I slip out the door without another word.
Talon doesn’t chase after me, and I don’t dare look up to see if every person is watching me as I leave like my ass is on fire.
I know they are.
But I can’t dwell on it because I almost let Talon Banks kiss me, and that’s one thing that can never happen again.
6
TALON
PRESENT DAY
The garage door bangs closed behind me as I trudge through the bays and make a beeline to my office. I can feel my brother’s eyes on me, and while I love him, there’s nothing I want less than to discuss why I’m acting like someone pissed in my Wheaties.
Normally subdued, my brother looks practically gleeful as he closes my office door and takes the seat across from me.
“Great weather we’re having,” he deadpans, a smile tugging at his lips as he laces his fingers together and rests them over his six-pack abs. You could probably count the number of people who get this carefree side of Phoenix on one hand, and I don’t take for granted the fact that I’m one of them.
“I want to tell you to fuck off.”
“I know,”—he nods—“but you’re going to tell me anyway, so why draw out the inevitable?”
I hate that he’s right, and it only feeds the frustration burning in my gut.
“Cora is dead set on this stupid fucking feud she’s created. Her truck needs a new battery, and she won’t let me just take care of it.”
“Did you tell her?” he asks skeptically.
“She’s waiting for the road mechanic to come out and take a look, but that asswipe is gonna end up towing it and she’s gonna have to foot the bill.”
“And you told her all that?” He pauses and adds, “Nicely?”
Rubbing my hand over the stubble on my jaw, I replay my interaction with the fiery redhead I can’t seem to stay away from.
“I may have told her she needed a new flux capacitor first before I told her about the battery.”
“Let me guess; she didn’t think your movie reference was as funny as you did.”
Pressing my lips into a line to temper my smile, I shake my head. “She did not.”
Cora had been livid, her cheeks heating to just a few shades lighter than the hair I wanted wrapped around my fist as I kissed her. We’d been so close once, and I hated that I still thought about that single moment in time.
“Not aBack to the Futurefan, I take it.” Phoenix snorts. “I mean, on the plus side, at least she’s seen it.”
“Right, but,”—dragging my hands over my face, I curse—“she’s still being so damn stubborn and I’m just trying to help.”
“You can want to help all you’d like, but y’all have a lot of weird history that needs to be addressed before you can do any of that.”
“She makes it impossible.” I groan even though I haven’t been making the effort either. She just pushes my buttons as much as I push hers, and it sends me into a tailspin, and I don’t know if I want to fight with her or fuck her until she’s screaming my name.
I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t sometimes the first, but dammit, I want the latter too.
As if sensing my distress, Chip pushes through the little doggie door I had installed in my office so he could come and go around the garage.
He snuffles and snorts over to me, and I scoop him off the ground and into my lap, reaching for a snack and offering it to him before scratching behind his ear.
Never in my life did I think I’d be the guardian of a miniature pig, but I’d had him for well over a year now and that wasn’t about to change. Navy had named him because she’d been on aBeauty and the Beastkick and had a pretty limited vocabulary. She’d giggled, clapped her hands, and chantedChip, Chip, Chipuntil I’d relented.
