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He stepped closer. The clean, masculine scent of him rushed into her lungs as she breathed in deeply. The difficult men in her past had never elicited such a strong sexual attraction based only on the way they smelled. Perhaps she’d use enticing masculine aroma as a new basis for any future relationships. Because this man smelled scrumptious.
She inhaled again, and fell a little bit in love with him. What is wrong with me?
“This is your lucky day. I’m not a mechanic exactly, but I used to know my way around car engines pretty well. Want me to take a look?”
“Sure. That would be great.” She nodded, trying not to bury her face at his throat and get a good, hearty sniff. “Thank you so much for stopping.” Would you also kiss me senseless, fuck me wildly, and not be the type to strike me in anger? The way he carried himself spoke more to, “I’m sexy and I know it,” rather than, “I’m the abusive woman beater of the year.” But she’d been fooled before. And fooled more than once. She was currently zero for two. Not a great record.
“My name is Gabriel, by the way.” He extended a hand to her. “Gabriel Wallace.”
Hesitating only a second, Suzanna took his hand in hers. The rush of pleasure from merely touching this man sent her heart beating madly in her chest. He may not be a mechanic, but he had callused working-man’s hands. She liked it. A lot. Too much. She sucked in a slow breath to calm herself. With it came his alluring fragrance once more. She had to work not to make an appreciative noise when she exhaled.
“I’m Suzanna Creighton,” she managed to say without moaning. She held on to his fingers for far too long, but if he was troubled by it he didn’t say anything. His gaze ran over her several times, landing on her face. Then she remembered the big Hollywood sunglasses she wore to hide the mark. She released his hand. She had no business finding this man, or any man, attractive.
“Thank you again for stopping. I truly appreciate it.”
“No problem. Why don’t you pop the hood for me?” He might as well have said, “No problem. Why don’t we pop your cherry?” the way pussy juice suddenly shot into her panties. Every move he made, every syllable he uttered, put her libido on high notice whether she liked it or not.
Slightly unnerved by her uncharacteristic lust, and adamant refusal to acknowledge it, Suzanna opened the driver’s-side door. She pushed the button with the hood icon pictured and then walked closer to where he stared at her big, dirty engine.
“So…on a scale from, no big deal, it just needs to cool off to O-M-G run, before it explodes, how bad is it?” She was trying to be light and funny, but likely didn’t pull it off as well as she wished.
Gabriel laughed, and he had a great laugh. His gaze once again wandered to her face, but he soon focused his attention back to her engine, muttering, “I think I know what the problem is, but let me get a good look in here first, to make sure.”
Marcus had never seemed to get her sense of humor. He would always smile as if he had to respond, but the amusement level hadn’t ever reached his eyes. That had been one of the primary reasons she’d dumped him. But he hadn’t gotten the message. Literally. At least not in a timely manner for his anger to be contained.
Given his fury when he finally got the message, maybe nothing would have controlled his utter rage. She’d been so foolish to allow herself the luxury of a serious relationship. Especially since her choice had turned out to be so completely dismal. The moment he’d arrived at her door two nights ago, Suzanna had started plotting her immediate escape. Based on the horrid experience she’d had in college, she knew that distance was her friend in a situation such as she had. And she understood clearly all about how to run and hide.
Which was how she currently found herself along the side of the road with an attractive stranger and a broken-down car.
Gabriel, gorgeous as he looked under the hood studying her decade-old vehicle’s engine, finally straightened and backed up a step. She was pulled her from her wretched reverie.
“What’s the verdict?” she asked.
“It’s probably the water pump. So I’d say this is about midway between the two extremes you mentioned. And unfortunately, you’re going to need to tow it somewhere. It’s not drivable as is.”
