Page 12 of Racer

She made a noncommittal noise. “We’ll see.”

Kane grinned and turned back to me. “She’s better at fixing engines than most of my guys. Started wrenching when she was twelve.”

I raised a brow. “That right?”

Emily’s gaze didn’t waver. “You break your ride, I’ll fix it. You break your neck, that’s on you.”

I couldn’t stop the smile that tugged at my lips. “What if I break your patience?”

“Then I’ll break your face,” she shot back.

I’d never wanted anyone more.

Fuck. I was in so much trouble.

4

EMILY

Ishould’ve walked away the second Kane finished introductions. But I didn’t.

I must’ve been a glutton for punishment. Especially the kind that made heat curl low in my stomach.

I spent most of my time around guys as far back as I could remember, but I’d never reacted to one like this before. Then again, none of the guys I worked with looked like Racer.

After years of wondering if my libido was broken, I finally discovered what kind of guy got my engine revving at the absolute worst time. Tall and muscular with messy dark blond hair and green eyes that didn’t miss much. And a body that came from adrenaline and grease, not vanity. The flames inked down his right arm made me wonder if he had more art beneath his slightly damp black tee.

“Emily,” Kane said with a warning in his voice.

Racer waved him off. “It’s fine.”

Crossing my arms, I shifted my weight to one foot, unsure how to feel about him not minding my threats. “You sure he’s not just here to collect phone numbers?”

Racer grinned, all cocky confidence and no shame. “Only if yours comes first.”

Of course he had a quick comeback.

I kind of hated how easily he took our banter in stride. As though I wasn’t being prickly on purpose. Like I didn’t have a reason to be pissed that he needed to be here in the first place, let alone walking around the pit after fishtailing across the track and nearly kissing the damn barricade for attention.

Kane clapped him on the shoulder. “Careful, I wasn’t kidding about her skills. Em knows the insides of these engines better than most drivers know their steering columns.”

“Noted,” Racer said, still looking at me like I was more interesting than the damn car next to us.

I refused to blush under his stare even though it was hot enough to blame any color in my cheeks on the weather.

“As long as your golden boy knows how to keep four tires on the pavement, maybe he won’t make my job harder,” I muttered.

Racer chuckled behind me. “Wasn’t aware I needed to impress you, angel.”

“Never said you did,” I shot back. “But you don’t want to piss me off either.”

Kane waited until Racer wandered off to check one of the Chevelles, then hooked two fingers around my elbow and tugged me a few steps away. Not far enough for anyone to notice, just so our voices wouldn’t carry to the rest of our crew.

“He’s gonna race, but that’s not why I brought Racer down here,” Kane said, low and serious.

I narrowed my eyes. “What do you mean?”

“He’s bait.”

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