Authors: Marie Harte
“She’s amazingly good at interrogation,” Lara agreed. “Rena knows everything about everyone.” She took a sip of her cocoa, pleased to find it still hot. “So you think I’ll be a great nurse?”
“Nah, I
know
you will.”
She smiled. “You’re just trying to get lucky later.”
“Honey, I’m lucky right now.” He stared at her with an expression that shook her to her core, and she didn’t know how to handle what she thought he might be feeling.
So she ignored it. “Oh, you’re good. Not sure you’re getting lucky later, but you’re good.”
The spell broken, he gave a half-hearted groan. “You’re so mean. Must be why I keep coming back for more.”
“Must be.” She walked with him a ways before stopping in front of her favorite house. She still wanted him to agree with her, just once. “See that? It’s got a porch swing, curb appeal, and it’s not as big as all the others. It’s like a cottage plus. That’s my idea of a house. It’s got potential for a happy family.”
“And it’s in Queen Anne.” He snorted.
“It doesn’t have to be here, but if I lived on this street, I wouldn’t worry so much about my neighbors. I don’t see any crackheads lying around, and everyone seems to throw their trash away in their—wait for it—trash cans.”
“Ha-ha.” He stared at the house.
“Come on. This house is nice. Admit it.”
“Queen Anne is full of the same problems as everywhere else in Seattle.”
“Yeah, but with grander houses.”
He groaned. “Fine. The house is nice. I admit it. But it feels weird looking at other people’s places and wanting in. I like my place just fine.” He paused. “What do you think of it?”
“The neighborhood is nice. The house, um, well, I’d say it could use a woman’s touch. I mean, there’s no color or decoration besides your TV.”
“What’s your point?”
She blinked at him and would have responded, when she noted the twinkle in his eye. He sipped his cocoa while smirking, a man of many talents.
“Obviously you’re not a fan of the home-and-garden network.”
“I’d rather paint my fingernails neon green and tell Foley how handsome he is. So, um, no.”
“Johnny.” She tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow and started walking again. “I like decorating. It’s that nesting thing women do. When I moved into my apartment, I had so much fun going to garage sales and thrift shops.”
“Good with a buck, huh? That’s a skill. My old man was pretty good at it when I was growing up. We never lived in a shack or anything.” He smirked. “Or in a zoo, though you and I both know I’m an animal in bed.”
“Bad pun… Though now that you mention it, I can totally see you behind bars.” She raised a brow, wondering if he’d cop to the conviction he’d served, the one Rena had found out and told her about.
He coughed. “Well, uh, I was young when it happened.”
“How young?”
“Not even twenty. And it was just that one car I borrowed.”
“One car?”
“One I got caught riding in,” he muttered. “I was going to give it back.”
She groaned. “See? Bars. A zoo. It all fits.”
“Speaking of zoos…” He paused, a glint in his eye. “I know how much you love my anaconda.”
She stopped in her tracks. “Please, just stop. I don’t think that even qualifies as a joke, it’s that bad.”
He laughed and kept on laughing until she tugged him to move again. “Sorry.” He had to wipe his eyes, and the sight of his amusement did something to her insides, made the butterflies fly together and sigh with delight just looking at him. “Your cheeks are red, and not from the cold. You’re fun to tease, baby.”
He did his cheek-caressing thing again, and she felt her breath come faster, so she deliberately took a long sip of hot chocolate, finishing it off. “You’re terrible. Funny, but terrible.”
“And pretty, don’t forget that.” He drained his drink as well. “My dad provided a decent life for us. He built it on alcohol—he bartended forever before buying into Strutts. And he took business classes once I was old enough to be on my own. Dad’s not good at relationships, but he’s a pretty smart guy when it comes to money.”
“Good for you. My dad’s a big believer in working hard. Period. So he and my mom work hard all the time.”
“No investments or anything?”
“When it’s between getting through today or planning for tomorrow, you get through today.”
“Yeah, point taken.” He said nothing for a moment, then asked, “So let’s say you had the opportunity to buy my place from my landlady. Would you?”
She had to think about it. “Well, the location is great. Your house is in a developing neighborhood, and I’d think the schools are probably decent.”
“Schools?”
“You know, for people who have kids?”
He gave her a strange look.
“What?”
“I don’t have kids.”
“That you know of. Sorry, had to say it.” She chuckled at his dark look. “I meant that homes near schools can have added property value because of their proximity to schools. So let’s say you want to move someday. You might be able to sell easier because of the school district.”
“Huh.”
“Sorry. Kristin’s second husband was a real estate guru. She picked up a few things she passed on to me, and I’m almost positive she told me that. With my obsession for the home network, I think about buying a house a lot. But not for a while, ’til I’m Nurse Valley in all my glory.” She gave an evil, booming laugh, and Johnny just stared at her. “Sorry. I imagine myself wielding a hypodermic and get a little crazy off the power trip.”
He laughed with her, and they continued walking. They passed house after house, domestic coziness dressed in wealth. But next to Johnny, laughing in the cold air, sharing stories and holding hands, she felt anything but lacking. She felt rich, cared for…whole.
Chapter 16
Tuesday evening, Lara pulled up outside Johnny’s house and glanced at her phone. She had a few minutes to spare. He’d been emphatic about her arriving not one minute late
or
early.
He’d been awfully coy about what they would be doing tonight. He knew she had clinicals in the morning, but he insisted they needed the together time. Though they’d just seen each other on Sunday, she hadn’t disagreed with him. A day without Johnny felt empty.
She’d been trying to figure out what he had in store for her, since he gave her weird taunts in his texts every time she tried guessing what they’d get up to. Knowing Johnny, the evening would end with her naked, but she had no intention of complaining.
Lara sighed. Talk about falling hard for a guy she never would have guessed would be so sweet.
Ten minutes later, as she stood in his living room and stared at him in dismay, she revised her earlier opinion. “Hold on. You’re going to teach me how to work with different tools in your garage, on your car. For fun?”
Seriously?
He wore a pair of jeans and a grease-stained T-shirt, and he held a wrench in one large hand. “Well, yeah. I figure it’s a good thing to know, so no one can take advantage of you if you have car trouble. We’ll just do some basic stuff. Nothing too complicated.” He paused, gave her the kiss she’d been waiting for since she’d arrived, then added, “You’re giving me a look. Damn. This is stupid, isn’t it?”
“What?” She didn’t understand.
“It’s just… Working with cars is a big part of my life, and I wanted to share it with you.” He shrugged, looking a little…hurt? “I was trying to be more creative with our time together, so you could see I like being around you for more than just sex.”
Seeing him let down, knowing he’d put thought into this idea, she felt awful for doubting him. That he wanted to bring her into his world meant so much, deepening the intimacy between them. So even though she’d been anticipating a few orgasms, followed by mini marshmallows and hot cocoa, she put on her game face. “Okay. I’m in.”
He blinked, then gave her the warmest smile. “You are such a sweetheart. Trust me. You’re going to love this.”
She doubted it, but for him, okay.
He took her jacket from her. “I have a space heater in the garage, so we’ll be nice and toasty while we work. And don’t worry. I cleaned up in there. Go on in.” He prodded her toward the door leading to the garage.
Here goes nothing.
She followed him into the roomy two-car garage, adjusting to the bright work light hanging overhead. As expected, his garage reflected his personality. He had nothing but his car and tools in the place. No boxes or gardening gear anywhere to be seen. A neat workbench sat against the wall, buffered on one side by a large storage locker and on the other by what looked like a large air compressor. He’d rolled his giant toolbox next to a stool by his car.
His
red
car?
“Is this new?” She walked around it, curious, since she could have sworn his car was green and another make altogether. This one had a white stripe around the base. Thick tires and shiny silver hubcaps grounded the vehicle. To her surprise, she saw he now had a convertible.
“Nah. It belongs to a friend. Nice, huh?”
She nodded, peering into the windows, noting the deep black vinyl, the fuzzy dice. A pack of cigarettes? Definitely not his then.
She turned to see him taking off his shirt, and her mouth watered. Dear God, he also had a smudge of grease on one cheek. Her dream hunk of a mechanic come to life. She just stared at the sleeve of tattoos covering his left arm, at the play of muscle on his taut frame. She wanted to lick him from head to toe.
Totally not the effect he’d been going for, trying to share his life with her
without
sexing her up, for once. She totally respected him for that, even if she was having a hell of a time getting her body to agree.
Seeing where her gaze lingered, he gave a self-deprecating grin. “Sorry. I get really hot when I work. Do you want me to put my shirt back on?”
“
No.
Um, no. Be comfortable.” Feeling like a dog in heat, she swallowed and turned back to the car. “So, ah…” She coughed to clear her throat. “Should we pop the hood?”
“Yeah.” He moved to the car, took two pins out of the hood, then pulled a lever in the bumper and raised it. The thing stayed up on its own. “Would you look at that?”
She was doing her best to focus on the car and not the hot man next to her. “It’s nice.”
“Nice?” He snorted. “Honey, that’s a work of art.” He nodded for her to lean closer to the engine, which she had to admit looked clean enough to eat off of. “This beauty is four hundred fifty horsepower of cowl-inducted perfection.” His low voice sounded like a purr—the same voice he used when he made love to her.
He shifted so she could get a better look. Then somehow he was behind her, leaning into her, his body hard and hot against the thin shirt and jeans she wore. She felt enveloped, overheated, and totally turned on.
“This,” he whispered, “is a 1970 Chevelle. Dreamy, isn’t she?” His breath grazed her ear, and she shivered. “Lean lines, power under the hood, and the noises she makes get me fuckin’ hard.”
Lara tried not to swallow her tongue. “Y-you really like this car, huh?”
“We’re going to have some fun with her.” He nibbled on her earlobe, and she felt faint. Good God, how could a half-naked man going on about a car be so damn erotic?
“Fun is good.” She sounded breathless, but sue her.
“Yeah. Scoot back.” He tugged her away from the engine and closed the hood. Then he set the hood pins back in place. “Grab that blanket, would you?”
She glanced around and saw a thick blanket on top of the counter against the wall. It felt soft and smelled as if it had been freshly laundered. “You’re not going to get this dirty, are you?” The blue fabric looked too nice to mess up with grease and car parts.
“Nah. We’re gonna protect the car with it. Can you fold it over, so it has some padding, and set it on the hood? Like in a four-by-four square?”
She did her best, making sure the thick material covered the car’s shiny paint job. “Okay, now wh—”
He spun her around and kissed her. His mouth and hands were everywhere, the subtle scents of cologne and man infused with sex tantalizing her until she didn’t know up from down. Clutching his arms while he eased her back, she started when she felt the car behind her.
“Johnny?”
His wicked grin warned her to be wary. “Oh yeah. Now let me show you how to work.”
Still breathing hard, she watched as he lifted her shirt over her head and tossed it onto the stool, then unfastened her bra and added it to the growing pile. Her shoes hit the floor, then her socks. She couldn’t speak, her mind and body in a knot as she realized he had staged a seduction…in his garage.
With slow tugs, he eased her jeans off her until she stood clad in a pair of skimpy red panties.
“Christ. You had to wear red, didn’t you?” He sighed, then kissed his way up her legs, keeping his attention on her inner thighs. The drag of his stubbled chin and hot, firm lips made her shiver as he took her panties off.
“Cold?”
“No.” She hadn’t noticed the temperature since he’d taken off his shirt. But now that he mentioned it, the space heater gave the room ample warmth.
He smiled at her, the Devlin charm working overtime, and eased her back onto the blanket on the hood. Then he spread her thighs wide.
And it hit her.
Her fantasy—Johnny’s head between her legs, in a garage, on top of a red car.
“Oh my God.”
“Oh yeah,” he agreed, and put his mouth over that taut, wet part of her screaming for his touch.
She arched into him, so ready she feared coming in seconds. His firm grip on her thighs hampered any escape, and he licked and teased with impassioned groans of his own.
Lara tried to hold out, but she’d never been consumed with such fervor. The relentless build of passion was overtaken by an explosion of pleasure. She cried out as she came, and Johnny continued to suck that hard nub while adding his fingers, stroking inside her.
“Too much,” she moaned, overcome with sensation.
He raised his head. “Not enough,” he growled back. His eyes seemed impossibly green, his lips shiny with her arousal. “Again.”