Rev Me Up

by Kylie Gilmore

  He finally broke the silence, his concern for her overriding his bad mood. “Hey, I’m sure you’ll find your sister. Maybe you can hire a private investigator. They’re good at tracking people down.”

  “Maybe,” she said in a subdued voice.

  He couldn’t stand to have her so miserable. “Is there anything I can do to cheer you up?”

  “You could get me a new family. Mine sucks.”

  “Maybe you’d like mine. Bunch of brothers, a dad, a great stepmom.”

  “What about your mom?”

  He blew out a breath. “She died when I was seven.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry.”

  “It’s all right. She was great from what I remember. So’s my stepmom. You should meet her.” He glanced over to find her frowning.

  “You mean when we get back to Connecticut?” she asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “We’re not married, so you’re off the hook. No strings, remember?”

  “It doesn’t have to be that way.” He could hardly believe he’d said that, but once the words were out, he really meant it. He didn’t want to say goodbye. He wasn’t ready. Not yet.

  She looked at him, but he couldn’t read her expression with the shades covering her eyes. “You said you’re never getting married again, but I want that. Marriage and kids are important to me. I want a chance to make a loving family of my own.” Her voice got choked up, and he tensed, worried she was going to bawl in his truck. It pained him to see her cry. She blew out a breath. “I never had that, as you’ve seen, and I want it. There’s no point in us continuing. We want different things.”

  She was right. They wanted different things. She deserved to have everything she wanted.

  “You going to marry some country-club guy?” he asked.

  She laughed mirthlessly. Kinda sad, even, for a laugh. “I’ll probably marry someone I meet in the city. Lots of single twenty-somethings there.”

  He was in his thirties. She should be with someone her age. “How many kids you planning on?”

  “I was an only child, well, I was raised as one. I don’t know, three. Maybe four.”

  “You’d better get started, then. You’re already twenty-five.”

  She huffed. “Thank you for reminding me of my old age.”

  “You’re not old. I’m just saying it takes time to have four kids.”

  She was quiet.

  “I wish you luck,” he said. “I’m sure you’ll be a great mom.”

  “It would help if I had an example of a great mom,” she muttered.

  “You should meet my stepmom.”

  “I’m not meeting your family! Remember? You don’t want to be tied down. This is a two-week thing.”

  “We still have one more week,” he pointed out.

  “Oh, goody.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  She crossed her arms. “I think one week is plenty.”

  “What are you pissed at me for?”

  “I’m sorry. I’m just upset. We’ll screw as much as you want.”

  “Don’t be like that.” He glanced over to find her lower lip trembling. He took her hand and held it, offering the only comfort he could. She was quiet the rest of the drive.

  He just wished there was something he could do.

  ~ ~ ~

  Nico followed Lily into her grandfather’s house in L.A. She already had the key. The small ranch home was hot and smelled old and musty. He helped her open all the windows to air the place out, and they cranked the air-conditioning.

  Lily opened the door near the kitchen that led to the garage. “There it is,” she said in a flat tone, “all yours.”

  He stepped inside the garage, and she left. He circled the car, a black 1969 Mustang Boss 429e. Pure euphoria shot through him. It was the ultimate barn find. He could restore this car to its former glory and some collector would snap it up. A layer of dust coated the car. Untouched. He sucked in a breath. The odometer had five hundred miles on it. He could sell it for six hundred thousand easy. Maybe more. He peered in the backseat. There was still plastic on the seatbelts. He could buy out Kevin and have enough left over for a house.

  It was the find of a lifetime.

  Only his euphoria was short-lived, replaced by an overwhelming sense of loss. This was why they’d made the trip. He’d gotten what he’d wanted and now there was nothing to do but the long drive home. Every day bringing them closer to goodbye, every night bittersweet as the end drew near. Dammit. How could he have everything he’d ever wanted and still not feel satisfied?

  Because all he could think about was Lily sitting in the house, miserable, and going through her grandfather’s things. He wanted to take away her pain, make all her dreams come true, but he couldn’t.

  He raised the garage door and stepped out into the sunshine, pacing a bit on the front sidewalk. It had to be the road trip that made him feel this strong connection to her. He’d just met her two weeks ago. One week on the road together had been intense, but soon they’d go back to their real lives, go their separate ways, and they’d both be better off for it.

  He imagined that future. He’d pay her for the Mustang, restore and sell it, and finally be full owner in his shop. He’d become a true success from his own hard work. Lily would become a lawyer in the city and meet some twenty-something professional guy who didn’t have to get his hands dirty for a living. She’d have kids and make the loving family she’d always wanted. That was as it should be. Lily and some guy that was perfect husband material.

  Nico wasn’t that guy.

  ~ ~ ~

  Lily went through her grandfather’s things, though there wasn’t much. The house was neat with very little clutter. Her grandfather either lived frugally, or he threw away a lot of stuff. The kitchen and living room had nothing personal in them, so she headed for the bedroom. She found some pictures in a nightstand drawer of a German shepherd that he clearly missed. She moved to the closet and found a large shoe box on a shelf. She snagged the box that still had the label for the hiking boots that had been inside. She settled cross-legged on the floor and carefully sifted through it.

  There were medals from when her grandfather was in the marines. He’d been Special Forces, and she suspected he suffered from PTSD. Her mom had said only that he was horrible and drunk most of the time. There was a collection of birthday cards from her grandmother, who died when her mom was twelve.

  She found a picture of her grandfather as a child with what appeared to be his brother. Another family member Lily had never met. She kept going and found a stack of honor roll certificates with her mom’s name on them. She hadn’t known Taylor was good at school. What happened? Why had she gone straight to Vegas to be a showgirl?

  She thought more about her mom’s life. Taylor had no mom to get her through her teen years. She had a harsh father that she couldn’t depend on. And no siblings to lean on. She supposed Taylor could’ve ended up worse than she had.

  She found some more pictures at the bottom of the box. Her mom as a baby. Her mom at about seven scowling at the camera, another closer to ten looking off in the distance, another as a teen staring right at the camera with a defiant look on her face. She’d grown tough over the years. And looked miserable. She put everything back in the box. Her work was done here. She got what little she could. Nico got his car. There was nothing to do but leave.

  A pang of longing went through her. How much better would it have been if she’d found her sister? If they’d had a reunion. She decided to fly to Seattle. She’d investigate in person if there was a Melissa Higgins living there. She didn’t want to go home with nothing but a shoe box.

  Nico appeared in the doorway. “Hey. How’s it going?”

  “Not much here,” she said. “I’m just going to take this box and put the house up for sale. How was the car?”

  He grinned. “Great! She’s worth a fortune.”

  He looked so happy. Well, he got what he wanted. At least one of them had
.

  “I figure I can get six hundred grand easy,” Nico went on. “Name your price.”

  She waved that away. “It’s yours.” She stood. “As thanks for the company. I’m going to Seattle after this and then I’ll fly home.”

  His brows drew together. “That’s it? Thanks for the company? You said we’d have two weeks together. I only got one week.”

  “Things changed. Besides, we both knew this wasn’t for the long haul. Now you have the car. I’m going to find my sister.”

  He crossed to her, set the box she was holding on the floor, and wrapped his arms around her. His voice dropped a register, low and coaxing. “I’ll drive with you to Seattle.”

  She shook her head. “Let’s not make this any more difficult than it has to be. Okay?”

  He dropped his arms and stepped back. “Just because I don’t want to marry you doesn’t mean…”

  Her throat tightened. “What?”

  “It doesn’t mean I don’t care about you.”

  “I’ll always remember our time together fondly,” she said softly.

  He scowled. “Dammit, Lil!”

  She startled at the unexpected harshness in his tone.

  He jabbed a hand in the air. “It was a helluva lot more than fond!”

  “We both knew it would come to this,” she said quietly.

  He glared for a moment and then started talking in a calm, steady voice. “We talked a lot. We ate three meals a day together. We looked at weird-ass things in weird-ass places. We faced your fears together. We almost died leaping from a plane—”

  “We didn’t—”

  “Don’t interrupt me! We shared three feet of cab space all day every day! We shared a hotel room every night, whether or not we were naked. I was your second, and I wish I’d been your first so you never would’ve had a moment’s doubt about how damn sexy you are.” He crossed his arms and finished with the most embarrassing thing of all. “And I kissed your pooch.”

  She sucked in a breath. “Don’t talk about my pooch.” She’d go on a diet immediately.

  “I love your pooch.”

  Her eyes watered. Why was he making this so hard? “You do not.”

  “I do!”

  “You do not!”

  “I do too!”

  “That’s crazy!” She looked away. “You’re crazy.”

  And then he pulled her into his arms. He kissed her soft and tender, and she clung to him as her mind went blank and there was nothing but his strong arms holding her, pressing her close as his mouth claimed hers. Her body responded immediately, heating against him. He lowered her to the bed, already pulling up her shirt, and she suddenly remembered where they were.

  “Nico, we can’t do this here.”

  He undid the front clasp of her bra and nuzzled into her cleavage.

  “Please,” she said. And then he was suckling her breast and a familiar tug of desire arced through her. Heat pooled between her legs. “Not here,” she said weakly.

  He groaned and put her bra back together. Then he pulled her up off the bed. “C’mon. Let’s go check in at the hotel.”

  He tugged her toward the door.

  “Wait, I need the box.”

  He scooped it up, and she followed him outside, where he set the box in the back of the Mustang and then set everything up to tow the car. It took a while and the more time that passed, the more doubts began to settle in. What was she doing prolonging things between them?

  She watched him putting the flatbed truck into position, lowering the back, making a ramp for the car. Then he undid a long cable from the back of the truck. By the time he’d gotten the car in place, she was resolved to end things before they both got hurt.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “Get in,” Nico said in a harsh voice because Lily was just standing there in the driveway, blinking rapidly like she wanted to cry, which made him tense and angry because he felt like howling. The writing was on the wall. It was almost time for goodbye. But he didn’t want to say goodbye. He wanted more time. Not forever. Just another few weeks. Maybe just until she moved to the city to start her new job.

  She got in, put on her seatbelt, and slid on her shades. “Well, you got your car.”

  “Yup.”

  “So…I, um, I think it might be easier—”

  “You owe me.” She was not dumping him when they both knew they weren’t done.

  Her jaw dropped. “How do I owe you? I gave you the car—”

  “I thought you were smart.”

  “I am smart,” she snapped. Good, she was getting mad too. Now they could have a good fight about it and make up in bed.

  “Then stop acting like you don’t know what I mean. I get six more days. Then I have to go to my brother’s bachelor party.”

  “But I’m not driving back home. I’m going to—”

  “Six days! Six nights! That was the fucking deal.”

  “Nico,” she said gently, which made him feel kind of desperate. He was losing her and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.

  “We’ll talk at the hotel,” he said because at least there he could remind her why they deserved to have six more nights together. If that was all he could get, he’d take it.

  Her cell rang in her purse. “It’s my dad,” she muttered.

  He grunted.

  Lily listened for a long while before exclaiming, “No! That’s not what really hap—” She got quiet. “He hung up.”

  He glanced over to find her pale. “What? What happened?”

  “He…oh, God, Nico. I’m so sorry. I’ll try to fix it.”

  A sick feeling washed over him, and he pulled to the side of the road. Luckily, they hadn’t gotten on the freeway yet. “What happened?”

  “He was furious about the marriage without a prenup. He thinks you corrupted me, seducing me into shirking my responsibilities and screwing your way into the family money. God, I should’ve called him back yesterday and told him we weren’t really married, but I was upset, and now I ruined everything!”

  “What? What did you ruin?”

  “He blacklisted your shop. Told everyone he knows that you aren’t to be trusted.”

  “Okay, wait. So…I lost him as a client, and you’re telling me…” He couldn’t even say the words, but he knew. George Spencer was a powerful man with a wide sphere of influence.

  “He’s turned the wealthy families in our area against you. No one will cross him.”

  “Great,” he muttered. “What am I supposed to do, start over in California? Call him back right now and explain it. Tell him we’re not married and it was all a misunderstanding. And you’d better tell him to straighten out that lie about me too. I’m not leaving my home because some uppity prick thinks money gives him the right to ruin someone just because they fucked their daughter.”

  “Is that what this was? Fucking the client’s daughter?”

  He was too furious to answer.

  Her lips formed a flat line. “You know what? Forget it. You said it perfectly. I’ll try again after we get to the hotel, though God knows if he’ll listen to me. I might’ve forgot to mention I’m the black sheep of the family. I’ve disappointed him from the moment I was born.”

  He pulled back on the road, puzzling over that last bit. How could she have disappointed when she was just a baby? Her family was seriously screwed up, and he had a whole new appreciation for his. He should’ve known better than to get involved with George Spencer’s daughter. Now instead of earning full ownership in his shop, he was facing shutting it down. This whole thing had been a mistake from the very beginning.

  ~ ~ ~

  They drove to the hotel in silence. Lily checked them into the Beverly Hills Wilshire, her favorite hotel because they’d filmed Pretty Woman there. She loved the fairy-tale movie where both the hero and heroine rescued each other. She sighed. Staying here was as close as she’d get to a fairy tale in her life. Nico was tense, his jaw clenched as they rode the elevator to their room.<
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  After their luggage was brought up, Lily sat at the large mahogany desk and called her dad again while Nico paced the room like a caged panther. Her dad was being completely unreasonable. He was trying to punish her by punishing Nico. She explained that they weren’t really married, and he believed her, but he also believed that Nico had put her future in jeopardy by taking her halfway across the country when she should’ve been studying for the bar. Not only that, he believed Nico sweet-talked her into paying off his debt. And that she was in danger of giving him a blank check.

  No amount of explaining on her part made a dent in her dad’s outrage and lack of faith in her. And then he hung up on her. Again.

  “That went well,” she told Nico.

  He let out something alarmingly close to a growl.

  “He, uh, he’s just mad. He’ll cool off, and I’ll try again tomorrow.”

  “Great,” Nico bit out. “I have to call the shop.”

  He called the guy he’d left in charge of the shop to warn him, and told him to keep him updated. Lily looked up flights to Seattle on her cell. She found a flight for the next morning. After he hung up, she turned to him.

  “I can catch a nine a.m. flight to Seattle tomorrow morning,” she said.

  He stalked toward her. “You’re not flying to Seattle tomorrow.”

  She stood so he wouldn’t be towering over her. “You don’t have to drive me. I’ll take a cab to the airport.”

  He stopped in front of her. “I can’t believe this. You ruined me! And then you just take off?”

  That stung because, even though she hadn’t meant to ruin him, somehow the whole thing had snowballed into a huge disastrous mess.

  “I’ll bet you wish you never met me,” she said in a strained voice. She cleared her throat, stronger now, and threw her hair over her shoulder. “But I’m glad I met you. You showed me what a fling is like, and you know what? It sucks!” Her voice rose in volume at her aggravation over feeling so much for a man who would never love her back.

  “This whole thing was a mistake right from the beginning!” he roared. “I got the wrong redhead!”