In Plain Sight (Legacy Mechanics #3)

1. Zander

1

ZANDER

Crash .

I jumped as something metal smashed into the concrete floor of the garage and scratched a long mark across the paperwork I was filling out.

“Of fucking course,” a resigned voice behind me said.

Luka stood next to his workstation, staring up at the ceiling like he was asking for some divine guidance—or for the floor to open up and swallow him whole. It was hard to tell. At his feet was a case of drill bits.

“What happened?” Devon came racing out of the office. “Is anyone hurt?”

“Everything’s fine.” Luka shot Dev a tight smile, his cheeks flushing pink. “Just dropped something.”

“Oh, okay.” Dev looked between us. “I’ll get back to what I was doing. Maybe we’ll actually get out of here on time tonight.”

“That would be awesome,” Luka said in a tired voice as he bent to pick up the fallen case.

Dev studied Luka for a moment, then slipped back into the office without saying a word.

I’d met Devon almost eight years ago when we worked at the same garage. Two years later, Dev and his older brother Nate opened their own shop, and they asked me to come on as their first hire.

I loved working here, and I really loved that it was a small, family-run business. Dev and Nate treated us like equals and pretty much left us to our own devices as long as we were professional and got our work done. They also cared about us, and the crew had formed a tight-knit family.

Well, most of the crew had.

The guys who worked the day shifts were tight and had become close friends. My situation was a bit different since I worked evening and weekend shifts.

I’d mostly worked with Jimmy, who’d also been one of the garage’s original hires, until he put in his notice three months ago. Now Luka and I worked together, and I’d spent too much time lately trying to ignore how my body reacted to him and keeping my distance while I got over my inconvenient attraction to the new guy. So far, it hadn’t worked.

The door to the back office closed, and I snuck a glance at Luka. Something was off with him.

He’d only been working at Legacy Mechanics for three weeks, and I didn’t know him all that well—or at all—but I could tell he’d been off all shift.

His usual bubbly personality was subdued, and his smiles were tight and forced. He still joked around and acted the same as usual, but it was clear he was going through the motions tonight.

“Are you okay?” I asked when Luka plunked the metal case on the table of his workstation with a loud sigh.

“Yeah.” He shot me a wry smile. “Just questioning all of my life choices.”

“I do that on the regular,” Asa, another of our coworkers, said as he came out of the back room in his street clothes. “Did you break something?” he asked in his usual blunt way as he headed to his workstation.

Luka shifted his gaze to Asa. “Nah, just dropped it.” He pointed to the toolbox. “Aren’t you supposed to be gone?”

“I was.” Asa slung his backpack off his shoulders and unzipped it. “Forgot something.” He rooted around in the small drawer built into the table and shoved something into his bag. “Catch ya on the flip side.” He shot us a peace sign as he swung his bag over his shoulders and strode back toward the break room.

“Later,” Luka said.

“Bye,” I said as Asa disappeared through the door.

“I’ll be glad when today is over.” Luka rolled his shoulders, looking even more tired than he had a minute ago. “Sorry if I scared you.”

“It’s fine.” I glanced at my paperwork. I had to start over, but that wasn’t a big deal. It would help pass the time and give me something to focus on that wasn’t my distracting coworker.

We were in the home stretch of the night, and we didn’t have any new appointments or customers scheduled to come in. As long as there wasn’t an emergency or a last-minute walk-in, we should be able to shut down and start our closing routine in about twenty minutes.

I really hoped no one came in. I didn’t mind staying late, and the extra pay was nice, but it had been a long day, and Fridays were my least favorite shifts.

It wasn’t working on a Friday that I didn’t like, it was the way my shifts always fell. Monday through Friday, I worked from two until nine, but on Saturdays, my day started at ten and ended at five.

Having less than twelve hours between when I got home from my Friday shift and when I had to leave for my Saturday morning one made both days feel so much longer, and the earlier start made it hard to get into any sort of weekend routine.

Working six days a week instead of five didn’t bother me, and Nate made sure to give me, and now Luka, one weekend a month off, but some weeks it felt like I lived in the shop. This was one of those weeks.

Luka shot me another tight smile, then bent over the toolbox, the handle still clutched in his hand.

Dragging my focus from him, I pulled a fresh form out of my drawer and bent over it, but my attention wandered back to Luka when he muttered something I couldn’t make out.

He looked tense. His shoulders were drawn in and sitting high, like he was clenching or holding them up closer to his ears instead of being relaxed. His cheeks were still flushed pink, and he was tapping his foot in an erratic pattern, his boot slapping against the concrete floor.

With a loud sigh, he raked his hand through his hair and gently tugged on the strands a few times.

Covertly, I traced my eyes over his body.

Like everyone at the garage, Luka wore coveralls, but I’d seen him in street clothes and knew exactly how long and lean he was under them.

Luka’s body was incredible, but not in an “I go to the gym every day” kind of way, more of a “I used to be a competitive athlete” way. His shoulders were broad and his arms were thick, but his muscles weren’t overly defined. His waist was trim, but had a bit of softness to it, and his legs were thick, especially his thighs, which fit perfectly with his full, round ass.

I tore my eyes from him in a hurry. The last thing I needed was for him to catch me checking him out, and I really shouldn’t be thinking about his ass—or any part of him. Especially not at work.

Shaking my head at my lack of self-control, I bent over the fresh form, my pen in hand, and forced myself to focus on filling it out.

A memory of the first time we’d met flashed in my mind’s eye without my permission. I’d spent most of the day dreading my shift.

Meeting new people was stressful for me, and any sort of disruption to my routines set me on edge. After five years of working with Jimmy, the thought of having a new coworker to get used to was about as appealing as cutting my lawn with a pair of scissors.

Ten minutes before our shift started, Nate brought Luka out onto the floor to be introduced to everyone, and I’d seen him for the first time.

With his sparkling blue eyes and butter-blond hair, he had that classic All-American look to him. Add in his plush lips, creamy skin with just a hint of dark blond stubble, straight nose, and slightly full cheeks that gave him a bit of a baby face, and he was beautiful.

The garage I worked at was full of attractive men, but I’d never once felt anything for any of my coworkers.

Not until Luka turned those baby blues on me and gave me a wide smile as he stuck out his hand for me to shake.

I hadn’t been prepared for how my body reacted to him, and I’d managed to mumble a greeting, my face heating uncomfortably as my stomach flip-flopped and what felt like a burst of adrenaline hit me right in the chest. It was like being in a free fall, and unlike anything I’d ever experienced.

It had taken most of my willpower to not snatch my hand from his when I’d shaken it. The zings of electricity that danced between us were so strong it was like being touched with a live wire. His hands were a lot like mine, rough and callused, but his strong grip and warm skin had done things to me they had no business doing.

Thank god Luka hadn’t noticed. He’d just smiled and said he was looking forward to working with me.

A slight tingle moved up my arm, an echo of the strange energy that erupted the moment Luka’s hand had closed around mine. Gripping my pen harder, I forced myself to focus on my paperwork and not on my memories.

I’d spent years hiding my attraction to men, and I wasn’t about to break that now, even if my new coworker was one of the most gorgeous men I’d ever laid eyes on.

I just needed to get through the next thirty or so minutes, then I could go home and spend the next few hours decompressing and getting ready for another full day tomorrow.