Page 54 of Ghost

“I know. I know.”

I forced a smile, and we finished cleaning up the mess in silence. Once we were done, we carried on like nothing had happened, but I knew it bothered him. I could see it in his eyes, but he didn’t make a big deal of it. Instead, he asked, “You and Toby wanna watch a movie later? Maybe order some pizza or something?”

“Yeah, that would be great.” I motioned my head towards the living room. “Toby could probably use a break after tutoring today.”

“Good deal.” He started for the door as he said, “The new Deadpool movie is supposed to be killer.”

“Deadpool?” I gasped. “I was thinking more like that new robot movie.”

“Yeah, yeah. That’d be good, too.” Sutton stepped out onto the porch as he said, “I gotta get to work. Goose is out back if you need him.”

“Okay. I’ll see you in a few hours.”

Seconds later, I heard the engine of his motorcycle roar to life, and then, he was gone. I tried to keep myself busy, but therest of the day went tediously slow. Toby’s tutor came and went, and I worked on laundry and searched through the want ads. Goose came in and talked for a bit, but he spent most of the day out in the garage working on one of the brother’s bikes.

I could tell by the random curses and sounds of tools crashing against the house that he was struggling. I just didn’t know how bad it was until Sutton showed up. I was helping Toby finish up some homework when I heard him pull up in the driveway and say, “What the hell, brother?”

“It’s a total clusterfuck, man,” Goose whined. “I broke down the carburetor and cleaned it, but that didn’t do shit. So, I changed out the fuel pump, and now, the battery is flaking.”

“Damn.” I got up and watched as Sutton knelt and started looking things over. “Maybe it’s a bad fuse or something.”

“I already checked.”

“Well, it’s gotta be something.”

They both circled the bike like it was some kind of wild animal they were trying to tame. Cocking their heads and staring down at it like it had personally offended them, Sutton finally mumbled, “It’s gotta be the carburetor.”

“Nope. Not it.” Goose wiped the back of his hand across his forehead. “Broke it down twice, and it’s all good.”

Sutton crouched next to the bike and squinted as he inspected every inch. “Maybe it’s the wiring.”

“Maybe, but Rusty didn’t mention anything about it.”

Sutton ignored him and went over to the toolbox. He searched for a moment, then grabbed a wrench and started back over to the bike like he was about to solve world hunger with it. I leaned against the door frame and watched as he started breaking it down.

As I stood there, I found myself staring at Sutton. It was hard not to. He was so damn handsome. Too handsome. I was captivated by the way he moved, so self-assured anddetermined. He was crouched low, and his muscles flexed beneath his shirt. I could almost imagine myself reaching out and touching them—right along with the tattoos that were peeking out from his T-shirt.

Bridget was right.

I was smitten with him.

I just had no idea what I was going to do about it.

He and Goose stayed at it for almost an hour—arguing back and forth, twisting and turning every movable part, and neither of them seemed to have a clue why it wouldn’t start. I walked over and eased the back door open before asking, “You boys okay?”

“Been better.”

“Yeah, I noticed,” I giggled.

“Something funny?”

“Oh, yeah.” I motioned my hand between them and the bike. “This whole thing has been the most entertainment I’ve had all week.”

“She’s got jokes.”

“Oh, no. I’m serious as can be.” I placed my hand on my hip as I teased, “You boys need me to call over to the clubhouse and get some of the guys to come give you a hand?”

Sutton shot me a look over his shoulder. “We’ve got this under control.”

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