When They Weren't Looking: Wardham Book #3 (2 page)

“My choice?” Evie’s voice wavered as she realized she was seriously considering karaoke—and whatever else Liam was offering.

“For you, Evie, I’d sing just about anything.” He chuckled and eased himself back against the bar.

She wobbled on her stool and took a steading breath. She needed a second to think this through…

“Tell you what.” He glanced at his watch, a shiny thing that looked expensive and functional at the same time. “I’m going to get another round of drinks for my colleagues, so you’ve got some time to make up your mind. Finish your bellini and come up with a short list of tragic song choices.”

“I might just head up to my room for a minute and change,” she whispered. He glanced down at her skirt with appreciation, and she flushed.

“I hope you come back down.” He brushed his fingertips over her knuckles as he stepped away from the bar, breaking that contact only when his body carried him too far away. “We’re going to have fun tonight.”

“Pick up, pick up, pick up…” Evie hopped around her hotel room, juggling her phone in one hand and a brand new pair of red lace panties in the other. Thank goodness for her earlier visit to Victoria’s Secret.

“Hello?” Her sister answered on the fourth ring, her voice full of sleep and confusion.

“Laney, it’s nine o’clock on a Saturday night, why are you in bed?”

“I was in the OR all last night and Kyle sent me to three open houses today.” She yawned. “What’s up?”

“Would it be wrong to have a one-night stand?”

Dead silence was not a reassuring response.

“What’s the deal with safe sex? Do I need anything other than condoms?” Goddamnit, she needed to get her voice under control, the warbling idiot was not a good sound.

“Uhm…” Laney cleared her throat. “I don’t have enough information to advise you, really. Are you in Toronto?”

“Uh huh. And a guy, a really, really cute guy, approached me in the bar downstairs. Laney, his voice…and his eyes. And his smile. I don’t think he’s an ax-murderer, and if I ask him to leave something valuable with the bartender he would, I’m sure of it. Laney, he’s hot, and possibly too young for me, but I think he just might be what I need right now.”

“You don’t need permission, Evie. Just be safe. Condoms, for all sex acts, got it?”

“Got it.” She took a deep breath. “I might not even do anything, in the end…”

Her sister laughed. “That would be disappointing, after that preamble.”

He really was out of practice. Evie wasn’t the first woman he’d chatted up in a bar, but his dating over the last two years had been sporadic itch-scratching. Nothing in his recent history compared to ten minutes of flirting with the beautiful blonde.

She’d caught his eye as soon as they entered the bar. Shiny long hair, falling straight down her back, like a beacon calling his attention to her tight round ass perched on that bar stool. Small and slim, but strong. Her bare arms were curvy with subtle definition, and even lost in thought she held herself upright. Not stiff, just…poised. Her natural class took his breath away, like he was looking at a real-life princess.

The irony wasn’t lost on him that at first glance, this woman checked every one of his mother’s superficial requirements. Qualities he’d always eschewed in the women he’d dated. But there was something else about her that captured his imagination. She was sexy, no doubt about it, but naked feelings danced across her face as she lost herself in her fancy drink, and that raw vulnerability was what sealed the deal. Even though he was there to celebrate the end of their program, he’d abandon his friends in a heartbeat if she’d give him some of her time. And when the bartender ambled over to take their order, Liam quietly asked him to make her another of whatever she was having.

Up close she was even prettier than at first glance. Pale skin, delicate bone structure, lush pink lips with just a hint of lip gloss, like she’d been licking it away for a few hours. Her dark grey eyes flashed with a thousand emotions, and her voice tangled his heart into knots. She was fascinating, and he couldn’t wait to discover more of what made Evie tick.

He wasn’t sure if she’d come back, and he was kicking himself for not gleaning more identifying information before she glided out of the bar. He was tossing up the idea of sending Jessica to flirt with the front desk clerks and find out Evie’s room number when she returned.

She’d changed, all right. Into tight jeans that left nothing to the imagination, a silky blouse, and fresh lip gloss.

It needed to be nibbled off, immediately, and he knew just the man for the task.

Karaoke was a terrible idea. He wanted to stalk across the bar, toss her over his shoulder, and carry her back to her room. He’d sing whatever she wanted while she shimmied out of those jeans. His dick agreed. A private strip tease was definitely the way to go.

But as she drew closer, her eyes wide and her breath shallow and rapid, he shut himself down. She was nervous, and he wasn’t a brute. Although she certainly brought out the cro-magnon tendencies, holy shit.

He stood and reached out his hand. When she took it, he tamped down the desire to tug her fingers to his lips, and instead gave her a reassuring squeeze. His voice, husky and raw, more than made up for his restraint. “You decided to join us.”

Her sharp intake of breath at his tone, coupled with a blush and a smile, promised that if he played his cards right he’d get a chance to show her his inner caveman. All in good time. He turned to introduce her to the group.

Two hours later, Evie had fallen head over heels in love with the Korean karaoke club, with its private rooms, high-tech sound system, and prompt to-the-door drink service. From the hot glances she kept sliding his way, she was still interested in an even more private party, but for now, he was having fun watching her cut loose. She’d hit it off with Jessica right away, and they were currently tag-teaming “Hit Me Baby One More Time”. His closest friend in the program, Jess was in a long-distance relationship that was falling apart, and while he would have abandoned her in a heartbeat for Evie tonight—because Jess was a big girl and Evie was, well, probably one-in-a-million—he was glad she was having fun.

And Evie. She was incredible. By the fourth saucy holler that her loneliness was killing her, he was on his feet, applauding. As Chet took over at the mic, she skipped back to the leatherette bench and flung herself around his neck.

“That was hot,” he muttered into her hair, and she flashed him a million watt smile.

“Your turn again soon.”

“You haven’t chosen one for me.” He bit his lip and waggled his eyebrows at her.

She hummed under her breath for a minute, then pushed him away and grabbed for the song binder. He tried to ease against her, see what page she was looking at, but she gave him a playful elbow to the ribs.

Jess joined them, sitting on the far side of Evie, who after thoughtfully stroking her chin for a minute made a song code note on the pad of paper and passed it to Mike, who’d made himself the de facto DJ.

“Are you torturing my boy there,” Jess asked with a wicked gleam in her eye.

“Oh, I don’t know. I think he’s up for it.” Evie reached behind her and laced her fingers into his, and he felt like crowing. Damn straight, he was up for anything tonight. “So Jess, you were saying your boyfriend lives in London?”

His friend nodded. “I’m moving there next month for work. It’ll be nice to live in the same city again.”

“London’s lovely. Some of my friends went there for university.” Evie took a sip of her drink. Liam stilled behind her, his heart pounding. A clue to the mystery that was Evie. Ever since she’d demurely told him she was from out of town, he’d been hesitant to ask any more details. This was gold.

“Are you from around there?” Jess clapped her hands. “Maybe we could get together for brunch!”

Evie laughed. “I’m a little far for that, but who knows, maybe. I live in a little town on Lake Erie, not far from Windsor. I’m sure you’ve never heard of it.”

Liam’s pulse picked up. What were the odds?

“Is it near Pelee Island? We went there for a getaway a few years ago, it was lovely.”

She nodded. “Very close! Wardham…between Kingsville and Colchester Harbour.”

Jess cocked head. “That sounds familiar. Liam, isn’t—”

“Hey, who chose Journey?”

He took a deep breath. He should probably tell her, but then she turned and beamed at him. “You’re up!”

He’d tell her. Right after he knocked her song out of the park. He shrugged out of his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. Evie and Jess hooted and hollered as he rolled his hips to the opening strains of “Don’t Stop Believing”, but as he started singing the lyrics, the light-hearted tease became something else. Evie held his gaze, and he knew the song choice was an opening, and damn fucking straight he was going to take it.

And once they’d shared this night, he’d find her again, and they’d share another. It would take some time, but he wasn’t about to let Evie go, not when he’d just discovered her.

As the song came to an end, he tossed the microphone to Chet, scooped up his jacket with one hand and pulled Evie off the couch with another. With the scantest of goodbyes to the room, he hustled them out onto the street and hailed a cab.

“You don’t mind cutting your celebration with your friends a bit short?” The breathless thrill in Evie’s voice pumped adrenaline directly into his veins, and blood straight to his cock.

He pulled her tight against him, his hand firm against her side. He pressed a kiss to the side of her neck. “This is the best graduation present I could imagine.”

“Kissing on the street?” She laughed gently. “You have low standards, my friend.”

“Hearing you laugh, Evie. I’ve been missing that, and I didn’t even know it.”

She licked her lips and touched the side of his face. “Want to know a secret?”

He grinned. Her eyes were bright, and he knew his were the same. They were just drunk enough to do something crazy.

“I’m extremely ticklish. Take me back to your place and I promise, I’ll laugh all night.”

He whipped open the door and guided her into the taxi. She slid into the middle seat, and he pressed himself against her side, his hand on her knee. His fingers lightly touching the inside of her thigh.

“Liam? We’re going to need to stop and buy some condoms.”

CHAPTER TWO

Her hands shook as she held the plastic stick between her legs.

On the other side of the bathroom door, the thump of feet was followed by a distant, “
Mom!
” The boys were up. Evie cracked the door and hollered that she’d get them breakfast in a few minutes. Another thump as one of them jumped for the TV remote. Great. Cartoons would make a suitably bizarre soundtrack for what she knew was coming next.

Two blue lines.

Goddamn it. More colourful curse words would be appropriate, but almost nine years of motherhood had trained her to keep the F-bomb inside her head. Her mouth, now full of cotton and unable to produce any more saliva, let alone swear, dropped open in shock as the reality of just how stupid she’d been started to sink in.

One night.

One weekend of fun after years of being a responsible mom. Two years without sex. And eight hours of reckless pleasure was her undoing.

How was she going to handle a newborn on her own? She thunked her head against the wall. A wall still primarily owned by the bank. Oh god, her mortgage. Not working wasn’t an option. She’d only been in the house three months. There was no way the bank would waive even a single month’s payments. And with the new studio renovations still on her credit card…

She could borrow money from Laney. Her sister would share it, no questions asked. How humiliating, to go hat in hand to one’s younger, more successful sister, and confess you got knocked up on a one-night stand with a college kid you haven’t talked to since.

Oh god. The kid. Who was going to
have
a kid.

No, no, no. Fluttery panic trembled up from her stomach, crowding against what tasted like bile in her throat, and she spun around, folded over the toilet, and let it all out.

Co-parenting the boys with Dale was hard enough, but at least they had history. She knew him, could read his moods, anticipate what he might want, and how she might be able to get what she wanted out of him.

She was going to have to find Liam. Thank god for small miracles, she remembered his name. First one, anyway. The engineer who’d just finished a business degree. Who’d celebrated by going to karaoke in Koreatown with his equally young friends, and somehow, Evie had agreed to tag along.

It was his eyes. And his voice. She was a sucker for a man who could sing. He’d done something to the two syllables in her name, something that should have been illegal. A rolling, teasing pronunciation that had her panting for more.

“Evie from out of town. Come to karaoke with me. Let’s celebrate.”

Oh, Liam whatever-your-name is, you’re going to regret that invitation.

On the other side of the bathroom door, Max was hopping up and down. Connor was with him, whispering something about leaving Mom alone, and her heart broke. She’d been too hard on them the last few days, knowing she needed to pick up a pack of tests. Not wanting to confirm what she already knew in her heart of hearts. She swung the door open.