Chapter One
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The sun’s beating down on the cracked asphalt, making the lot shimmer like it’s sweating.
The old garage sits squat and sun-bleached at the edge of town, a little rough around the edges.
Just the way I like it. In a few hours, it’ll belong to the Iron Shadows.
Our new bike shop. A clean front for the dirty money that keeps our engines running and our pockets full.
I lean against my bike, papers still warm from the lawyer’s briefcase tucked under my arm. The owner’s inside with his suit and tie, arguing numbers I already agreed to. I don’t mind waiting. Gives me a chance to watch.
A couple of mechanics hunch over an old Harley, grease up to their elbows, arguing about torque specs like it’s life or death. The kind of noise I grew up around. The kind that feels like home.
But it’s the guy standing off to the side that catches my attention.
He’s not working. Just… standing there. Hands in his pockets, staring at the ground like he’s trying to disappear into it. Short…five-seven, maybe. Broad shoulders but soft around the middle, that kind of cute roundness that makes you wanna grab him and pinch his cute chunky cheeks.
He looks so damn out of place here.
I push off the bike and saunter his way, slow and easy.
“You lookin’ for someone, sweetheart?”
His head jerks up fast, eyes wide. “M-me? No, I…uh…work here.”
That blush hits quick, crawling up his neck until it colors his cheeks before he quickly lowers his eyes back to the floor. Hell, he’s adorable.
“Didn’t mean to spook you,” I say, grinning. “Just didn’t figure someone that pretty belonged in a place this dirty.”
His mouth opens, closes, then opens again. “I’m not pretty.”
“Sure you are,” I murmur. “You just can’t see what I see, that’s all.”
He laughs softly, nervous. Fidgets with the hem of his shirt. “You always flirt with strangers, or am I just lucky?”
I shrug. “Guess you’ll have to stick around and find out.”
I don’t tell him that I’m about to own this place and planned to let everyone go.
Plans change all the time, after all.
He looks up at me then, and for a second, the world quiets. Those eyes…soft brown, uncertain, but with something deeper hiding there. Something that wants to be seen.
Then I notice it. The color drains from his face. His lips go pale, and his knees wobble.
“Whoa, hey,” I say, reaching out just as he sways.
He’s gone before he can answer, body going limp. I catch him mid-fall, one arm under his back, the other cradling his head so he doesn’t crack it on the concrete.
“Easy there. I got you.”
His skin’s clammy, breath shallow, but his pulse is steady under my fingers. I crouch, keeping him propped against me, murmuring low. “Breathe for me, okay? In… and out.”
A minute passes, maybe less, before he stirs. Eyes flutter open, confusion swirling there for just a moment before he sighs.
“I… fainted, didn’t I?” he whispers.
“Yeah,” I say, grinning down at him. “Scared the hell outta me for a second. You okay?”
He groans, tries to sit up. “It happens sometimes. My doctor calls it Vasovagal something-or-other. I’m fine.”
“Well, now, that’s a shame.” I can’t help it…the smile tugs at my lips. “’Cause here I was thinkin’ you just fell for me.”
A beat of silence. Then, softly, “Literally?”
“Literally.”
His laugh is quiet, shaky, but it’s real. And for some reason, that sound does something to me.
I hold out my hand. “C’mon, sweetheart. Let’s get you somewhere to sit before you make a habit of faintin’ into my arms.”
“Kind of a skill of mine,” he says, hesitates, then slips his hand into mine. Warm. Trusting.
And just like that, I know I’m in trouble.
Pulling him to his feet, I stay close until he’s steady, one hand hovering near his back just in case.
“Eli, this customer’s been waiting for over a minute now,” someone barks across the garage. “Make yourself useful and do your fucking job.”
Yeah. I don’t like that.
My head turns slowly…lazy even…but my eyes lock on the voice. I take in the man’s face…square jaw, grease-stained shirt, attitude that needs adjusting…and burn the details into memory. Poor bastard just caught my attention. And not in a good way.
“Shoot, sorry,” Eli says quietly, lowering his head. “I have to go.”
He moves toward the office where Patrick, the current owner, and his lawyer are finally finishing up. I can tell Eli’s trying to make himself small, blend in, disappear. Shame he’s too damn noticeable for that.
Grinning, I follow him, chuckling when he startles as I catch up.
“Nice to meet you, Eli,” I say as we step inside. “You have yourself a good day, yeah?”
“Yeah,” he nods, that soft voice wrapping around the word. “I’ll try.”
Patrick looks up from the paperwork and grins widely. “Everything looks good. She’s officially yours. I’ll give everyone their termination notice today. They’ll be out as soon as our last order is filled.”
I smile and nod, then glance at Eli, still behind the counter, quietly helping a woman with her bill.
“Except him,” I say. “He stays, if he wants to.”
Patrick blinks. “Eli? He’s dead weight. Kid doesn’t know a wrench from a tire iron. He’s only here for grunt work, and half the time he screws that up, too.”
I know Eli can hear every word. His shoulders stiffen, but he keeps that polite smile plastered on, voice steady and kind as he talks to the customer.
“He stays,” I growl. The tone leaves no room for argument.
Patrick sighs. “Fine. Whatever you say. The rest’ll be out within the week.”
“Good.”
When I turn, the woman gives me a slow, sultry smile, stepping into my personal space.
“Hey there, biker,” she purrs, running her hand down the front of my cut.
“Not the cut, beautiful,” I say with an easy grin, catching her hand before it travels further. “Never touch a biker’s cut without permission.”
“Sorry,” she says, not sounding the least bit sorry. “If you come back to my place and take it off, though, I don’t mind touching everything else.”
“Maybe some other time,” I chuckle.
Then I look back at Eli, who’s trying, and failing, not to watch the exchange.
I wink. “Be seein’ ya soon, pretty boy. Try to keep yourself upright, yeah?”
The way he blushes might just be my new favorite thing.