“I can put two and two together. This has to do with Wade going into San Antonio and you going along.”
My mouth dropped. “How did you know?”
She laughed. “I just saw him. He told me.”
I reached for the jumper and held it up to myself. It was cute, I couldn’t deny it.
“You like him, don’t you?”
My eyes found Waylynn’s in the mirror. “Don’t be crazy.”
With a look that said she didn’t believe me, she shrugged. “Well, if you did like him and wanted to keep it on the down low for a bit, but still be flirty, go with the romper. If you’re only interested in friendship, I’d wear the jeans and maybe that blue shirt. The one that hangs off your shoulder a little bit.”
I lifted my chin and nodded. “Thanks for your help.”
Waylynn folded her arms across her chest and waited for me to make my pick. It was clear she wasn’t leaving until I made my choice.
“Ugh! Fine! I’ll wear the romper!”
She jumped and clapped her hands. “I knew it! I knew you were crushing on him. He’s hot as hell and could sing the panties off any woman.”
Rolling my eyes, I grabbed the romper. “I have to hurry. He’s waiting on me.”
“Put a little bit of mascara on…but that’s it!” she called out to me.
I slipped the romper on and reached for my makeup bag. After putting on mascara, I added a bit of blush and a light shade of pink to my lips. I’d fix my hair in his truck. For now, the sloppy pony would have to work.
As I made my way out of the bathroom, Waylynn held up a pair of Jimmy Choo flats. “Here, wear these. The bow on the flats will look adorable with the romper.”
“You’d let me wear your expensive shoes?” I asked as I slipped them on and tied them both.
“Why not? Someone has to wear them.”
I glanced at my watch and saw I had gone past the ten-minute mark. “Shit! I’ve got to go.”
I reached for my work bag and tossed it over my shoulder.
“Amelia Parker, you better not have your laptop in that bag!” Waylynn shouted as I ran down the steps.
“Thanks, Waylynn!” I rushed out the door, not expecting Wade to be standing on the front porch. I slammed right into him. Knocking us both down.
“Ohmygawd!” I cried out as I landed right on top of him. Immediately, naughty things ran through my mind and I jumped up. “I’m so sorry!”
“My goodness, Amelia, why in the world did you come rushing out like that?” my Aunt Vi asked. A look of pure wickedness gleamed in her eyes. Oh, she knew damn well why I came rushing out.
“Wade was waiting on me,” I panted.
Why am I out of breath?
“I couldn’t find anything to wear.”
Vi raised a brow. “Really? Is this a date?”
“What?” I asked with an awkward laugh. Wade was brushing off his jeans, and I couldn’t help but notice his ass. Well, hell, it was right there. How could I not notice it? When I pulled my eyes away, I caught Vi grinning from ear to ear.
“Nice view?” she asked.
“What? I wasn’t staring at his ass!”
I covered my mouth with my hand. Wade turned and looked at me. “What?”
Vi lifted one brow in that oh-so-perfect way that said she was calling bullshit. “She said she wasn’t staring at your ass when I clearly caught her staring at your ass.”
With pleading eyes, I looked at my aunt. Then I laughed. Again. Awkwardly.
Turning to Wade, I said, “I wasn’t, Wade. I’m not interested in your ass. Well, I mean, not that you have a bad ass because you don’t. You have a great ass.”
His smile grew, and I closed my eyes.
Oh. My. Gosh. Jesus, take the wheel.
“Um, you ready to go?” Wade asked, and his gray eyes seemed to sparkle. It was clear he had been attempting not to laugh.
Holding my head up, I nodded. “If you are.”
Aunt Vi chuckled as we made our way down the porch steps. Turning back, I shot her the finger. She might have been my aunt, but she was the first person to teach me how to flip someone the bird.
“That’s my girl!” she called out.
Wade walked to the passenger side of his truck and opened the door. Holding his hand out for mine, he winked and said, “She’s a different character, isn’t she?”
With a sigh, I replied, “You have no idea. The things she taught me with my Ken and Barbie…I’m convinced she is the reason I write romance.”
His laugh rumbled through my body, making my chest squeeze. When he grabbed my seat belt and pulled it out for me, I had to force myself not to lean in and smell him.
I took the belt. “Why, thank you, cowboy.”
He smiled, those dimples on full display.
Lord. Help me right now.
The urge to wrap my arms around his neck was insane.
Wade lingered a little longer than he probably should have before he stepped back and shut the door to his truck. I watched him walk around the front, and I swore it looked like he was talking to himself.
Taking in a deep, calming breath, I pulled my laptop out from my bag and opened it. Wade climbed into his truck and started it up.
“You don’t mind if I work, do you? I’m writing a book and I can’t seem to shut the voices off in my head.”
“I don’t mind at all.”
“How about music? Would you mind if we listened to my playlist?”
Wade smiled and reached over to his stereo. “Let’s Bluetooth so I can hear what inspires you.”
“Okay!” I said with probably a little bit more excitement than the situation warranted.
Once my phone was synced to Wade’s truck, he started down the driveway. I closed my eyes and let myself enter the world of Mike and Amy.
“Damn it!” Wade said. He pulled over and grabbed his phone.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I need to check on something.”
Peeking over to his phone, I watched him pull up what he was looking for.
Oh. My. Gawd.
I slowly lifted my eyes and stared at him. He smiled, and my heart melted. Like in a puddle. Right there on the floor of the truck.
“You watch April?” I asked, my voice slightly shaky.
Wade peeked over at me. “I know, it’s stupid, but I’m invested. I feel like if I don’t stick with it until the end, I’ve somehow failed April.”
Swallowing hard, I placed my hand over my stomach to calm the butterflies. “You’ve been watching from the beginning?”
He looked my way. “Well, kind of.”
The way his cheeks were flushed was the cutest damn thing I’ve ever seen.
“I’ve been watching her, too!”
His eyes lit up. “No shit?”
“Yes! I’m actually obsessed. I usually have it pulled up on my phone, truth be told.”
“Me, too! Just don't say anything to your brothers or I’ll have my man card revoked.”
We started laughing.
“Well, she’s not in labor yet. I thought for sure she’d have the baby on April first,” Wade said. He placed his phone down and started driving again.
With a tilt of my head, I asked, “So, you pulled over just now to check on her?”
He gave a half shrug. “Yeah. Figured I had better check before taking off.”
I nodded. “I’ll pull it up in another window on my laptop. I have a hotspot on my phone.”
“A girl after my own heart.”
His words shouldn’t have made my chest feel so tight, but they did. Boy, did they ever. In the few weeks I’d known Wade, he had affected me in more ways than I could count.
I could barely hear Amelia’s tapping fingers on her keyboard over the sound of her playlist. The girl had good taste, although I couldn’t figure out for the life of me how she typed in a moving vehicle.
I pulled into the parking lot and put my truck in park. “I’m gonna run this sample in
. It’ll be less than ten minutes.”
Amelia shot me a smirk and then giggled. “Make sure no one checks out that ass of yours.”
I turned back and winked. “I’ll be quick.”
I walked into Ralph Minor, Inc. and glanced around. Ralph’s son, Tyler, went to Texas A&M with me and Trevor. A younger lady glanced up from her computer and flashed me a welcoming smile.
“Hello, may I help you?”
“Morning, ma’am. Tyler in?” I asked with a tip of my hat.
Her teeth sank into her lip, and she didn’t try to hide the fact that she was eyeing me from top to bottom.
“He is. May I tell him your name?”
“Wade Adams.”
She picked up her phone and hit a few numbers. “Mr. Minor, there is a Mr. Wade Adams here to see you. Yes, sir.”
She hung up the phone and stood. “If you’ll follow me, Mr. Adams. I’ll show you to his office.”
I did as she asked. I couldn’t help but notice how she threw her hips out while she walked. She stopped and stepped to the side, inviting me to enter Tyler’s office.
Tyler stood and rounded his desk while he reached his hand out to shake. “Damn. It’s good seeing you, Adams.”
“Good seeing you, too.”
“You want coffee, water?” Tyler asked while motioning to the receptionist. “Laney can get it for you.”
I held up my hands. “No, I can’t stay, Amelia’s waiting in the truck for me.”
Tyler drew his head back in question. “Amelia…as in Trevor’s little sister, Amelia?”
“Yeah. She needed to pick something up in town so she drove along with me.”
“Uh-huh. Did Trevor buy that excuse?”
Hitting him on the shoulder, I rolled my eyes. “Knock it off. It’s not like that.”
“Is she hot?”
“I’m not answering you, Tyler. Now, do you want this sample or not?”
He reached for it and sighed. “I can’t believe you won’t even throw me a bone.”
I sighed, knowing that if I didn’t give him something, he would keep at it. “She’s a very attractive young woman.”
Tyler packaged the sample and handed it to Laney, who was still waiting. “Here you go, Laney. Will you get that going for me?”
She nodded then excused herself, but not before giving me another once-over.
Tyler went on. “In other words, you think she’s fucking hot, but won’t admit it because she’s Parker’s baby sister.”
Laughing, I replied, “Something like that.”
“I always figured she was hot. Hell, look at Parker. Never in my life saw a guy get as much pussy as him.”
I pushed my hands into my pockets. “Trevor wanted me to invite you out, two weeks from this Friday. He’s having a party.”
Tyler’s brows lifted. “Oh, yeah? What kind of a party?”
“Welcome home party for his sister, Waylynn. She moved back to Texas from New York a few weeks back.”
“Count me in. Have him text me the details. Would he mind if I brought a date?”
“A date?” I asked with a surprised look on my face. “You still with Lee?”
He grinned. “Planning on asking her to marry me soon. Just haven’t found the right ring.”
I nodded. “Good for you. Y’all were always good together. Okay, well, I best get going. Amelia is sitting in the truck.”
Tyler motioned for me to head out of his office. I knew he was planning to walk me out just so he could get a look at Amelia.
“What about you, Adams? You dating anyone?”
“Nah, I’m not looking right now. Not after what happened with Caroline.”
He slapped my back and pushed the door open. “I get it, man. I do.”
Letting out a whistle, Tyler looked at me then back to Amelia. She glanced up and smiled.
Damn. She is beautiful.
Her light red hair was pulled up into a sloppy bun on top of her head. A pencil was pushed behind her ear, giving her a look of innocence.
“Holy shit. She is fucking hot.”
As we got closer to the truck, Amelia rolled the window down.
“Amelia, this is Tyler Minor. Trevor and I went to school with him at A&M.”
She stuck her hand out the window and flashed him an adorable smile. “Pleasure to meet you, Tyler.”
“Pleasure’s all mine. Heard a lot about you.”
Amelia rolled her eyes. “Lord knows what Trevor has said.”
“I believe he said you were joining a convent.”
Laughing at the memory, I shook my head. Trevor had told us everything to keep us uninterested in his sister—even said she was a lesbian.
“Trust me, a convent has never crossed my mind,” Amelia said.
Her eyes swung over to me before she brought her attention back to Tyler. I hoped he didn’t read anything into that. Even though I definitely had.
“A woman as beautiful as you? I’m sure your brother would say anything to turn away his horny, college friends.”
She laughed, and I was startled by how it made my body warm. I cleared my throat and said, “Well, we better get going. Still have a few stops to make.”
Tyler shook my hand. “I’ll get those results back to you right away.”
“Appreciate that, Ty. I’ll see you in a few weeks, then?”
He gave my shoulder a good squeeze. “Hell, yeah. I’m in.”
After shaking hands once more, I walked around the truck and got in.
“So, is that the Tyler who ran around A&M naked?”
I started the truck and faced her. “Um, no. That was me.”
Her mouth fell open. “What? I thought Trevor said it was his friend Tyler.”
“Oh, Tyler did it too…after I bet him he wouldn’t. He just happened to be the one who got caught.”
The corners of her mouth rose. “You surprise me, Wade Adams.”
“I do?” I asked in an innocent voice.
“Just when I think I’ve got you figured out, you tell me something unexpected.”
I shrugged. “Stick around, and I’m sure I’ll do something else to surprise you.”
Her eyes turned dark as she pulled her lower lip between her teeth. “I hope so.”
We both turned away at the same time. Fuck. Does she have any idea how damn sexy that is? Of course she does. She writes romance.
The air in the truck seemed to crack with a strange tension.
Ten minutes later I pulled up to a gated house.
“Where are we?” Amelia asked.
“A children’s home that my grandparents founded. They adopted my mother when she was fourteen. It killed them to see the older kids being tossed around from house to house. They set up the Wrangler Home for kids who had been in the system for years with no luck at being adopted.”
Amelia stared back at the house. “A home for kids. How sad.”
“Yeah. There aren’t very many kids here like when my mother was young,” I said as I typed in the gate code. “My aunt and uncle live here and are pretty much these kids’ parents. I’ve lost count of how many kids they’ve raised and sent on to bigger and better lives. Each of them went to college, paid for by my grandparents’ foundation. A few of them are now married with kids of their own, and they give back to the foundation if they can.”
Amelia sat in silence as she took in the grounds. “Your grandparents must have been wealthy to be able to operate something like a childrens’ home.”
“Oil,” I responded.
“This place is amazing.”
To my right, my aunt was giving two girls riding lessons.
“It is pretty amazing. These kids are lucky, at least they have a stable home and people who love and care for them. Mick and Wanda are their family.”
“Is that your aunt and uncle?”
I nodded as I pulled up to the front of the circular drive. Mick walked out, wearing a giant cowboy hat, his smile as wide as a Texas sky.
Jumping
out, I walked toward him. “Mick, it’s good seeing you.”
He pulled me into his arms and held me longer than normal. It was the first time I’d seen him since the funeral.
“How in the hell are you, boy? Damn it, I’m glad you’re back in Texas, son.”
“Me, too, Mick. Me, too.”
Mick’s eyes wandered over my shoulder, and he smiled big.
“Don’t be gettin’ any ideas. She’s a friend and that’s it,” I said in a hushed voice.
“She’s one hell of a pretty friend.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle. He was right about that.
Before I knew it, Amelia was wrapped in my uncle’s arms, and he was leading her up the stairs.
“Wait until the boys see you. They’re gonna think they’ve died and gone to heaven,” Mick said with a loud, deep laugh.
Anxiety prickled as I followed him, and I was hit by a wave of nerves. Maybe I shouldn’t have let Amelia come along. This was personal. Something I didn’t share with many people. So, why did I think I could share it with her?
I got my answer the moment I stepped into the house. Four of the kids surrounded her and little Annie, who was ten, tugged Amelia toward the playroom. With a huge smile, Amelia took it all in.
“What are we going to do?” she asked with anticipation in her voice.
“Dress up!” Annie said as the older kids groaned.
As they walked into the other room, my cheeks ached from my smile. Mick stood next to me and bumped my shoulder. “Boy, that look on your face isn’t screaming that’s my friend. It’s screaming she’s the one.”
I was so fucked.
Two hours had passed since we arrived at Mick and Annie’s place. I’d met all twelve kids, each with their own shining personalities. Little Annie was the youngest and seemed to crave all of my attention. I gave it to her the first forty minutes and then suggested we head outside for a game of volleyball. The older kids loved the idea, and even Annie was in on it.
Wade played on the opposite team, and I couldn’t believe how much fun I was having. After the game was over, we headed back in, and I got to know Mick and Wanda a little better. They were amazing people. Mick was Wade’s mother’s brother. They had been super close growing up. He had been adopted, as well, a few years after Wade’s mom.
“It seems like this is very rewarding, yet hard work,” I said to Wanda as I helped her load the dishwasher with the bowls we had used for ice cream.