by Shey Stahl
I can understand what Tyler is saying. It’s obvious what Red’s going through in a sense that it doesn’t appear to be easy on him. I mean, I try to remember the guy lost his father a month ago, but then again, does that give him the right to be a douche to everyone?
I’m not sure how long Tyler and I sit on the couch, but I eventually fall asleep and wake up in the morning with a slice of pizza in my hand I don’t remember taking from the box of pizza I don’t remember ordering on the coffee table. I must have been really tired last night.
TG-FUCKING-FRIDAY! I thought Friday would never arrive. I really did.
I lay on the couch for ten minutes before I notice that Tyler’s bedroom door is closed, and I should probably take a shower before he needs to. The most important lesson I learned while living with a man at all, it’s that they take a really long time to take a dump and hog all the water.
I make my shower quick, not wanting to use all the hot water on him, and I’m rummaging through my bag on the floor only to realize I forgot my damn shirt.
Cracking the door open, I see Tyler’s door is still closed, and it should be safe to grab my shirt.
Tiptoeing across the hardwood floor of the living room, I reach for my shirt that fell out of my bag and suddenly stop when I hear the faint sounds of crunching.
Just when I think Tyler is about to see me half-naked, it’s Raven I see, sitting on the counter eating a bowl of cereal, her mascara smeared on her cheek and hair all over the place.
Our eyes lock in a moment of sheer panic on both parts.
Holy shit!
I jump at first, startled to find her there. “What are you doing here?”
With wide-eyes and a mouthful of coco-puffs, Raven points her spoon at me, pieces of cereal falling out of her mouth. “You tell Red, and I will kill you. I mean it, Lenny. I will chop your dick off.”
I’m really not sure what to say right then, and all I can do is stare at her sitting on the counter, her legs propped up on the sink wearing Tyler’s shirt from last night. “Where the hell are your pants?”
“Um…” She looks down at her legs and shovels another spoonful of cereal in her mouth. When she’s finished chewing, she stares at me. “I’m not really sure. Things got a bit out of hand, but I do remember Tyler undoing my buttons with his teeth while we were on the bedroom floor, so that is probably my best bet.”
“Wait.” I shake my head trying to clear it, and then I realize what must be going on here, and I’m not all that surprised. “You and Tyler are dating?”
“Well, I wouldn’t say we are dating, but I would definitely say we’re fucking.” Her eyes take on a dreamy look, like she’s thinking of last night. “A lot.”
“Okay.” I pull my shirt over my head before Tyler comes out. The last thing I want is for him to see me without a shirt on. “And how long has this been going on?”
Raven shrugs. “Couple of months now.”
“And you don’t want Red to know about this why?”
She gives me that look that says, “Really, you have to ask?”
“Because Red would not approve. I’m sure you’ve noticed this, but Red is a little controlling. He sees certain things in black and white and has the attitude of my way or the highway. He thinks Tyler is too old for me. And of course, there is the obvious reason. Red’s an asshole, and it’s none of his damn business.” Raven hops down from the counter and puts the bowl in the sink. “I have to go. I need to sneak back into the house so it looks like I slept there all night.” She’s at the door digging through her bag. Pulling out a hair tie, she swoops her hair up in a bun and points at me, her purse on her shoulder. “Oh, and by the way, don’t make any plans for tomorrow. A group of us are heading to the river and you, my dear, are coming.”
I’m not entirely sure if she realizes this, but she still doesn’t have any pants on when the door closes behind her.
Less than thirty seconds later, she opens the door and sighs. “I should find my pants.”
I laugh reaching for the cereal box. “Might be a good idea.”
“SO YOU’RE FUCKING Red’s little sister?”
Tyler gasps as we’re walking downstairs. “Jesus, Lenny!” He stops and points at my face. “Warn a guy when you’re about to give him a damn heart attack. And don’t you dare say anything to Red.”
They really want to keep this under wraps. Can’t say I blame them. Red can certainly be intimidating.
“Hey,”—I hold my hands up—“Not my place to say. And if you haven’t noticed, he doesn’t allow me to speak. It’s just, here, can you handle this?” I attempt a pretty lousy version of Red’s voice.
Tyler laughs, taking a few more steps but his voice his hushed. “But still… you can’t say anything.”
“Are you ever going to tell him?”
“Maybe… eventually. I don’t know. We don’t even know what we’re doing yet. It’s not like we’re dating. I’ve never even taken her anywhere but my bed.”
“How did it happen? I mean, you’ve worked together for a long time, right?”
“Yeah… I’ve known her since I was fourteen, and she was eight, and that seems all kinds of wrong. She’s always been Red’s little sister to me until one day, she wasn’t, and she caught my eye. It wasn’t long after Berkley broke up with me. Raven had a really bad break up with some loser she had been dating and we were at a party together, and I listened to her that night. One thing led to another, and she was using me to fuck her sorrows away. Or maybe I was using her… Not sure. It just sorta started like that.”
I hesitate when we’re at the door. It’s Friday and then two days off. I can do this, right?
Tyler notices and puts his arm around me. “Take a deep breath. It’s all good. You’ve already proven yourself.”
“Since when did you start giving pep talks? “
“I’ve gotten introspective in my old age. I’m like the fucking Buddha of Lebanon.”
“Right,” I draw out slowly, taking another step outside. “A Buddha who’s fucking his best friend’s sister.”
He shoves me away from him. “Shut up.”
Inside the shop, Tyler and I go separate directions, and I head over to Red’s toolbox to find out what he wants me to do today. With any luck, I’ll steer clear of running errands and finding dead rats in heater vents.
As I’m standing at his toolbox clocking in, Red sets two cups of coffee on the stainless steel top and slides one my direction, our shoulders brushing one another.
“What’s that?”
He doesn’t look at me; his head is bent forward staring at his wallet in his hand as he sets it in the top drawer of his toolbox. “Well, that is what we call coffee.”
I scan his face and the dark stubble that seems longer in the last few days. I love a man with the smallest traces of a beard. Immediately, I have thoughts of that beard and his scruffy face between my thighs. “I know it’s a coffee smartass. Why are you giving it to me?”
“Because my daughter said I need to be nicer, and that girls like it when you bring them coffee.”
“So your five-year-old daughter told you that you need to be nicer and suggested you bring me coffee?”
“You could just take the goddamn coffee that my kid ordered you,” he barks, reaching for the repair orders stacked next to the coffee and sits on his stool. “And say thank you. She’s in the office so don’t piss her off already.”
I inhale sharply, that same pulsing frustration I always have around him settling deep within my bones. He’s annoying, selfish, arrogant, and extremely hot. Goddamn him.
I reach for the cup in frustration only to have it spill a little on him. Right on his crotch.
Without thinking, I grab a shop towel next to me. “Shit, I’m sorry.”
I dab at his crotch with the towel. Yep. Dabbed his crotch. I should have just licked it up.
Red jerks the rag from my hand, and I realize why he does this. I’m basically rubbing his dick.
�
��I’ve got it.” He scowls, standing up and turns to leave.
Just as Red turns, he slips on a small patch of oil spilled on the ground from where Daniel had been moving the oil cart this morning. He tries to catch himself but ends up falling right on his ass on the ground.
I’m not sure, but I don’t think I’ve ever laughed that hard in my life. My cackles ring through the shop and soon Colt starts in, and the whole shop is laughing at Red on his ass.
Daniel, who’s across the shop, holds up his hands. “My bad.”
“Clean this shit up!” Red yells and disappears around the corner into the bathroom.
Colt walks over to me as I pick up a repair order and sip my coffee. It’s freaking delicious, but when you’ve been drinking truck stop coffee for the past week, anything’s better than that.
“That’s one way to start the morning,” Colt says, digging his flask from the front pocket of his overalls. “Would you like something for your coffee?
I stare at him in confusion. “Like creamer? I think it’s a mocha… so probably not.”
He gives me a look of disgust. “Why the hell would you put creamer in your coffee?”
“Are you offering me alcohol?” I look at the clock on the wall. “It’s only eight thirty.”
“Honey, it’s five o’clock somewhere.” Colt leans against the same stool Red had been sitting on and watches Daniel take a pile of shop rags, throw them on the oil spill and walk away. That’s one way of cleaning it up.
“How have you survived this long with how much you drink?” I ask, flipping the page to the repair order where the customer is complaining about having an oil leak for the last three months. People are idiots when it comes to cars. There’s just some things that should be common sense. Like oil leaks. If you have one, get the damn thing looked at before it destroys your engine.
I set down the paperwork and give Colt my full attention.
“Some families have born athletes and some families have born geniuses, but my family was born with the gift of drink. We can drink large quantities of alcohol day in and day out without any real consequences. It’s like our superpower.” Colt smiles. “So, where did you come from?”
I’m not sure how much I want to say, so I keep it easy. “Oklahoma.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
I laugh. “I’d have to agree with you.”
“You don’t see many girl mechanics. You seem to have a lot of knowledge for your age.”
“I suppose I do. I paid attention anytime engines were involved.”
“So what made you decide to be one? A mechanic I mean, not a girl.”
“Wes was a mechanic, and I was raised around cars. I guess it just stuck.”
“Who’s Wes?”
I shrug. “Foster dad.”
Red walks by and hands me that same repair order I had been looking at, his crotch still damp from the coffee. I take it, and Red stares at Colt. “Get back to work, old man.”
“Don’t be so bossy,” Colt grumbles, taking himself and his flask back to his corner. I’m beginning to understand Colt doesn’t do a lot of work, but he’s like a fixture in the shop. You can’t get rid of him because it was basically built around him. There seems to be one in every shop I’ve worked in, and I usually find them the most entertaining to be around. Colt is definitely no exception.
WHEN I’M FINISHED with the oil leak that basically destroyed this woman’s 2011 Honda Civic, I look around the shop and see Red. He bites his bottom lip when he works. I’ve always found biting the lip sexy. It gets me thinking, what else makes him bite his lip like that? I bet he does when he’s fucking.
Oh fuck, the images of him alone, his hand dipping south to grasp his hard cock, yep, I’m lightheaded and breathing heavily so I go sit on a stool.
So far today, Red seems to be doing his best to ignore me, refusing to look in my direction. He’s pretty good at it too. But what he fails to realize is that I’m a woman and so much better at making sure he can’t ignore me. It’s easy to do too.
“Whatcha doin’ for lunch?” Raven asks, kicking my stool.
I jerk to attention and drop the wrench in my hand on the floor. Red hears the commotion and looks over his shoulder at me, his eyes on my chest and then my face. He’s so obvious. But so am I.
I look at Raven. “I don’t know, why?”
“There’s a burger place up the street we’re ordering from today. Want some?”
“Oh… uh… sure.”
“Red’s buying,” Raven remarks, walking toward him. He simply shakes his head that she volunteered him to buy.
When Raven returns with the burgers, the guys stand around eating and teasing one another. I stay back away from them with Raven near the bench I’ve been using as my makeshift toolbox.
“So… tomorrow we’re going to the river. You got a bathing suit?”
“No,” I say with a mouthful of burger.
“Well, get one. I think we’re gonna take the tubes and just hang out.”
“Okay.” I don’t even know where to get one, so I ask, “Is there like a Target around here?”
“Yeah, I’ll show you after work and then give you a ride back to Tyler’s.” Raven’s voice is hushed and then she stuffs a French fry in her mouth, quickly.
“Sounds good.”
Daniel approaches just as Raven heads back into the office. She doesn’t spend a lot of time in the shop, for obvious reasons.
“Do you eat meat?” Daniel asks, taking an overly large bite of his own burger. Pieces of it fall onto the floor, next to the pile of shop rags he tossed on the ground earlier today. I know one thing, this kid is a slob.
“Yeah, I like meat,” I tell him, wondering where he’s going with this, especially since I’m still gnawing on my own burger. “Why?”
By the look on his face, I’m assuming he’s wanting to know if I will eat his meat. Which is a flat out fucking no.
“Just wondering.” He looks down at the glob of ketchup now on his shirt and then back at me. “Do you like racing?”
“Sure….”
“I race,” he says as if I’m supposed to be impressed.
“Good for you.” Lifting my milkshake to my lips, I take a slow drink as Daniel’s eyes focus on my lips.
Red walks by, his own milkshake in hand. Fuck, look at the way his lips wrap around that straw! Kiss me, damn it!
Ugh, what the hell is wrong with me?
Red tosses a repair order in Daniel’s direction, and it lands on the floor. “There’s a waiter here. Get your ass to work.”
He scratches the side of his sandy blond hair. “But it’s lunch time.”
Red shrugs as he sets his milkshake on his toolbox and glances at me. “I don’t give a fuck.”
Reluctantly, Daniel rolls his eyes and walks away.
Just as I’m finishing my burger and milkshake, Red walks up to me and hands me another repair order. “Can you handle a clutch replacement?”
I nod, tossing my trash in the garbage next to me but I keep my milkshake. Maybe I can tease him a little. Automatically his eyes go to my mouth, and I suck in my last drink of my chocolate shake. “I can handle it.”
Yes, I’m referring to you.
He gives me a once over, an emotion I can’t decipher passing over his face and then he shrugs. “It’s the Toyota outside.”
And then he turns abruptly and walks away, and disappears inside the parts room. A minute later, he returns with a handful of parts.
I can see he has a big job he’s working on, another engine replacement, but I also can’t help myself from watching him work. I’m completely in awe of his abilities.
His focus is on the engine as he practically lifts the entire thing before turning it on the hoist for a better angle, his arms and every muscle in his chest flexing with exertion.
I can’t see his face very well; his head is bent forward, his attention on his hands as they work inside the engine and I’m pretty much staring. Obviously starin
g.
I move my gaze to across the shop. Daniel’s working under the hood of that car checking the oil by pulling out the dipstick. I smile when I notice what’s really going on.
Rawley—who sneaks around the side of the car—honks its horn and Daniel jumps back, smacking his head on the underside of the hood.
Sliding out of the car, Rawley lets out a burst of laughter that rings through the shop. “I do this at least once a week… and it’s funny every single time.”
With a wrench in his hand, Daniel bolts around the other side of the car to hit Rawley for doing that when he slips on oil Colt sprayed on the floor.
Even I laugh at that one. Serves the kid right.
Red shakes his head, looks over at them and sees the mess on the floor. “Get back to work. We have ten fucking cars waiting on us! This place is a goddamn business and you three need to stop acting like a bunch of fucking dickheads.”
Other than taking a ride in the Plymouth the other day, I’d think this guy has no fun in his life.
“Lighten up!” Rawley yells back at him, making his way to collect a pig mat to clean up the oil. “You used to be fun in here, and now you’re just a fucking dick.”
Red laughs and stands up straight. Dropping the tool in his hand, he shoves him back. “That’s funny. You’re trying to tell me how to behave now, and you can’t even get your shit together long enough to make it here on time in the morning.”
And just like that, they’re in each other’s faces again. I’m beginning to see there’s quite the feud between these two that dates back a ways. Before any swings are taken, Mia must sense it and comes out of the office again.
“Stop it, you two!” She places her hands on their chests, separating them. “Walk away and cool down!”
They do. Rawley walks outside, and Red goes into the parts room leaving me standing there staring at Mia walking toward me.
“I’m surprised they haven’t killed each other yet this week.”