Page 15 of Reclaiming Kendall

I haven’t had a chance to look at the planner yet, but we’ve probably got it booked since I took two weeks off.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

She grimaces, “Well, you didn’t have anyone scheduled, because I didn’t think you’d want to work the weekend straight from your honeymoon. If I pencil her in, you’ll have to take one of the guys with you. I won’t be able to make it.”

“Got a hot date?” I wink.

Her face turns pink, and I mock gasp, “You do, don’t you?”

Bringing my hand up, I tap my chin, “Does Logan know?”

“He better damn well know since he’s the one who asked me out,” she chirps out, fighting a smile.

I tell her to put the Allens down for the weekend. As she walks away, I can’t help but to feel happy for them. I’m not sure why it’s taken this long, but I guess everyone has their own reasons.

With only a few clients for the day, it’s nice to be able to sit down with Ry and catch up on everything at lunch. I’m sure to thank her multiple times for all of the things she did for us while we were gone, too. By the time we’re closing up shop, I feel more exhausted than I should. It wasn’t a hard day by any means, but it’s almost as though I overexerted myself.

Saying bye to Ryleigh, I hop in my Toyota 4Runner. After all that shit went down a couple of years ago, I finally let go of Gramp’s old Malibu, and let the guys convince me to upgrade. Mav really. He’d been the only one super adamant about it, but I’d decided that the good memories attached to it didn’t outweigh the more recent bad ones. Gramps probably would’ve kicked me in the ass for keeping it simply for sentimental reasons, anyway.

The good thing that came from it was that I got to choose whatever I wanted. The guys got to voice their opinions, and I did take them into consideration. As soon as found this one, though, it was over. It was up to par for all of Mav and Grant’s safety demands. All it took was Lucas confirming that it was one of the better choices, and it was mine.

I sink into the black leather, not the best choice for southern summers, seats and let out a deep sigh I feel like I’ve been holding in all day. There’s still about another hour or two before Lucas and his brothers will close up over at their shop, so I start the car and head that way. The smart thing would be to go straight home and sneak in a nap before dinner. Our new bed is so fucking comfortable, there’s no doubt I could pull off what would feel like a good two hours in thirty minutes. Something just keeps me on my set path, and I let it take me all the way to the auto shop.

Pulling into the spot between Lucas and Logan’s beastly trucks, I step out into the late afternoon humid air. Seeing my little 4Runner between their vehicles always brings a smile to my face. It was ten times worse with the old Malibu. It looked like nothing more than a clown car mixed in with them.

Between the heat and unexplained exhaustion, by the time I’m pulling open the door, my smile has drooped back down into a grimace. Thankfully, I’m greeted with a huge blast of cold air that instantly tries to dry the sweat that had been forming on my body.

The seat behind the front desk is empty, but that’s not concerning since it’s so late in the day. Normally, clients won’t be scheduled to come by, or if they are, then one of the brothers takes care of it. Layla, the receptionist they hired a few months ago, has another job at the nursing home on the other side of town. Both Ry and I had balked at her at first, because she’s gorgeous with deep-blue eyes and red hair; not to mention smart and hardworking, too. And it’s not like we don’t trust Lucas and Logan with her. It’s just one of those temptation things. After getting to know her, we both relaxed. She’s a nice as can be and doesn’t seem the least bit interested in our Rowe men. Now, Lathan and Leo...that’s a whole other ball game.

Lost in thought, I let my feet carry me over to the window that looks out into the shop. Logan and Leo are in the back corner, their brown-haired heads tucked close together, looking over something the latter has in his hands. Lathan waves up to me from beneath the car closest to the window. He rolls out just as I spot Lucas under the hood of the van next to him.

That smile breaks across my face again as I look at him. I love the way he’s bent over at an angle forcing those, what I know to be, tight glutes out on display. Even in the coveralls that match his brothers’ exactly, I’d be able to pick that ass out of all of them. My eyes roam from his backside all the way up to his face where it’s scrunched up in concentration. With his sleeves rolled up his forearms, all his sexy tattoos flex down them as he keeps working, still having not seen me. After standing here for a minute or so, my body no longer feels tired, and I’m thankful once again for the air conditioning when the hot flush fills my cheeks.

Lathan stuffs a dirty rag in his back pocket before strolling over to Lucas and popping him on the back. I see Lucas’s eyes flick back with question, and Latham motions with his thumb towards me before making his way over to the other two in the corner. My smile broadens even further when Lucas’s blue eyes find mine through the window.

Whatever he’s doing under the hood comes to a complete standstill as he spots me. He grabs a shop rag from where it’s fallen to the floor and uses it to wipe his hands down before coming to open the door. It lets in a rush of soul-sucking heat and humidity, but the small space is then filled with the scent of Lucas and grease from the shop.

“Hey, baby,” he says, leaning down for a kiss.

I’m careful not to touch the dirty front of his coveralls as I reach up to meet him halfway. It’s only a quick brush of lips and tongue, but it starts a fire underneath my skin.

“Hi,” I breathe when we finally pull away.

His eyes crinkle with his smile, “How was your day? Everything okay?”

I know I don’t come by here as much as I should, and that’s made clear by him assuming something might be wrong. I’ve got to make it a point to change that.

“Yep, everything is fine. I was just feeling kind of tired there at the end. I thought about going home to get a nap in before dinner, but decided I wanted to come see you instead,” I confess.

This earns me an even bigger grin, “I’m glad you stopped by. Give me a second to wash up, yeah?”

“You sure? It’s not closing time yet,” I remind him.

“I’m sure, baby,” he says placing a soft kiss on the tip of my nose. “It’s close enough.”

My perverted eyes follow him all the way back out into the shop. One small kiss mixed with the smell of him here at work, and I’m ready to jump his bones. A wicked idea pops into my head. With one more quick look out to where he stands at the sink, I walk down the hallway towards his office.

I’m not even sure why they have these back here. Each one of them have one, but it’s not like they ever use them. Point proven as I ease in through the open door of his. There’s a cherry-colored oak desk with a rolling chair behind it. Nothing sits atop the desk, not even a computer, but there are a few framed photos hung on the wall beside a copy of his Mechanic’s degree from college.

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