Wood (A True Lover's Story #2) - A.E. Via Page 0,105

hour hand on the kitchen clock ticked by slowly as day turned to night, and Trent still hadn’t come home. With a heavy heart, Wood cleaned up the broken lamp and changed the linen on the bed just in case any glass had splintered in that direction. He wanted it to be all nice and neat when his baby got back.

Wood pulled his phone out his shorts pocket and hit Redial. “Trent. Come home. I’m waiting for you, okay. I’m not… I’m not leaving… even if you try to put me out.”

The more hours that went by, the more frantic each message became.

“Trent. It’s getting late. It’s dangerous to be out so late. You… you could fall under a bad element.”

“Trent. I didn’t do anything. This is ridiculous. Come home so we can talk. I have something important to tell you.”

“Trent, how’s your back? You haven’t had any medicine all day. Come home, please.”

By midnight he was so angry he was barely refraining from obliterating his cell phone with his bare hands.

“And you call me disrespectful! What about rule number eleven, Trent! No scaring the hell out of each other!” Wood pressed the End button and slammed his phone down repeatedly on the table. Dangit!

Eleven minutes later he dialed back. “I may have been a little loud on that last call. Come home. I made chicken.”

A little after one, Trent’s calls went straight to voicemail as if it was dead. What if he was stranded on the side of the road and couldn’t walk to a phone because of his back. Or what if he fell asleep in a park? Wood hadn’t let him get much sleep the night before. His heart was pounding like a jackhammer the more crazy the scenarios his scared brain conjured up. He left his last message on Trent’s phone. “You give me no choice.”

This might be the biggest mistake of his life, and he had no doubt he’d regret it later, but he was out of options. He needed someone to bring Trent back to him before he lost his mind. Someone who knew him well and would know where to find him. Either man he called was gonna tear him to shreds, so he just freaking dialed.

Mike picked up on the second ring. “This better be good,” he grumbled sleepily.

“Trent’s gone.”

“I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”

Chapter Forty-Seven

Trent

“Look who finally figured out how to bring his ass home?” Roderick said, climbing his massive body off his stool and wrapping Trent in a fierce hug.

Trent embraced his old friend with a few hard slaps between his shoulder blades. He stepped back with a sad smile that he fought to hold in place. “What’s going on, Roderick? How you been, man?”

“Not bad,” Roderick said, wheezing a little for breath as he settled back on his stool in front of the club he’d been bouncing at for over ten years. “I lost roughly sixty-five pounds since last summer.”

Trent’s brows rose to his hairline. Roderick had battled with his weight since Trent had known him. “Good for you, Rod.”

Roderick rubbed his round stomach. “Only three hundred more pounds to go.” He laughed loudly.

Trent stepped to the side so Roderick could ID a couple of pretty women coming to Mamas to enjoy the adult atmosphere, live music, and the best soul food in Hampton Roads. The girls asked if Trent was coming inside after giving him a bold observation.

“I plan to.” Trent answered with zero feeling.

Roderick unhooked the black velvet rope and waved them inside. The girls disappeared behind the thick wooden door. A slow, bluesy saxophone melody filtered outside, making Trent starved to be someplace that felt like home. Where he believed his life had begun and changed forever.

“I see you’re still easily pulling the ladies, Trent.” Roderick grinned. “Even when you were a freaking bad-ass teenager, snooping around backstage, the servers always fell all over you.”

“Ah man.” Trent waved Rod off, remembering the fond memories. “I’m just here to listen to some good jazz and maybe get a plate of Mama’s smothered porkchops.”

Roderick closed his eyes and licked his lips. “Oh Trent. I’d just take the gravy with a few slices of bread, man. That’s all I’d need to be happy.”

“You want me to sneak you a plate like old times?” Trent laughed.

“Shit. Mama’s got cameras all over this place now. If she catches me cheating again, the next knot on my head will take twice as long to heal,” Roderick told him, his big smile dwindling