Ryot’s gaze dropped to my mouth, and his grip on me tightened. Then he kissed me.
His firm lips pressed against mine, and his tongue swept across them, demanding entrance. The tension between us finally snapped, and his mouth claimed mine like he’d been waiting for this exact moment.
One hand slid up to cup the back of my neck as he pulled me closer. I melted into him, a small sound escaping my throat that I would probably be embarrassed about later. But for now, I just lost myself in the kiss that was over too soon.
Someone called his name from one of the bays. Ryot pulled back with a low curse, his forehead resting against mine while our chests heaved. The look he gave me before he turned and walked away made my knees weak.
I touched my tingling lips and knew this definitely wasn’t over.
8
GAUGE
Late one afternoon at the end of Riley’s second week, I stood beside her as we finished closing one of the bays. She’d spent the past hour replacing suspension components on a customer’s streetcar, her attention completely locked on the work in front of her. I’d barely managed to focus on the engine bay I was supposed to be inspecting, because every time she leaned forward, my gaze drifted to the soft swell of her tits beneath the tank top she wore. My cock had been half hard most of the day, my jeans painfully uncomfortable by the time we finally cleaned up.
I reached for a shop towel and wiped grease from my hands as casually as I could. “We’re going out tonight.”
She turned toward me, her brown eyes bright with curiosity, a faint smile playing at the corner of her mouth. “We are, huh? Care to tell me where, or am I just supposed to guess?”
I tossed the rag aside and leaned back against the workbench, crossing my arms over my chest so I wouldn’t give in to the temptation to pull her against me. “Taking you to Brake Point Run tonight. There’s a race happening. Figured it’s timeyou saw what this place is really about. Thought you might enjoy meeting some of the racers and seeing the crews in action.”
Her entire face lit up in a way that made my pulse hammer in my veins. Riley’s eyes sparkled with excitement, and her cheeks flushed a soft shade of pink. Her lips curved into a wide smile, and my gaze dropped briefly to her mouth as heat shot through my body. I forced myself to drag my attention back up before I lost the ability to think straight entirely.
“I’d love that.” She was clearly trying and failing to keep the excitement out of her voice. “I’ve been dying to get a look at Brake Point Run.”
The eagerness she couldn’t hide made me grin, because Riley with her guard down was one of the hottest things I’d ever seen.
“Good.” I kept my voice rough to cover how much I wanted to drag her out of the garage right then and finish what our kisses had started. “We’ll leave in an hour.”
She nodded, and I watched her walk upstairs, my gaze sliding over the curve of her hips until she disappeared around the corner. It took a solid minute for me to get my body back under control enough to head into my office, shutting the door behind me and dragging in a slow, heavy breath.
I’d never wanted anyone the way I wanted Riley, and the realization left me shaken in ways I hadn’t expected. She’d walked into my life barely two weeks ago, and I already couldn’t imagine what it would feel like to let her go.
Letting her deeper into my world was the next step in making sure I never had to.
When we got to Brake Point Run, the place buzzed with chaotic energy. It was a world of roaring engines, flashing lights, and eager crowds pressing toward the barriers, hungry for speed and excitement. Cars and bikes lined up, idling impatiently in the staging lanes, their rumbling vibrations carrying across the asphalt to rattle the bones of everyone standing nearby. This waswhere I belonged, surrounded by the raw energy of racing, but tonight my attention was locked on Riley.
She stood beside me, her eyes bright with excitement, and her cheeks flushed from the heat and adrenaline of the atmosphere around us. I watched as she spoke to the pit crew guys, her hands moving animatedly as she gestured toward an engine bay, pointing out details and discussing adjustments. The racers listened closely, nodding along with her explanations, openly seeking her opinion with respect that she’d earned through competence alone.
Every time she smiled or laughed at something someone said, my body responded to the sight of her genuine happiness. The intensity of her passion for racing did something deeper to me than I’d anticipated. Her energy drew people in, effortlessly claiming their attention, and I felt proud each time another racer or mechanic listened carefully to what she had to say.
I found myself completely transfixed by Riley’s excitement, unable to look away as she moved through the pits, discussing setups, tuning strategies, and suspension adjustments. Watching her like this was a special kind of torture, because my mind instantly slid toward thoughts I had no business entertaining in public. The more animated she became, the more vivid my imagination grew, providing images that sent heat straight through me. My cock stirred to life, painfully hard behind my zipper, and I shifted position, fighting for control while images of Riley’s soft curves beneath me flooded my mind.
It took everything I had not to pull her against me right there in the crowded pits, kiss her until she couldn’t think straight, and show everyone watching exactly who she belonged to. My patience frayed down to almost nothing.
It didn’t help my self-control that Riley hadn’t stopped me from kissing her these past few days. I’d stolen them everychance I got, pulling her into quiet corners of the garage, tasting her lips and feeling her soften in my arms.
I knew better than to push too hard, because Riley was still skittish. But sometimes I couldn’t resist making casual comments about the future, mentioning things we’d do months down the road or plans I had for her beyond The Pit. She never called me out on it, just gave me careful sidelong glances that made me wonder if she knew exactly what I was doing.
I’d made up my mind to take the slow road with Riley, which was probably the biggest indicator that I’d completely lost my damn mind. Patience had never been one of my defining virtues. I was a mechanic, a racer, and an enforcer. I liked problems I could identify, fix, and move past. Riley wasn't any of those things.
She was a puzzle I couldn't quite solve, and somehow that only made me want her more. Whenever she gave me another glimpse beneath the guarded exterior she presented to the rest of the world, I found myself wanting the parts she still kept hidden.
But each time I felt her relax against me, I told myself I could wait. At least a little longer, anyway. She was already becoming mine in ways that mattered, even if she hadn’t fully realized it yet. I wasn’t going to risk losing that progress by pushing too hard. Riley Mercer was a battle worth winning, and I wasn’t going anywhere until I did.
A group of pit crew guys waved her over to one of the staging lanes, and Riley immediately headed in their direction. I followed at a slower pace, my hands shoved into the pockets of my jeans as I watched how she moved through the crowd. She looked completely different here than she did inside the garage.
The caution never disappeared entirely, but racing pulled something out of her that everyday life couldn’t. The tension left her shoulders. Her smile came easier. Her eyes lit up every timesomebody mentioned gearing, suspension settings, or engine performance. The woman practically glowed when she was surrounded by race cars on the track.
