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“And you used the wrong form of your.” Devon adds, and I roll my eyes. She’s sucha Virgo.
“It’s a good thing I have to moveTurbinebecause I can never face that man again,” I groan.
“What are you going to say to him now?” Sadie asks, handing my phone back.
Devon answers for me, “Absolutely nothing. She is going to walk into work tomorrow, tits up, chin held high, and act like nothing ever happened.” She turns to face me, holding both of my hands in hers. “You are a queen who doesn’t drunk-text your irritating work neighbor, no matter how hot he is. It never happened.”
I like that plan.I look back at my phone and review the short conversation again, wincing at every word.Yeah, Devon’s plan is my only option.There’s absolutely nothing I can say to make this better.
Chapter 12
Luke
“If you keep pointing the flashlight at everything but the lug nuts, we’ll never get this spare on.”-Grandad Ernie, teaching seven-year-old Luke how to change a tire on the shoulder of the PCH.
By the time I finish working on my last bike of the day, the building is quiet. The curtains are still drawn atTurbine, so I’m not sure when the last people left, but the light stopped coming in at the edges hours ago. I spend a few minutes scrubbing my hands with pumice soap to get the day’s grease off before I grab my helmet and lock up for the night.
The parking lot out back is empty except for my Honda CB and Allie’s silver Toyota Corolla.What’s her car doing here so late?She wasn’t at work today and hasn’t been since she essentially told me to fuck off after I caught her when she fell off that table last week. Those adorable drunk texts yesterday are all I’ve heard from her since.
Her headlights come on, illuminating the cinderblock wall onAllie’s side of the parking lot, but instead of driving away, she gets out and walks toward the hood. The lights and shadows of the parking lot display her silhouette, soft shoulders narrow to her waist, then flare into thick hips and thicker thighs.Goddamn.
She reaches to lift the hood of her car, and my feet move immediately. I’m not leaving her alone in a parking lot with a car that’s not working.
“Oh!” She makes a startled little scream and presses her hand to her chest. “You scared me.”
“Didn’t mean to.” Closer now, I can take in the full sight of her. Hair damp around her forehead. Little beads of sweat sitting on her collarbones above the neckline of her shirt. A cropped white shirt stops a few inches above the waistband of her tight black leggings. She’s coming from a workout.Shit, that’s sexy.Seeing her slightly disheveled and sweaty sends a shock of awareness through me.
She looks up at me, wide eyed, with a look on her face I can’t decipher. After a few moments of silence she speaks, her voice coming out weak. “My car is being mean.”
“Mean?” I step closer, holding up a flashlight over her shoulder at the engine bay, and catch the faint scent of her sweat. It makes me want to smell every inch of her.
“Oh!” she yelps in surprise again, her back brushing against my chest when she turns to look up at me. “Where did that flashlight come from?”
I hold open my hand to show her the light is on my key ring.
“Oh,” she replies, voice quieter than usual. “That’s handy.”
I nod in agreement. “What’s the problem?”
“Won’t start.” She shifts her weight from one foot to the other, running her fingers through the tips of her hair.Is she nervous about her car?
“Is it turning over?” I ask.
She looks at the engine bay, confused, then back to me, “I don’t think so?”
“Let me have your keys,” I say, holding my hand out.
A flash of defiant irritation crosses the round features of her face, but then she motions towards the cab. “Still in it.”
I hand my motorcycle helmet to her and push back the driver’s seat to make room for my legs.
“What are you doing?” she asks, looking between me and the helmet in her arms, lips pursing in confusion.
“Figuring out what’s wrong.” I press my foot to the brake and turn the key over in the ignition. “It’s most likely your starter.”
“How do you know?” she asks, and I’m glad to hear some of her usual fire return to her voice.
“You realize I’m a mechanic, right, sweetheart?”
