by Megan Noelle
I haven’t seen the man in years and suddenly he’s back and calling the shots—I don’t think so.
“I don’t need you to fix it, Stef! I will take care of it.”
“Let them do it. I trust them with my cars. These guys know what they’re doing, and I promise they won’t fuck it up, because they know if they do they’ll lose my business.”
“I never said I was worried about them! I’m just telling you that I do not need your money or your help.”
“Put me on speaker, Grey.” Strangely enough I did.
“You’re on,” I said with a resigned sigh. Without having a good reason as to why I felt my hard-ass attitude slipping away with each passing second—it was. There was something surreal and entrancing about having Stefan just a phone call away.
“Stick to the plan, guys. Take Ms. Desmond’s car in, do a complete check, and tell me what needs to be done. I want it all fixed today so she doesn’t have to continue riding in a cab if she needs to come to my work and scream at me again.” I heard the amusement in his voice, and that added with the exchange of glances between the men made it almost impossible to hold back a laugh.
“We’re on it, sir,” Smoker replied as Pudgy nodded, even though Stefan couldn’t see him.
“Wonderful, send me an invoice as soon as you have it ready.”
“Will do.”
“Wait!” I yelled out. The men turned their attention from the phone to me. By the subtle sigh that left them both told me they were not excited to hear anything more I had to say.
“What is it?” Stefan asked after it was clear the others weren’t going to.
“I’m going with.”
“Going with where?” He asked the question the two men were clearly wondering.
“Let me change and then I’m going to the shop with you and I will wait there for my car.”
Pudgy decided it was finally time for him to speak up, “You don’t have to do that, ma’am. We’ll take good care of your car and make sure it is returned back to you in a timely manner.”
“I have no doubt, but I’m not going to just let you take my car without me.”
“Honest ma’am, it will be just fine.”
“Greyson, what do you mean you need to get dressed?” Stefan asked, finally piping in.
“I ran down in my pajamas when I realized my car was about to be towed.”
A large frustrated breath exhaled into the phone before he answered. “Give her ten minutes to change into something else and let her go with. Can you get ready that quickly, Grey?”
“Yep,” I called out before handing the phone over and charging back into my apartment.
Immediately, I opened my drawers and pulled out the first pair of denim dark faded short shorts my fingers came in contact with. Next I looked for a top and came across my orange and navy stripped flowy tank top with a fun open back with twists of color across it, and brown goddess sandals. After looking in the mirror for a moment I decided to brush my hair and leave it in a messy bun at the top of my head with a pair of bug eye glasses resting on top. With a minute to spare I applied a little mascara, brushed my teeth, and then grabbed my phone and purse before hurrying back down. Smoker had another cigarette in his mouth while he waited for me. With a single nod of his head toward the truck I hopped into the middle of the seat and was ready for a long day of waiting around for my car.
“Gum?” Pudgy asked holding out a pack to me.
I smiled and nodded. “Yes please, thank you.” I slipped the gum into my mouth and chewed merrily on the way to their shop.
The auto shop was small, clean, and smelt of car fresheners. A little seating area off to the side had a stack of old magazines, a coffee pot and a candy machine filled with M&M, Skittles and Runts. Pudgy showed me the space and just about tackled me when I went for a cup of coffee.
“Trust me, ma’am, you ain’t gonna want that stuff.”
“Oh, thanks,” I replied, suddenly craving a giant cup of coffee, making me wonder if it was as bad as he made it sound.
“No problem, it usually is hot and fresh, but Frank’s kid is working here part time now and she don’t know how to make a cup of coffee.”
I made a clicking sound with my tongue as I shook my head back and forth. “She better learn soon, someday it will be what keeps her alive.”
He chuckled. “Don’t I know it.” He pointed to a little fridge under the counter. “There are some little bottles of water in there, help yourself.”
“Thank you.”
“Not a problem, we’ll get you a diagnosis of what all is wrong as soon as we take a look.”
“Alright, well, I don’t know if Stefan said this, but thank you very much for doing this.”
“Yep,” he answered with a smile before walking off. As much as I wanted a cup of coffee, I decided to heed his warning and settled on the water. I picked up an old copy of People magazine and settled in.
Only twenty minutes passed when I saw someone walking towards me out of my peripheral vision. Looking up I expected to see Frank or Pudgy, but stopped breathing when I realized it was none other than Stefan. This man was good looking and knew it; he walked with purpose and pure confidence that would naturally draw anyone’s eyes to him.
Unfortunately, I was no exception. As he strode toward me my eyes scanned over his dark wash jeans, white button-up and navy sports blazer. He somehow made a simple outfit look so incredibly perfect on his tall, toned body. When I finally tore my eyes away from his body I looked to his face and immediately regretted it. A fresh shadow of a beard covered the lower half of his face, surrounding his pink full lips and drawing particular attention to the Adam’s apple of his neck.
Just when I thought I couldn’t melt anymore by the sight, I caught a glimpse of the rest of him; his dark hair was gelled back in a way that made it look like no care was put into it but it still looked like sheer perfection. A single strand of hair fell against his forehead, leading down into his dark blue eyes that were once again lit with amusement. I wished he didn’t always look so damn cocky every time I saw him. Even more I wished the sight of him repulsed me and didn’t light a fire deep within the depths of my heart.
“What are you doing here?” I asked as he flashed a breathtaking smile, revealing his perfectly whitened teeth.
“I wasn’t about to leave you to wait here all day by yourself, stubborn girl.”
I could hardly believe what was happening. Not only had Stefan arranged to have my car fixed today, but now here he was. I still had trouble grasping that the man I spent years refusing to think about had become a constant presence in my life the past few days. Part of me still waited to wake up from this dream, while the other part wanted to make it all go away. While seeing him was a blast from the past, the fact was it changed nothing. Stefan Harrison was still my best friend, father of my child, and the man that abandoned me when I most needed him. So now he was nothing to me but my ex-husband and a mistake from my youth.
If only my heart would get that message.
“I didn’t ask you to do any of this, Stef. The medical bills, car repairs and now coming down here to spend the day waiting around—it is far too much.”
He shrugged his shoulders as he shook his head and took stock of the room.
“It’s not, Greyson Rose, so stop worrying so much about it.”
“How is it not too much? You’re a big business man, Stef. You can’t tell me you had nothing else going on today.”
My eyes followed his large hands ceaselessly as he grabbed a paper cup and began pouring coffee in it. The thought to stop him crossed my mind, but quickly left as I listened to the deep velvet voice surround and soothe me.
He glanced over his shoulder with a smirk across his lips. “Yes, I had other things to do today, but I’m also the boss so I have the ability to make the rules.”
I crossed one leg over the other and the subtle movement captured his attention. Stefan stared without shame, his eyes caressed the curves o
f my tanned legs, desire flickered deep in the blues of his eyes. I had to avert my gaze from his before I began to feel the effects of his powerful stare. Instead I tried to be as irritated as I should have been by his presence.
“Is that supposed to impress me?”
His deep chuckle rang into my ears making it almost impossible to hate him. “No, beautiful girl, only giving you facts.”
From the corner of my eye I watched Stefan put the coffee cup to his lips and take a large gulp. The entire time I stared at the soft bob of his Adam’s apple and even found myself licking my lips. This was beyond ridiculous—what the hell was my problem!?
Seconds later a choking sound came from Stefan as he cleared the disgusting coffee from his throat. He held up the cup and looked into it as if he was going to find an obvious cause as to why it tasted so horrible. Despite my attempts I couldn’t hold back a rich bubble of laughter.
His eyes cast a look toward me. Pointing to the cup he asked, “Did you know about this?”
Another laugh escaped as I nodded my head up and down. Stefan’s head shook in disgust while the corner of his lips pulled up into a reluctant smile.
“Fuck, that’s bad. I didn’t even realize it was possible to screw up coffee so badly.” I shrugged my shoulders.
“Guess it is.”
Stefan continued to stare at the drink for another minute before shaking his head and finally tossing the cup out. “At least they can fix cars better than they can make coffee,” he relented.
I giggled again and took a sip of my water, ever thankful that I chose to listen to him. “Where did you get that?” Stefan asked, pointing to my bottle.
I pointed to the fridge and a loud, ‘ah’ came out as he grabbed two. He went to the candy machine, slipped a quarter in, and a handful of runts came pouring out. After popping a single one into his mouth he made his way to the half a dozen chairs in place around me. The six chairs formed an L with three chairs against each wall. I prayed that Stefan would sit anywhere but the one chair next to me. I wasn’t trying to be a total bitch, but it was already difficult having him in the same room. I could only imagine what it would be like to have him so much closer. The smell of his cologne overpowering me, the warmth of his body taking down the walls I tried desperately to keep between us. Even the thought of it sent an intense shiver throughout my veins.
Of course I wasn’t fortunate enough to keep a safe distance between us as Stefan plopped himself down onto the chair directly next to me. Just as I expected, his subtle amount of cologne took hold of my senses and intoxicated every part of me. My mind became fuzzy as I tried to pull myself from the spell I was falling under. Stefan reached out and put the second bottle on the table, placed his ankle on his knee and threw his arm around the back of my chair.
In seconds I went from having a safe bubble of protection surrounding me to being enveloped by everything Stefan.
I was desperate to do or say something that would keep my head on straight. “So, um, what is it exactly…that you…do?” I stuttered out, trying to stay coherent enough to complete a sentence.
He looked my way with a smirk on his face, clearly sensing my awkwardness. “I work in security.” I wanted to leave it at that, but his vague response did nothing but spike my interest.
“As in like nightclub security guards at the door?”
Stefan gave a nod that moved his entire upper half, the movement sent his intoxicating scent rolling over me like waves pulling me under the water. The longer I sat next to him the harder it was going to be to escape from his natural pull he had about him.
“Yeah, we do some of that too; not nightclubs necessarily, but my guys work as bodyguards. Mostly though, Harrison Towers provides security for homes and businesses. It’s the very best technology with a team of ex-marines watching over every account 24/7. There’s a lot that goes into it, but I love it.”
“That’s very dignified of you.” Stefan shrugged his shoulders and swigged back some of his water.
“I like helping protect people and their families. It makes me feel like my job means something and nothing is more satisfying than that.”
As much as what he said impressed me, it also didn’t surprise me. Stefan was always a dedicated and caring man. I had no doubt this was probably the best line of work for him.
“That’s very admirable of you,” I admitted. Stefan gave a little shrug before shifting his leg, bumping it against my thigh.
“What about you, Greyson Rose?”
“What about me?” My eyes looked downward as I tried to ignore the sudden rush of heat coursing down my leg where he touched. It was summer after all, it was beyond likely that my legs were just suddenly getting hot and in no way would it be related to Stefan.
“What is it that you do?”
My eyebrow rose as I eyed him skeptically. “I’m surprised you don’t know.”
Stefan smirked as he threw in a couple more runts. “I didn’t say I didn’t know, but you already accused me of being a creeper. So I suppose you could say I’m allowing you a chance to fill me in on your own.”
I rolled my eyes and bit back a smile. I had almost forgotten about the nickname I called him when I had one too many drinks. “How sweet of you.”
“Yeah well, not that you deserve it after letting me drink that horrible excuse for coffee.”
“Be nice, Frank’s daughter made it.”
Stefan’s eyes flickered up to the ceiling in thought. “Is Frank the one that smokes?”
I let out a laugh, “Yeah, that’s him.” Apparently Smoker was very well known for his habits.
“Well, he needs to give her a course or two in not making the guests want to puke. Anyway, are you going to answer my question?”
I made the mistake of looking up into his face and almost instantly regretted it. The way he stared deep into me created a connection that surged between us, my vision swirled around us, eliminating everything but the man in front of me. I knew he was affected by this as much as I was; I could feel it. His eyes narrowed slightly, his tongue slid from his mouth wetting his luscious, tempting lips. In the back of my mind a voice was yelling at me to look away, scoot over and don’t let him think he had any power over me. But I didn’t move. I sat there, letting the heat swirl between us, slowly taking my breath away.
I was unsure how long we stayed that way. Part of me remembered that Stefan had asked me a question, but for the life of me I couldn’t remember what it was. Something had to break this moment, but Stefan encouraged it as he moved his finger to my face and gently brushed a strand of hair from my cheek, trailing a line across my skin, rubbing the top of my ear as he locked the hair behind it.
In this moment I couldn’t remember why this wasn’t a good idea. All I could think about was how I could hardly breathe. Sensation took over my body, and my heart beat quickened as Stefan’s head very slowly shifted toward me. It was hardly an inch, but the shiver that brushed across my skin was a direct result of the shrinking space between us.
“Harrison, didn’t know you were coming down, too.” The sound of another voice shook me from the moment, making me jump almost a foot in the air away from Stefan. My pulse was racing, not only from Stefan, but from Frank’s sudden presence.
Feeling like a teenager caught making out by my mother—I had to do something. I quickly stood and walked to the opposite wall to grab another bottle of water. My eyes wandered back to Stefan as I took the cap off and let the water coat the dryness in my throat. It infuriated me that he didn’t seem at all affected. In fact, there was humor dancing within his eyes while the rest of his body looked at ease.
“Couldn’t let Grey hang out here all alone now, could I?” he replied to Frank while keeping his attention on me.
I hated this; I was out of breath, my pulse was beating furiously, and I was beginning to sweat on the back of my neck. It was driving me crazy, and I suddenly wanted nothing more than for him to leave.
“‘Spose not. Now, we looked over
your car, ma’am.”
I watched Frank tell me all that was wrong with my vehicle, but heard nothing. My mind was still buzzing from what was or was not about to happen between me and Stefan and it was making my stomach churn. My focus was fading, but from what I could grasp my car wasn’t in any major trouble, and the fixes could be done today.
“I want you to put her car as top priority. She will be leaving with her car by the end of the day, and you know I will make sure you are compensated for all the work done.” Stefan reiterated in a forceful and commanding tone as he stood face to face with Frank.
It was a strange transition, since moments before they were joking around together. It was clear to see when the business man took over; it was even clear in Frank’s eyes. He knew all too well not to screw around with this Stefan, and I couldn’t help but be almost fascinated by it. This was a side of him that I never knew—I was familiar with every part of him, but this demanding, intensely powerful side was new to me.
“Uh well, it should be just fine. We have a couple cars ahead of the bug right now, but after that we’ll get right on it.”
Stefan’s eyes narrowed, his finger slid into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a few bills that even from a glance I could tell were hundreds. He placed the bills into Frank’s hand without ever breaking eye contact. “How about you start on Ms. Desmond’s now?”
Frank opened his mouth with a sorry expression, but Stefan beat him to it. “If for some reason putting off another vehicle causes an issue, tell the owner I will pay their bill as well. Just take care of this, Frank, okay?”
The question that he posed was said in a way that made it sound as if there really was no option other than to accept Stefan’s proposal.
After a few seconds of silence Frank nodded his head, “Uh yeah, sure. I’ll take care of it.”
“Excellent!” he said in an overly cheerful manner. “We really appreciate it, don’t we, Greyson?”
Stefan cast a glance in my direction, and I knew it was my time to chirp up. “We really do, Frank.” I somehow managed an easy, apparently convincing smile.