Having no other choice, Toni made the call.
* * *
Ranger blinkedin wonder at the brunette who exited her broken-down vehicle upon his arrival. Despite the fact that he was driving a tow truck and clearly here for her, he would have much preferred she stayed in the safety of her cage. But if she had, he wouldn’t have gotten the incredible view illuminated by his headlights. It had been nearly an hour since the garage had gotten the distress call, but it must have been the night for vehicles breaking, because he was already on another tow at the time. Not wanting a woman to wait alone on the side of the road for him, Ranger had sent two prospects up to guard her until he could arrive.
In the weeks he’d been working at the garage, Ranger had slowly found his rhythm. He attended his daily meetings with Cross, went to Church meetings, had his sessions with Dr. Rutenberg, helped around the house, took his mom grocery shopping, and did everything and anything he could to stay busy. True to their warnings, he had good and bad days. He struggled, got agitated,craveda poison he knew he shouldn’t…but he was surviving. Minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day.
Today wasn’t necessarily a bad day—he’d certainly had worse—but it also wasn’t a good day either. There was a constant itch, like a nagging at the base of his skull. He was twitchy, and despite that he’d only been attending one meeting a day for thepast three weeks, had called Cross around noon that he needed another. Rather than getting annoyed with him for disrupting his day or for thinking him weak, Cross had commended Ranger for acknowledging his needs and had driven with him to the extra meeting.
Ranger lifted his chin as the two motorcycles drove away from the broken down vehicle and the sexy woman who was holding her hand up to her eyes against his headlights. Ranger flipped on the overhead lights and turned off the headlights so the area was still bright enough for them to see but not directly in her face.
Exiting the tow truck, he grabbed his work gloves and shoved them into his right pocket. Though the VDMC logo was on both doors, Ranger was not wearing his cut. He had a pair of gray coveralls on and his work boots—and literally nothing else. He’d gotten oil all over him on the last tow, and thankfully found a pair of spare coveralls that he could throw on quickly before heading back out. The material wasn’t the greatest and his balls were pissed he was going commando in such a loose pair of pants, but at least he wasn’t soaked in engine oil.
“Toni Anderson?” Ranger questioned, approaching her. He put her about his age. She had an hourglass frame, accentuated by whatever she’d done to her tits to make them stand up like that. She was unsteady on her heels, but he attributed that to the dirt beneath their feet. Curly black hair made her brown eyes appear darker, and why the fuck was red lipstick such a turn on? She truly was incredible, and he was trying his damndest tonotnotice.
“Yes, thank you for coming out here, and for sending your prospects out to watch over me. It wasn’t necessary, but I do appreciate it.”
She lowered her hand from her brow to hold it out to him. Ranger accepted it, immediately taking note of her firm grip.She wasn’t posturing like some guys did, squeezing too hard to send a message. But it let him know that she wasn’t a stranger to a strong handshake. Given the Lexus, he placed her as a professional. Doctor, lawyer, businesswoman… She looked vaguely familiar, but not enough where he could place where he’d seen her before. Anderson was a common enough last name that it didn’t help him there.
“It absolutely was necessary. I wasn’t going to leave you out here on your own, especially when I didn’t know how long I’d be.”
Her red lips parted to reveal white teeth. “You can’t tell me you offer that sort of treatment to all your stranded patrons. I really didn’t expect special treatment.”
Ranger paused, not sure how to tell her that he didn’t know who she was to have offered her special treatment. “Actually, it is. Especially at night.” He didn’t add “for a woman”, but his tone said it. “Mount Grove is small enough that it doesn’t make sense for us to have two tow trucks, but rarely, like tonight, we find ourselves pulled in two different directions. I absolutely was not going to leave you out here on your own.”
In the beam of the work light, she watched him with those dark, assessing eyes, like she was waiting for the punchline. “If that’s true, I don’t think you’re charging enough for your services.”
Ranger chuckled, his callused thumb sliding over the back of her smooth hand. “I’ll mention it to the owner,” he said jokingly. “I’m just the lowly truck driver.”
“I highly doubt you’re ‘just’ anything,” she quipped.
At six-one, there were only a few inches between their heights. Even without those heels, she was tall. Five-seven, five-eight maybe. And while her hourglass figure wasextremelytempting, it was her eyes that held Ranger transfixed. They wereconstantly moving, not looking away from him, but like they were trying to gather all the data they possibly could.
He imagined her like a professional puzzle solver. Needing all the facts. Her sexy ass propped up in the air as she bent over a crossword puzzle, a pair of readers braced over her nose. Librarian, maybe? He had no idea if librarians made enough to own a Lexus, but he sure as fuck could see her standing near some stacks, clutching books to her chest.
Maybe in a bathrobe? Yeah, definitely in a bathrobe. Where the string was tight enough to hold the material in place, but loose enough where a simple tug would reveal the treasure hidden underneath.
His skin prickled, a heat he hadn’t felt in months igniting inside him. His cock twitched, and without jeans or anything else but a thin pair of coveralls shielding him, there was absolutely no way he could hide his reaction to her.
And fuck, how unprofessional was it of him to be standing here, still holding her hand, staring down at her with a growing erection.
Ranger was just about to pull his hand away when he realizedshewas staring up at him, just as intensely, just as transfixed. There was a shortness to her breath, a nervous nibble on the inside of her lip, and with stunning awareness, Ranger realized she was as turned on as him.
“Fuck it.”
The words were like a starter’s pistol. They moved together, mouths crashing in a hasty, sloppy kiss. Ranger’s arms wound painfully tight around her waist, lifting her easily to him, as her arms wrapped around his neck, crushing her breasts between them. A possession unlike anything Ranger had ever felt before gripped his soul as this incredible woman clung to him like her life depended on it.
There was no battle, no hesitation, and he loved that. Loved how she gave as good as she got. Her legs wound around his hips as his right hand dipped low over her luscious ass. The low skirt of her dress rode up, revealing cotton panties. He honestly wouldn’t have cared what she was wearing, lacy thong, boxers, boy shorts… It wouldn’t have mattered, but for reasons unknown, the feel of those practical panties against her hot skin turned him on so much that he nearly lost his footing.
He carried her backwards to his tow truck. The hood of her Lexus was far too low for what he intended. Her fingers dug into his hair, pulling almost painfully against his scalp. Ranger groaned into her mouth as the cool metal of the truck met her back.
Their tongues dueled, his finger finding the seam of her panties. Once upon a time, he might have continued, knowing a single word would stop him, but recent experience that herefusedto think about right then, had him pausing before going any further.
Pulling away, Ranger held still, waited for her to catch her breath. Her head was slightly above his, her body balanced between the door of the tow truck and his hips. Blinking her eyes opened, she stared down at him for a heartbeat before nodding.
* * *
Toni didn’t questionwhat she was doing or try to justify her actions by claiming she wasn’t “that type of girl”. Truth was, the moment the sexy mechanic with white-blonde hair and stunning ice-blue eyes stepped out of the tow truck, she’d wanted him. Wanted to run up and throw herself into his arms, to tackle him to the ground and have her way with him. The coveralls he wore didnotdo him justice, too big for his tall, muscular frame. He wasn’t overly large, not like a bodybuilder or men who hadshoulders for miles. He was perfectly proportioned, but it was his eyes that told the true story.
