Rush (Carolina Bad Boys, #5)(9)

Holy. Christ.

The hot coupe with total street cred was nothing short of drool-inducing for a gearhead like me. A flat-out, top-of-the line, bitchin’ ride.

And then I took stock of Shy, leaning against the abovementioned droolworthy Charger, looking no less jaw dropping herself.

Strike. That.

I meant I could see why Tail trailed out after us, then Cole.

Had nothing to do with my gut deep reaction to seeing a gorgeous woman with a delicious body wearing a long raspberry-colored dress that tightened over her tits and flowed around her legs. Or the hint of sunshine in her smile when she saw me. Or the sleek blonde-brown sun-drenched hair.

Or the luscious lips.

Not At All.

“’Zup, Shy?” I reeled in my tongue, half-shuttered my eyes, took anything but a platonic, good old friends greeting off the table.

Unfortunately I hadn’t counted on her inspection of me.

Her soft silver-colored eyes roamed and roved over me as she licked those—yup—luscious lips. I straightened taller the longer she detailed every inch of my body—most of it bare, most of it hard, a lot of it inked—and the color in her cheeks brightened.

Fuck. She was making me self-conscious. I almost ducked my head in an aw shucks move.

Brodie would get his rocks off about that.

Not gonna happen.

She slowly—in a silky movement—pulled herself away from the Hellcat. She came to me at what had to be an intentionally seductive pace.

Or my breath had roughened for nothing.

Didn’t look like nothing.

Really needed to be.

Hellcat?

I might have to start calling her that.

Could I hold out my fist for a knuckle bump with Shy? Back slap? High five?

Because hugging her at that exact moment might prove lethal to all my just an old friend dictates.

Shy took matters into her own hands, pulling me to her by the back of my neck while I played wooden soldier in her embrace. Something sure was catching wood.

Between my legs.

So wrong.

“Uhm.” Disentangling her arms from me, I created some space and hoped my shorts were baggy enough to hide a growing boner. “What brought you here?”

I heard Tail loud-whisper to Cole. “She wants some of that.”

“Handsome’s makeover’s working out then.”

“Nah. Dude. He’s magic. Could always pull pussy.”

Brodie strode up to the duo and smacked each of them on the back of the head. Not that he wasn’t capable of the same damn loose-lipped bullshit.

Shy—Miss Manners and all—pretended she hadn’t heard a thing. And for that I loved her.

“I was just on my way to a meeting and I got a flat.” She pointed to the rear left tire. “Hoped you could help?”

I took a turn around the sizzling hot Hennessey then hunkered down to inspect the dead tire. “You should really take this to Stone’s. It’s their specialty. I can put on the dummy tire and drive it over if you want.”

Lifting to my feet, I realized Shy was way too fucking close in proximity.

Her fresh, beach-swept scent slid over me.

Her silvery eyes shone under a long fan of eyelashes.

And one step closer, her tits would hit my bare chest.

I stepped back, wiping my palms on my shorts.

“But you were always into this kind of thing. You can take care of me, right, Max?” Eyelash flutter and sweet smile.

Shit.

Brodie—bastard barbarian—shoved me forward. “He’ll do it. On the house too. We got just the right tire inside.”

I walked over to the garage side of Chrome and Steele and rapped on the wide door. “Open up.”

My feet pounding on pavement, I struck back to Shy and the Dodge that gave me an instant hard-on.

Because I refused to blame the sudden need to bust-a-nut on my old friend, never flame, the girl next door.

“Drive it in.”

“Why don’t you do the honors?” She tossed me her keys.

I looked at the car. Looked at her. And decided I might never get the chance to drive a Hellcat again.

Shrugging, I eased into the driver’s side then pushed open the passenger door. “Hop in.”

With a smoky laugh, Shy curled in beside me.

I started the car, and the loud purring engine sent another jolt to my dick.

This coupe was goddamn heart-stopping gorgeous.

Come to think of it, so was Shy.

Not going there.

I found my voice somewhere deep down in my chest. “What made you buy this?”

“I like my toys to be hard, fast, and sexy.”

“Toys?” A ragged breath rasped from my throat.

Her hand ran along the dash then fell to the console between us.

“Mmm,” she purred out.

As soon as I parked in the shade of one of the garage bays where Brodie and I took care of the custom work, I hopped out like my ass was on fire.

Something seemed to be.

Not my ass.

Definitely my cock.

Shy slid out more slowly.

I started the hydraulic lift, grabbed a wrench, and said, “Not sure how long this’ll take.”

“I can wait.”

Ugh.

I bet Tail was thinking unf. He hung in the shadows, catching allll the action. No doubt intent on giving the Retribution officers a full debrief on possible flirtation later.