Super Nova (Hot Rods #3)

by Jayne Rylon

  “It’s a puppy.” Rebel held out his new buddy toward Tom. “A Boston Terrier under all this mud, I think.”

  “Looks like.” Tom nodded, smiling. Still, he glanced at Kaige and Nola more than the tiny monster, who now licked any piece of Bryce he could reach.

  Alanso jogged to the hose and filled an old flowerpot for the dog. The mutt didn’t wander more than an inch or two from Rebel as he drank the cool, refreshing water.

  “Can we keep him?” Sally begged King Cobra.

  Tom laughed. “I’ll never forget when my son asked the same of me the day you wandered into the youth shelter.”

  “And look how well that turned out.” Even Carver got in on the action, trying to persuade their boss on behalf of Bryce, who’d clearly already decided what he wanted. Kaige silently cheered for them to prevail. Then maybe Nola would come visit the bugger after her assignment was over.

  “What the hell are you guys asking me for?” Eli shrugged. “It’s our place. All of ours. If everyone wants the dog…”

  “We do,” Roman spoke up. Usually quiet, when he had something to say, they listened.

  “Then it’s settled,” Eli grumbled. “But I’m not going to be the only one feeding it and walking it.”

  “Between us all he’ll be no problem.” Bryce didn’t take his eyes off the puppy, who practically fit in the palm of his hand.

  “What should we call him?” Kaige wondered.

  “Buster?” Holden offered at the same time Sally pointed to his white feet and suggested, “Hightops?”

  Everyone looked to Bryce for a ruling. He glanced between both of his friends and frowned, as if he didn’t want to hurt either of their feelings. Especially now that they were getting frisky together, their bond had drawn even tighter.

  Sensing the discord, Nola did what she ruled at. She solved the problem. Smoothing things over in the process. “I think Buster McHightops is the most adorable name I’ve ever heard for a dog.”

  A giant smile spread over Rebel’s stubbly jaw. “It’s perfect. He’s perfect. Thank you.”

  Kaige never abandoned his hold on Nola’s hand. Not even when his friend sidled closer and surrounded her in a quick embrace.

  Could the rest of the Hot Rods like her too? As in like like? Oh shit, Kaige hadn’t even considered that he might have competition for the woman. He didn’t mind sharing, but he wanted her to be his first. He was going to have to move fast.

  Ask her out. To the wedding, or something simpler.

  Soon.

  And maybe the energy he sensed flowing between them all could come in handy later. After he’d already staked a primary claim.

  Chapter Seven

  Despite his best efforts to coax her out, Nola had evaded being alone with Kaige for almost two days. Either by chance or by design, he couldn’t tell. Could she sense that he intended to corner her in the hopes of pressing things beyond their professional boundaries? After the puppy fiasco Thursday, everyone had given up on work for the last few hours of the day.

  On top of that, when Nola spied her car on the lift she’d been thrilled until he declined her offer to take the parts and labor out of her bill. Like hell he would.

  Eventually she’d graciously accepted his help, thanking him with a kiss that could have become a lot more steamy if Buster McHightops hadn’t chosen that moment to scurry between them and piss on Kaige’s boot. A love/hate relationship had sprouted between him and the mutt.

  Of course all the other Hot Rods had thought the antics hysterical. And while Kaige was upstairs changing, Nola had slipped away. Maybe the intensity between them had frightened her or maybe it had been the rest of her employers catching them sucking face that had shoved her out of arm’s reach during business hours. Because ever since then the week had flown by with their consultant keeping her cute head buried in her laptop, pounding out the details of her presentation.

  How the hell much could she be doing? Enough to warrant even coming in on the weekend to keep trucking, he supposed.

  She wouldn’t let him see her progress until the thing was finished. Of course, that meant she was constantly around, if out of reach behind her expert demeanor. They’d shared meals together, played with the new shop mascot, hung out near the water cooler on breaks and chatted about everything and nothing in between his jobs and her work.

  At night, they continued their email exchanges. Nola was like no pen pal he’d ever imagined. It seemed as though the distance between them made it easier to talk about their pasts and their hopes for the future. In person, their discussions never took on half the weight of their correspondence.

  He found he liked both sides of her. The serious professional and the vulnerable woman who understood so much about the events that had shaped him. She’d never once judged him. He believed his secrets would be safe in her hands. Something he rarely could say about people other than the Hot Rods.

  By Saturday afternoon, Kaige had played it as cool as he could manage. He plopped into the shitty folding chair in Nola’s makeshift office, rocked it onto its back legs, locked his hands behind his head and crossed his ankles on the table. The flash of heat her semi-covert scan inspired curled his toes in his boots.

  “You’re going to break your neck, fool.” She seemed genuinely disturbed, despite her acerbic barb. Somehow she knew how to reach him. Just like the gang, who used endless taunts—borne of love—to communicate their concern.

  “Nah. I’m not flying off to heaven until you escort me there.” He reached for her fingers, which, surprisingly, she let him take.

  “That’s a lame line.” She rolled her eyes.

  “Yeah, but it still kind of worked, didn’t it?” A grin tipped one corner of his lips upward.

  “If it did, that only makes me lame too.” Nola put her head in her free hand. “I know better than to fall for a guy like you.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” The metal thudded to the floor as he sat up and leaned forward.

  “You’re a smooth talker. A hound dog latched on a scent. But will you tear me apart when you catch me? Will you still want me after you’ve won?” Her eyes grew wide in the dim interior of the room. They’d doused the lights so she could show him her finished presentation by projecting it on the white-painted cinderblock wall.

  “This isn’t some kind of game, Nola.” He frowned. “I’m not toying with you. I’m interested, impressed and turned on every time I’m around you. Hell, even when I’m not. I’ve never had this kind of chemistry with a woman before. I’m sorry if I don’t know how to show you that. I’ve never had to try before.”

  “You’re doing fine on that count.” Maybe honesty had something in its favor. When she stared into his eyes and read the genuine curiosity there, she smiled a bit—stealing his breath—before groaning. “But we have a project to finish. Come on, I’d really like you to see this. I’m kind of proud of how it turned out, okay?”

  She waved her hand toward the bright square illuminating the wall.

  “All right. If I behave and watch your thingy, will you go out with me? Like on a real date.” He considered his options. “Work at work and fun when we’re off the clock, like you want.”

  “That isn’t exactly what I said.”

  “So compromise.” He couldn’t help himself from leaning in to steal another taste of her juicy lips. Whatever gloss she seemed addicted to was making him crave it too. Sweet and shiny, it tempted him to caress her mouth with his all day. He’d never get bored of this. When they finally broke apart, he whispered, “It’s what I want.”

  Nola shivered. She was breathing hard against his skin.

  He smiled broadly.

  “Fine,” she panted. “You win. Just…focus, please. We’ll talk about the rest after. Don’t distract me anymore either.”

  Kaige chuckled when she slapped his wandering hands and scooted her chair over to the left several inches with a horrendous screech of metal on concrete.

  “As you wish, Ms. Brown.” H
e folded his hands in his lap, hoping that between them and the low light his erection might escape her notice.

  Or not.

  She did a double take before clearing her throat as she fiddled with her computer.

  Kaige decided to take that as a compliment. Patiently as he could manage—he refused to piss her off and give her some excuse to renege on their date deal—Nova waited for her to exhibit the end result of her hours slaving away in this tiny room, which had more in common with a cell than a real office. Maybe he’d see how the rest of the gang felt about letting her move her operations upstairs to their common area. At least it had decent natural light.

  All thoughts of restructuring her workspace vanished when a graphic of one of Bryce’s restomods zoomed across the screen followed by other projects the guys had been especially proud of. Each job had showcased something special, a component of his strategy.

  She’d visually described what he’d struggled to put down on paper.

  Genius.

  Once idling in place, the lineup of cars glowed subtly, limned in a throbbing light timed to some kick-ass music. The Hot Rods logo flew into their midst. Flames consumed it until it glowed like the chassis of a car in the wake of his blowtorch.

  “That was awesome!” He gawked at her. “How’d you do that?”

  “It’s my job.” She shrugged. “Go ahead. Click something.”

  “Which one? Will it mess you up to go out of order?” Kaige hovered the mouse over the 1968 Bullitt Fastback they’d given some special attention to. He’d always loved how that project came out. So had its owner. The dude had insisted they accept a fifty-percent bonus.

  “Nah. It’s designed to be interactive. Viewed in any sequence.” She smiled at his eagerness to explore. “The whole idea is that it takes a multi-avenue approach to get the brand to the next level. No one component is more important than the others. They go hand in hand, right?”

  She’d really listened to him.

  For a moment, Kaige blinked faster in an attempt to erase the sting behind his lids.

  Instead of attempting to talk, he nodded.

  For close to an hour, they pored through her conglomeration of his suggestions and the roadmap they’d drafted over the past week. Fascinated, he couldn’t believe how she’d brought his concepts to life. Even the reconfiguration of the shop, incorporating efficiency improvements and the specialized equipment they’d need for some of the new lines, had seemed so real he thought he could stick his head out the door and see the revised layout for himself.

  Hell, the garage could use someone like her to do the same for proposals to customers. Clients would be enthralled; unable to say no when they saw what butterflies could emerge from the caterpillars they’d driven in.

  Hot Rods would never lose a bid with her by their sides. Kaige added another dimension to his plan.

  “Well, there you have it,” she declared. “The secrets to Hot Rods’ continued success. I honestly believe you guys and Sally have a great shot at doubling your profits within a year.”

  “After seeing that, I don’t doubt it either. What you did was spectacular.” Man enough to admit it, Kaige continued, “I never could have shown the gang what I had dreamed up. Not in a way they could really understand. So convincingly. Like this. You’re brilliant.”

  “You did the hard work.” Nola surprised him with a quick hug. “I made it pretty, that’s all.”

  “You’re being too modest.” He squeezed her back with interest. “You helped me brainstorm solutions to some of the sticking points that’d been bothering me for months. Whatever Eli is paying you, he’s getting his money’s worth. Thank you. Really.”

  “Well, that’s a far cry from the glower you greeted me with Monday.” Nola peeked up at him. This close he could see the pretty gold dusting on her lids and the dark liner she’d applied to her already gorgeous eyes.

  “I was an idiot. It happens from time to time.” Thank God she hadn’t seen his temper tantrum the night before that.

  They laughed together.

  Leaning in, he almost broke his pact not to blur their lines anymore.

  All work and no fun made Kaige a horny guy.

  With a snap of his wrist, he shut her laptop. Business was over.

  “So…about that date…” Suddenly he knew he couldn’t make it a whole extra week to the wedding. Waffling on taking Dave’s advice since Monday, Kaige had debated the merits of bringing someone so out of the loop to the most important day of his friends’ life. It seemed selfish to drag her into such a complex situation, especially if Dave’s helpful hints turned out to be true and the happy trio had something grand in the works to include their unconventional friends in their ceremony.

  Kaige had to put Eli, Alanso and Sally first.

  But he could take things a step further with Nola. Erase any doubts about how they’d mesh before worrying about fitting the new duo they’d create in with the gang. One step at a time and all.

  “Yeah, about that. Where are you taking me?” She gathered up her papers, trying to act cool. Too bad the tension in her shoulders ratted her out. Nola was nervous.

  Could this be as important to her as it was becoming to him?

  “How about the movies? I think there’s a chick flick playing at the drive-in. Mustang’s been bugging Cobra and Al to take her.” Kaige had overheard Sally telling Nola about it during one of their breaks this week. Both women had seemed excited by the ultra-hot leading dude.

  “That sounds fun.” She smiled over her shoulder. “Your car was comfy with that big bench seat. Way better than a theater. Plus we’ll have the coolest ride there, I’m sure.”

  “So you about wrapped up here? There’s probably a seven o’clock show.” Kaige rose and stalked closer to her, drawing a deep breath filled with her peach scent. “We could grab some food at the diner next door before it starts.”

  “What? Now? Tonight?” She nibbled on her lip, again making him wish he could taste the gloss there.

  “Why not?” He didn’t care to spend another evening typing to her instead of talking. This past week had been an exercise in staying in low gear when he wanted to pound the gas to the floor and fly.

  Unless…

  “Do you already have plans? With someone else?” He gulped at the thought. A striking woman like her wouldn’t lack for attention.

  “Only if you count Amber.” Nola smiled. “We usually watch some solid reality TV before bed.”

  Kaige laughed. “I’ll try to be more entertaining than that.”

  “I don’t know. Some of those shows are top notch.” She shook her head. “Okay, fine. This is crazy, but…let’s do it.”

  “Great.” He held out his hand and led her from the room, pausing only briefly to kiss her. A promise of more to come. Getting on their way before she could change her mind took precedence over stealing an extra taste of her.

  Okay, so he didn’t make it halfway to his car before he needed another sample to hold him. He thought that was pretty good. After all, he didn’t bend her over the hood and make love to her with the rest of the garage watching, the way he’d dreamed of last night.

  Restraint. He had some.

  Not much when it came to her though.

  As they were buckled in and rolling out the open bay, he shouted over to Bryce, “Yo, Rebel, we’re hitting the movies. See you guys later.”

  “Have fun, kids. Don’t behave yourselves!” The big guy winked as he waved them off.

  Kaige enjoyed every second of the ride through the bright summer evening and the easy conversation they kept while scarfing down greasy burgers. Nola seemed every bit as content as he was to take their email discussions further in person.

  The professional he’d come to know gradually melted and left behind a funny, smart, sexy woman he couldn’t help but imagine licking as clean as his ice cream bowl. She must have had a similar thought when she grew still and flushed while observing his efforts. Either that or his lack of manners horrified h
er.

  Somehow he didn’t think that was it.

  With a smack, he finished off the last of the sweet cream, then dabbed his lips with his napkin, all proper and shit. She nearly busted a gut laughing.

  The unapologetic ringing satisfied his senses nearly as much as his dessert had.

  He found himself thinking the same thing again when the flickering illumination of the drive-in highlighted her strong profile. Being with her made his heart light and his smile a near-permanent fixture on his face.

  He didn’t even give a crap that the movie was corny. Hell, the romantic parts kind of got to him with Nola resting her head on his shoulder. She’d kicked off her shoes and curled up on the front seat of his car like a contented cat, practically purring where they nestled together.

  Kaige could relate.

  At least until the credits began to roll. He was about to suggest they wait until the screen had gone dark and everyone else had left for a little encore of their own when something pinged off the rear quarter panel.

  His head whipped around and he shot from the Nova so fast Nola sprawled on the green leather. A gaggle of teenagers sat off to the side, acting like they didn’t know about the fucking nick in his pristine paint job. Except their twitching and inability to look in his direction as he approached gave them away.

  “Which one of you punk bastards threw a rock at my car?” He crossed his arms and spread his feet, unwilling to acknowledge that he’d been far more of a shit than them when he was their age. “I could take a chunk out of your hide.”

  Rage bubbled in his veins.

  He forced himself to infuse logic into the chaos, not that successfully.

  They didn’t know how much the machine meant to him. How much hard work had gone into lovingly restoring the Nova from the ground up. Kaige’s brain understood that, but his instincts roared at him to teach them a lesson.

  In the end, he didn’t have to. When faced with his ferocious snarl and the bulging muscles of his crossed arms, covered in tattoos, the pricks realized they’d fucked with the wrong guy. They hopped on their bikes and rode off in a cloud of dust.