Chapter 5
Jeremiah
The moment she looked my direction, I did my best to refrain from smiling. Hell, I’m fucking pissed about the shop, but the way she handled Banks made me want to buy her a damn beer. Shit. Who am I kidding? The way she looked my direction made me want to follow her right out the damn door, but I’m a Drake and I don’t follow any woman. I’m the one that calls the shots.
When the door closes, I look back toward the bar and see Banks standing there speechless. Placing my pool stick back on the wall, I take my beer and walk toward the bar. It’s time to call it a night.
“Stella, how much is my tab?”
“$22.65.”
Taking my wallet out of my back pocket, I pull out a twenty and a ten. Tossing it on the bar, I begin to slide my wallet back in when I hear him fucking talking.
“You better watch yourself, Drake. She’s bad news.”
Looking his direction, I ask, “Bad news? Do you know who the hell you’re talking to? The moment I saw you with her I knew you’d never be able to handle her. Not with those pansy ass loafers you’ve got on.” Everett begins to laugh behind me and that’s when I see Banks try to bulk up. Who does he think he’s messing with? I take a step toward him.
“Banks, you don’t want to do that tonight,” I say, giving him a warning.
“You know you can’t keep running that trap of yours. One day someone is going to not take your shit.”
Laughing, I look at him. “Well, that’s not today because I could whoop your ass with my eyes closed.”
“No worries, I don’t need to. I plan on seeing Landry tomorrow, and when I show up at the shop and she tells me she’s sorry, I’ll have her screaming my name by lunch.”
Something inside me snaps. Taking a step toward him, I grab him by his collared shirt and walk him backward toward the door. Someone opens it as I push him outside and toss him against the side of building.
“You listen, and you listen closely. You will not come by the shop tomorrow, and if I ever hear you talk about her like that again, I will cut off your fingers one by one. You got it? She is not to be fucked with.”
He doesn’t say a word as I let go of his shirt and take a step back before walking toward my truck, and that’s when I see the Camaro and her eyes meet mine. I don’t say a word or crack a smile. Instead, I walk toward my truck, climb in and drive toward the shop.
Landry
The moment I got into my car, I noticed that Sadie, my best friend, had called. Quickly, I call her back before leaving the parking lot. As it continues to ring, I see the bar door swing open and burst out laughing when I see Jeremiah slam Banks against the bar wall.
“Landry, what the hell is so funny?” she questions.
“Oh my gosh, Sadie, I’m going to have to call you back.”
“Like hell you will!” Quickly, I fill her in and when Jeremiah turns to walk toward his truck, I do my best not to look at him. However, when his eyes meet mine, I feel as if he did that for me. Why? I’m not sure. “Hello? Landry? You there?”
“Oh yeah, sorry. I kinda got caught up watching the fight go down.”
“So you mean to tell me that the guy from your Paw’s shop just whooped the guy’s ass you were playing pool with?”
“That’s about right.”
“Damn, girl. Why can’t I have your luck?”
“What do you mean?”
“Twenty bucks says mechanic boy has the hots for ya.”
I begin to laugh until it hurts. “Sadie, that’s fucking Jeremiah Drake, and he wants nothing to do with me.”
“Yeah, don’t kid yourself. He just whooped a guy’s ass because of you.”
“I don’t know that for sure.”
“You can’t tell me it didn’t have to do with you, but I can tell you that being his boss isn’t going to work out,” she says.
“I already know that. He had no problem telling Paw that either today.”
I talk to Sadie a few more minutes when I realize that I’ve got to get going. Putting my car in reverse, I drive toward Paw’s. As I pass the shop, I notice that the lights are on and Jeremiah’s truck is parked out front. What the hell is he doing?
“Sadie, he’s at the shop. I’m going to see what he’s doing in there this late at night.”
“Girl, he’s prob just pissed and taking out his answer on a big piece of metal.”
“True,” I say as I continue to drive past the shop, deciding that I can have this conversation tomorrow. As I approach the stoplight, I tell Sadie bye and pausing a moment, I do a U-turn and drive right back to the shop.
Pulling into the shop, I pull the door and realize it’s locked. Well, at least that’s a plus. Digging out my keys, I finally find them and open the door to be knocked down by some classic country music blaring on the radio. What the hell? Metallica, yes, but not George. I almost want to laugh. Looking around, I don’t see him anywhere, but when I hear metal hit the floor, I know he’s at the opposite end under the hood of the Impala.
Trying my best, I prance quietly toward him on the tips of my toes, trying not to let my heels click. Once I’m at the car, I see him on the dolly underneath the car. I don’t say anything. Instead, I stand there with my arms crossed and wait for him to notice me.
Jeremiah
The moment she walked into the building, I felt her, I didn’t have to slide out from under the car. When she tried to be sneaky walking toward me, I wanted to belt out a laugh. Instead, I kept working and when she paused in front of me, I had a decision to make—do I keep her waiting, make her think she’s in control, or scare the shit out of her?
“Can you hand me a ratchet extender?” I ask her as I slide out from under the car and see her standing to my right with her arms crossed.
“What are you doing here?” she questions.
“Working. What are you doing here?” I banter back.
“Checking to see why you’re here. I’m not paying you overtime.” I begin to laugh.
“You gonna hand me that extender or what?” She moves to the tool box and hands it to me. “Never wanted the money.”
Sliding back under there, I finish what I’m doing quickly as she squats down to see what I’m working on.
“Can I ask what the hell that was outside of Barger’s?”
“Just a friendly reminder, that’s all.”
“I can handle myself.” Sliding back from the car, I stand and wipe my hands on the worn towel then lean against the work bench. “Don’t,” she says, pointing her finger at me as she takes a step toward me. If she knows what’s good for her, she’ll stop right there.
“I’m very aware you can handle yourself, but that fucker decided to mess with the wrong Drake brother tonight.”
Her head turns in question. “What do you mean?”
“It doesn’t matter. Look, I’m going to finish up here and head out. I don’t expect overtime, but I do expect you to stay the hell out of my way in here.”
“Why’s that?” The way she says it, I know what she’s implying and I’ve got to refrain from pressing her ass against the hood of this car.
I stand to walk past her when she steps in front of me. “Landry, don’t do that unless you’re ready to play in the big leagues.”
She looks up at me, “Jeremiah, I’m not that little tomboy anymore and I was made for the big leagues.” Fuck.
As her eyes linger on mind, I say fuck it. Taking step toward her, I pick her up and turn her toward the car. As I find the hood, I sit her on it gently and look her in the eyes. The aqua color has me falling deep into a sea of never turning back. Bending down, my lips meet hers and I take them in mine. I don’t play nice and neither does she as we tangle our lips together. When she bites my lower lip, I about lose my shit, but then it hits me. I can’t do this, not with her in here. Taking a step back, I turn and walk out the door, leaving her there alone.
Landry
What the fuck just happened? I went from being on the best high of my life to all alone in the shop. How can he do that? I’ll be damned if I play this game with him, and once I’ve got myself together, I don’t bother turning off the lights. Instead, I lock the door and head home. Tomorrow morning, it’s on.
As my alarm goes off, I shower and get ready for work. Sliding on my worn jeans and a tank that I can care less if it gets dirty, I make my coffee and get ready to go to the shop when Paw calls.
“Hey, pretty girl! They’re letting me blow this joint. Can you come and get me?”
“Of course.” I think about calling the shop but don’t worry about it. Arriving at the hospital, he’s discharged and insists on going by the shop before going home. Unsure of how this will go with Jeremiah, I follow his wishes.
Arriving at the shop, I’m shocked to see Banks’ car in the parking lot. I shake my head. “What’s up, pretty girl?”
“Banks. Jeremiah roughed him up pretty good last night at Barger’s on my account.” Paw doesn’t do anything but stare. “What?”
“Landry, honey, the only time a Drake boy roughs up a guy for a girl is when they’ve fallen.” I start to laugh, but he doesn’t. “I saw it happen with their father, Charles, and with Everett not too long ago. That boy’s got it bad.”
“Doubtful. He made that pretty clear. Did you know he works in here when he’s pissed about stuff?”
“Don’t we all?”
Pausing, I think about it and know he’s right. “I guess so, but Bank’s has to be stupid to walk in here today. He’s liable to get pressed in a vice.” We both laugh as I go around to help Paw out.
Walking into the shop, Paw looks around to see that we were right about Banks. Jeremiah has him against a wall with a wrench in his hand.
“Boys, that’s enough,” he says and Jeremiah lets him go. A flash of relief covers his face when he sees Paw.
“Banks, what the fuck do you need?” Paw asks.
“I brought Landry some breakfast. That’s all.”
“Mayes, that might be the case, but I told that fucker to stay away from her after last night.”
I snap. Looking at Paw, I know I’ve got to keep it together. Instead, I ignore him and let Paw have a few minutes around here. Once he’s content, I look to Jeremiah and Davis. “I’ll be back shortly. Banks, fuck off,” I say as we walk out the door.
When we get in the car, Paw starts to cackle. “What’s so funny?”
“You. Your mama would have a fit if she heard you say that.”
“Maybe, but it’s the truth, and if you’re gonna work in a shop like that you’ve got to be able to handle yourself,” I say to him as I take him home.
Once we’re home, I get him settled and ask if there’s anything he needs. He promises he’s good. I make him a tomato sandwich for lunch, pass him the remote, and tell him I’ll be home a little after five. He tells me to take my time and that Ben next door will be close if he needs him. Kissing his forehead, I tell him I love him and drive back to the shop.