Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Aaron
“Where’s Kendall?” I ask Adley because if anyone knows it’s her. The two of them are like two people sharing one attitude, they are always aware of the other’s moves.
“I thought maybe you knew.” She gives me a questioning look, like I’m hiding something.
“I assume you know she showed up at my place last Tuesday night?” Adley only nods. “She yelled at me, for what I still am not quite clear on. Apparently I am in her head, her kitchen, and her bed.”
“Um, what?”
“Like I said, I’m not sure. Those were her words and she didn’t really give me a whole lot of room for input. I listened, offered to have her come inside so we could talk. She refused and left.”
“Well.” Adley shrugs with a laugh. “Stay out of her head then.”
Rory moves in at her side, looks between the two of us, and I realize Adley isn’t going to help me with this.
“Who’s in whose head?” she asks and instead of getting into it with him, I tip back my beer and finish the bottle. One and done, I’m ready to leave. I only came here hoping to see her.
The shop door is closed, but I see the lights on through the windows.
I know coming here I am taking a chance, she has tools, big powerful tools that could do some damage. Somehow being near her at all triggers her to go off the deep end. I won’t lie, I kinda like when she gets flustered, she tends to be more honest instead of flippant.
Slowing to a stop along the curb I put my truck in park and kill the engine.
I watch and wait, trying to see if I see any movement inside.
I know one of the guys lives upstairs and I don’t know if there’s ever been anything that has gone on between Kendall and him, but I don’t like the guy either way.
I don’t like the way he looks at her.
After an internal pep talk I make my way to the front door and twist the handle finding that it is locked. I smile to myself, glad she is playing it safe.
I lightly tap on the glass and hear something hit the floor like a tool. Then Kendall appears sliding out from under a lifted truck.
She stares at me through the glass door and I try not to laugh when she blinks several times. It’s almost like she is trying to erase the fog, making sure she is seeing things clearly.
I watch and I wait.
I half expect her to pick up the tool and slide back underneath the Ford, ignoring me completely.
But instead she stands, grabs a rag, wiping her hands clean.
Slowly she makes her way across the shop, and I notice her nostrils flaring with each step.
I try not to laugh, knowing I’ve already got her going and we haven’t even shared a word yet.
If she only knew how much she affected me too, and I know she hides a lot behind anger, refusing to let herself feel anything she’s not used to feeling.
She flips the lock, opens the door, and steps back.
I step inside looking around the space, taking it all in. It’s a nice shop, everything having a place, organized and tidy. The building is old, but the shop pristine.
The sound of her boots against the concrete floor gains my attention and I turn around to face her. I take her in from head to toe. She’s in cutoff shorts, a navy blue tank top, and work boots. All of her chestnut hair is piled on top of her head in a wild messy bun. She looks beautiful.
“What are you doing here?” she asks, crossing her arms over her chest.
“I came to see you,” I confess, knowing she’ll fight me no matter what I say. So honesty seems best.
“I’m busy.” She brings her hands together before her, wringing them nervously.
“Busy playing this game of avoidance.” It’s a question but comes out as more of a statement.
She turns back to the car and starts walking away from me. I know it’s so she doesn’t have to look at me when she decides to lie and convince herself that what she is saying is actually the truth. “I’m not avoiding anything, Aaron.”
I chuckle before I have the chance to convince myself it is a bad idea.
“This arrogant cockiness you have going on is really starting to piss me off,” she states, spinning back around to face me.
“My dad and Leo took a trip to Missouri to pick up a motor they’ve been trying to get their hands on for weeks.
So I’m manning the shop, we are on call for roadside.
We are on rotation this weekend, so being here is where I need to be. ”
I remain where I am only a few feet away watching and waiting for her to reach the point where she snaps.
I know it’s coming. It’s been building for weeks, months even.
But if there is one thing I have going for me in this situation, I deal with assholes all the time.
Not that she is an asshole, but at times she can channel the most disgruntled clients I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with.
Difference is on her the attitude is sexy.
“I’m not avoiding you,” she adds again, placing her hands on her hips and squaring her shoulders. “I’ve told you once, actually at least five times, that what happened with us was nothing more than sex. Yet you’ve managed to create this illusion in your head that it meant more.”
“Says the woman who showed up at my house out of the blue to tell me she imagines me in her shower and her bed.”
“That isn’t what I meant,” she growls.
“No?”
“You’re infuriating.” Her chest rises as she takes a deep breath. “Like I seriously want to strangle you right now.”
“Because you know everything you are saying is a lie.”
She stares at me, her hands fisting at her sides. She opens her mouth to speak and nothing comes out.
“It meant something,” I poke the bear. “You said it that night and you’ve been saying it over and over in your own head since.
You’ve been running from it, but at the end of the day it is always the same.
I’m in your head, and you can still feel me touching you, no matter how hard you try to forget. ”
“Stop.”
“Why? Because you know it’s the truth.”