by Hadley Quinn
Melanie curled up on the couch with a blanket and turned the TV on. Tyse hung out with her for a little bit, but then headed for the gym at six-thirty. She must have dozed off because the next thing she knew, Jay was hovering over her, squeezing her ass with his hand.
“What are you doing?” she mumbled with a laugh, blindly swatting him away.
“Fondling while you’re unaware of it. It’s what I do all the time. And I take pictures too.”
“Liar,” she chuckled again.
“I’ll show you sometime. But I’m gonna hit the gym with Tyse before work, okay? Did you want to come or…?”
“No, I heave my own extra weight around and that’s my workout.”
“Pssh, right. You’re tiny.”
“Because I’m barely six months. Just wait another couple months and I’ll be huge.”
“More to love,” he winked, and then he gave her a kiss on the head and added, “I’ll call you later.”
***
“Wanna leave early and take this out to Nate Jameson?” Roy asked, holding up a box that contained a newly rebuilt alternator. “He’s a damn good customer and friend of the family, but he’s pretty fond of you, if you don’t mind.”
Jay agreed impassively with a nod and took the box from his boss. He wasn’t a fucking delivery boy, but he surely felt like leaving early that day. He grabbed the address from Roy and left the shop at four-thirty.
It was a thirty-minute drive out to the Jameson residence just outside of Glendale. The guy was a former NASCAR mechanic but was now a quirky old man whose arthritis didn’t allow him to work on anything too intricate. Jay had rebuilt the alternator himself in half the time it would have taken anyone else.
Nate was outside his barn when Jay pulled up, sitting on the ground next to a ’78 Chevy pickup that was parked in front of it. He looked pretty worn out and frustrated, so Jay approached him before unloading his delivery.
“You okay?” he asked, looking him over. Nate was flushed and sweating, but also looked pissed as hell.
“Hell no, I’m not okay. Getting old is a bunch o’ shit.”
Jay smiled and helped the man to his feet. “Yeah, I’m sure. Is there something I could help you with?”
“Oh, nah, I couldn’t ask. I’m just being a damn baby.”
“Well you didn’t ask, I offered. What are you up to down there?” he motioned to underneath the truck. But he didn’t need an answer to find out since he could already tell.
“I thought I’d make use of a short burst of energy and change the oil myself. I’m a goddamn idiot.”
“Nah, I understand the determination to do things yourself. Let me do it for you, okay? It won’t take long.”
Nate argued and protested for the next fifteen minutes, and Jay only smiled and kept working. It wasn’t a big deal, but Jay was familiar with the stubborn pride that kept Nate riled up.
When he was done, Jay grabbed the alternator out of his car. He would have put that in for the old man too, but he didn’t want to push his luck and make Nate feel like the worthless piece of shit he kept rambling on about.
They said parting words, but before Jay climbed into his car, something next to the barn caught his attention. It was a John Deere tractor, and he suddenly thought back to a conversation he had with Melanie on the way to Oregon. Why he was even entertaining the damn idea was beyond his comprehension, but just knowing how totally thrilled Mel would be if he did it was completely satisfying. He pictured her smile and laughter, and her genuine amusement by it, and there was something about that that really made him content.
“What’s got your attention, son?” Nate called out to him.
Jay realized he’d probably been standing there like a dipshit for the past minute. He shook his head and said, “Oh, uh…”
He couldn’t bring himself to say it out loud, even though it made him smile. Nate was making his way over and followed his gaze to the tractor.
“You work on tractors much?” Nate asked.
Jay shook his head. “No, I don’t believe I ever have.”
“Oh. Thought maybe you were doing a onceover, like car guys do when they see a car they like. You know; make, model, engine, horsepower…all that shit.”
With a nod, Jay had to agree. He did that to cars and trucks all the time. “Nah, just…made me think of someone, I guess.”
Nate tilted his head and peered at him. “You’re not one to share much, so I won’t ask. But if there’s something I can help with, let me know.”
“Actually there is,” Jay said right away, just so he didn’t change his mind. “And this sounds stupid, so don’t laugh, but a friend of mine made a joke about me a while back and I kinda want to prove her wrong.”
“Oh?” Nate raised an eyebrow. “Lord, if it’s a story about a beautiful woman, I wanna hear it.”
Jay was hesitant, but he ended up telling Nate about his facetious battles with Melanie. Nate laughed at the part where she wanted a picture of him shirtless on a tractor with a cowboy hat, but good God, the man was ready to play photographer right that very second.
“Get your damn ass up there and get it done,” Nate instructed him. “Here, give me your phone. I know I look old and useless, but I can use technology just fine.”
With a lot of persistence from Nate, Jay finally complied. The hat that he had on wasn’t a cowboy hat, but it would do. He couldn’t believe he was doing something so stupid for a chick in the first place, but hell… It would be a good story at least.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“I think I’d rather gouge my eyes out,” Stephanie whispered as she passed behind Melanie at the receptionist’s counter.
“I feel your pain,” Melanie whispered back, holding in a smile. “We all have to hear her talk about her latest victims.”
She watched Stephanie lead a client to a station and shook her head. Chrissy not only shared every sexual encounter she ever had with men, but her voice wasn’t pleasant to listen to and she was never quiet about it.
Melanie glanced at the clock before filing paperwork on the last two customers at the salon. She still had another hour before she got off at seven. But when her phone vibrated in her back pocket and she saw that she’d received a text from Jay, the happiness she felt from that made a boring night at work disappear.
Screw that. She was not expecting what popped up on her phone when she opened the text, and she dropped it onto the floor. “Holy shit,” she said out loud when she picked it up and saw Jay shirtless on a tractor with a big ass smile on his face.
“Excuse me?” a voice asked.
It startled her because she’d pretty much forgotten where the hell she was and what she was supposed to be doing. She even stared blankly at the lady that was now standing at the counter, waiting to be checked in for her appointment.
“I’m sorry,” Melanie mumbled, shoving her phone back in her pocket. “Um, name please?”
When she finally had another minute to herself, she quickly yanked the phone back out and opened up the text again.
“Holy mother of all hotness,” she whispered to herself this time. “My God Jay, you’re gonna kill me.”
With the photo he had typed: No cowboy hat but give me credit for trying?
She texted back: I just cracked the screen on my phone from dropping it. Sexiest picture I’ve ever seen!!!!
She didn’t receive a text back from him, which was bittersweet. There were things she needed to be doing before she was done for the night, but she would have rather been texting with Jay.
Or get more pictures from him! Good lord, what if he had more? She would seriously die if he had more to send her.
What a freaking awesome day…
“Aw, and I thought you only smiled at me like that,” a familiar voice said.
Her heart stopped—it literally missed two or three beats—when she looked up and saw Jay enter the salon. He moseyed up to the counter and leaned against it, and Melanie wondered if this was actually ha
ppening.
“Hey beautiful, what’s with the smile?” He leaned closer and whispered, “You look like you’re having a dirty little sex fantasy right now.”
She could feel her cheeks flush warm because he was right. The little shit was right and he was the reason for it!
Melanie leaned closer to him until their faces were only a foot apart over the counter. “Guilty as charged,” she whispered back, and she bit her lip with a smile.
“Ohmygod,” he murmured playfully as he closed his eyes. “Give me details.”
She tried not to snicker and said, “Well…there was this tractor…”
When she paused, he opened one eye and smiled. “And?”
With a sigh she continued with, “And I might just have to show you the rest.”
Both of his eyes opened and he studied her for a few seconds, a tiny smile playing across his sexy lips. She wanted to lick him right now. How dare he come into her place of employment, dressed in worn jeans and an old t-shirt, looking so damn sexy her panties were trying to pull themselves off.
“Sounds like a plan, sweetheart,” he winked at her. “I look forward to it.”
“Oh my God, Melanie, who’s your friend?” Chrissy’s voice screeched from across the room.
And like a record player, Melanie’s private moment with Jay also screeched. To a stop.
Jay leaned onto one elbow to face the sea of faces that were now staring at the two of them. Well maybe they’d been staring at them the entire time since Melanie had practically eye-fucked him the second he walked into the salon. But now she noticed that everyone else was ogling him too, and that made her feel self-conscious.
“I don’t want to bug you at work, but I just thought I’d stop by,” Jay said, turning his attention back to Melanie. He had completely ignored his wall of admirers and for some reason that made her feel special. “But I called the shelter earlier to check on the dog and wanted to tell you that they said he’s doing just fine.”
His consideration made her chest fill with warmth. “So did I. I was so worried about him.”
“Yeah, I figured you might have called too.”
“I can’t get the image of how awful he looked out of my head,” she said quietly. “It is just incomprehensible that there are people that cruel.”
“That dickhead will get what’s coming to him, don’t worry. I made a couple of phones calls on that, as well.”
“Oh, I’m so glad,” she exhaled. “I also asked about visiting the dog. They said it was okay if I called first, but not for a couple of days.”
Jay pursed his lips in thought. “Are you sure you want to do that? I know what a big heart you have and you’re gonna want to take him home,” he smiled. “I don’t think Teague is up for another rescued pet in his house. Tucker and the bird are probably enough.”
“I know,” she frowned. She so wished she had her own place. Yes, everyone got a kick out of Geraldo—for a parrot he was pretty entertaining—and technically Tucker was a gift to Camryn from Teague. But she’d been thinking of that poor abused dog all day long and just wanted to give him a good home.
“It’s a Mastiff, sweetheart,” Jay chuckled, obviously sensing where her thoughts were headed. “That is a big ass dog to own. Especially if, you know…” He motioned to her stomach. “Do you really want to raise a giant puppy while you’re about to have a baby?”
“I know, I know,” she sighed. “Of course I’ve been thinking about all of that—”
Another customer entered the salon, so Jay moved away from the counter to let Melanie do her job. When the woman was placed with the right manicurist, he returned to the counter and said, “Well I’m gonna jet. I just wanted to stop by and say hey. I wish I had something for you, like a sandwich or something…”
She laughed and shook her head. “I don’t need anything but you. You’ve made my day.”
He gave her a soft smile and nodded. “Okay, hon.”
His attention was somewhat drawn to the wall of admirers and Melanie knew why. She could hear their not-so-subtle chatter, and she picked up phrases like “He’s a McCallan” and “Just a super hot friend of hers.” Again she felt insecure. It was childish, but she wanted to gloat about how “super hot” Jay actually was. Naked images flashed in her head and she had to bite back a smile.
“So listen,” Jay said softly, leaning across the counter. “I’ll save a place for you in my bed tonight if you feel up to it.”
Her heart started to race, and when he reached up and placed his hand against her neck to kiss her on the lips, she wanted to leave work that very second. She also realized the entire salon went silent, and when Jay pulled away from her after several long seconds of his tongue being in her mouth, he only smiled and walked out the door.
The silence lasted about three seconds before Stephanie exclaimed, “Oh my God, you never said that you guys were together!”
“Holy shit, that is one sexy piece of ass!” Chrissy squealed. “Good God, I’m having a hot flash.” She fanned herself dramatically as she took deep breaths. Melanie felt proud at first, until Chrissy added, “I want to fuck him so bad right now.”
And then her entire body tensed up with an immediate need to cut that bitch. How dare she say something so blatantly rude about someone’s, ehh…boyfriend?
Wow, unfortunately she had no idea how to classify Jay…
“Too bad that’s my job,” was all she replied as she smiled at Chrissy with cold eyes.
Again the entire salon was silent, but everyone was returning to work, casting looks at each other, or having a silent conversation with someone.
Good. They can gossip all they want.
“Hi, how can I help you?” Melanie smiled at the next customer that entered.
***
“That is epic!” Tyse laughed, dropping his head back against the couch. “Do you really think that would happen? I would never let it go that far.” There was a pause and he added, “And I see that you’re in space camp again. Hey, Jay!”
Jay glanced over at him. “I heard you. Epic space camp.”
Tyse smiled and shook his head at him. “Right. Epic space camp indeed. So what’s up? Long day at work?”
Jay barely shrugged. “Not really.” He didn’t expound because he just didn’t feel like it, but he glanced at the clock again.
“You expecting someone?” Tyse teased him. “What time does she get off work?”
“Seven,” Jay answered, not even caring that he was divulging anything of interest.
“So…are we getting a new roommate any time soon?”
Jay craned his head to stare at him. “Excuse me?”
“Melanie?” Tyse shrugged. “She’s here an awful lot.”
“And it’s time to move in? Are you fucking kidding me?” Jay laughed sarcastically. “Like she’d want to live with me again.”
“Uh, yeah dude, I think she would.”
Jay shook his head but felt uncomfortable that Tyse was looking for him to discuss it. There wasn’t anything to discuss.
“So you’re seriously just in this for the fun of it, huh?” Tyse finally said. “I am so fucking pissed with you right now. You know, just because she seems to make you think she’s ‘okay’ with your casual relationship, it doesn’t mean she is or even deserves for it to be.”
“Stop lecturing me, damn it!” Jay yelled. “Jesus Christ, what is it with you people sticking your nose in everyone’s fucking business!”
“Not everyone’s, just yours. Because apparently you need it.” Tyse didn’t bother waiting for a response. He got up and left the room.
Jay took in a deep breath of air to keep calm but it didn’t help. What the hell was it with all this up-and-down shit lately? One minute he was happy as can be, and then the next he was miserable and felt guilty about every fucking thing! The money his grandfather had given to help him out: guilt. His fallout with Beck and the end to his job and friendship: guilt. Teague being pissed with him and now Tyse: guilt. And mo
st importantly, the friendship-gone-to-seriously-fucking-complicated with Melanie: guilt.
Why the hell couldn’t he do anything right? And was that even the case, or was he becoming way too concerned with people’s opinions lately? Why was everything within the last few weeks suddenly making him such a fucking idiot?
He got up, knowing he needed to be occupied with something so he didn’t go nuts. He headed out back to his shop just as his phone rang, and at first he thought it was Melanie but the number was one he didn’t recognize.
“Hello,” he answered.
“Uh, yeah, I’m calling about the car you have for sale? The 429?”
Mixed feelings pulsed through Jay as he nodded and entered his detached garage that housed the Boss. It was another potential buyer that he desperately needed to meet, but the idea of selling this baby was killing him inside.
“Yeah, you interested?” Jay replied.
“Absolutely. It’s listed in Thousand Oaks and I’m in the area right now, but I suppose it’s probably too late to drop in? I feel rude for asking, but just figured I’d try.”
“Nah, actually it’s fine, I don’t mind. I just came out to the garage to admire her so I can have sweet dreams before bed.”
The guy laughed and said, “Well cool, then I’ll jot down your address and be by as soon as I find it.”
Jay exchanged information with the man, whose name was Chad, and then pulled the cover off the Mustang. He did a walk-around of the vehicle like he always did, his thoughts buzzing a thousand miles a minute. The “could-have-beens” were driving him crazy.
Chad pulled back to the shop ten minutes later. He was an average-looking man in his mid-forties, dressed nicely in slacks and a button-up shirt. Jay was instantly judging his status in life; probably a doctor or a lawyer with the need to have a specialty car the average person couldn’t afford.
But he had to give the guy credit. He knew what he was talking about when it came to the engine and performance of the Boss. They actually had a nice long conversation on Jay’s experience restoring the car and some of the other vehicles he’d worked on over the years.