“What are you apologizing for?” he asked in a rough voice. Reno had a gravelly pitch that was masculine. Most guys just didn’t talk like that. Then again, Reno wasn’t most guys. He was unlike any man I’d ever known.
“For Trevor calling you a freak. It was rude and uncalled for, but you still shouldn’t have hit him.”
Maybe it didn’t excuse Reno for knocking Trevor out, but whoever made up the sticks and stones song was an idiot who had never been picked on. Name-calling hurt, and maybe it hurt tough guys too.
He lifted the sacks from my arms and walked away without an apology.
Lexi put her arm across my shoulder. “Are you staring at his ass?”
“No!” I shrugged off her arm and she chuckled, reaching in the trunk for a few bags.
“Sorry, April. It just kind of looked like you were checking him out,” she said with a private smile.
Austin flew out the main door and cut across the lawn, dressed in a white tank top and jeans. I got an eyeful of the tattoos that marked his shoulders and upper arms with a tribal design. “How’s it going, April?” he said more than asked.
“Hey,” I said, greeting him. “It’s going pretty good.”
“Lexi, I need your help.”
“What’s up?” She pinched the cleft on his chin.
He kissed her softly on the mouth and growled. I saw his bottom lip pull out a little as she nipped it with her teeth. “Cut that out,” he said in a low voice, sliding his hand over her rear as if I weren’t even there. “I forgot to pick up gas and charcoal.”
“So why do you need my help?”
“We also need a shitload of ice for the beer. Ivy just brought it to my attention, and I’ll need you to park in front while I load up the back. She also thinks we need to buy or rent some large trashcans.”
“Oh, shit. I didn’t think of that,” Lexi said. “There’ll be bottles and plates all over the place.” Then she gasped. “I forgot the plastic cups. Dammit!”
“Everyone else is busy and we need to get it together before they start showing up. There are a lot of important people who’ll be here.”
I wondered what he meant by that. It wasn’t as if the mayor was going to show up at a keg party. “Lexi, I need to get home.”
She knitted her brows. “The hardware store is in the opposite direction.”
“Reno!” Austin shouted. Then he stuck his fingers in his mouth and whistled. I always admired a man who could do that.
Heavy boots clomped on the porch as Reno came out. The sun drifted behind a cloud and Austin stalked in his direction.
Lexi tapped her fingers on the hood of the car, lost in her thoughts.
Austin’s voice boomed across the yard. “Lexi, change of plans. Reno’s gonna take April home. We need two cars because it’s not all going to fit in one.”
“Well, we better get back in time, Austin Cole. I have to get ready.”
He snorted. “To throw on a pair of shorts and a tank top? Come on, Ladybug. Let’s get going.”
She smirked at him with a “You just wait and see” look in her eyes. He caught it, analyzed it, and folded his arms as she strolled around the car and looked at him provocatively over her shoulder.
I hated to admit it, but I loved watching those two. They had an explosive chemistry that most couples didn’t, and I adored it. Yet, somewhere in the back of my head, I’d convinced myself that it wouldn’t last. Austin was all kinds of hot and I’m sure he had women coming on to him all the time. Lexi had a temper, and all it would take was one meaningless argument that would send him out the door and into the arms of another.
That was why I loved romance novels. The book ends and there’s nothing to spoil it. In real life, love isn’t about the fairy tale. Love is about not being alone. Sometimes we settle for less because that’s all there is.
I almost jumped out of my skin when a heavy hand lightly touched my shoulder. I spun around and caught my surprised reaction reflected back at me in Reno’s aviator sunglasses. He smelled amazing, and I leaned in without realizing it.
He sucked on his teeth for a nanosecond. “You ever been on a bike?”
Reno took me on a short spin around the property on his Triumph Bonneville so I could get used to the feel of a motorcycle between my legs. When he first throttled her up, the vibration sent a thrill through my body, tickling every nerve. It was the sexiest feeling. He showed me where to put my feet and what not to do. When I started to wrap my arms around him, he laughed, guiding my hands down to his belt loops.