T-Bone - L. Wilder Page 0,6

to tear up, so I slipped my arm around her, giving her a tight squeeze. “He is here, Mom. There’s no way he’d miss this.”

“She’s right. He’s definitely here.” Clay reached over and hugged us both. “Damn, it’s good to see you.”

Landry slipped up beside him and smiled. “Hey, honey. Congratulations. That cut looks great on you.”

Clay grabbed her around the waist, pulling her towards him, then planted a kiss on her lips. “Thanks, babe.”

We were all standing in a circle, catching up, when one of his brothers caught my attention. I’m not sure exactly what it was about him, but there was something about the burly, bald-headed biker covered in tattoos that had me intrigued—which surprised the hell out of me. Normally, a man of his size and intimidating physique would completely terrify me, and I’d do whatever it took to steer clear. Unsettled by my interest in him, I quickly turned my attention back to my conversation with my mother, Landry, and Clay. I tried to keep my focus on what they were saying, but after only a few seconds, I found myself glancing over my shoulder for another peek at the handsome biker. He was tall and broad shouldered with dark brown eyes, and there was a kindness to his smile that one wouldn’t expect from such a fierce-looking man. I watched as he started laughing at something one of his brothers said, and a strange warmth rushed through me. I dug deep and gathered all the courage I could muster, then turned to Clay and asked, “Who’s he?”

Typical Clay, I thought, when he searched around the room and asked way too loudly, “Who?”

“Him.” Trying not to draw any more attention to the situation, I motioned my head to the back of the room. “The bald guy in the corner?”

When he realized who I was talking about, he quickly looked back at me with a stunned expression. “You gotta be fucking kidding me.”

“What?” Clay had always been protective of me, even more so after what had happened with Lucas, and while it was sweet of him to look out for me, it was time he learned that I could take care of myself. Besides, if I could gather the nerve to talk to a big, tough biker, then I could do anything. I knew my brother would never understand, and as I stood there studying his horrified expression, I couldn’t stop myself from teasing him a little. With a mischievous grin, I shrugged innocently and goaded, “He’s hot—”

“Lyssa, no,” he warned.

“Well, I happen to think he—”

“Nope! Not gonna happen, Lyssa.”

Landry and I were so caught up in giving Clay a hard time, I hadn’t noticed that the man had come up behind us until I heard him ask, “What’s ‘not gonna happen’?”

When I glanced up and saw the smirk on his face, I couldn’t help but smile. As he stood there towering over me, I didn’t feel threatened by him—not in the least. Instead, I found a warmth in his eyes that I didn’t expect. “Nothing. Clay is just being Clay.”

“Oh, really?”

It was clear from Clay’s expression that he wasn’t pleased I’d blown off his warning, and his disapproving expression only grew more intense when the man smiled down at me and asked, “Why don’t you let me get you a drink, and you can tell me all about it?”

“Okay.”

Before Clay had a chance to talk me out of going with him, I gave my overprotective brother a quick wave, then followed the stranger back to the bar. After I sat down next to him, he quickly introduced himself and ordered us both a drink. As I sat there waiting on the bartender, I was feeling quite proud of myself. I was actually sitting next to a man who belonged to one of the most notorious MCs in the South, and I wasn’t freaking out. Instead, I did my best to remain cool, calm, and collected. To my surprise, it was much easier than I thought. Then again, T-Bone made it easy. The entire time we talked, he didn’t put on any airs and try to impress me. He simply treated me as though I were an old friend, and we were just taking some time to catch up.

I’d just started telling him about my upcoming move to Memphis when he leaned towards me and said, “The music is a little loud in here. You want to continue this outside?”

I couldn’t remember a time when I’d enjoyed