But that long-ago man’s frame didn’t resemble the one across the tent as he held a bottle of beer by the neck, occasionally taking it to his lips for a long sip. Even the way his throat swallowed was so fricking hot. It made the earth tremble beneath her heels. Feeling like a creepy pervert for staring at someone for so long, she drew her gaze away and only took a few more tentative glances.
It didn’t hurt to admire a handsome man from time to time.
From experience, admiring their prettiness from afar was the best choice.
Up close, men were mostly pains in the asses and not worth the hassle of having to deal with one personally. It was why her dating life was dead in the water, with no desire to revive it. Lisa was so contentedly single, it was almost comical.
But oh, admiring the hard lines and full lips of a man across a room sure did her body good, and she smiled as she set her champagne glass down on a table and climbed to her feet.
“You can’t leave yet,” Casey complained. “The night is still young.”
“Yeah, it’s not a Diablo party until the cops turn up to shut us down for noise disturbance.” Added Kelly, Devil’s wife.
“I wish I could stay, but I need to finish some work tonight; I’m on a deadline.”
Being her own boss meant she had to be boring and tough with the hours she worked.
“You’ll be at Monroe’s next week, though, right? You promised to bring your brownies.”
“Of course. I wouldn’t miss it.”
She did the round of goodbyes, leaving Nina until last.
They embraced. “Woman, if I could bottle your happiness today, I’d make a fortune,” Lisa told her.
“That belongs to me,” a gruff, amused voice said, and Lisa watched Tomb slip his arm around Nina’s waist, pulling her close, kissing the top of her head.
“Noted.” She laughed. “Congratulations again; it was a gorgeous ceremony. I was blessed to be here.”
“Are you sure you can’t stay?” asked Nina.
“From the in-love look on your face, you won’t even notice I’ve left.” She teased, and Nina grinned, not denying it.
At that moment, the small crowd parted, and though she wasn’t looking directly at the person, Lisa was aware of him as the black-clothed man moved toward them until he was standing at Tomb’s side.
Up close, he was even taller and broader in the shoulders, but his waist was tapered, the wedding suit fitting him perfectly.
Nina had been in the middle of telling Lisa about their upcoming second honeymoon; they were catching a plane in the early hours, but her friend’s words all merged into one noise as Lisa tried to avoid the eyes of the man who was so obviously staring at her.
“Let me introduce you guys. I don’t think you’ve met yet, though this troublemaker is Tomb’s sidekick.” Nina stated. “And he’s like the son I never wanted.” She added, smiling.
That’s when she heard the voice, and it sent whispers of memory through her stomach, tingles of shock in its wake.
The man flashed a smirk, and the short-clipped beard framed his lips. “Hey now, don’t malign my good name; I’m the one who keeps him out of trouble.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Nina said, then turned to Lisa with a smile. “This is Splice. Splice, this is my good friend Lisa. I’m surprised you haven’t crossed paths before now.”
Splice.
Oh, wow. So he’d done it.
She’d heard that name so many times since meeting Nina, having been told he was a member of the MC and a good friend of Tomb and Nina, but she never thought that person would be someone she’d once known. Back then, he wasn’t a biker and didn’t have a biker’s name.
But he’d spoken about his ambition to join them.
A nervousness Lisa rarely felt percolated in her belly.
She was totally unfazed by meeting all kinds of people, thanks to her once socialite in-law family and her worldwide career.
