mack—and had even argued with me when I’d initially decided not to see him again. But since I hadn’t worked out what it all meant in my head yet, I hadn’t given her an update.
Shit.
I hadn’t meant for it to sound like that, turning to Mack to see if he was looking at me like a crazy person who was inviting him to Sunday dinner.
“Not that I’m asking you to come meet my family or anything like that. I mean, as a friend. It’s just a coincidence she’s my sister-in-law. Trust me, you don’t want to meet the rest of my family.”
He laughed, clearly amused I was stumbling over what was obviously not what I’d meant to say. “Hayden, I’m happy to meet any member of your family. I’ll meet any of your friends too. You’re the one who is trying to keep her distance, sweetheart, not me.”
“Just drive,” I chuckled, not willing to admit he had a point. Hell, I could gather everyone I knew and/or loved into a room and form a reception line to greet him, and it still wouldn’t faze him, his ability to roll with the punches more than apparent. But even if he didn’t have a problem with it, it didn’t mean that it would be happening.
It was only after he parked the car that he turned to me and his casual look turned serious. “Hey, before we go in there I want to tell you something. Probably something I should have mentioned earlier but I wasn’t sure how you would take it. But we said no games, and that means I need to tell you anyway.”
Panic set in, every single bad scenario I could imagine being played in my mind and then amplified to a million. “What is it?”
“My ex-wife was at the club last night. Not with me, and we didn’t even speak. But I don’t want you to think I didn’t mention it because I have something to hide. Melinda and I are ancient history, I have zero feelings for her and I don’t want you to even entertain the idea that I might want to revisit that with her.”
I swallowed, wishing he’d told me back at my condo where there would’ve been time to think. “It’s none of my business who you see and who you don’t. You don’t owe me any kind of explanation.”
He took my face in his hands, not letting me turn away. “I didn’t tell you because I owed you, I told you because I always want you to know where you stand with me. Trust me, Melinda has a way of screwing things up, and I won’t let that happen here. I’m always going to be honest with you, Hayden, even if it’s easier for both of us if I’m not.”
Ridiculously, my eyes started to tear up. I was almost ashamed at how emotionally damaged I’d become, that something as simple as a man being honest and kind seemed like such a big deal. So unexpected. And even though he’d repeatedly shown me what a good man he was, I was constantly surprised.
“I won’t lie to you either, Mack. Even though meeting you and feeling like this was completely unplanned, I promise I won’t run.”
He kissed me, gently at first but deepening into something more and I loved it. I loved that he innately knew when to speak and when to show me. And after admitting what I had, I didn’t want to talk. “I didn’t plan on meeting you either, Hayden. But I’m not stupid enough to walk away. And we’ll go as slow as you want, we’re not on any kind of deadline.”
I couldn’t describe how important those words were, knowing that he was willing to work with me until we figured it out. “So are we dating now? I feel stupid calling you my boyfriend.”
Did it even count as a boyfriend when he was very clearly a man and both of us were over forty. Manfriend just didn’t sound right, but neither did anything else.
“Yes, we’re dating, and you can call me anything you like. Now let’s go get this over with so I can give you that breakfast I promised.” He winked, his hand popping open the car door.
He met me on the sidewalk, giving me a quick kiss before taking my hand. He always seemed to want to hold me, and I liked it, so I let him. The grin couldn’t be wiped from my face as we walked into a little
coffee shop not far from where Mack lived, three huuuuuge guys dwarfing the table they were sitting at, looking up as we entered.
“Chief!” One of them stood. He was incredibly good looking with brown hair and amazing brown eyes, and at least two to three whole inches taller than Mack. “And you must be Hayden.” He held out his hand, his very cheeky smile getting wider.
“Riley?” I asked, assuming he was Mack’s—adopted?—son. From the little I knew of him, the guy in front of me seemed to fit the bill.
“In the flesh.” He shook my hand before turning to Mack. “But don’t believe everything you’ve heard. Unless it was positive, and then of course it’s all true.”
He was charming, his warm smile welcoming as he released my hand and engulfed Mack in a one-armed hug. “And you’ve been totally holding out on us.”
“Settle down, North. Don’t make me regret meeting you here. You’ve already ruined our breakfast plans.” Mack slapped Riley’s back, pretending to be annoyed.
The two other guys stood, both looking incredibly pleased, wearing matching mischievous smiles I’m sure meant trouble.
“Justin Tibbs.” The dark haired one with hazel eyes grinned.
“Jared Leighton.” The fairer one with blue eyes added.
They all seemed to be in their mid-twenties—Riley a little older—but it was clear they saw Mack not only as a boss, but a father figure as well. It was in the way they looked at him, a cross between reverence and respect, that awed me.
I introduced myself, Jared and Justin not having the same wealth of information Riley apparently did, finding a seat at the already overcrowded table while Jared went and got everyone coffee.
“He show up?” Mack asked, casually draping his arm around my waist and ignoring the raised eyebrows he got from Justin. Riley didn’t seem as surprised, leaning back in his chair enjoying the display.