Iput my coffee cup back down on the workbench, the taste of the coffee suddenly tasting more bitter than I like. Looking around the garage, it’s not anything big or flash but it’s my home. I notice that TJ has vanished, he probably seen her coming in. Yeah, I wouldn’t wanna be here for this either, in fact, I wish I could hideaway with TJ - wherever the hell he’s gone off to.
Tj is the only other full-time mechanic at Jenson’s Garage & Bodyshop. I wouldn’t say that we’re close as friends, but we’ve known each other for years, he was here when I first started my apprenticeship. I’d say we have a mutual respect for each other, one of the reasons we’ve been talking about putting an offer in to buy the shop.
I’ve got a nice chunk in my savings account ready to go down as a deposit, TJ says that he’s ready for the next steps. Now, we just need to actually do it and soon, better to put in an offer before Jenson goes public with selling.
I’ve known for a while now that old man Jenson is looking to retire. He hasn’t said anything to anyone yet but you can just see that he’s distancing himself from the business. And, why shouldn’t he? He’s in his seventies, and he’s owned the garage for the last thirty-plus years. The place is doing really well, runs like one of our fixed-up cars.
I had plans for this place, but also for the extra income that would come in. This could set me up, have me living comfortably for years to come. I have to say, a big part of my plans for the future had included Katie...
“What do you want?” I don’t like the way my voice comes out, harder than intended but it seems necessary for the situation. After everything that has happened, I don’t even know how she could come here again. I wasn’t her boyfriend, I wasn’t even her friend and I sure as hell wasn’t gonna be her mechanic anymore, either. Too much had changed for any of that.
Not only had Katie been my soul mate, at least in my mind, but she’d also been my sister’s friend - and mine. We all went through a lot of shit together throughout college, we had been a perfectly woven basket. I almost feel guilty about breaking the chain except that wasn’t on me in any way, shape or form. She broke us, I guess the perfectly woven chain just wasn’t as perfect as I’d thought it was.
“I was in the area.” Lie. Not only does she have no reason to be over this side of town, but I catch the slight quirk at the corner of her lips as the words pass through them.
“Sure,” I say, eyes narrowing. At the sight of her, I can almost hear my heart beating. She’s fatally beautiful, as she always has been - but I can’t think of that now. No, I reprimand myself as I long for her. I need to keep a clear mind, she left me and I have to move on. The slight quirk of her lips turns into a mischievous grin. Then it’s gone, as quick as a flash of lightning.
“Well.” She shrugs her slender shoulders, suddenly the very picture of innocence. “I just wanted to come see you.”
My jaw tenses involuntarily as she runs her pale fingers over the dirty bench, as she takes slow steps towards me. “Why?” I ask. I swallow, willing myself not to take in the sight of her soft curves.
“Oh, you know.” She fixes me with her big doe eyes, her lips curve up into a gentle smile. “I miss you, Evan. I know, I screwed up. I just wish… I wish we could just go back to how things were between us.” Katie bites her bottom lip in a way that makes me want to kiss her. She looks so lost. She’s lonely and I know I have the power to make her feel better. I can take that sadness from her eyes, that confusion from the twist of her mouth. I can make it better. But do I want to? She left me. Do I even care if she’s happy? If she’s lonely?
Dammit. Of course, I care.
I take a half step towards her as she brushes her hand on her jeans. Then she’s in my arms. Her mouth is on mine, and she is crushing herself against me. I inhale. She’s wearing that perfume I bought her, the fruity one. I feel her soft breasts pressing into my chest as my arms go around her, one hand in her hair, the other on her ass in those ridiculous shorts. She moans softly into my mouth as our lips part and our tongues glide over one another. She tastes minty and sweet.
“Katie…” I whisper. We shouldn’t be doing this. Someone could walk in. Hell, I know I’m the only one in the shop right now, but still, clients.
I lift her up easily and put her down on the edge of the bench. She arches forwards, as I stand between her thighs, hands eager to dig her nails into my back. I scrunch her red hair in my fist as I kiss down her neck and across her collarbone. As I work my way back to her mouth, I bite down on her neck, hard enough to leave a mark, if not a bruise. I love her. I hate her. I miss her so damn much.
The clingy fabric of her tank top rides up over her stomach and I move to kiss a trail down her abdomen to the waistband of her shorts. I look up to see that she is staring down at me, eyes misty, like she’s on the verge of tears.
“What’s wrong?” I murmur, standing again.
“I’m fine,” she says. She lies. I leave it. I don’t want to get into that can of worms that badly.
I kiss her again, gently this time, tenderly, as one of my hands works its way up her thigh to the crotch of her shorts. I slip my fingers under the hem and feel the lacy underwear she has on beneath them. Lacy. I wonder absently if they’re the red set I love so much - the ones she knows drive me wild. I slide them out of the way easily, my other hand stroking down her spine to her tight ass.
I stroke a finger through her lips to find her clit and gently trail its length, rubbing in small circles as I go. She moans in my mouth again.
“I need you, Evan.” Need. Not love. Not even want. Need. I slide my fingers further down towards her wet entrance - feeling the heat of her body warming my hand - to give her what she needs.
Her mouth is familiar, it awakens a warmth inside of me that has nothing to do with heat. My tongue explores her mouth with renewed energy. This could be the last time I ever do this, our last kiss. In a way, I had been blindsided by the breakup. If I had known that our last kiss was going to be the last, I would’ve held on, held tighter - I would have never pulled away. But this is my chance to change that, to replace the memories of that kiss with this one. This is the last chance I’ll have to taste her. To feel her. I wish I could be inside her properly, but my hard-on just rages against my jeans. I want to come so badly but I won’t do it here. Not now. She doesn’t deserve that from me.
She bites down on my bottom lip as I push my fingers into her hot core. I feel her tighten around me before I start to withdraw and thrust in, fucking her with my hand. I want to make her scream for me, business be damned, and I want her to regret leaving me like she did. She gasps with all the sensations as I work my thumb in fast circles over her clit.
Her gasp turns into another moan as I bite her neck again. One of her hands is in my dark hair, holding my head to her neck as I lick and bite, lick and bite. She grinds against me, legs locked around my waist, pressing us together. We have made love like this before, not here, but the same way. I remember her passion. It was different from the desperation I feel from her now.
As she climaxes in front of me, I cover her mouth with mine to muffle the sound of her whimpering cries. I pull my hand back, wiping my fingers on my jeans. Looking down at her, her lips swollen from kisses, I’m entranced. But I will myself to feel nothing because I can’t truly give her what she wants, to get back together. I can only give her a taste, that’s all I can allow myself to give - for now.
She may think she’s changed her mind but how can I trust her again? It’s too soon. She hasn’t given herself enough time to think about this probably, she doesn’t know what she wants right now. If I were to give in, who’s to stop her from doing this all again in a month’s time? And I won’t go through this a second time, the pain is too much. When she comes back to me, she needs to be certain because as soon as she does, I’ll have a ring on her finger and a baby in her belly before the days done.
“Was that enough?” I ask, voice colder than I expected. But it has the desired effect. She looks like I just dumped a bucket of water on her.
“What, what do you mean?” Katie asks breathlessly.
“Wasn’t that what you came back for? Because I’m damn sure you can’t want me back.” I step away from her and pick up a rag to wipe my hands on. “You need more time. You need to spend some time getting your shit together, thinking everything over. If you still want me in a couple weeks? Then you know where to find me.”
She huffs a choked laugh. It’s a broken sort of sound, brittle and fragile. I hate it. She slides off the bench, her flip-flops hitting the ground with a slap. Katie looks down, takes a deep breath, and sets her shoulders back. It takes everything to hold myself back. To not comfort her or tell her that I love her. To not tell her that no matter what happens between us, no matter how many times she kicks me to the curb, that I’ll always be right here waiting for her.
When she finally meets my eyes, she sends me a tight smile - her mask now back in place and then pulls her tank top down, like it’s the most natural thing in the world. She twirls around in slow motion, her hair flying around in a softened halo I know that this might really be the end. And just like that, a trail of light fruity perfume is all that’s left in her wake. Her hips swaying seductively in those shorts as she makes her way through the side exit. Then she’s gone from my sight.
I stand frozen wondering if it was all a dream. If it weren’t for the scent she left behind and the raging hard-on that’s struggling to burst through my jeans, I would’ve been convinced that’s all it was. Just a fantasy.
