“I can see that.” Bently nodded, watching her with rapt attention.
“Sometimes I wonder if I did something wrong. That maybe I put too much pressure on him, or he fed off my overachiever energy.”
Bently reached out his hand, his warm palm eclipsing hers. “I think that boy is so amazing because of everything you’ve done for him. Despite . . . everything . . . you got out. You changed both of your life courses for the better. There’s nothing to regret about that.”
She swallowed. He may not know everything about her past, but he’d hit the nail on the head. He saw her.
His finger traced the skin of her wrist, sending tantalizing swirls of arousal spinning through her. He abruptly pulled his hand away, ending the contact. He stood and walked over to the sink.
“You don’t have to do those.” She got up.
He turned back to her, switching on the water. “You cooked, I clean. Now put your feet up and tell me about that book you were reading.”
Her eyebrows rose. “My book?”
He nodded, squirting soap onto a sponge. “You seemed to be lost in another world while you read it. A million different expressions danced across that beautiful face as you turned the pages.”
“You were watching me read?”
“Hard to look away. Why do you think I lost so badly to your brother?” He chuckled.
Heat spread in her chest and rose to her cheeks. She was flattered and confused and awed by this man.
“What was it about?” he asked, elbows deep scrubbing her dishes.
Was it possible to combust internally? Sparks and shimmers, like warm rays of sunshine, blossomed beneath her rib cage.
He’d given her something so much more than a physical release tonight. He’d offered her what she craved most—connection. Even if he didn’t want it, how was she supposed to stop giving this man her heart?
Chapter 18
Bently
“Give me the drip pan,” Bently said, reaching his hand out.
TJ handed him the black plastic container as the asphalt bit into his shoulder.
“Now the socket wrench, and get down here and you can see what I’m doing better,” he directed. The cold metal pressed into his palm, before TJ bent and crawled under the jacked Ford Focus.
“You sure it isn’t going to fall and crush us?” he asked worriedly.
“Yeah, even if it fell, we got the tires to protect us. It’s pretty secure though.” Bently lined up the drip pan underneath the right location. “Okay, so take this socket wrench and put it on the oil drain plug there.” Bently handed the tool over to the young man. “Pull it to the left.”
TJ did as he was told and the bolt loosened.
“Perfect. Now unscrew it with your hand the rest of the way. But watch out, it drains fast.”
Black liquid poured out into the plastic bin.
TJ’s large grin highlighted his white teeth. “Now what?”
“After it’s done draining, we’ll put one of these new gaskets on to make sure it won’t leak, and get it nice and tight.”
Bently walked TJ through the rest of the process, taking time to answer his questions.
“Now it’s done, we can put some fresh oil in from under the hood.” He inched out from under the car, his eyes meeting the very fine legs of the woman he couldn’t get out of his head. He took his time as his gaze lazily crawled up her curves, modestly hidden in those blue scrubs she wore. Her brown spheres slammed into his with so much force. Gratitude he didn’t deserve radiated out of her, saturating the air between them. How long had she been watching them?
Bently wiped his hand on the rag and stood. “Almost ready for you to go to work.”
“You changed my oil?” she asked, searching his face for an explanation. There wasn’t one, except, something inside him drew him to her like a moth to the flame. He may not be able to give her everything she needed, but he could take care of her in these little ways.
“TJ mentioned it the other night at dinner.” He hoped she’d drop it and they could move on with their day.
“And he showed me so I can do it next time,” TJ said, patting him on the shoulder.
Belle looked between him and her brother, her eyes going glassy as she blinked.
“Aww, don’t cry, sis.” TJ wrapped his arms around Belle.
Bently’s own hands itched to do the same. Why was she acting like this was a big deal?
“You need a shower.” She laughed, pulling out of her brother’s embrace.
“Yeah. Have a good night at work,” TJ said, walking backwards towards the house. “Wanna order a pizza, Bently? Then I’ll school your ass in Madden.”
“Sounds good,” he agreed as the young man disappeared inside. He bent and picked up the tools before placing them back in his toolbox.
“Thank you. No one’s . . . I mean . . . this means a lot,” Belle said, stepping closer.
Bently gathered the quarts of fresh oil and poured it into the dispenser. “It’s not a big deal.”
“It is to me,” she said quietly.
He capped off the top and shut the hood of the car. “I’ll get it off the jack and you’ll be all set.”
He did as he said and put his tools in the back of his truck, along with the old oil he’d drop off to Link to recycle at the garage.
Two arms wrapped around him as he turned, encompassing him in a hug. His chest squeezed tight, something snapping inside. Careful not to get his
