Chapter 35
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
W hen she walked out of the restaurant, Larissa came to a stop upon seeing Moon leaning against an SUV.
“I’ll drive you back to Jamestown.”
Struck speechless, she was trying to form a polite refusal when she felt Jet walking up behind her.
“She’s driving with me.”
Larissa was tired and cranky enough that she wasn’t going to listen to the two men trading barbs with each other. She could be back in Jamestown before the argument ended, so it would be quicker to go along with Moon, forestalling the budding argument before it could start.
“I’ll ride with Moon,” she acquiesced, not missing the goading smile Moon gave Jet as he opened the car door.
Giving her a sheepish glance, he turned back to Jet. “Sorry, I’m an ass. I’m going to work on it.”
She didn’t quite trust Moon’s apology but got in the SUV.
As she buckled the seat belt, she was relieved when Moon got in the vehicle without further words being spoken between them.
Worried, she looked in the side mirror as they pulled out of the parking lot. What would she do if he didn’t take her back to Jamestown like he said he would?
“I have no intention of kidnapping you.”
Some of the tension began to ease out of her, allowing her to somewhat relax.
“I want to apologize for the way I acted today, and yesterday.”
Suspicious, Larissa turned her gaze from the window as he talked.
“When I imagined myself becoming a father, this isn’t how I thought it would go.”
She could hear the truth in his words.
“Me neither,” she said softly.
“I’ve been taking it out on you, which I shouldn’t have done. I’m sorry.”
Larissa stared down at her hands. “I’m sorry, too. We wouldn’t have been in this position if I had been honest.”
Moon flicked on the blinker then turned onto the long stretch of road that would take them to Jamestown.
When she checked the side mirror again, Larissa saw Jet was following behind them.
“I don’t know about that.” Moon took his eyes off the road, giving her an amused glance. “We would still have had sex. The only difference would have been is that I would have known the correct name to call you.”
The drastic change in the way he was speaking to her raised her guard up. What had brought the sudden change?
“Do you mind me asking: why did you decide to apologize in less than thirty minutes?”
“You can ask me anything,” he offered. “To answer your question, you can thank Jet.”
“Jet?”
“He let me have it for spoiling the surprise we’re having a boy.”
“Like you said, none of this is how we imagined.”
Regret filled his eyes. “I was a damn jackass. I’m really sorry. When you didn’t look at the ultrasound and didn’t want a picture, I assumed you didn’t care enough because I was the father.”
Larissa sucked in a surprised breath at the revelation.
“Jet was a hell of a lot smarter than me. He said it was because you would have been able to see the baby was a boy or a girl.”
His apology relieved some of the sting he had inflicted by his action.
“I would have.”
“I’m an idiot. I also don’t want you looking at me like you did at lunch. I was fixing your glass so it wouldn’t spill over.”
“I realized that. I overreacted. I’m sorry.”
“Whew …” Moon gave her a quick amused glance before switching his gaze back to the road. “It’s a good thing for me that it takes nine months for a baby to be born; it’s taken me this long to get my head on straight. Until the time he gets here, I’m going to work on us becoming friends … with your help, of course.”
Uncertainly flooded her. She wanted to believe he was being honest with her, yet her inner voice was shouting it was just for show.
“Moon, you don’t have to put on a pretense for me. I know you won’t believe this, but I truly have no desire to keep you away from your child. You don’t have to put on a front for me,” Larissa told him sincerely. “I might not have shown it, but I’m truly a sensible person. The craziest thing I’ve ever done in my life was open your bedroom door. Since then, I’ve made one mistake after another. I really don’t want to make any more. I would like for us to become friends, if the offer is genuine.”
“That goes both ways. I have to chance you’re being just as front up as I’m being.”
“There’s where you have the advantage.”
Moon gave her a curious look. “What do you mean?”
Her lips curled in laughter. “You know yourself. I suck at pretending to be someone else.”
Moon’s laughter filled the car. “Yes, you do.”
For the rest of the car ride, they both attempted to learn more about each other. At first, Larissa responded to Moon’s questions warily, afraid he could somehow use the information as ammunition. On the other hand, Moon didn’t seem to have the same reservations, easily answering her questions, sometimes even poking fun at his answers.
“Are you from Kentucky?” she asked.
“No. I was born in Hawaii. You?”
“I’ve lived in Kentucky my whole life. How did you end up here?”
“I joined The Last Riders when I got out of the service. The club originated in Ohio then expanded into Kentucky.”
“You go back and forth between the two?”
“Yes,” he answered casually. “Where do you prefer living, Treepoint or Bowling Green?”
“Bowling Green. I’m close to my mother. Pris and Lana are, too, but they want to start a birthing center where there is a need. There are several options in Bowling Green, which Treepoint doesn’t have. Anyway, that’s why I moved here.”
“Your mother doesn’t want to move here?”
“I wish.” She sighed. “Mom is attached to her home. She’s also close to a friend of mine. Mom considers Taya another daughter. The only thing that would drag her away from Bowling Green is a beach. She travels a couple times a year, and one of the four of us usually goes with her. She’s saving for Aruba now. What job did you do in the service?”
“A little of this, a little of that …” When he steered the SUV into slow lane to let a truck pass, Larissa saw his eyes move to the rearview mirror, checking if Jet was still following. “Mostly reconnaissance.”
“Reconnaissance?” She had to stare out her side window to keep a straight face. “You get many assignments?” She gave a small cough to hide her strangled laughter; it took everything she could do not to tell him she had witnessed his expertise.
“A few. Mainly boring stuff. How about you? Do you like being a midwife?”
Larissa turned from the window. “I love it,” she replied simply. “I love everything about it. I get to develop a close relationship with my clients and help them bring the most important person into the world. Most women couldn’t tell you the name of the doctor who delivered their baby years later, but they remember me. I become a part of their family.”
“You could do the same if you worked exclusively in a hospital.”
“I want to offer my clients a choice between traditional medicine and holistic. They can go to the hospital to have their baby or stay home if there aren’t any expected complications. The hospitals are more ‘what I say goes.’ It’s impersonal. What’s more personal than having to spread your legs and being examined by numerous staff members and physicians? Yet, they … whew … I’m sorry. When I start talking about being a midwife, I can go on.”
“Sounds like you take it more seriously than it being just a job.”
“I do. All my family does. My mom was a neonatal nurse before she retired. What do you do, since you’re no longer in the military?”
“A little of this, a little of that,” he responded obliquely. “Work at the factory for The Last Riders, do security when they need me, assist the brothers on their jobs—stuff like that.”
“Sounds time consuming.”
“It is,” he agreed. “But I’ve never been afraid of hard work, and it does come with rewards.”
“So I heard.”
Moon cocked a mischievous brow at her. “You mean the women?” He gave her a slow grin. “I can’t say I had a problem getting them, even before I joined The Last Riders.”
That Moon was an insensitive jerk was one of the few things she did know about him.
Wishing she were clever enough to give a tart comeback, she changed the subject. She was the one who had started it with the innuendo about the rewards of being a Last Rider. “How about your mother? Does she live in Kentucky?”
“No. I talk to her occasionally. We aren’t close, like you are with your mother.”
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“No.”
When she saw the bridge coming up ahead, Larissa was almost sorry they had reached Jamestown.
“Do you need me to give directions?”
“No, I looked it up when you texted me the address. How do you like staying with Sex Piston’s parents?”
“They are very sweet.”
Larissa didn’t miss his cross expression at her answer.
“They really are!”
“I’m not doubting they are to you .”
“They aren’t to you?”
“I can’t say.”
Confused, she stared at him. “Then why did you make that face when I said they are sweet?”
“I’d rather you had told me you hate them and don’t want to stay there,” he admitted.
She couldn’t help giving an appreciative laugh. “I like your honesty.”
Moon brought the car to a stop in front of Sex Piston’s parents’ home to study her intently. Did he think she was joking?
“I’m serious.”
His lips twisted wryly. “At least I can chalk one thing you like about me on the scoreboard.”
Unbuckling the seat belt, she reached for the door handle in preparation to get out. “Thank you for the ride. I’m glad we were finally able to have a conservation without arguing.”
“Technically, it’s our second one we got through without arguing.”
The way Moon was looking at her made her feel heated and needy. Her throat went as dry as a desert, meaning she was unable to get a word out, even if she could form one in her mind.
Jet’s sudden appearance as he opened the door made her exit the car.
She was closing the door when Moon got out.
“I’ll text you when I set up another appointment with Lana.”
“Yeah … I …” He broke off with a glare at Jet. “You mind?”
Jet glared back, unperturbed. “Not at all. Go ahead. I’ll wait.”
Was she going to have to witness this pissing contest every time she went out?
“I’m fine, Jet. Thank you. Moon and I have come to an understanding.”
“Wow. What a shocker.”
Larissa frowned. “We’re all three going to get along, aren’t we?”
She stared at the men until Jet stepped away and moved back to sit on his motorcycle, then breathed of sigh relief that the budding argument between the two men had been averted.
“What were you about to say before you were interrupted?”
“I was just about to suggest we meet tomorrow to discuss which house …”
Had the conservation they had on the drive just been a ruse to get what he wanted?
“… I’m considering buying for myself. I get you’re not ready to move back to Treepoint yet. When you’re ready, at least you’ll be more informed on what’s available on the housing market. I would just like your input.”
Indecision filled her.
“I’d like to find out before I sign on the dotted line that it’s a home you wouldn’t be worried about our child staying in when he comes for a visit.”
Larissa set her hesitation aside. What if he bought a home with a swimming pool, or on a busy road? She’d rather give Moon her help than be sorry later.
“What time?”
“How’s two?”
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Thank you, Larissa.”
She was confident she had made the right decision, based on the earnest way Moon had looked at her before he got in the car.
“See you tomorrow,” he called out the window as he pulled away.
As she turned to walk inside, Jet’s pitying expression stopped her.
“You fell for that, hook, line, and sinker.”
As Moon’s car turned the curve and disappeared out of sight, her composure slipped.
“No, I didn’t,” she argued, clearing her clogged throat.
“Then why go?”
“You can’t fight a tidal wave; you have to swim for your life or get swept away.”
“Ahh … so you’re going to swim.” Jet nodded approvingly.
“No,” she said wryly. “I’ve never been much of a swimmer. I’m more likely to sink than be swept away.”
“Then …I don’t understand?”
“There is a third option.” Protectively, she laid a hand on the swell of her abdomen.
“Which is …?”
“Prevent the tidal wave before it happens.”