Chapter 10
Talon
She’s here.
Butterflies flit all over my body, and my stomach tightens. Nerves. That’s what it is.
It’s been a while since I’ve been nervous to talk to someone, partly because I avoid people in general, and mostly because there are very few people whose opinion I care about enough to worry how they see me.
But with her… with her I’m hyperaware of everything. How I look. How I smell. What I say. How I sound.
It shouldn’t be like this. I mean… I only just met her.
Apart from being Reid’s ex, she’s just the same as any other client, so I should, theoretically, treat her the same.
But I can’t.
I know it, and I can’t even explain why. There’s no logical reason for it. Just that somewhere inside, I feel a connection with her that’s been there since the moment I laid eyes on her.
A bond.
It’s not just that she’s beautiful. She feels… familiar. Like somehow even though we just met, in another way I’ve known her all my life.
My grandmother would say she might be the lost half of my soul. Grandma always said I would know the right woman for me when I met her.
She never mentioned she’d come in a package quite like this.
“Hey,” the woman—Sierra—says, her voice a little breathless. Is she tired? Did she run here?
She’s not sweating, so I don’t think it’s from exertion.
Is it fear then? Is she scared of me?
“Of course she is. Big fucker like you staring her down like some sort of creep.”
I tear my gaze away and look at anything but her—the green leaves on the trees, the dirt under my boots, the glint of the car’s chrome bumper in the sunlight.
Her car—of course. That’s why she’s here.
My chest dips, but I tell myself to stop being stupid. “What did you think she’d come for? Your charming personality?”
“Sorry to bother you again,” she says. “Especially after, you know, yesterday. But I was wondering if you could tell me what’s wrong with my car.”
Shit. She wants me to speak? Right now?
What do I say?
“Exactly what she asked, idiot.”
“The fan,” I manage to stumble out with, but it comes out all wrong. Not smooth. Not normal. More like a bark, like something feral.
Jesus.
And it doesn’t even explain anything, so of course she has to follow up.
“Is it broken?”
I shake my head. The fan failed. That’s why it overheated. Probably just a fuse, but there might be other damage. I’ll know once I’ve gone through it. But explaining all that requires actual words, though, and right now I can barely manage one.
My heart’s beating too fast. My throat’s dry.
I’m too aware of my face, my size, the grease on my hands. If I’d known she was coming, I would’ve at least cleaned up a bit. Practiced something in the mirror so I didn’t stand here like an idiot.
“So the radiator isn’t broken?” she asks when I don’t add anything. “It’s fine?”
I shake my head again.
“So what’s wrong then?”
I shake my head.
Her lips twitch, frustration slipping into her tone. “You know this would go a lot quicker if this were a two-way conversation.”
I feel heat creep up my neck. She doesn’t sound truly annoyed, though. There’s something else there—amusement, maybe. Curiosity.
A tiny dimple forms at the corner of her mouth, and I get stuck on it. On the way her eyebrow lifts, the way she crosses her arms.
“Hello,” she calls. “Anyone there?”
Right. She asked me something.
Great timing to zone out. She probably thinks I’m even more of an idiot now.
“It’s an electrical problem,” I say. The words come out stiff, but at least they come out. “I’ll fix it.”
“Okay, great. But if you don’t mind, I’d like to know exactly what you’re fixing. The last mechanic I had charged me an arm and a leg for what was supposed to be a simple oil change, and he kept adding new things I had to pay for. By the time I figured it out, I was out like four thousand bucks.”
I nod, even though I’ve never used a mechanic. I’ve been fixing cars since I was fourteen. Still, I get it. I get why she’d be wary. If I ever met the guy who did that to her…
It wouldn’t end well for him.
“Free of charge,” I say, trying to ease her concern, but her eyes widen and her frown deepens.
“Really?”
I nod.
“I’m not sure I’m comfortable with that,” she says. “No offense, but I don’t like owing favors to strangers. That’s a lesson I learned a long time ago.”
There’s just enough bitterness in her tone to hook my attention. I want to know who put that look in her eyes, who took advantage of her, who made her this guarded. I want to take that feeling of vulnerability away from her, even if it means hurting someone in the process.
An insane thought. Way too much to feel for someone I met yesterday. I know that. But logic isn’t running things right now.
“Anyway,” she says before I can find a way to ask. “I’m fully capable of paying for it, and if something genuinely needs fixing, I trust you’ll fix it. I just want to know what was wrong so I can keep track going forward.”
I nod, then manage, “I’ll tell you when I’m done.” I still don’t plan on charging her, but I’ll deal with that later.
“Okay then. Please take care of my baby. She needs a lot of love and gentle care.”
“I can show you love and gentle care.”
The thought slides in uninvited, though thankfully I manage not to say it out loud.
“Jesus. Get a grip, Talon.”
I expect her to leave, but she doesn’t. She lingers, observing me under the hood as I work.
I feel her watching me—my skin prickling, my ears tuned to every shift of her feet on the gravel. The weight of her gaze does something to me, something sharp and electric. It feels… intimate. Like I’m putting on a show just for her.
“Have you eaten breakfast yet?” she eventually asks.
I glance back. She’s still watching me, cheeks slightly flushed, though it’s not warm enough to explain it.
I shake my head to indicate I haven’t.
“I’ll get you some,” she says, and then she’s gone before I can answer. I watch her walk away, back to the main building.
I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. Relief… and something else.
But she leaves something behind. Her scent lingers, wrapping around me, getting under my skin.
I try to focus, loosening a bolt, but my mind drifts straight back to her. The way she stood there. The way she watched.
I picture her close behind me, her soft, slender hands on me—
“Fuck me,” I mutter.
The spanner slips from my grip and hits the ground. I swear under my breath and head straight for the shed, slamming the door shut behind me, my erection straining in my jeans, urgent, painful. I lean against the door.
I can’t think like this. I need to get myself under control before she comes back, or I’m going to make a complete mess of things.
There’s only one thing for it. But I need to act fast.
I shove my jeans open, gripping hard, leaning back further against the wall as the pressure builds. My head drops forward, breath rough in my throat.
Not slow.
No chance of that.
I move faster, chasing release, letting the image take over again—her presence behind me, her hands where mine are, her soft voice whispering in my ear. My eyes are closed, focused on the sensations flooding through me, so I never notice when the shed door swings gently open in the morning breeze.