Her Sexiest Mistake

'And what do you know about girls?'

She knew her mistake the minute he flashed her a quick grin, showing a glimpse of the laid-back, badass biker she'd slept with last night. 'I know enough.'

Damn it, but her tummy fluttered. 'You're acting like it's going to be hard to watch her for a night until I can get her home. I mean, honestly, how much trouble can she be?'

He stared at her, then let out a low laugh. 'You're right. You handle it. Your way.'

He moved through the door and she followed, getting into the hall in time to see him touch Hope's arm, leaning in to say something softly.

In turn, Hope gripped his arm. 'You're leaving?'

He nodded.

'But I thought you two were…' Hope waggled her fingers back and forth between him and Mia. 'You know, like, doing it.'

Mia choked.

To Kevin's credit, he didn't react at all. 'You thought wrong.'

'But I want to stay with you,' she said to Kevin.

'Uh, that's a big negative,' Mia said.

Hope's bravado seemed to desert her at this unwelcome news. 'Oh.'

'Look, why don't we call your mom?' Kevin said quietly. 'And then-'

'No.' Hope shuffled her feet some, and Mia winced at the additional scuff marks. 'I don't think my mom's ready to hear from me.'

'I bet she is.' She would be. Mia grabbed the portable phone off the small desk against the wall. 'We'll just call-'

'I've changed my mind about staying here,' Hope said stiffly.

'Good. But we're still calling. Number?'

Hope went sullenly silent, but Mia was unmoved. 'The number, Hope.'

Hope rolled her eyes.

'Could you stop rolling your eyes at everything I say?' Mia requested. 'It just makes me want to put your eyeballs into a jar so that you can shake it every time you feel the need to roll them at me.'

Kevin made a move as if to step in, but Mia put a hand to his chest and held him back, her gaze locked on Hope's.

'I know you know the number. Let's hear it.' Damn difficult to be tough when she was distracted by the heat of Kevin's chest and all that easy strength beneath her palm. Not to mention knowing exactly what he could do to her with all that strength. 'Speak up.'

Hope looked at Kevin.

'It's going to be okay,' he said very gently.

And Hope's tough-girl image seemed to fold in on itself. 'Promise?' she whispered.

Kevin put a hand on her shoulder. 'Family can get complicated sometimes, that's all.'

'Is yours?'

He let out a low laugh. 'Oh, yeah.'

'Does your mom drive you crazy?'

'My mom is gone now. So's my dad. But my brother drives me crazy. Does that count?'

She let out a little smile that didn't last long before collapsing as she rattled off her mom's number to Mia without looking at her.

Mia punched it into the phone but didn't turn it on yet. 'Is she going to be home?'

'Doubt it.'

'I can take a look at your car,' Kevin said to Hope. 'If you'd like.'

Looking at him as if he was Superman, she handed over her keys.

Kevin turned to Mia. 'If you have any… issues, I teach at the high school and run the teen center next to it. We have a summer program that started up just today.'

Mia nodded and waited for him to go. When he didn't, she met his gaze and felt a punch of awareness, as well as an unbidden memory of being naked in his arms. Her body actually leaned toward him for a touch, a hug…

Ridiculous. She didn't need those things. And yet… No. No, no, no. She shook herself, backed up, and gave him the room he needed to go.

He oozed virility as he turned to the door, but Mia just held her breath because it really seemed as if he was waiting for something from her.

The air sort of crackled, went still, then crackled some more.

'You're supposed to kiss him,' Hope said ever so helpfully. 'Guys like it when you do that.'

Kevin looked at Mia, and she would have sworn there was a glint of wry amusement deep in his gaze.

'Don't you?' Hope asked him.

Kevin seemed to debate with himself on whether to answer or not. 'I'm not sure where you get your perception of the male species, but some guys-'

'-are from another planet,' Mia interjected dryly. 'Actually, all of them are.'

Kevin shot her a look. Then turned back to Hope. 'You don't have to do what guys like.'

'Maybe I like it, too,' Hope said but didn't sound convinced.

Kevin tugged on a strand of Hope's hair. 'You know where to find me if you need anything.' He looked at Mia. 'You, too,' he said.

And then he walked out into the rain.

'He's hot,' Hope said, watching him go. 'For an old guy.'

Yeah, well, he was gone. Hot or otherwise.

Just as she'd wanted.

So she had no idea why the sound of the door closing felt so uncomfortably… final. With a sigh, she turned on the phone and listened to it ring in a place two thousand miles east in Tennessee, in a single-wide trailer a world away.

Chapter 6

Sugar answered the phone in her soft Southern drawl. 'Hello?'

Mia took a breath and said, 'Sugar. You'll never guess who I've got here.'

A silence greeted this. Then, 'Are you shitting me?'

'Nope.' Mia smiled grimly at Hope and responded in the heavy Southern drawl she'd buried for sixteen years. 'Not shitting ya.'

'Ah, Jesus. You still all the way out there in Cali?'

'Yep.'

'Well, that sucks.'

'I was thinking you could come get her-'

'Oooh, no. I've got this new job, I don't have any vacation time until September, and I'm not going to make any waves here. I'll come for her then.'

Mia's eyes cut to the wall calendar. 'It's June.'

'That's right.'

'That's unacceptable.'

'Hey, tell it to the girl. She's the one who ran away from home. Sixth time this year, too. Says no one