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CHAPTER FIVE
Carine peered out of her car window at Valerie and let out a dry chuckle. Valerie knew that sound was a precursor to oh-so-much bullshit.
They’d poured a whole gallon of gas into that little car, waited a couple of minutes for it to hit the tank, and again, nothinghappened. Obviously, the Miata’s problem wasn’t fuel-related.
“Of course.” Valerie shook her head and pushed her sunglasses up her nose. “I woke up knowing that today was going to be rife with inconvenience. I felt it in my bones.”
“You oughtta try to make a few bucks off that gift. Maybe join the Psychic Friends.” Clay rubbed tired-looking eyes with heels of his palms and sighed before stuffing his hands into his bathrobe pockets.
“Did you have a late night, Clay?” Valerie asked, deadpan. “Were you up sampling the goods or just playing the part of the gracious host?”
“Yes, maybe, and sure. Gotta be nice to the folks who pay my contractor invoices, right?” He widened the pale eyes that were so much like Tim’s, and she groaned inwardly.
Try as she might not to think about Tim after he’d dropped her off in Shora, everything in her mind was only a couple of degrees of separation from him. When she’d thought about getting up early to help Carine deal with her car, her mind went next to Clay, whose property the vehicle was parked on. Of course, from there, Valerie’s train of thought went to what Tim had said about the kind of scenarios Clay put himself in—hinting that he was some kind of freak.
And that made her wonder what kind of freakTimwas.
Her thighs burned and pussy throbbed at the very thought of his sinful tongue and how she hadn’t wanted to say no to him. She’d wanted him so badly and had been depriving herself for too long.
“Wanna hear about my night?” Clay asked.
She pressed a hand to the back of her hot neck and rubbed it. “Uh, no. I’ll pass.”
So curious, though.
Just being in Clay’s orbit made her crave getting back into the thick of things—into dominance and submission, and other kinks she’d left unexplored.
Maybe now I’ll know how to say no when I need to.
She’d gotten to be an expert at saying no to people in everything in her life ranging from work to social outing to volunteering. She had to do what was best for her and her ambitions, and she didn’t allow herself to feel guilty about refusing someone. She’d let people push her to places she didn’t want to be in the past, and she wasn’t going to let that happen anymore. Maybe discretion was really possible.
Eying her cautiously, Clay canted his head and rocked back on the heels of his bare feet.
“What?” she asked.
“Nothin’.”
Bullshit.
“Hey, Carine? I can pull my truck over and try to give it a jump,” Clay said, “but I don’t think it’ll make much of a difference. I feel like something’s not connecting between the gas tank and the starter.”
“What does that mean?” Carine asked. “Isn’t there a lot of stuff between the gas tank and the starter?”
“Yep. Open your wallet and prepare to bleed green, baby.”
“I don’t have any green. I sell single-family homes at a very low commission. I’ve got some coins in my ashtray and some plastic money in my wallet, but real cash…” She let out a dry laugh and yanked the key out of the ignition. “Fresh out of it. Maybe you can earmark some funds from the next LDD event for my new car fund.”
He scoffed. “Next thing you’re going to tell me is you can’t afford the admission fee.”
“Is there a scholarship? If so, I’d like to apply.”
“Maybe do me some favors and I’ll write it off.”
“C-carnalfavors?” Valerie asked in a thick voice.
Confused, Clay furrowed his brow. “No. Why?”
“Never mind.” Valerie leaned against Carine’s car window, and said gently, “Might be time to trade her in?”
