Page 37 of I Found You (Wilder #1)

Wyatt

Harpoon’s had filled in since we arrived.

The crowd was pressing in on us, but at least no one besides me felt the impact.

Maeve was sitting with her back to another table, same with Wes on the opposite side.

Luke and Scarlett were sitting at the far end of the table with their backs to a wall.

I took the seat at the front, which left my back open to the crush of people filing in.

Someone elbowed me in the back as they walked past, mumbling a quick “Sorry, man” as he kept walking.

I took my hat off and ran my fingers through my hair.

Usually, I would rather situate myself to be able to see my surroundings better, but I liked sitting close enough to Maeve that I could put my arm around her or put my hand on her leg, so it was worth the occasional jab.

Maeve reached over and took my hat out of my hand, turning it around to look at it. She smiled softly at me, handing the cap back. I took it from her and placed it on her head.

Her shy laughter filtered through the noise around me. “How do I look?” she asked with humor in her voice.

Like you’re mine .

Whoa, calm down there, Wilder. That’s not your speed. Dating is supposed to be fun and easy, not serious, and certainly not possessive.

“Fucking stunning,” I told her. I may need to hold back my sudden possessive streak, but I wasn’t going to lie to her either.

She tried to take it off, chuckling, but I held it in place.

“Keep it on.” My tone came out commanding, and when she listened to me, not taking it off, my blood heated.

I swallowed hard and took a sip of my water, trying to calm myself down.

I needed a distraction before I hauled Maeve over my shoulder and walked out of here like a caveman. Changing topics, Luke and I told the girls about the events at the garage earlier.

“Jackson was able to convince his friend to stop by. When the punk got there, Wes was there. He stopped the kid before he even put the car in park,” I told them.

“Dude’s eyes were so big he looked like a cartoon.

He tried to reverse to get away from Wes, but I was right behind him in my pickup truck. ”

“Wes had reached into the car through the open driver’s-side window, put the car in park for him, and took his keys.” Luke picked up the story, giving Wes a head nod as he huffed out a laugh. Making the two of them work together on a common goal was turning out to be good for them.

“I walked up to the passenger side, where Wes and I recited every piece of evidence we had on him, which was a lot. The kid was dumb enough to admit to the break-in and thefts, probably because Wes looked like he had zero fucks to give if this kid lived or died today,” I laughed while Wes took a swig of his beer.

He did care, he was never going to hurt the kid, but Wes knew how to use his size and mountain man scowl to get results.

Luke had a team of officers in place to swoop in as soon as he confessed.

Watching him getting taken away in cuffs shouldn’t have felt as good as it did.

I knew he was still young, but he hadn’t just taken some of my shit in petty theft.

He’d destroyed my business, my clients’ cars.

“Where was Jackson during all this?” Maeve asked.

“We kept him out of sight. He stayed in the garage until the kid was taken away.”

“I really wish he wouldn’t hang out with those guys anymore.”

“Yeah. I think he’s figuring that out for himself,” I told her. I hadn’t said anything to Maeve about the fight he had protecting the girl, but between that incident and the kid getting arrested, it seemed like it was opening his eyes.

We ate, drank, and laughed for another hour.

“Thank you so much for inviting me to come with you today. I had such a great time.” Maeve said to Scarlett, getting up as if to leave.

While Maeve gave Scarlett a hug, I rose from my seat, ready to leave when she was. Maeve locked eyes with me when she turned away from Scarlett. “You ready?” I asked.

“Oh, you don’t have to leave just because I am. I didn’t even finish that last drink. I’m okay,” she replied.

I put my arm around her waist and leaned in to whisper in her ear, “If you think I’m letting you drive home after you’ve been drinking at all, you are delusional.”

A shiver ran down her spine, so I topped it off with a small nip to her lobe, just for fun.

I said my goodbyes with a simple nod. Luke wasn’t paying me any attention, his head tilted toward Scarlett’s like he couldn’t dare miss a single word she said.

I was still leaving that well enough alone.

Wes’s expression looked neutral to any outsider.

He tipped his head in return, but his eyes held a smirk that indicated he knew exactly what was on my mind.

With my hand on her back, I led her to her car, opening the passenger-seat door for her.

I was getting awfully comfortable driving her car around like it was my own.

I enjoyed driving and even more so enjoyed driving my girls around, but I wasn’t one of those guys who wouldn’t ride passenger with her lady behind the wheel.

After I got into the car and waited for her to buckle her seat belt, I turned to her, about to ask if she minded that I drove her car when we were together.

At the same time, she turned to me, about to say something as well.

Both of us stopped before we uttered a single word, waiting for the other.

Her mouth was slightly open, and her full lips looked soft and inviting.

My chest felt full, like my heart was too big for the space it was in.

I wrapped my hand around her head, pulling her to me while I met her halfway.

The pull between us was electric. My mouth fused to hers in a searing kiss.

I felt a small gasp leave her mouth, but I stole it into my lungs.

I wanted to steal all of her gasps, her moans, her whimpers. I wanted them all.

After a few minutes, I pulled back to take her in. Her glazed eyes were half-lidded, and her chest rose and fell rapidly, matching my own. “Just so you know, I’ve drank nothing but water all night. That kiss was because I wanted to kiss you. And you look fucking sexy in my hat.”

I pulled out onto the street and turned toward my father’s house.

Jane was asleep when we got there, lying on my dad’s chest. He opened one eye when we entered, stretched, and then made a series of groaning noises as he moved to sit up.

I was laughing at him as he struggled, even as he said, “Just wait until it happens to you one day,” with a dramatic huff.

“Thank you so much, Mr. Wilder,” Maeve said, collecting all of Jane’s things. She had so much stuff it looked like she had prepared for Jane to live here.

“Call me Charlie. Anytime you need someone to watch her or just need a break, you let me know. We had a great time together,” he replied.

I scooped Jane from his arms gently, trying not to jostle her awake.

My father put his hand on my shoulder and gave it a slight squeeze, nodding his head.

He flicked his eyes to Maeve, who was still in the process of packing everything away.

My gaze followed, watching her move about as quickly as she could.

I would bet money that she was trying not to be a bother longer than necessary.

What she didn’t realize was that no one considered her to be a bother.

When I looked at my father again, his eyes were trained on me, a soft smile on his face.

I could see the wheels spinning in his head, but it was strange. The urge I would usually feel to correct him, make sure he knew to adjust his expectations of a happily ever after wasn’t there. Maybe if he could believe that Maeve and I could be the real deal, so could I.

The drive back to Maeve’s house was quiet.

I could see her clasping and unclasping her hands from the corner of my eye.

I put my hand on the center console, even though what I really wanted to do was put it on her leg.

Maybe snake it up her inner thigh, feel her soft skin beneath my rough hands.

My fingers flexed, itching to reach out to touch her.

She brought her arm to the center console, resting her hand beside mine, but she didn’t move to take it.

I took her hand and laid it flat, palm up, and put my hand in hers, twining our fingers together tightly. She sighed, her head falling back onto the headrest. I glanced over at her, just watching her with her eyes closed, relaxing by my side.

I pulled up to her house and rounded the car to open her door, but she had beat me to it.

She collected Jane from her car seat, and I walked her to the door.

I couldn’t get a read on her. Couldn’t figure out what was happening in that brain of hers.

Whenever we kissed, it was electric. I could feel the current running through my body, making my skin tingle.

She had to feel that too. But it was like the voice in her head was so damn loud, telling her she wasn’t worthy and that this, her and I, couldn’t be real.

I could swear, even I could hear her internal monologue.

She unlocked the door and swung it open wide. When she didn’t turn to tell me good night, I followed her inside. That was when she turned and smiled at me, a small, shy smile that stole my breath. She was so fucking pretty.