Chase Me (6 page)

“Go to the hospital, Mike,” I started and he gave me a look that said he could cut through my bullshit. “You know you want to see her. She wants to see you. And if anything happens you have me on speed dial. I can take the Hummer and sleep in the parking lot.” Mike looked like he was thinking about it when I whispered. “She needs us. Whether she wants to admit it or not she needs her family right now.”

“Henry will be upset if I close early,” Mike brought up a good point, lucky for him I was great at thinking in stilettos.

“I know the cars, and how to read the invoices. Just point me to what needs work done and I will close up at 8pm like you do. Then I will take the Hummer to the hospital and sleep in it. Henry cannot get mad because the work will be done. My mom will have someone there that’s family, and I won’t feel like an accidental pregnancy because I will be right outside even though she is pushing me away.”

“Henry won’t like this, Kate. I want to see my retirement,” Mike said and I internally flinched. Obviously, Henry had not told him yet, and I didn’t want to so I said the only two words I could think of.

“Fuck Henry!”

Mike gave me a crooked smile and I knew he was going. I climbed out of the car and turned up the heater in the garage as I ditched the blazer. Brooklyn would probably be pissed that I was going to get her suit dirty, but I needed this.

We spent the next hour going over which cars were scheduled to be fixed tonight and which were being picked up. Then Mike headed to the hospital.

The hours had slowly ticked by as I struggled to find the problems with the cars with my mom on my mind. I had called every hour until my mom unplugged the phone in her room. Mike had been one step ahead and taken the keys to the Hummer, because he didn’t want me sleeping in a car all night.

I should go home and get some sleep, but sadly I don’t think my worry-filled brain would allow me to relax enough to sleep.

Eight more hours and they would have my mom in surgery.

I struggled with an Oldsmobile, and finally just threw my wrench when I couldn’t get a broken belt untangled. All I wanted to do was pace. I felt like I should be doing something, anything, to help my mom. I hated this feeling that her fate was something out of my control.

I was too deep in thought that I didn’t hear the knock on the garage door. I started to chew on my fingers when I heard a voice.

“I was just dropping off a car, but I saw the light on,” this luxuriant man in a suit and tie started to explain and I halted my pacing and stared at him. The radio in the garage echoed through my ears as it was playing “Let’s get it on,” by Marvin Gaye, and I rolled my eyes at the coincidence of it all.

I will not fuck the hot guy. I will not fuck the hot guy. It will not make it better, so I will not fuck the hot guy.

I commonly used men and alcohol to escape my problems, but I didn’t think even someone as delectable as this guy could fix this one.

“Do you know where Mike is? I need to leave him the keys.”

I took in his brown hair that was parted like he gelled it for work, but had that messy look like he had ran his hands through that gorgeous hair all day. He was wearing a black suit with a red tie that commanded my attention. I felt like I was staring at the high school principal who wanted to know why I did whatever it was I did, only he was my age, and attractive, and I would not object to getting paddled over his desk.

“Ma’am,” he called out again when I didn’t answer. I shook the thoughts from my head and sighed as I looked down to see that I was covered in grease and oil. I was sure I looked scary, almost like if Deadpool and Wonder Woman had a baby and fed it to Elmo. The red and black shit that came out of Elmo would be the equivalent to what I looked like.

“Miss, are you okay?” The sumptuous man asked again.

“Sorry, was thinking about something. You can leave the keys with me I’m Mike’s daughter,” I lied and he seemed to relax from the situation. He walked over and held out the keys for me to take.

“Hello, Mike’s daughter.”

“Kate. You can call me Kate,” I smiled as I took the keys from him. “What did you bring us?”

“1956 Austin-Healey 100/BN6,” he replied and I had to force my mouth to close from the shock.

“The hundred was the first car from Britain to ever be able to actually hit a hundred miles per hour. There were only thirty-eight hundred and twenty-one of these cars that were ever made.” I replied as the bombshell rolled through me that I was going to get to touch a car so rare they were auctioned off now.

“You know your cars,” he replied with a crooked smile.

“Where are you leaving her?” I asked and he pointed out front. I eagerly headed out to the front of the garage and saw a pale blue car being slid off the back off a tow truck.

“Wait!” I shouted as the wench sounded out. “Don’t drop her here. Bring her around back and I will let you in. She can’t be left out in the snow without shelter or a cover.”

The tow truck driver started to whine, and I walked over to him and pointed my finger in his face and told him exactly how childish he was being. He still whined, but he did so quietly and I walked back inside to shiver from the chill I had caught. Then walked over and opened the sliding back doors.

“What’s your name?” I asked as I turned on the brown haired man instantly.

“Edward Wellington,” he replied and a flicker of light showed me that his brown eyes had a sliver of green in them. That little discoloration was going to drive my OCD ass insane, but not in a I-have-to-fix-that way.

“Well Eddie, I cannot believe you would bring such a beauty here and then leave her outside. What the hell is wrong with you?”

“My name is Mr. Wellington, Edward, or Sir. Are you always this aggressive with your customers?” He asked and I curved my lips to the side in a scowl.

“No, I am usually a delight until I meet stupid,” I stated sarcastically.

“Maybe I should take my car to another garage,” he chided out through gritted teeth and I crossed my arms as I saw the tow truck backing up inside the tin garage.

“You could, but you will be back to have us fix their fuck up. You see Mike is the best at what he does and I learned everything from him. That means you have two people who will treat your car like a lady and get her ready to purr, but you have to be a gentleman with her and not leave her top less and in the cold like an ass-hat!”

“Now you listen to me little girl,” he scolded and came to stand up against me. “I know how to treat a lady don’t you ever doubt that, but this car is not a lady. You should know that an engine is female not a body.”

“Is there an engine in the car?” I stammered as I stood on my tip toes trying to be eye to eye with him, but I was still too short. He had to be at least six foot something.

“Of course there is an engine in the car. I wouldn’t bring her to a garage without one,” he stated with sarcasm and a hint of attitude.

“Then she is a lady, and you are an ass-hat!”

“Mike knew we were bringing the car in late, and he is looking for a top as I didn’t find one when I found the car,” Eddie glared at me, and I decided it wasn’t worth it to fight back. I walked over and picked up an invoice. I threw it at him along with a pen.

“Fill that out, and let me know what she needs so I can fix her,” I yelled as the tow truck closed the back bay doors. Then we were alone once more. I watched him closely as he started writing with his left hand and then switched to his right. Ambidextrous was a trait I hadn’t seen in person before, and piqued my curiosity as to what else he could do with both hands. When I tried to write with my left hand it looked like a blind toddler wrote it.

The radio changed over to “Put it in your mouth” by Akineyle, and I turned and glared as if it could read my face. A moment later I was thinking about ripping his suit off on my way to my knees.

“What the fuck,” he shouted when I threw my socket to shut the radio up, and clear my head.

“I didn’t like that song,” I replied and he looked me over like he was sizing me up for a strait jacket. I walked over and picked up the pieces of the radio that were still singing about licking a girl from head to toe and ripped the cord from the wall.

I walked over and placed the radio in a box near the office where I could see Eddie, but he couldn’t see me. I fantasized about him pinning me to the hood of the car and then he interrupted the fantasy by talking. It was not what his mouth was doing in my head.

“Do you always stare at your clients?” He asked as he looked up at me and smirked. Little did he know what was going through my head where I thought he couldn’t see me. I looked down and could already see the rosy blemishes that showed when I got aroused.

I had an itch the other night and somewhere between the tequila and Brooklyn it never got scratched and then this man walks into my garage when I need something the most. It just aggravated me more because it would never be enough.

“No,” I replied softly and walked over to the red Mustang and wiped her hood down with a chemise.

“Are you always this angry or do you just hate me?”

I looked back at him as he loosened his tie and waited for an answer. I stopped touching the car that drove me to fantasies that I should not be envisioning and walked over and took his invoice.

“I don’t hate anyone,” I replied with a sigh. “I apologize if I came off angry. I have a lot on my plate and have no time for handsome assholes who don’t respect cars.”

“You apologized and then insulted me. I think you should say you’re sorry one more time,” Eddie replied and I walked up on him and wrapped his tie lightly in one hand then I pulled the red tie till he bent down and my lips were near his ear. I let a soft breeze of warm breath leave my lips to his ear and then said the magic words.

“You are sorry.”

Eddie pulled back and glared at me. I was almost having fun. I looked around Eddie to the Henley and saw that the buttons for the top looked almost new. They were glistening under the lights.

“You obviously need a spanking, but that would be crossing all those invisible lines we can’t cross,” Eddie spoke up with a growl and I stepped away from him.

“You’d have to catch me first, but any time you think you are man enough I invite you to chase me,” I flirted as I walked over and opened the tiny hatch between the seats and pulled out a leather top that had never been used. I waived it in the air at Eddie.

“Found her top,” I gloated as Eddie twisted his lips trying not to say anything. He was gorgeous. Stern, uptight, and ornery, but handsome and splendiferous. I looked up to see he had been with me almost an hour.
Holy hell time flew around him.

“You should go. I need to lock up and I don’t trust ass-hats to be locked inside with me. You can call Mike in a few days and see where we are, but you are not a priority for me to fix it so it could take months,” I spoke up and he nodded as he called someone.

“Hey Mike, I am leaving my car with your angry and obstinate daughter,” I heard him say and internally winced. I should have known if he was delivering late then he would have Mike’s cell. “No, delivering the car was easy, but being called an ass-hat was a little out of the ordinary,” he continued and soon he held the phone out to me.

“Tattle tale,” I mouthed as I took the phone. “Hey Mike,” I spoke into the receiver.

“Kate, do you want to tell me why you are cussing at my most important client?” Mike asked and I knew he was going to be angry so I told him the truth.