Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Corvus
I groaned in dismay at the sound of my phone vibrating, waking me from a peaceful nap.
Sleep had been getting less and less frequent for me, and I hadn’t told my therapist yet because she’d just want to put me on medications, and I didn’t fucking want medicine.
I just wanted to rest and not constantly relive the horrifying day I’d nearly lost Hudson.
But that was too much to ask, I guessed, and now, when I finally got to get some rest without flashbacks, I was being woken up by my fucking phone.
Lucky me.
I slapped around my hand until I found the offending device then grabbed it off the nightstand and brought it closer to my face, squinting against the light.
I didn’t recognize the number, but it was local.
Remembering I had a car in the shop, I swiped my thumb across my screen and lifted the phone to my ear, shutting my eyes again.
“’Lo?” I mumbled, my voice still thick with sleep.
“You’re still sleeping this time of day, bub?”
My heart lurched into my throat. I’d only spoken to her once, but I’d know that voice anywhere. Had daydreamed about her and Kip quite a few times the past couple of days since Kip had texted me to ask me out on a date. On a date with him and his beautiful-as-fuck wife.
Seriously, two people that hot being together was just cruel to the universe.
“Needed a nap,” I grumbled, still not opening my eyes. I brought the blanket tighter around me. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“You okay, bub?” she asked, her voice softening.
My heart clenched. I burrowed deeper into the covers in an effort to cocoon myself.
“Just tired,” I said evasively. “Sometimes, a man just needs a nap.”
She hummed like she didn’t believe me, and I wasn’t sure how to feel about that.
I quickly tried changing the subject. “Is my car ready?”
“It is,” she confirmed. “You can come pick it up any time before five-thirty. Save this number to your phone and text either me or Kip when you’re ready to pick it up, so we know to expect you.”
“Okay,” I said. I yawned. “Might be closer to your closing time before I get there.”
“That’s okay, bub. Go back to sleep. I’m sorry for disturbing you. Sweet dreams.”
My chest was going to implode from how tightly it was being squeezed. No one was ever this sweet to me.
“Thanks,” I rasped then quickly ended the call, feeling out of my element and way too goddamn needy for a man who wasn’t supposed to want anyone like this.
Sweet dreams…
If only she knew my dreams were rarely ever sweet anymore. They hadn’t been for a long time.
“Need me to come in with you?” Kreed asked as he pulled onto the parking lot of Tanaka Motors.
I shook my head. “No, I’m good.” I smiled at him. “Thanks for the ride, old man.”
He scoffed. “You and Hudson are such brats. It’s no wonder you two are friends.” He smiled though, showing he wasn’t truly irritated with me. “Go on then. Call me or Hudson if you need help.”
I nodded. “I will. Drive safe.”
I slid out of the passenger seat and gently shut the door behind me.
When I turned to face the shop, I jerked in surprise, not expecting to find both Kip and Michelle standing at one of the bay doors, both of them watching me.
Kip had his arm wrapped around Michelle’s waist, and she leaned into him.
She had grease streaks on her arms and hands, and a dirt smear had been swiped across her cheek.
Kip was even messier than she was, and goddamn, if they didn’t look hot as fuck.
“Hello, chibi,” Kip greeted, smiling at me. Butterflies erupted in my belly, and I did my best to ignore them. “You almost didn’t make it before closing.”
I pressed my hand over my heart, pretending to be offended as I gave a mock gasp. Behind me, I heard Kreed pulling off the lot. “You’re telling me you wouldn’t have waited? I’m wounded.”
Michelle arched a brow at me, and that single look made me feel like a scolded child. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.
“We would have, but we also have lives outside of this shop, bub.” The use of the nickname she’d given me softened the blow of her expression. Surely, if she was using my nickname, she wasn’t that irritated with me, right? “We value timeliness.”
“Sorry,” I muttered. I quickly dropped my hand, properly chastised, and those butterflies disappeared, something sour taking their place. “Won’t happen again.”
She hummed and held out her hand to me. “Come on. Let’s show you what we did to your car, and then, we’ll head into the office, okay?”
I stared at her outstretched fingers for a moment then blew out a soft breath and placed my palm in hers. Her hand was a little rough with callouses, and I found I liked it. It was clear she was no stranger to manual labor, and I adored that she was so confident in what many deemed a man’s field.
As Michelle led me deeper onto the lot, I glanced at Kip out the corner of my eye. He walked on the other side of me, seemingly at ease.
Clearly, he felt my eyes on him because he asked, “Everything okay, chibi?”
“What? Oh, yeah,” I stammered, mentally cursing myself afterward and quickly ripping my eyes away from him.
Christ, what was wrong with me? Every time I got around these two, I just lost all my confidence, it seemed. I never stumbled over my words. Never got tongue-tied or nervous, yet there I was, tripping all over my fucking self every time I got in their presence.
“Here we are,” Michelle announced, stopping in front of my car.
She dropped my hand, and my fingers curled into my palm, suddenly feeling cold without her smaller fingers wrapping around mine.
But then, Kip pressed his hand to my lower back, replacing her warmth.
I didn’t dare look at him again for fear he’d see how desperately I wanted to be touched in my expression.
She popped the hood, then smiled at me. “We replaced your water pump pulley and the belt,” she explained, showing me the new parts. “And we test drove it. You’re good to go.”
“Thank you,” I said, meaning it. Not being able to go on a drive the past few days had been absolute hell. Sometimes, I needed reckless speeds to make my fucking head go quiet and empty. “Did you already charge Hudson’s card?”
“Yep,” she said. She closed the hood then passed me my car keys. “You’re all set, bub.”
“Be safe getting back home,” Kip instructed when I moved away from him and closer to the driver’s door. I already missed his touch, missed both of them touching me, but I didn’t want to linger. What I wanted to do was hit the highway for a while. “Text us when you make it.”
“I might be a while. Need to run errands first,” I lied.
He nodded. “We just want to know you made it home safely, chibi, whenever that may be.”
“Okay. Thank you again.” Then, I opened my car door and slid into the driver’s seat, feeling antsy and like I was crawling out of my fucking skin.
I craved both Michelle and Kip, and at the same time, I wanted to run the fuck away because what the fuck were they doing to me?