The side of Jordan’s mouth twitched. “I wasn’t aware that talking about the town was a secret way of asking a guy out.”
Bailey blinked at the man. He thought of the things Jordan had said to him since almost running into the man. He inwardly grimaced. Jordan hadn’t said one word about dating or being interested. Bailey had just made an utter fool of himself. Jordan was just being polite and Bailey had taken everything the wrong way, looking for things that weren’t there.
“Sorry,” he said as he settled back.
Could he have made himself look any more foolish? Bailey rubbed at his sternum, hating himself for jumping to conclusions. Jordan probably thought that Bailey was the biggest ego-centered man around.
“People can be friendly without lascivious intent.”
Bailey dipped his head. “I know.”
Jordan turned his head and stared out the window, leaving Bailey sitting there feeling like an idiot. He wanted to reach out and press his hand into the man’s strong arm, telling Jordan that he was sorry. But Bailey didn’t do that. He left things alone instead.
He would never see the man again so it didn’t matter that his first impression—and second—had sucked. Bailey would go on making a fool of himself and Jordan would go on being a nice guy once they parted, their paths never crossing again.
“Here we go,” Reno said as he pulled into a driveway. This must be where Jordan lived. It was a small farmhouse, nicely painted and well-kept. There were two comfortable-looking chairs sitting on the front porch, a small table in between. Bailey spotted a few hanging plants, cinching the homey look.
“Nice place,” Bailey said conversationally.
Jordan gave him a tight smile as he slid from the back seat and thanked Reno for the ride. Did Bailey blame the guy? He had acted like a complete ass when all Jordan tried to do was be friendly. He would have deserved it if Jordan had turned around and told him to fuck off.
But then again, Jordan was too nice of a guy to say that.
Bailey watched Jordan disappear through the front door before Reno pulled away. A light came on in the front window and Bailey wondered—no, he didn’t care what Jordan was doing inside. He didn’t care about a damn thing except getting home and taking a nice hot shower.
“Are you coming to Bear’s cookout Saturday?” Reno asked.
“I don’t know.” Bailey gave Reno the same answer he’d given Travis. Although he liked the men he worked with, Bailey was still trying to pull his life together. Maybe an afternoon of hanging out with the guys would be good for him. “Yeah,” Bailey said.
“Good,” Reno answered but didn’t say any more.
Once Reno dropped him off, Bailey walked inside and dropped down on his couch. He needed to pull his head out of his ass and start living again. Before Harley, Bailey had enjoyed hanging out and having a good time. He had enjoyed laughing, being with friends, and sex. God, he missed sex. Since Harley, Bailey hadn’t done any of that.
He was still resolute about no one having his heart again, but the least he could do was get back to his old self. Bailey was going to take Travis’s advice and get laid. This celibate shit was getting old.
Bailey was only twenty-three, too young to shut down his sex life. Maybe he would go back to the Lucky Clover tomorrow and see if that stranger was still there. Feeling a hell of a lot better after his decision, Bailey headed toward the shower.
* * * *
Bailey stood on Bear’s back deck, drinking a beer. He had gone back to the Lucky Clover Thursday evening, but he hadn’t run into that stranger. He wasn’t even sure the guy would give him the time of day after the way Bailey had acted.
“Glad to have you here,” Spencer, Bear’s boyfriend said as he joined Bailey. “I honestly thought you weren’t going to show.”
Bailey didn’t think he’d make it either. Over the past year, the chief had invited the guys over a few times for a cookout and Bailey had declined each time. He was glad he didn’t pass this moment up. The guys from the station were here, along with Hawk and Johnny. Bailey had met the two a while back. It seemed Johnny and Spencer were good friends, and since Spencer hung out at the station, Johnny occasionally dropped by.
There were a few people he didn’t know but had been introduced to. Blair and Kota were talking with Hawk, Randy and Priest were chatting with Bear. It was late evening, the sky warm and inviting. The sun was casting long shadows in the woods beyond the porch, telling Bailey it would be dark soon, but still perfect for friends to gather and have a good time.
Bailey relaxed and enjoyed himself. Not even Travis’s occasional needling about Bailey dating bothered him. His day was going great…until Jordan walked through the door. He just shook his head and sighed.
Figures.
Tossing his empty bottle into the recycle bin, Bailey grabbed another beer from the cooler that was sitting on the back porch. He looked back through the kitchen window and Jordan’s sensual amber eyes locked onto Bailey. They held a gaze for a moment, and then Jordan looked away right before he began to talk to Reno.
Bailey turned and dropped down into the chair, staring off into the forest. Bear really did have a nice place. It was secluded and homey. The chief came out and started messing with the grill as Bailey relaxed in his chair.
“Having a good time?” Bear asked as he flipped the steaks.
“Yeah,” Bailey answered before taking a long draft of his beer. He actually was having a nice
