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She hurried forward, throwing her arms around him. He picked her up and squeezed her tightly before placing her feet back on the floor. “Where’s your ride?” Calli questioned when she stepped back.
“Across the street at Hawk’s place,” he replied, dragging his fingers through the long, wet hair that had fallen into his face and pulling it back. He stepped back into the bathroom and grabbed the folded white T-shirt on the counter, shaking it out and pulling it over his head. “Kadey’s tryna earn some money for some school trip, so paid her to clean it.”
Calli’s eyebrows shot up. “You agreed to let an eight-year-old touch your motorcycle?”
Bishop shrugged. “Hawk said he’d supervise, so he’s culpable for damages.”
Calli laughed, shaking her head before finally turning to me. “I see you met Shay, finally,” she introduced. “Shay, this is my dad, Bishop.”
“It’s ni—” My voice cracked, and I cleared it before trying again. “It’s nice to meet you.”
He nodded, holding eye contact with me in a ‘we are going to pretend that didn’t happen’ kind of way. “Likewise.”
I bobbed my head up and down several times, letting him know I heard him loud and clear, though my heart hadn’t caught on. It was still racing so fast I was starting to feel a little dizzy.
I’d just seen my best friend’s dad naked.
The heat began to burn at my cheeks again at the thought of his toned body and the water dripping down over his skin. Holy crap.
I quickly snatched my bag up off the floor and backed away. “I’m just gonna put this away.”
“Okay… I’ll meet you downstairs. We definitely need to go to the store.”
Bishop shrugged on his leather vest over his shirt, watching me intently as I took one step after another back toward the bedroom. Calli was already heading for the stairs, clearly unable to feel the swirling storm in the air around us.
It was unlike anything I’d ever felt before.
It wasn’t like I wasn’t confident around boys. For the most part, they were usually intimidated by how I held myself, but there was a difference.
Bishop wasn’t a boy.
He was a man.
A man who I shouldn’t be thinking about that way.
My best friend’s father.
“Shay.”
Bishop’s sharp tone made me jump, and I blinked a few times, bringing his face back into focus. “Yeah. I mean, no. I don’t know his name. The cops came. They took him away. I managed to keep him from hurting anyone but me, so it’s all fine.”
“It’s not fine.”
“Look, I’ve had the lecture from Calli and my boss,” I protested, folding my arms across my chest to mirror his stance, flinching when the stitches tugged painfully. “Goddammit. There were kids around and people looking scared. People shouldn’t be scared in a hospital. A hospital is a place where they should feel safe. But I just… I don’t need to be told again. Next time, I’ll run away. I’ll hide or something, okay?”
He waited for a beat before raising his eyebrows. “You done?”
I cleared my throat, standing a little straighter. “Yeah.”
“Good,” he snapped, tucking his hands into his pockets as he leaned back against the kitchen counter. “Because what I was going to say was it’s not fine, but I would have done the same fucking thing, so I’m not about to sit here and lecture you. I’ve known bigger, burlier bastards who would have used their mother as a shield before they would risk their own lives for anyone else.”
I barked out a laugh. “Thanks, I think.”
“But,” he cut in, leaning forward. “I’m gonna get a name.”
Rolling my eyes, I let out a heavy sigh. “Can’t you just leave it alone? Why do you need to know who he was?”
His eyes darkened, and he took a couple of steps toward me. “Because he hurt you.”
