Lady & The Biker (Royal Bastards MC: Charleston, WV 2)
Page 28
“What gives you that idea?”
“I don’t know, you seem weird. Jumpy even. Did I do something?”
“No.” Yeah. You grew up. “Just let it go. Come on. Let’s do some shopping.”
“Okay.” She grabs my hand lacing her fingers with mine again, but I quickly move and jerk my phone out of my pocket. “Give me a minute.” I move away from her, debating faking a call from the club. Wylla Mae knows if Murder calls, I have to go.
I stare at the screen of my cell phone feeling like an asshole. It’s not her fault. This is about me not being able to get a grip on myself.
“Sorry. That was Vickie.”
Her nose twitches. “Who’s that?”
“Someone I’ve been seeing.” Another lie.
“Oh.” Her face falls and I know I’m acting like a big prick but it’s for the best. “Does she…I mean you can invite her to dinner with us if you want to?” I can tell by how small her voice has gotten that the last thing she wants is for me to ask another woman to dinner with us. Wylla Mae always has wanted me to herself. Even when I was seeing Alexa it was all about Wylla Mae for me.
Fuck. I shove my phone in my pocket. I don’t know what the hell I am doing. I’m losing my mind. I need a beer and a fucking joint.
“If you don’t want to treat me to dinner…” she stares at her feet. “You can take me home.”
I tilt her chin up. “Never said I didn’t want to spend time with you.”
“Then why are you being so weird?”
“I’m not.”
“You can hardly look at me and every time I touch you…you flinch.”
“You want my chicken?”
“Yeah, but you don’t have to. I get it, East. I make you uncomfortable because I have filled out and you are scared of looking at my tits and having guilt for it. I’m not a little girl anymore. I grew up.”
I didn’t realize I was being transparent. “Let me make it up to you. We’ll run by the store and get the stuff for the chicken. I’m sorry I made tonight weird. It shouldn’t be awkward between us.”
She quirks a brow at me. “I thought your stove was messed up?”
“Christ on a cracker. Quit picking fights with me and let’s go get the damn chicken before I change my mind.” This has bad news written all over it, but I’ve got to be able to get past this shit.
Chapter 10
Wylla Mae
“Did the lights just flicker?” I question East as he starts setting stuff out on the counter prepping to cook me dinner. Boneless chicken breasts, onions, mushrooms, herbs, and spices.
“Not sure. There’s supposed to be some thunderstorms rolling through. Nothing serious.” He slices the onion into strips on the cutting board mindlessly, not meeting my gaze. There’s this uneasy tension crackling between us. He can’t even look me in the eye.
The lights go dim and flicker a few more times. “Okay, see. I’m not crazy.”
East pulls his cell phone out of his back pocket and looks at the local weather radar. It’s a blob of green, orange, and red. There’s a strong wind advisory with possible hail. Wind gusts are expected to be as high as thirty-five miles per hour.
Thunder booms in the distance and I jump. East chuckles. “I see you’re still scared of a little thunder.”
“That nearly shook the house.”
He shakes his head. “God, you’re adorable.” I want to ask him how he would know being he still hasn’t glanced my way since we got here.
“Do you have candles?”