by Shauna Allen
I was saved from answering when the Jack ‘Em Up truck rumbled into my driveway and the guys piled out with boisterous conversation and laughter. Morning people, I swear.
Aubrey took up the rear, back in her coveralls and work boots, flaming red curls in a loose ponytail. Her smile was bright and automatic as soon as she spotted me. She bypassed her cohorts and made a beeline for me, plastering me with a kiss.
Shocked, I hesitated, but she was persistent. Silence ricocheted through the garage like the blackness blanketing the bottom of the ocean. I didn’t want to cause a rift between her and her friends, or get my ass handed to me, but, damn she was perfection.
What does your gut tell you is true?
I had no idea what was true, but Aubrey Clemson felt like the only right thing to ever grace my life in that moment. I wrapped her in my arms and kissed her back. To hell with what they thought. This was between us and I’d never hurt her.
Someone cleared their throat behind us and she drew back, her expression soft and dreamy. “Good morning.” Her voice was even softer.
“Good morning.” I glanced over her shoulder to the four men’s expressions, ranging from proud to confused to It’s-none-of-my-business. “Maybe we should get to work,” I whispered.
“Maybe you’re right. Pick this up later tonight?”
“Absolutely.”
We parted and she moseyed over to the Charger, now all business. How she managed the switch so seamlessly was beyond me, but color me impressed.
Eight
Aubrey
I was jumping head-first into the deep end with Jude, but I couldn’t find the energy to care. It was flirty, it was fun, and it felt so right I refused to believe it could be wrong.
I caught the guys, especially Jesse, giving me inquisitive glances, but I ignored them all. My life, my business, my heart on the line.
“Stop looking at me like I’ve grown another head,” I grumbled when Jesse and I were side-by-side on creepers, inspecting the undercarriage of the Charger.
“I’m not.”
I shot him a glare. “Yes. You are. And I don’t appreciate it. You’re married to my sister, but that doesn’t give you the right to judge my choices. I’m an adult.”
“I know you are. I’m not judging.” He lowered his voice as someone walked by us. “I just don’t want you to get hurt.”
“I won’t.” The words crowded my throat, clogged by doubt. Truth was, Jude could very well hurt me, even though he didn’t mean to, and I’d only have myself to blame.
“Just be careful. Having a good time is one thing, but I see the way he looks at you.”
“How does he look at me?”
“Like his last meal.”
I felt the blush heat my cheeks. Truth was, I wanted to devour Jude myself.
Fletch saved me by popping his head down next to ours. “What’s the verdict?”
Jesse laughed. “Shit. Sorry, man.”
“Ah . . .” People stirred at the garage door and Fletch glanced up. “My lady’s here with lunch if y’all are hungry.”
We all crowded around Jude’s dining room table, enjoying the air conditioning and devouring Emily’s brisket sliders and coleslaw. I inched my way closer to Jude’s side while everyone was busy eating and talking about the Charger.
He licked sauce from his finger with a grin when I nudged his arm with my shoulder. “So, where are you taking me tonight?”
“You’re the visitor to town. Where do you wanna go?”
“What’s to do around here?”
“Not much, unfortunately.”
“Movies? Miniature golf?”
“Golf?”
“Sure, why not?”
His laugh was smoky and eased over my skin like silk. “Okay, then. Golf it is.”
I glanced around at the other guys. “But frame work first.”
“Definitely.”
~ ~
By late afternoon, Jude’s garage was packed as Fletch’s friends from work trickled in. And by “friends from work”, I mean the biggest, scariest, most intimidating yet nice men I’d ever met in my life. I had no idea what they did in the Army, nor did they elaborate, but I could only imagine by the looks of them and their nicknames that it was something fierce. If not, the Army was totally wasting their resources.
Ghost and Blade (I’m not kidding about those names) sauntered in first with kisses for Emily, who’d also come over, and arm punches for Fletch. Later, Coach, Beatle, and Truck (still not kidding) arrived and introductions were made as the men all crowded around the car and its pieces.
Blake explained to them what was happening and our plans for the Charger as they looked on and made inside jokes. I jumped right in when he started describing the transmission overhaul we had planned, since trannies were my specialty.
“I’ve got big plans for the transmission, and with the racing performance-grade clutch kit and high-stall torque convertor we’re gonna drop in, it will definitely be able to handle the 426 HEMI Blake’s got in the works and probably clock in near 500 horsepower. All I need is one of these slackers to build a rear end that can handle it all.”
All six of the men who didn’t know me, stared with varying degrees of shock.
“What?” I demanded. “What do you think I’ve been doing here for the past two days? Painting my nails?”
“Well, no . . .” the biggest one, Truck, said a bit sheepishly. “We just figured maybe you were—”
“A girl?” I slammed my fist into my hip.
“No,” Ghost clarified. “Well, yes, but maybe just tagging along as a helper or whatever. Sorry.”
“Well, think again,” Jesse said with a shit-eating grin. “This little lady is a fast learner and she’s already damn good. Before we’re done with her, she’ll be able to put most other mechanics under the table. Man or woman.”
I grinned, pleased.
“What’s going on around here? Where the hell is everyone?” a seventh stranger called out with a big grin as he strolled into the already crowded garage.
“We’re in here working on the Charger,” Fletch called.
Everyone shuffled as the new guy joined the ranks of his friends with ease.
Everyone still seemed a bit shocked that I knew a clutch plate from an exhaust, so I stuck out my hand. “Hey, I’m Aubrey. I work with these guys.” I hiked my thumb in the general direction of Blake, Jesse, and Micah. “Nice to meet you . . .”
He accepted my handshake. “They call me Hollywood.”
I took in his brazen good looks and cocky smile. “I’m sure they do.”
He laughed. “I like her.”
Jude shifted his weight. I shot him a wink and he grinned in return. No Tom Cruise lookalike was going to sway me so easily from my infatuation with him.
Eventually, the big guys blazed out with Fletch early. Something about a work meeting or whatever. Blake and Micah headed out to the parts store, leaving me, Jude, and Jesse.
After a quick call to check on Rachel, Jesse grabbed a bottle of water and wiped his brow. “I don’t think we’ll be at it as late tonight.”
I nodded, concentrating on a rusty bolt that was stuck to the engine mount.
“You two have plans later?”
I peered up, trying to gauge the innocence of Jesse’s question. He was focused on Jude, who shot me a quick glance.
“Uh, yeah,” Jude finally answered.
I uncoiled to stand and wiped my hands on a rag. “Did you need me for something?”
“No.” Jesse shifted my way, his gaze inscrutable. “Not at all. You guys have fun.”
He and Jude exchanged some kind of guy-code communication that I couldn’t begin to understand, nor did I want to. Probably some sort of Neanderthal take-care-of-the-little-woman crap.
Well, I could take care of myself, thank you very much.
I purposely strode between them on my way out to the truck. I wrenched open the door and grabbed my cell phone to call my sister for some rein
forcements and girl talk.
“Hello?” Rachel answered on the first ring.
“Expecting a call?”
“What? No. I just hung up with Jesse.” Their baby, Avery, cried and fussed in the background. “She misses her daddy.”
I glanced at my brother-in-law, who was hunched over the car with Jude, their conversation hushed. Ugh. “I’m sure.”
“What’s wrong?”
I sighed at Rachel’s quick understanding. “Men.”
“What happened?”
I plopped onto the bench seat and studied the two sorta men in my life. “I met someone.”
She was silent a long moment. “You met someone? What does that mean?”
“Jesse didn’t say anything?”
“No. Why would he?”
“I don’t know.” I guess Jesse would have no way of knowing how quickly I was losing my heart.
“Well? Spill it. You obviously called me for a reason.”
I picked at a thread in my coveralls as sweat began to bead on my body out of the circulating air of Jude’s garage. “He’s the neighbor of the guy whose car we’re working on. We’re using his garage—which is awesome, by the way—and he’s super sweet and more than a little good looking. I really like him.”
“That was fast.”
“I know. Am I being stupid?”
Her pause was palpable. “Not necessarily.”
“But . . .?”
“But I can’t really tell you anything from here. I haven’t met this guy and I don’t know anything about him. But what I do know is that you’re a smart girl. I trust your intuition. If you think he’s a good guy and you care about him, then I think there’s probably something to it. You’ve never been like this with a guy before, right?”
“No.”
“Then go with it. What’s the worst that could happen?”
I peered up at Jude’s thick black hair and broad back. “He could break my heart.”
“Good.”
I flinched. “Good?”
“Yes. Good. That means you really feel something. Do your best to protect yourself and him, but don’t let fear hold you back. I did that for entirely too long with Jesse and it got us nothing. If he’s special, let him know. If your feelings change, be honest with yourself. That’s the best advice I’ve got for you, little sis.”
I swallowed. “Thanks, Rach.”
“What’s his name, anyway?”
“Jude.”
“Sounds sexy.”
I laughed. “Right?”
We hung up and I made my way back to the garage, my sister’s words fresh and rolling around my mind like restless waves. I expected her to be more conservative and tell me to take things slow. I never expected her to encourage the possibility that this thing between Jude and I could be real.
He met my eyes as I approached. “Everything all right?”
I swiped my brow and moved into the whir of the fan, letting it rustle my hair around my face. “All good. Just talking to my sister.”
Jesse’s head whipped around. “Rachel? Everything okay?”
“You just talked to her yourself, weirdo. Of course everything is all right. This was personal.”
I avoided both sets of prying eyes as I made my way to the cooler and grabbed a Coke.
Blake, Micah, and Fletch eventually found their way back to the garage and we finished up a few small projects before calling it a night. Before we were done cleaning up, another guy showed up who looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t place him. As big as the men who’d left that morning, he held an air of reserved strength as if he could see right through your soul and crush you with his hand like a tin can at the same time. Fletch pounded him on the back in greeting.
Micah grinned like a loon. “Creed! What the hell are you doing here, man?”
The stranger’s face lit in a smile as they greeted each other. “I could ask you the same thing, Corporal.”
My eyes bounced back and forth between the men. I cleared my throat.
Micah faced me. “Shit. Sorry. Creed, this is Aubrey. She’s Jesse’s sister-in-law and works with us at the shop. Aubrey, this is my good buddy, Asher Creed. We knew each other in Afghanistan.”
Now it clicked. I shook his hand and eyed the man who’d seen the combat that had wounded Micah in every way that could be hidden. “I think we met at Micah and Jewel’s wedding.”
“Right. Nice to see you again.”
Micah finished introductions and I closed up the last of the tools as Asher explained he was in town to teach some kind of tactical training.
“Tactical logistics and hand-to-hand combat takedown maneuvers?” Jude spoke up, making my stomach squirm as I faced him.
“That’s the one,” Asher said, nodding once.
“Guess I’ll be in your class for the month.”
Hand-to-hand combat? I swallowed the lump of cotton in my throat. I knew Jude was in the Army and he’d told me he was Military Police, but I guess I’d never really considered the potential dangers of that job. I never really considered anything except how my heart strummed a silly love song every time he was within fifty feet.
Tawny eyes flicked toward me and I faked a smile. I excused myself and strolled out to Jude’s tiny front yard as the guys continued to talk military shop. I plopped on my butt under the only tree that decorated his lot. I leaned back on my hands and studied Jude’s home. Weathered but clean siding, a huge picture window with plain white curtains. A tidy row of planters lined his walkway, filled with wilting greenery and flowers that needed to be watered, as well as one dotted with the brand new sprout of something just planted. For a young, single guy, he really had himself together. I wondered what I could possibly add to his life. What could he add to mine?
Love.
The word whispered through my heart like a balmy breeze, and though I tried to ignore it and deny it, the idea took root and sprouted just like the tiny bud he was nurturing. Could we truly love each other? We hadn’t known each other more than a handful of days, yet I felt like I knew him better than some people I’d known for years. Did it even matter? Our lives were in such different places. Maybe it would be best to not read too much into things. Have fun, enjoy his perfect kisses, give him what I could of myself until it was time to go home.
I closed my eyes as a gust of air blew by. I could do that. The question was, would it be enough or would it break me?
Nine
Jude
Two weeks after Aubrey had burst into my life like a ray of sunshine after a long, dark night, I was addicted. Her smile was like a drug and I found myself doing anything to make her laugh, to bring that sassy twinkle to those dark eyes that held me captive.
We’d spent every spare moment we could together, blindly letting ourselves savor the time we had, both knowing it was fleeting.
Tonight, I’d challenged her to a miniature golf rematch since she’d succinctly handed me my ass last time.
Her ball landed in the hole with one swing and she grinned up at me. “Better catch up, Cortez, or I’ll beat you worse than last time.”
“Never gonna happen.” But I missed with a wild swing. Guess the way she bent over in her short black sundress wasn’t helping. Cheater.
Her laugh lilted through the night as she grinned at me in victory. My heart stumbled in my chest and sunk to the pit of my stomach in realization.
I was in love with her.
Hopelessly and stupidly in love. When the fuck had that happened?
I spun away and hit the ball again with a resounding smack, sending it in the opposite direction of the hole.
“Jude?” Her voice brought me around. “Is something wrong?”
I plastered on a fake smile. “Nope.”
She followed me to the next putting tee and shot me a questioning look as she lined up her ball. “You sure?”
“Yup.”
“I can let you win if that’ll make you feel better.”
My smile was real this
time. “Not necessary.”
“Okay.” She focused on her putter. “So . . .” She paused and hit the ball with a gentle tap. “The guys went out with Fletch and his friends tonight. They’ll be out late. Maybe all night.” Dark eyes met mine.
I swallowed against the rush of nervous energy. What was she saying? Reason left my brain and headed south as she pressed up against me, her fingers brushing my forearm. “Spend the night with me, Jude.”
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. I quickly offered up a silent apology for using the Lord’s name in vain, but actually, it was more of a plea for strength. What was I supposed to do with this woman who scrambled my brain and my best intentions?
“Aubrey . . .”
“What? You don’t want me?”
I raked a hand down my face. “Of course I . . . baby, please. Is this a good idea? You’re leaving in a week or two.”
Hurt filled her eyes and I wanted to kick myself. “I’m offering sex, Jude, not a marriage proposal. I thought that was what all this . . .” She waved a hand between us, indicating our time together. “Was all leading up to. Was I wrong?”
Ah, hell. “I don’t know.”
She shoved her putter against the nearest fence and stomped off, her red curls bouncing in the overhead lamps like red ribbons.
“Aubrey!” I tossed my putter next to hers and ran to catch up. She was a fast little thing and I didn’t get to her until she was in the parking lot. I grabbed her arm and swung her around to face me. “Wait a minute.”
Her glare could’ve melted a polar ice cap.
“I’m sorry.”
She softened just a little from melting ice to a mild burn. “It’s fine. I’m sorry. I’m acting like a baby. I just . . .”
We ended up next to my car and I couldn’t resist stroking a hand down her arm. “What?”
She sighed and glanced away. “My feelings are hurt, okay? I thought we had something special, but I guess I was wrong.”
“No.” Her head snapped back to me. “You’re not wrong. We do have something, though I have no idea what the hell it is. I only know I care about you and I’d kill myself before I’d hurt you. You’re more important to me than just a quick fling, Aubrey.”
Dark eyes blinked rapidly. “I care about you, too.”