Total pages in book: 46
Estimated words: 42479 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 212(@200wpm)___ 170(@250wpm)___ 142(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 42479 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 212(@200wpm)___ 170(@250wpm)___ 142(@300wpm)
“It was.” I smiled a little at the memory and kept my tone light. “After he died when I was ten, the other guys in the shop stepped up. They were like uncles to me. Taught me how to rebuild engines by the time I was twelve, tuning bikes at fifteen. I was working full-time in performance shops by eighteen and going to trade school at night.”
He nodded. “Explains why you’re better than half the guys who’ve been here for years.”
“Lots of practice.”
He asked a lot of questions. I answered honestly, but I kept everything surface-level. Childhood stories. Shop memories. Technical stuff. Nothing about my mom, nothing about Shawn, and nothing about why I’d really shown up in Crossbend with almost nothing to my name.
Every time the conversation drifted toward anything too recent, I redirected it back to the car we were working on.
I could tell he noticed the walls I kept putting up. He was too observant not to. But so far, he hadn’t pushed too hard. He just kept chipping away at my defenses little by little.
And the small, casual touches sped the process along.
They happened constantly. A steady hand on my lower back when he guided me around a lifted truck. Fingers brushing my shoulder as he reached past me for a tool. The way he’d take a wrench from my hand, his rough fingertips lingering just a second longer than necessary. Each one sent a little spark through me that I tried desperately to ignore.
I knew I should put a stop to it, but I found myself leaning into his touch instead. I looked forward to it, even. After so many years of being on my own, those small points of contact felt dangerously good.
And then there was the possessiveness, which only got worse when a customer was involved because Ryot didn’t seem to care about pissing them off.
I was finishing up a diagnostic on a street bike when a guy wandered over, leaning against the workbench. “You’re the new tech everyone’s talking about. Didn’t know they made mechanics this pretty. You free after your shift? I could show you the best place in town for—”
The words dried up when Ryot appeared beside us like he’d materialized from thin air. He just looked at the customer with an unblinking gaze. The guy straightened, mumbled something about needing to check on his car, and fled through the nearest roll-up door.
I bit my lip to hide a smile as Ryot stepped closer, his hand brushing my shoulder blade as he looked over my work.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
“Yeah.” My voice came out more breathless than I wanted. “I’m fine.”
He gave me a searching look that made my knees feel weak, then nodded and went back to his own bay.
The way he always seemed to appear the second another man paid me too much attention was ridiculous. Over the top.
But I liked it.
Every single time something like this happened, butterflies swarmed in my stomach. Ryot made me feel wanted and protected. Cared for in a way I hadn’t felt since my dad was alive.
It was terrifying how quickly I was getting used to his attention. And how badly I wanted more.
I was in trouble. It was becoming increasingly harder to ignore how badly I wanted Ryot. I was irritated with myself for the indecent thoughts that kept creeping in during the day and the even naughtier dreams that woke me up at night.
I hadn’t ever reacted to anyone like this. Never wanted someone’s hands on me.
But I also knew this couldn’t last.
If I stayed, my past would eventually catch up. Shawn had to know by now that I’d taken the evidence and run. He and whoever he was paying off would come looking. I had no idea what they’d do when they found me, but this fragile new life I was building could blow up in my face when the truth came out.
I had no idea if Ryot would even believe me. The thought of him looking at me like I was a criminal made my stomach twist.
The smarter choice would be to leave before I got in any deeper with Ryot. Pack my bag now that I’d gotten the Mustang running again and disappear.
But I wanted to stay a little more every day.
I was still turning that dangerous thought over in my head when I stepped into the narrow aisle between two tall tool chests to grab a socket set. I didn’t see Ryot coming the other way until we nearly collided.
His hands shot out, wrapping around my waist to steady me. “Careful.”
My breath caught as we stood there, his fingers warm through my tank top. I looked up at him, and every reason I had for keeping my distance went up in smoke.
Ryot’s gaze dropped to my mouth, and his grip on me tightened. Then he kissed me.