Page 15 of I Found You
She pulled out of the parking space, and within a few seconds, her car started to make the dinging sound of someone missing their seat belt. She fumbled with the strap as she tried to drag it across her body. Reaching over, I tugged the seat belt from her hand and pulled it tight against her, my hand grazing along her hip as I clipped it into the buckle.
“Safety first, doll,” I said and added a wink for good measure. I didn’t know where the fuck “doll” came from, but I liked it. It fit her.
She glanced at me briefly and then directed her attention back to the road, still having yet to say anything since I got into her car. I was starting to think I had made a mistake. I wasn’t used to forcing my presence on women, and I was getting the impression that Maeve would have preferred I stayed behind.
7
Maeve
Wyatt Wilder was at my house. Again. My body was reacting to his nearness, his kindness, in a ridiculous way. I didn’t know what his deal was, but he had no reason to come to my rescue at the pizzeria. Actually, he had more reason than most to jump onto the “Maeve is a loser” train. What I did to Andrea or Jenny, I had no idea. At least Abbie hadn’t been overtly mean. She seemed like she wanted to say something to them, but she didn’t. Turned out for the best in the end. If she had stuck up for me, maybe Wyatt wouldn’t have felt the need to come to my rescue. Then, I wouldn’t have been able to see Andrea’s face when he said he didn’t remember being with her. Ouch. That had to hurt. Not that I cared. She brought it on herself.
I pulled into my faded, cracked driveway and put the car in park. Wyatt got out and went straight to Jane to get her out of her car seat. I didn’t have one of those portable car seats that I could take into the house with her still in it. One of the downfalls of shopping secondhand, but it was safe, and that was the biggest priority. Wyatt loaded Jane and the takeoutfood into his arms and closed the rear door. I took a second to finally breathe. Surely I wasn’t holding my breath the entire drive home, but that’s what it felt like. My lungs expanded as I tried to suck in air and get my brain to focus, but instead, all I could smell was him. It smelled like a forest but with a hint of something else, something intoxicating. It was making me delirious.
My car door opened, Wyatt standing ready to help me out, even with his hands full, his arm threaded through the handles of the takeout bag while simultaneously holding Jane. His other hand on my doorframe.
“Want me to take her?” I asked as I got out of the car and we made our way toward the house.
“No.”
“Can I take the food off your hands?”
“No.”
Well, okay then. Good talk.
This was going to be awkward AF. Why was he here? Why didn’t I just drop him off at his house or his car or something? He was making me all kinds of flustered.
He stopped at the front door and waited. It took me a second to realize he was waiting for me to unlock it.
“Oh, it’s open. I didn’t lock up,” I told him.
His head snapped to the side to look at me. Or glare was probably more accurate. “What do you mean? You just left your house unlocked while you were out?” He pushed the door open, shaking his head.
“I knew I was only going to be gone for a few minutes to pick up the food. And besides, if I’m not at home and an intruder shows up, then they can’t hurt me. That would be the best time for someone to break in. It isn’t like I was goingto be fighting anyone off.”
“And if they are still in the house when you get back? What’s your plan then?”
“I don’t know. Maybe talk to them. See why they feel they need to steal.” His eyes were as large as dinner plates as they bored into me, and I could see the tightness in his jaw. “And call the police. Definitely would call the police,” I added.
“Do me a favor. Lock your fucking door.” He was looking around as if an intruder might be sitting on my sofa, just waiting to be found. “Please,” he added as an afterthought.
He walked around my living room with Jane in his arms, a slight bounce to his steps.
“I’m sorry. I should have brought you back to your house. I wasn’t thinking. Do you want me to bring you home now?”
“Do you want me to leave?” His eyes searched mine.
“No,” I answered him quickly. Probably too quickly. “You can stay. Sit… if you want. Make yourself comfortable.”
He put Jane in the bounce chair I’d picked up a few days ago and crouched in front of her, bouncing her gently. She was going to need a bottle and a bath soon, but she wasn’t fussy yet, so I was hoping I might be able to eat some of my pizza while it was still hot.
“Uh, Wyatt,” I started, looking at my knotted hands. “About that apology I owe you.” I glanced up to find him standing tall, arms crossed, textbook smirk making his face look dangerously handsome, not that I would tell him that.
“I’m listening.”
“I’m sorry I went off on you that day, about taking Jane out without telling me. I didn’t see the note until I was in bed, getting ready to go to sleep,” I rambled off. “I know you were just helping me, and had I seen that note when I woke up, Iwouldn’t have had a complete panic attack. I still don’t even want to think about you carrying me up the stairs, so let’s just agree to forget that ever happened.”
His smirk morphed into a full-blown grin. It was crazy how he could seem dangerous and sexy one minute and playful and boyish the next. Another thought I would be keeping to myself, thank you very much.
