Page 38 of The MC's Surprise
I nodded, handing him my phone. This was a good thing. More community events meant more people backing the crew, which meant less harassment. And maybe once things were settled, I could find another job in the area. I couldn’t stay atthe casino forever. I wasn’t sure I could stomach watching Vegas and Charlotte get together.
I hardly recognizedthe park once we finished. It still needed work, since the playground was gone, but the lawn was neatly trimmed, the trash was all gone, and the guys had planted some flowers and bushes near the sidewalks that crossed through it. One of the firefighters made a sign that said ‘coming soon’ on the spot we had marked off for the playground, and families were already showing up to play in the grass and ask questions about the playground. I told Skylar the plans I’d made with Aaron and the suggestion the guys made for the charity to cover the park equipment. That news spread like wildfire, putting a lot of pressure on me to set the charity rally up right. I was absolutely terrified of screwing things up, but the ball was already rolling. I couldn’t stop now.
I’d been studiously ignoring Vegas ever since Charlotte showed up. I spent most of my time with Aaron, helping him pull apart the playground. I met a few of the other firefighters, and introduced them to the crew who were cleaning up nearby. They got along really well, despite the sheer amount of raunchy jokes the crew kept tossing out. The firefighters lobbed them right back and I couldn’t stop rolling my eyes. Boys.
Once we were finished, I followed Aaron to the firetruck, offering him a handshake. “Thanks for coming.”
He grinned, taking my hand and shaking it lightly. “I’m starting to feel like we need a new way for you to thank me. You’ve thanked me for coming like six times already.”
Huffing out a laugh, I shrugged. “I never said I was eloquent.”
“Could’ve fooled me,” he murmured. He was still holding my hand, and I realized too late that it almost sounded like he was flirting with me. Releasing his grip, I took a big step back, putting some much needed space between us. He looked like he wanted to say something, but before he could, another firefighter called out, telling him to hurry up. Aaron rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, I’m coming.”
Turning to face me again, he shot me that dimpled smile. “Don’t forget to text me. We’ve got a carnival to plan.”
I gave him a little two-fingered salute, turning to look for Skylar so we could go over the plan. But she was already gone for the day and most of the crew was packed up and leaving. Only Vegas stood waiting, his face a stoic mask. He probably was trying to hide the fact that he’d rather be going out with Charlotte instead of me.
I was considering making up an excuse to skip the date when he spoke. “I need to stop at the clubhouse for a bit. Do you mind?”
There it was. His excuse to skip it. I tried not to let it show on my face how much it hurt.
“If you’re too busy–”
“I’m not. It’ll be quick. Unless you’d rather not…”
We were both offering excuses, but neither of us seemed to want to call it off. For me, it was because even though he spent the afternoon flirting with Charlotte, I still had a major crush on him. He was probably just being polite. We were at an impasse and I wasn’t sure what to do about it.
“I’m fine with whatever. I don’t want you to feel obligated or anything.”
I avoided eye contact, waiting for him to cancel. There was a pregnant pause, and the longer he took to reply, the more Iregretted agreeing to this in the first place. I knew better. He was in love with someone else. This would be too messy if it didn’t go well.
“Let’s go, then. I only need to stop by the clubhouse for a minute.”
Surprised, I turned to face him, but he was already looking away. He walked me over to my dad’s truck, his expression sour as he held the door open for me. That bitter feeling in my belly only grew the entire ride back until I knew I wouldn’t be good company for a date he obviously didn’t want. I stayed by the truck, watching as he parked and pulled off his helmet. I felt the baby kick as he came over, hating that it was probably responding to the way my heart still pounded whenever he looked in my direction. I was the queen of bad decisions. This was just proof of that.
“Sierra–” he began.
“No, it's okay. This is obviously not what you want, and I’m not going to force you. Don’t worry about me. I’ll rest when I get home. I promise.”
He was quiet, and I assumed his lack of argument meant he was okay with me leaving, so I turned toward the truck again, pulling open the door. I wondered if my mom was still working. She seemed to always know what would make me feel better if my stomach was upset, and I was feeling nauseous right about now.
A warm hand wrapped around my elbow, spinning me around. I crashed against Vegas’s chest, stunned at the almost feral look on his face.
“If you’re more interested in the firefighter than in me, then be honest about it. I’m not playing games anymore. Don’t string me along without telling me the damn truth.”
“What?” I yelled, jerking my elbow away. “I never said anything about being interested in Aaron!”
“He has your number,” he growled.
“We were planning an outreach event with the fire station! It was for the crew, you jackass! I–”
22
Vegas
It pissed me off seeing Sierra and the firefighter hitting it off all afternoon. They were inseparable, talking and laughing, and an insane possessiveness filled my gut until I was seething. It was like watching Charlotte with one of her exes, but worse, because Charlotte wasn’t carrying my kid. Sierra was, and watching her with the firefighter made me want to hurt someone. Namely, the stupid firefighter who kept grinning at her. And when I overheard him asking her to text him, I almost lost it.
I wasn’t about to sit around watching some other guy steal away a woman I was interested in. Not again. If she didn’t want me, I wasn’t going to play games about it. So when she said she wasn’t interested in the guy, I jumped into action. I wanted to make it so no other guy would draw her away from me. I wanted to make her want only me. It was possessive and stupid and I couldn’t fucking help myself.
