by Nina Levine
His eyes don’t leave mine.
“Ah, I think I need a break from dancing.”
“I don’t know what you think you’re up to, Sofia, but do not forget I have the upper hand here, not you.”
“Like I could ever forget. You bring it up every day,” I spit out.
“Whatever you and Maya are cooking up, I suggest you forget it.”
I stop dancing and release him. “Will you forget about all your mistresses?” His eyes widen in shock as he looks around us. No one seems to be paying us any attention, so that gives me the confidence to continue. I step in closer to him. “Did you really think I didn’t know? You haven’t exactly been hiding it very well.” I brush off his lapels. “Now, I’m going to the bar to get a drink. Alone.”
10
Sofia Winters
Driving around town in circles has me rubbing my forehead. Going out and drinking seems to be harder to recover from the older I get. I think I’ve lost the paparazzi that have been camped out in front of my house since the wedding debacle. I’ve been staying at home to try and avoid them. They can be vultures at times. I’m not even a celebrity; I don’t understand their obsession with my family.
Checking my rearview mirror, I don’t see any cars following me, so I change directions and head for Torque Octane. My car is due for a service, and instead of sending it to my normal place, I booked at Jett’s garage. Okay, so maybe I have an ulterior motive in wanting to see him again. I feel bad for the way I up and left, no note, no anything. He did so much for me; more than he’ll ever know. But I panicked. Thomas leaking that video would destroy me. I know for some celebrities a sex tape has enhanced their stardom, but I don’t want that. I’d probably die of mortification.
After pulling into Torque Octane, I turn the engine off and look behind me, making sure I wasn’t followed. My stomach starts fluttering at the knowledge Jett is just inside those doors. I know what we had was just a fling and that it can’t go anywhere—Thomas has made damn sure of that—but I can’t help myself. I need to see him again, to hear his voice, hear him say my name.
Opening my door, I inhale, then walk inside, looking around for Jett. When I spot him, I halt, my heart pounding. “Princess, to what do we owe the honor of your visit?”
I let out a gasp. Damn, I was perving on Declan, not Jett.
“Declan, nice to see you again.”
His lip curls up. “How is it this is our second meeting and you can tell the difference between my brother and me already?”
Because while I may have only known him a week, he got under my skin, and I know him. All of him. I don’t say what I’m thinking, though.
I shrug. “What can I say, he’s the better looking one.”
He and every other guy working there starts chuckling. Shit. I blush, my neck and cheeks heating up.
He pulls me into a side hug, still laughing. “You are a breath of fresh air, darling. Are you here to see Jett?” he asks, although from his tight expression, I’m not sure I should say yes. Did Jett tell him what happened, how I left without a word? Do men talk like us women do?
“Um... yes. No. Um… I’m here—” I look over my shoulder to my car, then back at him before getting myself under control. “I’m here to get my car serviced.”
He spins us around and we take a few steps outside where he whistles. “Babe, you sure you're in the right place?”
“Yes. Why?”
“That’s a Bentley Continental GT.”
Flashes hit my eye, and as I turn and look toward the gate, two paparazzi are taking photos. Shit. I bury myself in Declan’s shoulder to hide, even though I know it’s too late.
“What the fuck?” he growls, taking a step in their direction.
“Declan.” I stop him with a hand to his chest, gesturing that we head back inside.
He gives them a dirty look and then walks me into Jett’s office. “What the fuck is that all about?” he gestures outside.
“Argh. I’m so sorry.” I drop down onto the couch, leaning my head back and closing my eyes.
“Nothing to be sorry about, you're not the one taking photos out there.”
I open my eyes and face him. “Do you know who I am?”
He nods. “Sofia, you were Jett’s chick. I don’t know what happened. Jett’s been a grumpy motherfucker, but that’s all I know.”
I bite my lip. I feel bad I’ve hurt Jett. I didn't think our hookup would have meant anything to him.
Here goes nothing. “Do you know the Winters Palm Hotels?”
He nods and leans against the door, arms crossed.
“That’s my father’s hotel. My name is Sofia Winters.”
His eyes widen, clearly in shock. “Fuck.” He runs his hands through his hair. “They aren’t going anywhere, are they?” He tips his chin, indicating the photographers.
I shake my head. “If anything, more may arrive. Look, I can go.” I stand up and take a few steps to the door, where he is. “I thought I lost them before coming here. I’m sorry.”
He grabs my wrist and pulls me into his chest. He wraps me up tight, and I release a sigh. “I’ve got you. Take a seat. Have you got your car keys?”
“No, really, I should go.” I pull back, but he lowers his eyes so they are level with mine. “Keys, babe.”
I fumble through my purse and hand them to him.
“Make yourself comfortable, use the computer if you want, you’ll be here for a while.”
He pulls out his phone, lifting it to his ear. “I need all the guys here at Torque, now.” He drops his phone in his back pocket and winks before walking out and shutting the door behind him.
Was that Jett he called? Oh God. I thought I was ready to see him again but maybe I’m not. Shit.
Taking out my phone, I hit Maya’s name and wait for her to pick it up.
“Sofia, how are you this morning? Are you as hungover as I am?”
“I was, but now suddenly I’m not thinking about my hangover,” I reply.
“Okay, that doesn't sound good. What has possibly happened so early this morning?”
I take a deep breath and fill her in.
“Oh fuck.”
“I know. What if they print something about me having an affair or some other bullshit? Thomas may leak the video. Maya, what am I going to do?”
“Breathe, honey, breathe.”
I try to do as she says but, I’m struggling and can feel tears coming on.
“What’s that noise?”
I look up at the sound of a motorcycle. No, make that motorcycles, as in plural. Like twenty or more. And the men riding them are all wearing vests. Like a gang.
“Oh fuck,” I whisper. What the hell have I gotten myself into?
“Sofia, are you there? What’s going on?”
“That noise is motorcycles. Like some sort of gang. The tabloids are going to love this.” I sniffle, not sure I can hold back the tears I know are about to come down.
“Do you need me to come and pick you up?”
“No. I trust Jett and Declan. When I went to the biker bar, they were all nice to me. I’m safe, I think.”
“Well, if you change your mind, I’m a phone call away. Oh, and I'll get Brad to get on finding that video. He won't need the key; he’ll be able to get into Thomas’s desktop without it.”
“Thank you, Maya. I owe you and him, bigtime.”
“No, you don’t. We all do stupid shit from time to time. You just keep yourself safe and holler if you need me or Brad to come rescue you.”
I finally let out a laugh. “Thanks again, Maya. I’ll keep in touch.”
“You better,” she says and hangs up.
I place the phone down as Declan strolls back in.
“We’ve pushed them back, far enough they won’t be able to take any more pics. Some even took off. You should be okay in here for a while.”
“Thank you, Declan. I’m sorry for bringing them here.”
“Not on you, babe. But your car won�
�t be serviced today. Jett will be back later, but I know he won’t trust anyone but himself to touch that hot car of yours.”
I smile, thinking about Jett. I want to ask where he is, but I lost that right when I walked out, and I don’t want to sound desperate. Oh God, what if he's upstairs with another woman?
“He’ll be back around lunchtime.” Declan winks at me, as if he can read my mind. “He’s off checking another site for a second location for Torque Octane.”
“Oh. That’s great for him.” And great for my racing heart rate. I’m not sure if it got faster or slower with the news he’s not off with another woman.
Declan grins and walks out into the shop.
To get my mind off the drama going on outside, I turn the computer on. Turning to see what all the bikers are doing, some are just leaning against their bikes, others chatting nearby. They look so imposing, no one will want to come near them.
I spin back to the computer when I hear my phone beep with an incoming email.
Opening each one, I tackle some work. There is an email from an up-and-coming designer, Dove Jeffords, whom I have booked for her first live launch. She makes the cutest handbags and shoes. The shoes are to die for. And I know my customers are going to go crazy over them. Plus, I have some IT issues that I need to get fixed. The last thing I want is to have the site crash while she debuts her first line. That would make me look unprofessional. Unlocking my phone, I scroll through my contacts and find Axel from Steel Inc. His company is one of the top tech firms in the country. He has been invaluable in getting my site off the ground.
I’m staring at my phone, semi lost in thought, when it starts beeping with a text, making me jump a little.
Maya: You still with us?
Me: Haha. Yes, I am. I’m good. Just working until the pap gets bored.
Maya: And I guess it helps that the guys in the shop are hot???
Maya: What about the bikers? Are they hot too?
I laugh. Maya is incredibly in love with her husband, but she’s not shy about looking at all the other candy, as she calls them.
Maya: Come on. Don’t leave me hanging.
Maya: Send me a pic.
I laugh out loud. I know she doesn't mean that. She knows how much I hate when my picture is secretly taken. Lifting the phone up in front of my face, I stick out my tongue and take a selfie. I send her the pic. She replies instantly.
Maya: Oooh, sexy. lol
Maya: Check in again later.
Me: I will. xxx
11
Jett Reed
Ryder whistles. “Check out the space in here.”
Walking inside the shop, I can see it’s bigger than a garage.
“Who keeps a shop this filthy?” By the looks of it, not much cleaning ever happened here. It’s dark and rather grimy. Oil spills everywhere and cobwebs on the ceiling. One thing I pride myself on is a clean shop. Come into the workshop during the day and, yes, you'll find tools and shit near workstations, but at the end of the day, we tidy up. And I have a cleaner do the floors once a week.
We walk through the building, looking in the offices and reception area too.
“The location is good. Even without club business, we could get plenty of walk-ins.”
I nod as we do another walk through. With a serious clean and changing the name at the front, this could be a viable addition. Business has been picking up for a while now, and I’ve been thinking about expanding. This spot, with Declan’s connection, the business would be constant.
“Let’s go to the realtor's office and sign the papers.”
Ryder locks the door, and we make our way to the offices around the corner.
Thankfully, it doesn’t take too long, and we head back to Torque Octane.
“What the fuck?” I pull into the street of the shop and it's overrun by bikes.
“Looks like the whole club is here,” Ryder says beside me, smirking.
“The question is why?” I have to drive past the shop and park farther down the street. So many bikes at one time are going to scare away the non-biker clientele.
Feeling irate, I climb out of the truck. I lock the door and head off, Ryder catching up to me.
“Calm down, boss.”
I glare at him and he chuckles, the smartass. The look on his face since we started the ride home, makes me think the text he received earlier was from Declan. Bloody bastard. I walk faster, needing to know what the fuck is going on. I nod and say hi to the guys, then make my way to the office and freeze in the doorway as my eyes meet the ones that have been haunting me since she left.
I feel a slap on my back. “Jett, how did it go?”
I spin around to face Declan. He ignores me and shoves me into the office, shutting the door behind us.
I stumble backward into the room and growl. “What’s going on?”
“I’m sorry, Jett, it’s all my fault,” Sofia says behind me.
I close my eyes, then turn to face her.
“Hi,” she says, smiling with her bright blue eyes, a line appearing between her brows.
“Hi.”
Declan puts his arm around Sofia’s and my shoulders. “Sofia here, had booked in to get her car serviced, but the paparazzi followed her. So I called the guys to push them back. Didn’t think you’d want them hanging around here all day.”
My eyes stay on Sofia’s. “You came here for a service?”
She nods, her lips drawn down.
I’ve been dreaming of those lips. I don’t know what to say. Why is she here? Why did she pick here to get her car serviced? Shit. I turn toward the window. “Who’s touching her car?”
I can see her close-to-half-a-million-dollar car sitting at the back of the shop, no one working on it.
“No one’s touching it. I knew you would want that honor.”
I chuckle out loud. “While I would love to get my hands under that hood, I think that a Bentley dealer would be better off doing the service. We don’t carry top-line products, never needed to. “What’s really going on here, Sofia?”
“And that’s my cue to exit.” Declan winks at Sofia. “I’ll leave you guys to it.” He slams the office door, leaving us staring at each other.
She looks fantastic. Gorgeous, as always. She’s wearing the jeans we got her the other week and another pair of sexy red heels with a matching red blouse. Dark circles loom underneath her eyes, and they’re missing her normal joyful glint.
She’s the first to talk, her voice soft. “I’m so sorry, Jett. I wanted to see you, but I didn’t think… I shouldn’t have…”
I take a step closer to her as she takes a step closer to me, as if drawn to each other like magnets.
Her throat gulps, and my hands come up to cup her cheeks. We both gasp, and I drop my hands, as if I were burned, then take a big step back. What the hell are you doing, touching her like that?
“I’m sorry, I shouldn't have done that.” I know she went back to her fiancé. What I want to know is, why she came back here.
“No, it’s me. I’m sorry, Jett.” She takes a step forward, but I take another one back. She puts her hands up, then starts pacing in front of my desk, looking down at her feet.
“I know you probably haven't thought about me after I left, but I'm so sorry for leaving you the way I did. I had to go back. Thomas, he... he wouldn’t leave me alone… he... forced me to go back. I know we only just met, but I missed you and wanted to see you, and we didn't exchange numbers. And then when I got here, you weren’t here, then they started taking photos and—”
I grip her shoulders, gently, to stop her.
When her blue eyes look up at me, she winces. “I was rambling, wasn't I?”
I nod, my lips tilting up, not able to be mad at her for even a moment. We both smile at each other, stupidly, until Declan taps on the door as he opens it.
“They're here.” He grins like a fool.
I tilt my head and look out to see the brothers’ wives and girlfriends, all wearing jeans
and heels with leather jackets.
“What do you mean they're here? Why is your entire club and their significant others here at my shop?” One of the ladies walks up to Declan, passing him a leather jacket, and winks at him. As she walks away, he smacks her ass, eliciting a squeal, which makes him laugh.
“Your royal highness.” He throws the jacket at Sofia.
I look between them, wondering what the fuck is going on.
“Ah. Thanks. I think?” Sofia says, and by the crinkle in her eyebrows, she has no idea what's going on either.
“Put that on and you’ll look like one of them.”
Sofia’s eyes widen, making Declan chuckle.
“Declan,” I warn.
“Okay, it's simple. Sofia, you have paparazzi following your cute, tight ass.” He looks down at her as I frown, crossing my arms. “They don’t seem to want to leave, so we’re going to get you out. All the old ladies are wearing jeans and heels. You put that jacket on and you'll all match. Then you hop onto the back of Jett’s bike and we all ride off together in different directions. Ain’t no way they are going to know which bike to follow.”
Sofia and I start laughing at the same time. “You know what? That sounds crazy enough that I think it might work,” she says, looking my way, slyly. “If you don’t want me riding with you, maybe I can ride with Declan?” She bites her upper lip.
Like fuck that will ever happen. I grunt as Declan answers her. “I like my balls the way they are, love. Ain’t no way you're riding behind me,” he mutters as he walks out again.
I turn to find Sofia putting on the jacket. She looks up at me with what looks like excitement on her pretty face, then lifts her shoulders. “It’s worth a try.”
I run my hands over my face. Just what I need. Sofia’s curves pressed up against me. Like I can’t remember how good that felt.
Her hand squeezes my arm, and I look down at her, inhaling her floral scent.
“I'm sorry to be such a hassle, Jett. I can get in my car and go.”
“And what will the paparazzi do?”