by Tina Donahue
Lucky taught me.
The memory of Toni’s smoky voice filled Zach’s mind, thickening his blood, accelerating his heart, making him too curious again about who the fuck Lucky was and what else he had taught her. Had it been his idea for her to dress in toe to neck leather? Had it been his choice for her to wear lavender, a deceptively innocent scent?
“Hey.” Em slapped his arm again. “I’m over here.”
Zach turned his head from the direction Toni had taken, not even realizing he’d been looking for her. Meeting Em’s gaze, he pretended nonchalance in spite of his hammering heart. “You haven’t left yet?” He cocked one brow. “Don’t you have other guests to bother?”
“Nina can annoy them. How do you know she knows about engines?”
“Nina?”
Em rolled her eyes. “The girl you brought in. What’s her name?”
He grinned at how Toni had made him search for it. “It’s on the back of her jacket.”
“Huh?”
“Starr,” Zach said, testing the sound of it. “Toni Starr.”
“Sounds like a stripper.”
He couldn’t argue with that. In a wistful voice he couldn’t quite tame, Zach answered Em’s earlier question about Toni’s knowledge of engines. “We talked shop back at the shop.”
“She came by just to talk to you?”
“She wants a job.”
“Oh.” Em gave him a sly grin. “And you’re going to—”
“No. I’m buying her breakfast and then I’m giving her a few bucks so she can continue to eat while she looks for work.”
“If she’s that broke, why not just hire her? From what I can see, you could use the help.”
Zach readjusted his weight on the seat. His gaze drifted past Em to the window, what he could see of the town. Knots of tourists gathered in front of several shops to examine the offered goods. Kids bounced up and down next to their parents, wanting to move on, already tired of shopping. “I have all the staff I need. I work on the vehicles after the guys go home.”
“If you hired Ms. Starr, maybe you wouldn’t have to work after hours. Maybe you could have a life.”
Zach’s gaze drifted back to Em.
She lifted her hands in surrender. “Just saying.”
“I know, but I’m fine with the way things are.”
“You mean hooking up with a woman for the night.”
Good god. “I am of age.”
“You’re lonely,” she argued.
Better than being hurt again. “I am fine.”
For the next several minutes, she offered her opinion on how wrong he was, making him sound like the town recluse that the kids would someday whisper about, telling stories of how he hid under automobiles to scare children.
Zach endured her lecture without comment.
His polite silence finally got the best of her. Wound down, Em slid out of her seat with a defeated sigh. “Guess I’m through here.” Leaning toward him, she spoke in a lowered voice not meant to be overheard. “Look out, here she comes.”
Like Pavlov’s dog hearing the bell, Zach twisted his torso and glanced behind himself.
Instantly, his heart stalled, then picked up so much speed his throat constricted.
Toni had changed from her leather pants and biker boots to black flip-flops and cutoff shorts the color of charcoal. Several strings on the shorts dangled down her milky thighs.
Mouth watering, Zach’s gaze trickled lower. His cock responded immediately, stiffening in his briefs. Her feet were narrow, her toes long, her nails polished a deep red. God help him, but all Zach could think about was lifting her foot to his lips, licking her sweet arch, running his tongue over the silver toe ring he now noticed on her right foot.
Just short of her reaching their booth, Zach slid out of his side and stood. The quick pain in his leg stopped him for a moment. He forced his jaw to unclench to hide his discomfort.
Toni’s gaze jumped from his leg to his eyes, her concerned expression telling him she’d noticed.
“Well hey there, welcome back!” Em gushed, her forced cheeriness pulling Toni’s attention away from Zach. “Bet you’re hungry.” Backing up, Em grabbed two laminated menus from a wooden holder attached to the wall. “Here you go.” She handed the first to Toni, the next to him.
“Thanks.” Toni placed her saddlebag on the seat and slid in next to it.
Zach remained standing.
Looking like the third wheel at a blind date, Em took a step away from the booth. “Be back in a sec to take your orders.”
“Bring some water right away,” Zach said. “The whole pitcher, all right?”
Em snuck a look at Toni. “Sure. Coming right up.”
Toni watched the woman leave, then tilted her head to the menu, keeping her attention on it, not him, as Zach finally took his seat.
She allowed him enough time to get comfortable before asking, “Whatever I want?”
He teased, “Within reason.”
Toni looked at him from beneath her lashes. “Define reason, Zach.”
He hadn’t thought it possible, but her voice was throatier than he recalled, her guileless expression more provocative than the most blatant come-on. Not for the first time in her presence, Zach had trouble pulling in a full breath. What little air he did manage to take bore her unmistakable lavender scent.
She must have sprayed more of the fragrance on her throat and wrists while she’d been in the ladies’ room. Mixed with the heat of her skin, the scent brought to mind a field of flowers caressed by the summer sun, mist rising from the fragrant earth, naked flesh stretched out on a blanket, tongues meeting, legs entwined, a cock nestled within a juicy, heated sheath.
Define reason, she’d said.
Zach hadn’t a clue as to what that might be. It sure as hell wasn’t what was happening to him at this moment. Even though his mind kept saying “get a grip”, every cell in his body remained at attention for her. “Where you from?” he blurted suddenly, needing to know. “Originally?” he thought to add.
A long moment passed before she lowered her menu to the table. “Why?” She forced the sudden caution off her face, replacing it with a lazy smile. “You worried I don’t have a social security number? That I’m not authorized to work in this country?”
Zach nearly smiled at her tenacity in wanting a job. But only for a month, he reminded himself—four short weeks so she could get her bike out of prison and zoom away never to be seen again. “Just curious, that’s all.”
Her gaze slid to the right of him, her expression hiding whatever she thought. “I’m from a lot of places.”
Zach waited for her to add details, even though he figured she would not. He regarded the ends of her hair skimming her throat, the hollow between her breasts, her erect nipples pushing against her stretchy cotton tank, the hard buds reacting to the blast of chilled air pouring from the vent above them.
“I want that,” she said.
At the longing in her voice, Zach followed her gaze to a nearby table, seeing a young man and woman with two preschool children. Their blond good looks and innocent smiles made them a Norman Rockwell portrait of the perfect family from the fifties.
At Toni’s quiet sigh, Zach turned back to her.
Her expression and voice remained distracted as she said, “I haven’t had whipped cream on waffles in a long time.”
Again, he regarded the couple, noticing the woman’s plate heaped with a mound of the sweet treat.
“I’d also like what the guy’s eating,” Toni said. “That omelet looks really good.”
Zach gentled his voice. “Get whatever you want.”
Toni looked at him.
His heart made a weird twist at the yearning he saw in her eyes, followed by her flare of desire, so naked and wanting it rendered him helpless to glance away. She wore the look of a woman who’d deny him nothing, who’d willingly explore their needs wherever he demanded.
Intense warmth settled in Zach’s ches
t and throat. His scalp tingled.
Toni crossed her legs, her foot brushing his calf, remaining there. Zach didn’t move his leg. Their eyes remained locked. Silence embraced them, feeling somehow right, while the rest of the restaurant hummed with activity and sound. Johnny Cash sang Ring of Fire, the air conditioner’s fan whooshed out cold air, utensils clacked against plates, people gabbed and laughed.
“So, you two decided yet?” Em asked, intruding upon them, delivering the pitcher he’d asked for.
Zach poured a glass of the ice water, pushing it toward Toni. “Ladies first.”
Her cheeks pinked up.
“So, what do you want?” Em asked.
Toni lowered her gaze to the menu, her expression saying she suddenly recalled it. Head lifted to Em, she blurted, “A job. I’ll waitress or wash dishes or clean the place. Your choice.”
Clearly surprised, Em looked at Zach.
“Do you own this place too?” Toni asked him, dismay in her voice.
Em laughed. “No, hon. I own it with my husband, Hector. He’s the cook.”
“I can help him,” Toni said.
Zach countered, “I thought you were a mechanic, at least when you’re not being a daredevil.”
“A what?” Em asked.
“I’m a mechanic and a motorcycle performance artist, when I’m employed,” Toni retorted, then turned back to Em. “I’m not saying I can cook, but I can follow a recipe. It’s not rocket science, right?”
Em rested her hand on her ample hip. The lines above her nose got seriously nasty with her frown. “To Hector, it is. He’s very proud of what he does.”
“I won’t screw it up, I swear,” Toni said. “All I want is a chance to earn some money.” She craned her head. “Is that Hector?” She pointed across the room to the rectangular window that revealed the guts of the kitchen. Hector, swarthy and sweating, alternately cooked and directed the younger man at his side. “Maybe we can talk.”
“I don’t think so, hon.” Em didn’t move, which effectively blocked Toni from leaving her seat. “Like Zach said, you’re a mechanic. Better stick with what you know.”
“Even if it means I’ll starve? Look, it’s only for a month,” she added quickly, “until I can make enough to get my bike out of impound.”
“Outta where?” Em asked.
“It’s a long story,” Zach said.
Toni’s head swung to him.
He inhaled deeply of her lavender scent. Arousal hit him hard and fast, along with a rush of tenderness at the desperation he saw in her eyes. How far had she walked today before reaching Indulgence? Who’d given her a ride when she’d hitched? Hadn’t she worried about hooking up with a stranger who could possibly be a psychopath? Hadn’t she cared? Or were such concerns only for young women who had families to care about them and money to protect them from harm?
“Please,” Toni said to Em. “I’ll do whatever odd jobs you have around here. I’ll—”
Zach cut in. “A month, no more than that.”
“Work hard— What?” she asked, interrupting herself.
He pushed his paper napkin and utensils to the right and back to the left. “I’ll give you a month at my place. Standard wage.”
Toni’s eyes rounded in surprise. A smile blossomed across her face.
Her joy was so luminous, so breathtakingly happy, Zach barely caught himself from returning her smile.
“How standard for the wage?” she asked, all sassy now. “Same as the guys?”
He cocked a brow.
She grinned. “Better than the guys?”
“If he’s wise,” Em said with a chuckle.
Zach’s gaze jerked to her, then returned to Toni.
She searched his face. “You’re sure?”
Hell no, he was not, but he was a man of his word. He’d help her for a month, then see her on her way. Out of his life. Out of his thoughts. He’d give her a kiss goodbye for luck.
He’d pull her into himself so hard, she’d lose all of her breath and whatever resistance she might have had. He’d capture her mouth, plunging his tongue inside, his kiss uncivilized, impatient for more. He’d tunnel his hand beneath her stretchy tank top to free her breast from the confines of her bra, holding her flesh in his palm, testing its precious weight, feeling the emptiness and coldness once she was gone.
Which she would be in a month. Going back to wherever she’d come from. Maybe a place she’d escaped. Women weren’t alone like she was, without friends or family to help, unless some SOB was involved.
A man she might have loved.
A pang of jealousy hit him. Surprising. Intense.
“Zach?” Toni said, her gaze questioning.
He took her glass of water, finishing half of it. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he said, “Yeah, I’m sure.”
Chapter Four
Twenty minutes before quitting time, Toni finished rotating and balancing the tires on a Ford Ranger. Its owner, a forty-something guy with receding red hair, watched her from just outside the bay doors.
Feeling frisky, Toni gave him two thumbs up.
His face flushed, matching the color of the freckles on his scalp. Lowering his can of Coke, he called out, “You’re done?”
She flicked the rack’s switch to lower his pickup to the floor. “Will be in a sec. Soon as I settle the paperwork.”
He exchanged a glance with the guys standing next to him, who’d also been watching her. As one, they clapped in wild applause, with the youngest offering a celebratory whistle.
Grinning, Toni draped her right arm across her torso and bowed from the waist, playing into their teasing, liking the camaraderie. It reminded her of the good times she’d had with Lucky and Belle.
Several days ago, she’d spent the last of her money to call them, not to say anything about her arrest and the impound, but to lie, assuring them she was all right.
And she was for the time being. With the money she’d make from this gig, she’d be able to send a bit to them. She’d get her bike out of impound, some cheapo insurance. And after that, she’d have to be on her way.
A month, no more than that, Zach had said.
The applause died down and so did her smile.
Her first day here was almost gone, passing with surprising speed, reminding her of a life she hadn’t experienced in too long, one of stability, knowing what the next day would bring. Throughout the morning and afternoon, she’d been able to relax even though the locals had stopped by to observe the female mechanic, a curiosity apparently unheard of in Indulgence.
Many of the younger guys had grinned openly as if she were slithering up and down a pole in an X-rated nightclub rather than wearing a baggy pair of dark blue overalls—the same as Robbie and Angel, the other mechanic.
Through it all, Toni had felt Zach watching her. When she’d glanced at his office, he hadn’t averted his gaze or moved away from the window to return to his desk. He’d regarded her with the same intensity she experienced and had trouble ignoring.
Too quickly, she was becoming wanting of his touch, the sound of his rich baritone, the pleasure of seeing him smile because of something she’d said. At this rate, leaving here, never seeing him again, would be damn difficult, but necessary. He’d given her four weeks. Better than she’d hoped for.
Grabbing the clipboard, she finished filling out the paperwork and headed for his office, her biker boots making sharp taps against the concrete floor.
The moment she went inside, Zach’s eyes flicked from the customer he’d been speaking with to her. Enjoying the cool embrace of the air-conditioning, Toni lifted the clipboard to show him why she was here, then offered it to him.
“Just a sec,” Zach said to the middle-aged woman who’d pulled up in a silver Cadillac. “Is this the Miller work order?” he asked Toni.
She opened her mouth to respond. Nothing came out as Zach took the clipboard, his fingers touching hers, covering hers, delivering a shock of sensation. The same as this mo
rning when he’d given her the bottle of water.
Her legs went watery and her mouth went dry. She nodded.
“Thanks.” He took the paperwork and laid it on his desk.
Back in the garage, Toni barely noticed the oppressive heat or the Faith Hill song playing on the radio. As she put away the tools, her hands shook slightly. Partly because of her reaction to Zach, partly because it was the end of the day with the night looming.
Turning, she flinched at Robbie and Angel standing so close, no doubt wanting to get to the cabinet. “Sorry,” she said. Her head swung to the garage doors. The customers and gawkers had moved on while she’d been deep in lust and worry. “Didn’t mean to get in your way,” she added to the guys, offering a smile.
Angel spoke first. “You’re not.” As skinny as Robbie was, Angel was as hefty. In addition to a shaved head, he sported a tattoo of a dream catcher on his thick neck and one of a cross on his meaty wrist. “We…Robbie and me,” he added in his soft, lilting voice, “were just wondering what you were planning on doing tonight.”
Good question. Thank god she’d had such an enormous breakfast and lunch, courtesy of Zach, with him ordering pizza for the entire crew. An event she suspected didn’t happen often given the guys’ surprised expressions. At least she wouldn’t be hungry tonight. As to where she planned to stay…
“For fun,” Robbie explained.
Fun cost money she didn’t have. Even one beer was out of the question, the same as hanging out with these guys. They were both as sweet as could be, but she couldn’t expect them to pay for anything, nor could she ask to crash at either of their places, no matter her situation. She didn’t want Zach thinking she might be sleeping with either of his employees for a bed.
With a negligent shrug, she put on her tough-girl act, one she’d perfected over the years, declining what she knew was a coming invitation. “I think I’m just going to crash. Been a busy day, you know?”
Angel backed off immediately. “Oh sure. I hear you.”
Robbie asked, “Where you staying?”
Another good question. Mind racing, Toni lied, “This place at the edge of town. Nothing fancy.”
