Rich didn’t. “Uh-huh. And how’s this useful to us?”
“It illustrates my point. You need to learn what you’re dealing with before you go charging around like a mad dog. Or werewolf.”
“Okay. You go learn. I have a home renovation to finish.”
“Need help?”
“It’ll be easier without you being underfoot.” Rich knew right away he’d said the wrong thing again, and Olly’s silence confirmed it—it was drowning out the traffic noise. Rich spent the rest of the drive trying to decide if he should be relieved to have Olly disgruntled and out of his hair for a while at least, or try to make things right. Guilt won out.
As they turned onto their street, he said, “Sorry. It came out wrong. What I meant…” What he meant was that Olly was a constant distraction—his mind kept wandering in the wrong direction with Olly around. Like right then, watching Olly’s profile, the curve of the jaw, the shell of an ear between blond locks, and the smooth skin—did Olly even shave? Didn’t down below. The image of Olly showing him the tattoo flashed into Rich’s memory. Case in point. “I work better alone.”
Olly didn’t even look in Rich’s direction. “Whatever.” He pulled up in front of the house and kept the engine running.
There was absolutely no reason for the heaviness in the pit of his stomach, Rich told himself as he slammed the car door shut behind him. Before Olly could leave him in the dust, Sandy stumbled out of the house, spilling bags, the cooler and a beach umbrella over the lawn. Rich jumped to help her gather them back up, and, of course, Olly was there too a second later.
“Where have you two been running off at the crack of dawn?” she asked, looking from one to another.
“Just driving around,” Olly rushed to reply. His voice was an octave too high, his cheeks flushed, and he was looking everywhere but at Sandy. Olly couldn’t lie to save his life, Rich realized.
“I asked Olly to show me around so I won’t get lost if I go for a ride,” Rich lied with far more expertise.
Sandy wasn’t so easily fooled, though. “You look guilty again.” She shrugged and opened the trunk of her car. “Well, it’s your business. Put those in there.”
“Where are you going?” Rich asked, arranging the bags and things in the trunk.
She grinned from ear to ear. “I have a hot date. In Santa Barbara. Don’t wait up, I don’t plan to be back till late tomorrow.” She hopped behind the wheel of the red mini and backed out of the driveway. “You’re in charge, Richard. Olly, don’t let him push you around,” she shouted out the window before driving away.
“A date with whom?” Rich wondered out loud.
Olly frowned as his gaze followed the mini. “No clue. Honestly, I’m hurt. She hasn’t told me a word of a new beau.”
Rich seized the hint of camaraderie in the air. “Women. Nothing but trouble.”
Olly turned his gaze to Rich. “What did you mean go for a ride?” he asked after a moment of contemplation.
Suddenly invigorated, Rich made a follow-me gesture with his head. “I’ll show you.” He led Olly through the house, out into the backyard and into the garage. There, behind the still unfinished sideboard, hid his pride and joy, covered in blue tarp.
“I wondered about that,” Olly said as Rich took hold of the tarp.
Rich yanked it off. “Ta-da!” The bike was beautiful, sleek and sexy like a jungle predator. “Meet Shadow.”
“You named your bike?”
“Well, it’s a Honda Shadow Phantom.”
“I see.” Olly brushed his fingers over the black leather seat and black chrome. His eyes caught the light of the bare bulb hanging from the ceiling when he turned to Rich. “I would’ve figured you for the monster-pickup-truck type. This is butch on a whole different level. More fun, less self-compensation.”
Rich ignored the last bit because he didn’t want another story about dick sizes. “Have you ever ridden on a bike?”
“Nah.”
“I’ll take you out for a spin.” Rich regretted saying it at once, but it was too late to take it back.
“Okay!” Olly replied eagerly.
Rich dug around the boxes till he found the duffel bag containing his riding gear. He tossed the spare helmet and the jacket to Olly. “Put those on.”
“Leather? It’ll be too hot.”
“Not when we’re moving. Put it on.” As expected, the jacket hung loose on Olly—he looked like a kid in hand-me-downs. Rich unzipped a couple of front panels, revealing a mesh over the upper chest and the under-arm areas. “There. Happy?”