stared at the leather hugging her plush ass. With each
step she took, her rounded cheeks bounced, begging for a man’s hands to hold them.
To separate her succulent flesh, then run his fingers down the moist furrow to
the tight pink ring of her anus and lower, her damp cunt.
With a hard swallow, he wiped his sweaty palm against his
jeans, watching Toni pass the table of elderly men. Several of the old guys
swung their heads, following her with their eyes.
Once she’d disappeared around the corner, Zach gritted his
teeth at the expected pain in his leg, slid into his side of the booth and let
out a sigh, trying to relax.
Em wasn’t about to allow it. She plopped onto the padded
seat across from him, clasped her hands on top of the table and leaned forward.
“Who is that?” She’d lowered her voice to a conspiratorial murmur. “Is she a
tourist? Did you fix her car? Are you two going to be seeing each other?”
With his elbow on the table, Zach propped his head in his
palm and sighed. “No, no and no.”
Em’s frown intensified the deep grooves above her nose.
“What’s that supposed to mean? You don’t want to talk about it?”
Exactly. “There’s nothing to talk about,” Zach said as
nicely as he could. “I’m just answering your questions—no, no and no.”
“Wait a sec—what did I ask? Now quit it,” she scolded,
unclasping her hands so she could slap his arm.
It didn’t stop Zach’s laughter.
“Who is she?” Em asked again.
“A mechanic.”
Em’s laughter rang louder than his. “On what planet?”
Exactly. “She does seem to know about engines.” She’d
surprised the hell out of him by picking the right tool and knowing a car
actually had plugs.
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