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ISLA
Getting up in the morning, I’m a lot more nervous than I ever thought was possible. I have a quick breakfast with the kids, then get dressed. I don’t know why I’m freaking out, because I know it’s not a date. It is the first time I’ll be alone near any man other than Corin, but it doesn’t help that this man is hotter than hell.
Shit, I’m glad it’s just him and not his equally hot brother. Glancing at the clock, I see that it’s eleven fifteen and I need to go so I’m not late. After a quick goodbye kiss to my kids, I’m out the door and jumping in Maw-Maw’s brand new Toyota 4Runner. Thankfully, the GPS says it’s only a 25 minute drive, and pretty much a straight shot. I’m trying to work my way through an anxiety attack while I drive. Corin would have beaten me senseless for even speaking to another man. Nope, don’t go there, Isla. He’s dead, the kids and I are safe.
I’m snapped out of my morbid thoughts when I hear, “Your destination is on your left!”
I roughly grab my phone from the dash mount and toss it across the car. “god DAMN IT!” I shout. Why does that damn GPS get me every time? Pulling up to the shop, I have to admit it looks pretty nice; you can tell it’s well taken care of. I can see Silas bent over my car, and holy hell, he has a nice ass. Walking as casually as I can into the shop, I greet him with, “Hey Silas, how are you doing?’’
He whips his head around, almost hitting it on my car. “Damn it woman! Make some noise next time, would you? Are you part ninja or something? You scared the crap out of me.”
I have to cover my mouth trying not to laugh at the fact I scared this mountain of a man but it’s so hilarious that I’m sure he can hear the suppressed chuckles from where he’s got his arms crossed over his massive chest. “Sorry! I figured you heard me pull up.”
“Uh, no I was doing another check on this car; I mean, seriously babe, who did you piss off? The mob? This thing is a death trap!” he sounds both shocked and exasperated.
“Umm… well my ex-husband and his dad apparently wanted to get rid of me and my daughter because ‘women are useless’.” I say, with a heavy sigh. When I look back at him, he looks absolutely livid on my behalf.
“How old was your daughter when this started?”
The force of his glare has me looking down at my feet and I flinch slightly. “Um, she was about a year and a half.”
“WHAT KIND OF FUCKING ASSHOLE TRIES TO MURDER HIS OWN DAUGHTER!?”
I’m taken aback by the sheer anger coming from him. He’s pacing back and forth like a caged animal. Even though I still freeze in place and look down at Silas’s outburst, I have managed to build up a tolerance to keeping my mouth shut around angry men, no thanks to my good-for-nothing ex-husband. I’ve also learned to recognize the difference between when those negative emotions are directed at me and when they aren’t. It was nice to see someone angry for me instead of directing it at me.
“Please tell me he is dead or in jail,” he growls. Those deadly blue eyes swing to mine and I see it’s more than just anger there. Sure, he’d kill the man if it was an option, but there’s also a sadness that shows his true character. He doesn't know me or my daughter, but he knows we never should have been treated that way. Apparently, Silas is a burly mechanic with a heart of gold.
I look up at him sheepishly. “Yeah, um, the cop that saved me from him the last time he almost beat me to death, plowed into their car killing all three of them on impact.’’ I guess one good thing about all the trauma I’ve survived is that I’m able to compartmentalize all of it very well. By the look Silas is giving me, I think I do it too well.
“I don’t even know how to respond to any of that. I’m glad you and your kids made it here safely, and obviously I didn’t know the man, but I’m glad he’s dead. Men like that are sad and pathetic excuses for humans. I’m so glad you had someone to save you, and the kids.”
I’m shocked by the pure sincerity in his voice, but before I can respond he clears his throat and hands me some forms. “Here is the paperwork to part out the car, and here is a check for roughly the amount I’ll get from the parts; if it ends up being more I’ll let you know and give you the difference. If you’ll sign that, we can grab lunch and then go look at getting you a new car. Do you have a budget in mind?”
I look at the check and it’s for five thousand dollars. There is no way. “Okay, hold up, there is no way my 2012, beat up Chevy Cruz was worth five grand, even before it was tampered with, so I doubt it was after!” I look between him and the check.
“Well, not if we were trying to sell it as a driving car it wouldn’t be. But the transmission, drive train, heads, and all that stuff is in good condition, and those cost a pretty penny new.’’
‘‘Ah, okay, well if it comes out to be more, you can keep it as payment for towing and trying to fix it. As for a budget, nope, I just want to find something safe for my kids, but I definitely want something bigger. It was hard to fit three car seats in my car.”
He places a hand on my lower back to lead me out of the shop. This is the first time in years I've been touched by a man that wasn’t trying to hurt me. It’s nice. ‘‘Alright then. Do you want to ride with me for now? Since I know the area better?”
“Yeah, sure. I have no sense of direction anyways. My grandma tells me I couldn’t find my way out of a wet paper bag.” I stop for a second and look around, “Wait, are you going to be in trouble for closing? Where are the other mechanics?”
He chuckles as he finishes ushering me out, flipping the ‘Open’ sign to ‘Closed’ and locking the door behind us. “Well, this is my shop. And thankfully we aren’t busy today, so I let my other two workers have the day off.”
Damn, he’s hot as sin and apparently amazing with his hands. I’m screwed.
* * *
SILAS
I leadIsla to my Jeep and open the door, taking a second to send a message in the group chat that I’m in with Odin and our brothers. Only Odin and his twin Orin are related to each other by blood, but they are all my family in the way that counts. So far only Odin and I have met her, but the way we talk about her has the others curious about her too. I let them know I found out a little about her past. Not the details though, since it’s up to her what she decides to share and with who.
My mind is still reeling from what I found under the hood. Hell, not even just under the hood, the entire car was a death trap. It was like someone took it apart and put it back together so it would break down unexpectedly. I guess then they’d have an alibi. I can’t imagine anyone hating their wife and daughter enough to try and kill them, but this was blatant attempted murder and I’m still seething. He was clearly a dumb motherfucker to let someone like her get away.
The ride to the restaurant is quiet, not uncomfortable, but you can tell we both have a lot on our minds. I keep checking her out from the corner of my eye. Damn, she is beautiful. I’m pulled out of my thoughts when I hear Isla giggle, and holy crap, even her giggle is cute. I’m FUCKED. I look to see what she’s laughing at in the first place and I see the sign for the restaurant as we’re pulling up. ‘Not Your Grandma’s Diner’ looks like a classic 50s diner, but has five star food at half the price. “You like the name, huh? My brother thought it was funny when he opened this place.”
“Your brother? The cop?’’ she asks incredulously.
