“Bullshit,” she grunts to herself.
“What’s your problem then? Are you afraid I won’t like him?”
“No,” she laughs. “You’ll love this one. My problem is what you’ll do to him.”
Fuck me. That’s been the only thing I’ve been able to think about over the past year. He’s not going to like it when he finds out. He’s going to demand an explanation and I’m not going to have one for him, though, I can safely assume he’s not going to appreciate me saying ‘she fucking hot, why wouldn’t I tap it?’
He’s going to knock me the fuck out and there’s no doubt about it in my mind. I’ll deserve it and I’ll take it like a fucking man.
“Come on,” Cole begs. “I’ll behave.”
Imogen shakes her head. “I’ll tell you when the time is right,” she promises before getting up and grabbing a few beers out of her fridge. She hands them around and before we know it, Jace is here with Cami and Rylee while Xander is barging through the door with Charli over his shoulder.
Chapter 5
Imogen
My eyes flick to my clock for the twentieth time this morning. I’m going to be so late. There’s nothing I hate more than being late and making myself look unprofessional. Especially as I’m so young. I already have the eyes of all my colleagues on me, thinking that I haven’t got enough experience to do the job. The last thing I need is to give them another reason to doubt me.
I grab my handbag off the counter and practically fly out the door. I unlock my car from the door of my building and run towards it before opening it up and turning on the engine. There’s a strange smell in the car, but I don’t have time to search out the source.
I hit the gas and am halfway there when my little convertible starts acting up. Smoke starts billowing out from under the hood and I immediately start freaking out. I mean, what the fuck is happening? I was not created to deal with this kind of shit. I’m so out of my element right now.
I stop the car on the side of the road and pray the bastard doesn’t blow up like in the movies. “Shit,” I grunt to myself as I get out of the car. Maybe it’s just overheated and needs to cool down, though, it’s only six months old, it shouldn’t be having any issues at all. Whatever it is, I don’t have time for it.
I pop the hood and walk around the front of the car. I lift the hood hoping I look a little something like Megan Fox in that one scene from Transformers, though, I honestly doubt it as the heat coming off the car has me flinching back and turning my head in distaste. Anyone passing by right now would instantly be able to tell that I have no clue what I’m doing, especially as I have a hard time working out how to prop the hood up.
I look around the engine, but let’s be serious, it looks like a twisted pile of metal to me.
I try to put a plan into action of what the hell I’m going to do when it occurs to me that I’m just around the corner from Rebels Advocate. I cringe hoping Cole isn’t driving past anytime soon as when I first bought this car, I made a big deal about being able to make my own decisions and my brother was the main person to object. After all, I already had a perfectly good car that he had personally chosen out for me, you know, due to its safety rating. Me buying my little red convertible was done on a whim and if he knew about this particular disaster, I’d never live it down.
Shit, I don’t even understand why it’s broken. It was just in the shop for its regular check just a few weeks ago. If anything, it should be running perfectly, not breaking down on the side of the road and making me late for work. Though, I guess this has something to do with the weird smell when I first got in.
I double check the time again and take note of the fact that my first session is starting in twenty minutes. Crap, this is not good. I start making a mental list of all the things I should be doing. Is a tow truck the first thing? Maybe then a Taxi to get to work? Shit. I don’t know.
A familiar black truck drives straight by me before it darts to the side of the road in front of my car. I groan as a grinning Caden hops out and looks at me with complete and utter amusement. I’m instantly reminded of how he and my brother were parked outside my apartment the other night and all I want to do is smack him, even though Izzy and I completely beat them at their own game. I’m still furious with the idiots for thinking they had the right to do it in the first place.
“What the hell is going on here?” Caden questions with the world biggest smirk plastered across his face as he indicates to my car with its hood sticking up in the air. Out of all the people that could have been driving by right now, I get stuck with the one guy who’s going to take the most enjoyment out of my embarrassment.
I cringe and let out a sigh. “I don’t know,” I tell him while trying not to sulk.
He rolls his eyes and comes to stand by me at the front of the car. He leans against the front while he studies the mess of metal before us. I look across to him and take in the black Rebels Advocate muscle tank that gives me a perfect look at his arms and his sculptured chest as he leans forward. He must have just been working at the gym and either left for a bit or noticed me stranded by the side of the road.
A frown mars his handsome face as he fiddles around. He goes and sits in the driver’s seat and flicks the ignition. “How long has this light been on?” he asks.
I walk around to have a look at what he’s talking about and he points out the light he’s referring to. “Um, I don’t know,” I tell him. “Maybe a few weeks. It came on after its last service.”
He shakes his head. “That’s the check oil light,” he explains with a heavy sarcasm as he rolls his eyes before getting out and walking back around the front the car. He twists a little cap before pulling some long ass stick thingy out. “You have no fucking oil,” he tells me. “Do you have any idea how bad that is for your engine?”
“Um….,” I say with a clueless shake of my head. I mean, obviously oil is somewhat important for my car, but it’s not exactly something I care to know about, after all, I send my car to a mechanic who I pay to know that kind of shit.
“Fucking hell,” he grunts to himself in disbelief. “You’ve probably been driving around with barely any oil and completely fucking up your engine.”
“Shit,” I curse. That sounds bad. “I’m assuming that’s not going to be cheap.”
“Nope,” he grunts.
I look over at the steam that continues radiating off the engine. “Can’t I just wait until it cools down and put more oil in it?” I question, hoping for the best.
“No,” he chuckles. “It’s not that simple. It’s going to have to be towed and checked out. Depending on how badly you’ve fucked it up, you might be up for a new engine.”
“Great,” I moan. Just my fucking luck. “Promise me you won’t mention any of this to Cole, would you?”
“Fuck no,” he laughs. “You’ve just provided me with my whole afternoon’s entertainment. You know he’s never going to let this go, right?”
“Don’t remind me,” I grunt. “I don’t understand how this happened. It was in the shop like three weeks ago.”
“Shit, babe. You need a new fucking mechanic,” he grumbles. “It would take a real fucking genius to forget to check the oil.”
I let out a heavy sigh and drop down into the gutter. I check my watch and it doesn’t go unnoticed that my first session of the day is starting in ten minutes with a little girl who suffers from major abandonment issues. The last thing she needs is me not showing up or being late.
“What am I going to do?” I groan. “I don’t have time for this shit.”
“Here,” he says as he digs in his pocket and pulls out his keys. He tosses them to me and I pluck them out of the sky. “Take my truck, but if you scratch her, I’m coming after you.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” I tell him before standing up and placing his keys back in his hands. “This isn’t your problem. I can handle it.”
He lets out a heavy breath, letting me know just how frustrated he is with my atti
tude. “Imogen,” he scolds. “You wouldn’t know the first thing about handling this. Now, get your fine ass to work. I’ll deal with your car and you can bring me my truck tonight. I don’t have another client until ten. I can catch a ride home with someone later on.”
“Fuck, are you sure?” I question as my eyes start lighting up in pure relief.
“Yeah,” he grunts before nodding his head in the direction of his truck. “Now go.”
“Thank you,” I practically squeal as I throw myself at him. He catches me around the waist and I hold him close for just a moment. I pull back slightly and give him a quick kiss. “I owe you, big time.”
“That you do,” he tells me. “But don’t worry, I already have a list of ways you can repay me and they all include that tongue of yours.”
“Your wish is my command,” I grin as heat floods me. Shit, how does this man do that to me?
I step out of his arms before I get carried away in the moment and dash over to his truck. As I reach for his door handle, I can’t help but look back at the man who has just saved my ass. He’s already busied himself with my car as he hangs his head over the engine once again with his phone pressed to his ear, probably calling a tow truck or some mechanic that’s going to cost me an arm and a leg, though, I don’t really care. All that matters right now is getting to my first session.
I jump in the truck and pull the seat right forward, feeling like a fucking child in this beast of a truck. I’m actually a little in shock that he’s just offered his truck up for me to use for the day. He’s usually very protective of his truck, but Cole taught me how to drive in his truck so Caden knows I’m not about to ruin it.
I adjust the mirrors and pull on my seatbelt before glancing back at him one last time, only this time, those smoldering eyes are already burning into mine with a desire that nearly has me spontaneously combusting. How the hell did I get so lucky to be the woman climbing into bed with him?
Shit, I need to drive away before I end up skipping the whole day.
Just as Caden had demanded, I get my fine ass to work and make it through my office door right as my first appointment is taking her seat in my waiting area. I get on with my day and I find myself constantly coming back to the thought of how protective and caring Caden has become lately. I mean, he’s always been protective, but this is different. It’s not the usual looking out for a little sister bullshit I’m so used to, this is something that almost feels animalistic.
I’m not sure I can even describe it, but if I had to, I’d say it feels like a man taking care of what’s his. Like he’s seeing me as more than the woman who’s been showing up in the middle of the night and leaving before morning. But it doesn’t make sense though.
We have a strict no feelings policy which we both happily agreed to. When this first started, I promised him I wasn’t going to fall for him and he promised the very same. In all the years I’ve known him, he’s never once broken a promise, so I know I can trust him, otherwise, I’d need to rethink this whole situation. Feelings between us could cause irreparable damage that I’m not nearly ready for.
But then… why is it I like it so much when he plays the hero? Why do I enjoy it when he stormed into my apartment acting like a jealous boyfriend when he thought I had a man in my room? Hell, why do I get a rush when I know I’m going to see him? And why does the thought of not feeling his touch drive me sick with need?
Shit. I’m a fucking therapist so I know exactly what it all means. I’m just not prepared to admit it to myself, let alone the world.
Brandon walks into my office later in the morning and pulls me right out of my torturous thoughts. “I thought you weren’t here,” he mumbles as he walks into the room and takes a seat on my couch.
“And why’s that?” I question as I reach down for the football that sits at my feet.
“Because your car isn’t here,” he explains.
With that, I toss him the ball and launch into my explanation of my morning, skipping every detail of the man who came crashing in like my knight in shining armor.
“You know,” he says before tossing the ball back. “It’s really bad for your car not to have any oil. It could ruin it.”
That’d be right. The eleven-year-old kid knows more about looking after a car than I do.
Five minutes later, the ball has him relaxed enough to tell me a little more about himself. I find myself becoming more and more attached to this child. Every word that comes out of his mouth is a further confirmation of the fact that I would do everything in my power to get him the help he needs and it’s become startling obvious that he needs something more than just a chat in a therapist’s office a few times a week. He needs something to help him find his confidence and self-worth to repair the scars his parents have left on his soul.
Chapter 6
Caden
“Go, go, go,” I yell as my client, Roxy, sprints down the length of Rebels Advocate before rushing back and instantly dropping down into a set of jump squats. She’s been working her but off this morning and we’re just about done, but there’s no way I’m about to let her give in just yet. She still has a few minutes left of her session and I’m going to push her to the breaking point. After all, that’s what people pay me for.
Roxy gets through her jump squats and straightens herself up. She knows the routine by now and turns to face me with her fists already raised. I hold the boxing pads up for her and she lets loose like a wild beast.
“Come on,” I tell her as her speed starts to decrease. “You’re nearly there. Just a little bit more.”
A determined crease appears across her eyebrows as she pushes herself to the finish line “Good work,” I tell her as she collapses to the ground in complete exhaustion. She’s been working on increasing her strength and overall fitness levels, and in the three shorts months I’ve been training her, she’s already achieved so much.
I grab her water bottle and pass it down to her before throwing the boxing pads into the pile of equipment we’ve used during the session. Roxy manages to sit up and hangs her head between her knees while working on catching her breath.
I resist giving myself a pat on the back for another job well done as I don’t want to come off as an egotistical ass, but let’s face it, I’m fucking good at my job.
Roxy finally manages to pull herself together and I help her to her feet before she disappears to the bathrooms.
I head over to Cole and Xander with a grin as I watch them busily being Jace’s cheer squad while he’s trying to put himself through a brutal workout, though by cheer squad, I mean they’re being complete dickheads and over exaggerating their encouragements.
“Come on,” Cole grunts with way too much enthusiasm as Jace presses the bar above his chest. “Harder, Jace, harder. Give me more. I need more.”
“Yes,” Xander adds. “Get it up there.”
Jace tries his best to ignore them but their persistence gets the best of him, just as I knew it would. “Fuck off,” he tells them. “Don’t you dickheads have a fight to prepare for?”
Cole and Xander look at each other before turning back to Jace. “Nah,” Cole chuckles. “We’re good here.”
“Besides,” Xander says. “We couldn’t possibly leave you here to fend for yourself.”
Jace groans but continues working on his bench presses. He raises the bar up and the second it reaches its peak, Cole grins. “Yeah, that’s what I like,” he says in a low, creepy as fuck tone, pushing Jace to breaking point.
Jace racks the bar before bolting straight off the bench and tackling Cole to the ground. Cole can hardly contain his laughter and allows Jace to easily take him down.
I can’t help but laugh as I watch the scene unfold before me. It’s fucking bittersweet. Before Luke left on deployment, it used to be Jace and Luke doing this kind of shit to me and Cole, but now that Luke’s gone for the next few months, the tables have turned and it’s fucking hilarious watching Jace lose his shit each and every time. Though,
as much as I miss Luke, I’m not looking forward to when he comes back as the boys are going to hit us hard.
Once they’ve had their fun, Cole pulls himself back to his feet and allows Jace to get on with his workout. He tells Xander that the fun’s over and it’s time to get serious about today’s training and sends him to the treadmill to warm up.
I turn to Cole with a grin as holding in this morning’s drama is just too much to bear. “I saw Imogen this morning,” I tell him.
“Huh?” he grunts, looking at me in confusion. “Where?”
“On the side of the road, looking under the hood and acting like she had a fucking clue what she was doing.”
“Fuck,” he curses. “You’re kidding, right? I told her not to buy that damn car.”
“I know,” I say, completely in agreement with him. She bought that car because it’s pretty and has no roof, not because she needs it. Though to be fair, there wouldn’t have been any issues had she found a good mechanic, instead, she trusted a fucking dimwit with a wrench to fiddle around with her car. “There was no oil. She’s probably fucked the engine.”
“Shit,” she says with a shake of his head. “Where is it now?”
“I had it towed to that garage around the corner,” I tell him. “Imogen’s got my truck for the day, so I’m going to need a lift home.”
“Yeah, no problem,” he says. “Thanks, man. I’ll head down there this afternoon and sort it out. I’ll get her a rental so you can get your truck back, otherwise, she’ll hijack it from you.”
I nod as I acknowledge what he’s saying but I can’t help but feel a little disappointed. For some reason, I wanted to be the one to help her with her car. I want to be the one to sort her out a rental. I want to be the one to deliver it to her on a silver platter and take away all her troubles.
Shit. What the fuck is going on here?
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