Page 113 of Outcast
He handed me my helmet. “Anytime, golden boy. You know I’d never turn down a chance to spend some time with you.”
My heart skipped. “Yeah? I feel the same.”
He slid his hand over my ass and squeezed. “Good. I’m getting a little attached to this. You and me. Maybe someday, we’ll even go on a proper date.”
He swung a leg on the bike, settling in and kick-starting the engine before I could think of a reply. I tugged on my helmet and climbed up behind him, wrapping my arms around his waist, my pulse racing—and not only because of the jolt of the bike leaping beneath me.
Gray was such a great guy. I liked him so much.
But unless I changed my whole life, it couldn’t last. And I just didn’t know if I was brave enough to do that.
CHAPTERTWENTY-SIX
Gray
“We’ve gota car coming in over lunch,” Holden announced from the office doorway. “I’ll need you to hustle on that brake job.”
Bailey slid out from under the late-nineties model of a cranberry Scion XB. “Seriously? I’ve already got a transmission to finish.I can’t keep the owners waiting any longer.Thiswas supposed to be the extra job we fit in.”
Damn. Jose had called in sick again too. That was happening more and more lately.
“I’d do more, but I’ve got two bike jobs coming in,” I said. “Maybe Axel can help.”
“Right, because helovesthat,” Bailey said sarcastically.
“Oh, I can help this time,” Axel said as he walked in with Sugar trotting at his heels and a good-looking guy with floppy dark hair, olive-toned skin, and full pouty lips. “By bringing you this guy.”
Bailey’s eyes nearly fell out of his head as he took in the stranger. Not that I blamed him. If I weren’t so fixated on Emory, I might also take a second look. The guy was gorgeous.
“Where did you find this stray?” I joked.
“This is Matteo,” Axel said. “He’s here about a job, and given the conversation I just walked in on, it seems like we should hear him out.”
“Matteo?” Holden said blankly.
“Yes, sir.” Matteo moved forward, reaching for my brother’s hand.
I intercepted, grasping his hand and giving it a firm shake. Though Holden could shake hands—he regularly made himself engage for business—I was pretty sure he preferred to be in charge of when and how that happened.
“Matteo, hello. You’re Allison’s friend, right?” He nodded, and I continued. “I’m Gray. These are my brothers, Holden and Bailey. I take it you met Axel.”
Matteo nodded. “Yeah, I saw him out with the dog. Asked him if I was in the right place.” He tucked his hands in his pockets. “Haven’t been out this way much. Had to walk over, so I didn’t want to make a wrong turn.”
“You walked all the way out here?” I said, stunned.
That had to be at least three miles on foot, and in the summer heat, no less.
He smiled sheepishly. “I really need a job that isn’t working for my dad. He wouldn’t give me a ride because he thinks it’s better if I stick close. We’re not exactly seeing eye to eye right now.”
“Right, I remember now,” Holden said. “Emory mentioned you were having a tough time finding work because you’re an ex-con?”
“Yes, sir.” Matteo ducked his head a little. “I made some mistakes, but I’m trying to rebuild my life. I just need a chance.”
“Hey, we don’t judge,” I said. “You already paid for those mistakes. You’re trying to start over, and that’s all anyone can do.”
Besides, we all knew what it was like to be judged unfairly. When the old man spiraled after our foster mom died, he dragged us down into the mud with him. Not that we were consideredgood boysbefore then. We’d always been outsiders, loners who lived on the fringes of town. But his drunken arrests had led to people actively avoiding us.
“I gotta be honest, though,” Holden said. “Things are tight around here. I don’t know that we can pay you as much as you’d get somewhere else. We’re trying to build up the business, so there could be more hours and pay in the future, but right now…”
