“Alex will be back in a few minutes.” Her lips lifted on one side, and he noticed how the top one was fuller than the lower. Plump and bitable. “Maybe that would suit you better, sir?”
It would, but only because he couldn’t think past the throb in his groin with this hot piece of ass throwing all that attitude his way. “Sure.”
“Go park it over there, then.” She pointed to the other side of the workshop, where a couple chairs sat against the wall. “You won’t have long to wait.”
Then she spun on the heel of her steel-toed boot and continued to go about her business like he wasn’t there.
He chose not to sit, and instead leaned against the wall, unable to take his eyes off her. Lifting those toned, inked arms, she gathered her red hair up off her shoulders and tied it in a messy ponytail, revealing more ink at the back of her neck, one perfect red rose. The skin there glistened with a fine sheen of sweat, and he groaned under his breath, then tried to subtly adjust his cock, so it didn’t look like he had a freaking heat-seeking missile down the front of his jeans.
She went back to the Customline and started working on the headlights. She was frenching them by the looks. When she finished, they’d be set in rather than stick out, giving the car a sleeker appearance. The fine muscles in her arms and shoulders moved as she worked, sexy as hell, and proving she worked hard. He already knew she didn’t mind getting her hands dirty.
Screw the Playboy channel. Watching her work was the hottest thing he’d ever seen.
The sound of car tires crunching on gravel had him turning from the firecracker on the other side of the room. A silver Mercedes pulled in, and a guy in a suit climbed out, followed by a petite brunette from the passenger side. She wore denim cutoffs and a black tank. She also had ink, red roses as well by the looks of it, similar to the one on the back of the redhead’s neck, but the brunettes covered the top half of one arm.
“Here’s Alex now.” He looked down at Miss Attitude, who was suddenly right beside him, a smirk front and center.
He straightened, about to go introduce himself to the suit, but the guy stopped in his tracks, pulled the brunette into his arms, and after planting a wet one on her, climbed back in the Mercedes and drove off.
You have got to be kidding me.
The other woman strode in, taking in the pair of them standing there. “What’s going on?”
This was a male-dominated industry. Of course he’d come across female mechanics before. Still, he couldn’t help being a little surprised. He guessed they were both in their early to mid-twenties, young. And male or female, to get where they were, the age they were, would not have been easy. Would have taken a determination to succeed he understood all too well.
He stepped forward, offered her his hand. “I’ll take a wild guess. Alex?”
Instantly on guard, she left him hanging midair and stared him up and down. “Who wants to know?”
This was Alex all right. “Do you have any other partners? Or is it just you two?”
“There’s one more,” Alex said.
“And are they getting here any time soon?”
She narrowed her eyes. “Piper’s running errands. She won’t be back till later.”
“Piper?”
“Yeah.”
Jesus.
Chapter Two
Rusty West watched her best friend take the sexist pig’s outstretched hand and give it a firm shake. “Alex Franco.”
The guy’s light brown eyes slid from Alex back to her, and that’s where they stayed. Like they had since he’d walked in, that hot stare following her around the workshop, unnerving the hell out of her.
Yeah, she was used to guys looking at her, but it didn’t mean she hated it any less. And okay, at times she was guilty of using the sway she had to her advantage when the need arose. Still, that didn’t change the fact that she did not like it, not one goddamned bit. This jackass, unfortunately, was no different. He’d taken one look at her and bam his dumb stick had taken over his pea brain. As far as he was concerned, that was it, the way she looked was all that mattered, there was nothing underneath.
He was still staring down at her, hand now aimed her way. “Reid Parker.”
She kept hers at her side—until Alex nudged her with a pointy elbow to the ribs.
Goddammit.
She didn’t want to touch him. Somehow, she knew it would be a huge mistake to let him wrap that big mitt around hers. But what could she do? He’d already called her out on her shitty customer service skills, and what if he wanted to hire them? Alex would skin her alive if she cost them a job just because the guy happened to be a major asshole.
