Why would Keeton sound angry about that? He’s seen me, right? I make a combination laugh-snort sound. “Keeton. I’m a full-figured woman. You know this.Icertainly know this.”
“You’re curvy and gorgeous.”
“Well, thank you, that’s nice of you to say, but…”
“No buts, babe. You’re beautiful and that body of yours is fucking amazing.”
Amazing?A little overboard, I think. Uh, what’s this guy drinking? Wacky juice? Instead of prolonging this painful, albeit kind, conversation, I change the subject. “Did you read my first text. I deleted that app.”
“Good. I guess. I was hoping to catch him at his own game.”
“I don’t want to see him anymore unless I absolutely have to, Keeton.”
“I get it.” He pauses, “Are you heading to work now?”
“Yep. See you in a little bit.”
“Can’t wait, beautiful.”
By the time I get to the shop, the back door is unlocked, all the lights are on and music is playing loudly somewhere in the shop. The door to the showroom is closed so the sound’s muffled. Eric must be here. I step into the showroom and peek into the shop through the large window that separates both spaces. I see two guys walking around but no Eric. “Looking for me, sweetheart?”
I scream so loud, my head vibrates. Taking a moment to catch my breath, when I turn around, Eric is laughing so hard he’s bent at the waist. “Not funny, Eric. Geesh, you scared the stuffing out of me.”
With his hand on my upper back he says, “Sorry, Lainie. I really didn’t mean to startle you.”
Shaking my head, I smile, “It’s okay. Just don’t sneak up on a girl. It’s bad for our health.”
“What’s bad for your health?” Keeton’s deep rumble comes up from behind us. “And hands off, Eric.”
He quickly takes his hand off my back raising them like he’s been caught in the cookie jar. “Just helping a damsel in distress, brother. That’s all.” Eric chuckles.
“That’s my job,” Keeton says, stomping to my side.
“Okay, well, that’s enough testosterone for me first thing in the morning. I’m going to get to work.” I go around both men and walk quickly into my, I mean, Molly’s office.
I work the entire morning with the telephone as my only interruption. The number of calls for people angry about their bills is basically down to none. I paid all of the outstanding accounts yesterday. Today, I’m working through requests for new parts and equipment. The writing on the forms is hard to read thanks to oil smudges and what looks like coffee stains. At least I hope it’s only coffee stains. Not only that, the writing is rushed and sloppy. Couple that with my lack of knowledge of motorcycle parts and it’s got the makings of a perfect storm of goof-ups.
Grabbing the stack of papers, I peek in Keeton’s office, but he’s not there. I think I heard him walk down the hallway earlier. I make my way out of the showroom through the door to the shop. Scanning the large space, I see guys working. I haven’t met them all yet but a few of them have popped in to leave me purchase requests. They’ve all been very nice so far.
I look left and see a large archway that leads to another space. I walk through the arch into another shop altogether. This one is just as spacious as the other one but there are only two garage doors on his room. Another difference is this side seems to be where the custom bike work is done. There are parts strewn about on the floor and hanging on the walls. I look further right and see Keeton. A shirtless Keeton, squatting down next to a bike that could best be described as skeletal. From the front tire to the back tire, it’s curved and shaped like a spine. Even the way all the parts of the bike were designed take on that bone-like quality. There are lines and ridges throughout the machine. It’s beautiful and reminiscent of the drawing I saw in the showroom. So is the half-naked man that’s now walking toward me.
“Hey, babe. Need something?”
I blush and I’m not sure why. Maybe because I feel like I just trespassed on something really personal for Keeton. “These orders. Um, I can’t read some of them.” I pause for a second as he gets close enough to smell. Oil and him. Yummy. “That motorcycle is beautiful.”
“You like it?” he says with a beaming smile.
“It’s like the drawing in the showroom.”
“It is. Come here,” he holds his hand out for me. I place mine in his and it feels like it belongs there. “Let me show you what I’ve done with this one.”
“It looks like the skeleton of a ferocious animal.” It’s the best way to describe it. “Like it could pounce.”
He stops in his tracks, turning to me. Stepping close he smiles again. “That’s exactly what I was thinking about when I designed it. No one else has gotten that yet.” His lips touch mine softly once, then once more with some nibbling of my bottom lip and a swipe of his tongue for good measure. He turns toward the bike again pulling me along with him. Gently squeezing my hand, he says, “I’m proud of this one, Lainie.”
“You should be. It’s amazing.” It really is. I’m not just saying that.
“I tried something new with it. Wanna know what it is?”
