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I think I was.
Terrifying as it seemed, Lux wasn't like any of the other women I'd been with. Yet, I sensed an honesty in her that breezed through me like a breath of fresh air.
With one last glance around the garage, I pushed the scaffolding pole back in so I wouldn't poke my eye out in the morning and headed up to my loft. I needed to sleep. Otherwise, I’d be a mess in the morning. After locking the door, I lay in bed, waiting to sleep, but I could smell her on the sheets. Fuck, her scent surrounded me.
Four hours later, I gave up and put on the coffee machine. Sleep was for wimps anyway. From off the table, I grabbed the plans for the custom I had been working on. Filled an extra-large mug with coffee and made my way back into the garage. It would be a long five hours until Lux returned, and I needed to focus on something.
* * *
Strangely the timewent by fast. I made more progress in the hours between waking and getting dressed than I had in a couple of weeks. I worked out a bit of the problem I’d had with the design of the exhaust until I was confident to move ahead with the welding I needed to do.
I was greasy and sweaty, but feeling confident in my progress, I checked the time. It was seven-thirty. Time for a much-needed shower and some breakfast. Thankfully hours of hard work had abated my Lux induced hard-on.
When I was showered and fresh (just because I worked in a garage didn’t mean I needed to smell like it), I went back down to the garage, trying to see it from the point of view of someone who didn’t spend all their time hanging around inhaling oil fumes and rubbing grease off their hands. I knew Clint’s office needed at least a wipe down before Lux arrived, so I pushed up the long sleeves on my black shirt and braved the chaos. I’d not put one step in there since I’d had to find that invoice on the day of his accident.
Turns out entering Clint's office was a gigantic mistake. A fetid smell hit me smack in the face, and I stumbled over to the small window, tripping over a box stuffed with folders. What the fuck was that stench? Holding my nose, I searched for the offending smell, finding it in the form of a bacon sandwich of all things in the desk's top drawer.
Clint was a pig. Why hadn't he thrown the offending sandwich away? Had he been saving it for breakfast the following day? The smell would never go before she arrived.
Grabbing the criminal item, I ran back up to the apartment, bagged it in a tight-knit packet, and popped it in the trash. No one could call me a domesticated male, but that was gross even for me.
Despite the smell, my stomach growled. I needed some food. I wondered if she’d be hungry when she got here? My own stomach gave another loud growl. Lack of sleep and hard work at unusual hours had me famished. I got my phone and searched for a local deli that delivered. Ordered some bagels, cream cheese, a fruit and cheese platter, and some juices.
I headed back down to Clint’s office and attempted to tidy up a stack of papers, soon realizing I was probably making matters worse. Lux understood numbers and business, which meant she’d be better at going through the paperwork than me.
The bell above the front door rang, and I checked the time, guessing it was the food. It was eight forty-five. After tipping the delivery driver, I smothered one of the dozen bagels in cream cheese and ate while I waited. By nine-fifteen, I guessed Lux had changed her mind. I’d made a mistake, and she wasn't coming.
I ran upstairs for my phone to see if she'd texted and saw she hadn't. What had I been thinking anyway? Had she only been pretending to like me? Wasn’t this kind of worry why I'd always stayed away from relationships. Fuck. I'd met the woman only a couple of days ago and already thought we could be something. What a dick.
Rolling my head around on the tight muscles of my neck and rotating my shoulders, I evaluated the contents of the breakfast box. Maybe I could take some to Clint. Of course, I wouldn’t tell him why I’d had a fancy breakfast delivered.
Clint probably needed a ride to his place anyway. I hadn’t even thought about him or his needs while swept up in Lux and all the excitement she’d brought with her.
Pocketing my keys and grabbing the box full of food, I headed for the door, ready for an impromptu and much less attractive breakfast date. Before I reached the exit, the door opened. It was Lux. And fuck, she was beautiful.
“Hi.” Her hair was up, a silky length of blonde swinging over her shoulder, and her blue blouse gave her pale skin a creamy smoothness. She glanced at my keys. “Have I got the wrong time? I’m sorry I’m a bit late.” Her deep blush that had already become so familiar spread up her throat and settled on her cheeks. She looked harassed.
Ah, she’d got lost, that was all. Not changed her mind. My heart soared.
“No, no, not at all. It’s breakfast.” I nodded to the box and settled it back down on the back counter. “You hungry?”
“I think you like feeding me?” Her smile spread cheekily, and with a bolt of realization, I knew she was relaxing with me, trusting me.
All thoughts of Clint and how he’d get home evaporated. He was a grown-ass man, and he could make his own plans.
“Bagels? Strawberries?” I peered in the box. “Blueberries and, well, actually, I don’t know what this is.” I pulled out a spiky fruit that looked like a weapon.
“Dragon fruit, my favorite.” She clapped her hands happily.
“Head’s up." I threw it to her, and she caught it easily while I grabbed a bagel, suddenly hungry for another one. “I’ll get you a coffee, and then you can show me how to cut up that thing."
Her gaze swept around the garage, landing on the bike I’d been working on from the early hours. "Did you make this?"
"I did. Cool, right?" I was proud of my work and hoped she liked it too.
"Fucking amazing," she said with awe in her voice.
"Thank you." This would be the best workday I’d had in a long, long while. "You ready to work?"
