T-Bone - L. Wilder Page 0,8

Tuesday. Would that work?

T-Bone:

Absolutely. I’ll see you then.

3

T-Bone

“Why do you need her number?” Hyde asked, sounding troubled by the thought.

“Aww, damn.” Blaze chuckled as he looked across the kitchen table and said, “T-Bone’s got a thing for Hyde’s baby sister.”

“You might be moving a little fast there, brother,” Riggs warned. “You just met the girl last night.”

I watched as Hyde’s back stiffened and his jaw locked. It was then that I knew without a doubt that Hyde wasn’t exactly keen on the idea of me hooking up with his sister. I couldn’t blame him. I already knew all the reasons why it wouldn’t be a good idea myself. I’d admit, it stung a little. I liked Alyssa, and if the situation was different, I might’ve taken a chance with her—even if I was too old and had a terrible track record with women. Who knows? Maybe things would’ve worked out. Regardless, I wasn’t going to take that chance—not with so much laying on the line. I could’ve eased Hyde’s mind, let him and the rest of the guys know that I had no intention of pursuing her, but I decided to give my new brother a little hell. “What can I say? There’s no speed limit on the highway to love.”

As soon as the words left my mouth, everyone at the table started laughing—everyone except Hyde. When the roar of laughter started to die down, Hyde turned to me and growled, “You didn’t answer my question.”

“Come on, Hyde. You’re a smart guy. If you had to guess, why do you think I’d want her number?” A smirk crossed my face when I added, “I’m sure you can figure this one out.”

“Fuck you, smartass.” He crossed his arms and glared at me. “You know damn well that’s not what I was asking.”

I could’ve fucked with him even more, really made him think I was going to make a play for his sister, but I figured he’d had enough. “Brother, you’ve got nothing to worry about when it comes to your sister and me. I’m not going to make a play for her. Don’t get me wrong, she’s fucking hot and any guy would be lucky to have her, but I know better than to go down that road.”

“Um-hmm. So, what’s with wanting her number?”

“She mentioned last night that she was looking for a place here, so I made a few calls.”

“And?”

“I think I might’ve found her a couple in Midtown that she might wanna check out.”

“Really?” he asked with surprise. “That’s awesome, brother. Thanks.”

“Just trying to do what I can to help out.” I waited a moment, then asked, “So, are you gonna to give me her number or what?”

“Yeah, hold on.” He reached into his pocket for his phone, and after he texted me the number, he said, “She’s already on her way back to Nashville, but I think she’s planning on coming back early next week to look around and see if she can find something.”

“Good deal. I’ll message her and let her know I have a few places to check out while she’s here.”

“Thanks again, brother.” Hyde thought for a moment, then said, “Hey ... Make sure Lyssa picks something nice. One that’s safe and she can be proud of. I don’t care what it costs. I’ll pay whatever she can’t.”

“You got it.”

After we’d finished lunch, I messaged Alyssa about the rentals I’d found, then followed Blaze and Murphy over to the garage. We usually didn’t go in to work on the weekends, but Blaze hoped it would give us the time we needed to finish the 1958 Chevy NAPCO 4x4 we’d been working on. It was in pretty rough shape when it arrived, covered in rust with torn, worn-out seats and an engine that was non-existent. We’d been at it for over a week, and there was still a shit-ton of stuff that needed to be completed by the end of the week. Blaze was in charge of running things at the garage, managing the orders on remodels and all the various repairs, and he took his job seriously. We all did. With so many different orders coming in and out, it provided us with the means to launder the money we’d made from gun trafficking without any unwanted suspicion. Considering how much money we were moving, it was important for us to maintain our reputation as being the best restoration garage in the area.

When we pulled up, I wasn’t surprised to see that Rider and Darcy