Jace glances over his shoulder at Rhett, Abbi’s brother, who also works here. Did I mention they’re best friends? Yeah, how he doesn’t know Jace had been fucking his sister all through high school might have something to do with why Jace never stood up when she begged him to “choose me” after high school. But he didn’t, and now he’s here, obsessing over the girl who went away to college without him and met a doctor in the process.
But that’s his problem, not mine.
Mine has her car lodged in the side of my shop and an ass I can’t stop thinking about.
Sev, who’s been standing at my feet staring at the blood smeared on the hood, tugs on Jace’s hand. “Who you marrying, boyfren?”
If you haven’t guessed, Sev has a bit of a thing for Jace. He shouldn’t put much weight on this because she also likes Rob Zombie and wants to cast a spell to get herself a mom.
Jace pulls Sev’s hair lightly. “I’m not marrying anyone, girly,” he tells her, winking. Shifting his weight, his gaze finds mine again. “And neither is she if I have something to say about it.”
Groaning, I kneel and check out the frame, yanking off the bumper that’s barely attached. I’m annoyed, for reasons even I don’t understand. I don’t like that she’s here, and I can’t ignore her the way I want. “Then go say something and leave me alone.”
“Nah.” He kicks snow from the fender. It falls to the concrete with a slap, spraying water all over the floor. “I wanna see how this plays out. I think it’s going to be awesome.”
“Of course you do.” Eyeing the car, I take note of the damage. Cooling fan. Radiator. Tire pressure sensor. Windshield. Bumper. Airbag. It’s pretty evident I have my work cut out for me because there’s no way I’m letting anyone else touch this car. I work on tractors, but it doesn’t mean I can’t fix it. All it means is that I get to spend more time with Kacy, right?
“You just want to find my hand cuffed to a chair again for blackmail.”
He nods, as if my assessment is spot on. “I got all the gravy jobs for a year.” Jace grins, pausing, and then continues with “Of course I’m gonna use it for blackmail.”
I glance up at him and infuse my voice with a lack of interest. No way I want him thinking I have any interest in this girl. “Stop talking and see how long it’ll take to get this car out of the building. We got work to do today.”
“Might as well buy a new car,” Jace mumbles, his boots scraping against the concrete as he moves around the car. “This thing is trashed. What’d you do with the buck?”
“Morgan kept it.”
Beside me, Sev removes her gloves, drops them on the ground, and attempts to touch the hood.
“Don’t even think about it,” I warn, glaring at Sev. I know what she’s about to do. Swipe her finger across the hood to touch the blood. Believe me, this kid keeps me up at night in fear she’s going to cut my throat to see what my insides look like.
“I not gonna lick it,” she snaps, pushing her hat from her eyes. “I’m leaven dis stupid place.”
Jace laughs and picks up the bumper off the floor. “We fixin’ this pile of junk?”
“Might as well.” I don’t let on to what I may or may not be up to, but I know I don’t want to let Kacy leave just yet.
Jace begins to walk away, but he turns and waves his hand to the back doors. “I’m gonna go plow the drive so we can get this out of the side of the building.”
Staring at the car, I nod but don’t say anything.
“Who’s the girl?”
I don’t have to turn around to see that it’s Tilly and she’s holding coffee. “What girl?”
“The one camped out in the office with Lil. You know they’re talking about you.”
Taking the coffee in my hand, I quirk an eyebrow, my heart thumping a little faster. Leaning into my toolbox, I cross my arms over my chest, appearing casual. “What are they saying?”
Tilly winks. Of course this is funny to her. “Oh, you know.”
I raise an eyebrow, expecting her to continue, but she doesn’t. “No, I don’t.” I step closer to my aunt. “Tell me.”
“What’s it worth to you?”
I fight the urge to shake her. It wouldn’t be the first time. “I’m not playing this game with you,” I tell her hastily, scowling. “I have work to do.”
Laughter leaves her lips as she passes out coffee to the rest of the guys making themselves busy this morning.
I take the next twenty minutes and get prices on parts for Kacy’s Mercedes. It’s the only part of my morning that’s normal. Because the instant, the very second my hand touches that door, my entire body tenses, and my heart beats a little faster. I see her through the window, Sev on her lap, Camdyn sitting next to her, both of them smiling and laughing at whatever she’s telling them.
Exhaling heavily, I open the door and walk into the office, knowing I’m about to be watched carefully. “What are you guys talking about?”
“Lulu.” Camdyn grins, swinging her legs off the side of the couch she’s sitting on. “Kacy’s never ever seen a real live horse.”
“You’re not missing much,” I mumble, my eyes on the paper.
Lillian laughs. “Barron hates—”
“Are you in a hurry?” I ask Kacy, interrupting Lillian before she can tell an embarrassing horse story of mine. Or any other story she doesn’t need to know. Laughter comes from Lillian but still, I keep my focus on Kacy, handing her the work order I did up. I keep my distance from Kacy in fear I’ll start thinking about her damn panties again. Fuck. I already am. My eyes drop to her legs. Nope. Stop yourself. Don’t think.
You know, I bet they’re black. Her nails are black.
Clearing my throat, I sigh. My mind is pissing me off. “I can get the parts here in a few days, but there’s some frame damage, and I can’t get access to an align rack until next week.”
I swallow over the lump in my throat and the way her sigh sends a thrill through me. I wonder what her moans sound like? Is she a screamer?
Fuck. Stop!
Her fingertips dance over the work order. Our eyes connect before her touch registers. “No hurry,” she says with a smile, keeping my girls next to her. “I can find a hotel room.”
No fucking way I’m letting that happen. “Well, I—”
“You can stay with us!” Camdyn interrupts, her excitement hardly contained as she bounces up and down.
Kacy’s lashes flutter, but she doesn’t miss a beat. “I wouldn’t want to impose.”
“You’re not,” I say before I can stop myself. “It should only take about a week.”
Lillian glances at the order, smiles, and hands it back to me. She knows there’s a Mercedes dealership nearby, but I left that out. Yes, I know what I’m doing, so don’t lecture me.
Unfortunately for me, I’m thinking about her panties again. I’ve moved on from the color. Now I’m curious about the style. Thong? Bikini? Cheeky? Fuck. I love those. Or maybe they’re basic white granny panties. Sadly, I’d still find them hot and want to peel them off her insanely hot body with my teeth.