Head Over Wheels: Road Tripping Series Page 3

  “You say something?”

  With a small screech, she jumped. Hand over her heart, she turned and faced him. “Geez, Mal! Don’t do that!”

  He looked at her like she was crazy. “Do what? Talk to you?”

  “Ha, ha, very funny.” Grabbing her suitcase, she carried it over to the door before walking around and making sure they hadn’t forgotten anything. When it was clear they had everything, Dani smiled at him. “So…breakfast. You know I’m not a big breakfast person, but if you’re hungry, we should probably eat before we hit the road.”

  “Uh…yeah,” he finally said. “Sure. Sounds good.”

  He wouldn’t look directly at her and once they were in the elevator with several other hotel guests and standing close together–very close together–she could feel how stiffly he was standing. She took advantage of the opportunity to study him. His jaw was stubbled and scratchy and she wouldn’t have minded kissing him again and lingering there all morning if given the opportunity.

  Down in the lobby, he announced that a drive-thru was just fine and quickly made his way out the front door. Chuckling to herself, she took care of checking out before meeting him out by the truck. She found him examining the car and making sure the tarp over it was secured.

  “It’s a gorgeous day, don’t you think?”

  He nodded.

  “We have an eleven o’clock appointment with Devlin Bennett in Savannah. It’s only an hour away so there’s really no rush, right? Maybe we can do a little sightseeing before we have to meet him?” she suggested.

  Without looking away from what he was doing, he said, “I’m not much for sightseeing.” He didn’t sound angry or annoyed; he was simply stating a fact.

  Typical Malcolm. Nothing seemed to ruffle him.

  A slow smile spread across her face as an idea came to her. Maybe it was time to push some boundaries, leave her own comfort zone, and see if it was possible to…ruffle him.

  And boy-oh-boy would she love to ruffle him.

  Repeatedly.

  For hours.

  Down, girl…

  “What about…?” But she never got to finish. Malcolm grabbed their luggage and placed it in the truck and held the door open for her to climb in. Before he could close it, she kicked her foot out to stop him. “Hey,” she said softly.

  He looked up at her questioningly.

  “We’ve still got quite a few days to get through together. Any chance you can relax a bit?”

  Brows furrowed, he said, “What are you talking about? I’m relaxed.”

  “Mal, you’ve barely talked to me all morning and now we’ve got an hour of driving to kill. I’d rather not spend it with my earbuds in again. Please.” She gave him a sweet smile in hopes of softening him up, but…

  “We need to get going,” he murmured, closing the door.

  Once he was settled in behind the wheel and they were on their way, Dani pulled out her phone and began doing some searches. After they had gone through the drive-thru of McDonald's, she figured she’d start the conversation.

  “Do you want me to sit in on this meeting with Mr. Bennett? Is his place anywhere near the historic district? Because if you don’t need me with you, I thought I’d do one of those trolley tours. There are some seriously cool ghost tours, but I’m guessing those are done at night. Do you think they’re done at night? I’m sure they’re better when it’s dark out.”

  “Dani?”

  “Hmm?”

  “It’s too early for all those questions. Maybe ask one and wait for me to actually answer it.”

  She laughed softly. “Yeah, I know I tend to be too chatty in the mornings. Sorry. Normally I’m in the office starting my day and you’re in the garage under a car. I’m usually on the phone talking to people so…I’ll keep quiet until you’ve finished your breakfast. How does that sound?” If she didn’t have sunglasses on, he’d see she was batting her lashes at him.

  With nothing more than a grunt and nod, Malcolm resumed eating his breakfast biscuit while driving. It was on the tip of her tongue to offer to drive but she knew that would get her nowhere. They had made such strides last night over dinner and it bothered her that he was back to his quiet ways today.

  What to do…what to do…

  Now that she had gotten a glimpse of how funny and sweet and charming he could be outside of the garage, there was no way she was going to settle for going back. They still had almost a week away together. Tomorrow was going to kick off the hardest and busiest time for them with the auto show, and she refused to spend it acting like they were just co-workers or casual acquaintances.

  But for right now, she had to bide her time and not push too hard.

  So she would wait for him to finish his breakfast and his coffee, then give him some time to simply relax and then…

  Then she was going to do her damnedest to bring out the man she had finally seen last night.

  Something was up.

  They had finished their appointment and lunch with Devlin and were back on the road. She hadn’t gone on the trolley tour or any haunted ones–something he never would have pegged her for–and something just felt…off. Dani came to the appointment with him to discuss a restoration on a 1969 Dodge Charger. She had sat in on consultations at their shop, but this was the first time she came to meet with a client. He figured she’d sit back and maybe just observe, but she didn’t. Instead, she joined in the conversation and offered some great insight into the process Devlin was looking to schedule with him.

  Malcolm always knew Dani had a strong working knowledge of what went into the restoration of a classic car, but he found himself beyond impressed with the way she handled herself.

  And a little uneasy at the way she handled him.

  First it was a simple hand on his forearm. Honestly, he didn’t think anything of it. But then she touched his bicep–all the while talking to Devlin–and squeezed.

  Twice.

  By the end of the conversation, her hand was resting on his thigh and he had no idea how he was going to stand up without it being incredibly awkward–and obvious–how much her touch affected him.

  She did the same thing to him over lunch, but luckily, he had the table for protection.

  It was like he was thirteen again and being asked by the teacher to show his work up on the board while dealing with an unexpected erection.

  So yeah, something was definitely up and Malcolm was finding it hard to believe it was all because of last night.

  Although last night was…incredible. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d gone out for a meal with a woman and enjoyed himself more. Then back at the room, for those few minutes when she was beside him in bed, he felt like everything was exactly as it should be. He felt peaceful and happy and…then he wasn’t. Looking back, he never should have let her simply kiss him on the cheek and then leave. He should have hauled her into his arms and kissed her like he’d been fantasizing about for years.

  Years.

  What kind of man waited that long without going after what he wanted?

  A stupid one…

  Yeah. That.

  The problem was…okay, one of the problems was that the business was doing really well right now. His father had spent years barely breaking even and then making enough of a profit to live comfortably. They were finally in a place where they were both making good money–great money. And Dani was one of the reasons that finally happened. She had come in and taken over their marketing, handling all communications with their clients, and then created their social media accounts – something neither him or his father had a clue about. She had a knack for it and the results of her efforts came in fast. They could barely keep up with the demand for restorations. Their waiting list was eighteen months long! Did he really want to mess that up by starting something with her when he knew he was going to mess it up?

  Way to be confident, dude.

  It was hard to argue with his track record.

  There was no way he wanted Dani to be included in his disastrous dating history. She didn’t deserve that. But he also didn’t want to jeopardize their working relationship. Maybe she wouldn’t mind seeing him every day after things went south, but he’d feel like shit if he had to walk in and look at her beautiful face and know that he’d screwed up.

  Then let this go…

  Easier said than done.

  Right now, she was sitting beside him quietly–her earbuds in–and smiling as she listened to music so she wouldn’t distract him. He shook his head with disgust. She was only doing it because he had all but snapped at her earlier about how chatty she was. He kind of felt like crap about it because she had only been trying to make conversation.

  Before he could second-guess himself, he reached over and tapped Dani on the shoulder. Her smile was sweet and instantaneous.

  “What’s up?”

  “So, uh…I was wondering, uh…I mean…I just thought um…”

  If she had any attraction to him, there was no doubt that it was dying a slow, painful death, he thought, unable to believe how tongue-tied she made him.

  Her eyes went a little wide but her smile never wavered.

  “You don’t need to sit with those things in your ears,” he said gruffly. “We can talk…you know…if you want.”

  I loathe myself…

  “I didn’t want to bother you,” she replied sweetly. “It seems to me you prefer it to be quiet when you’re driving.”

  Normally he did, but…maybe it was time to try something different. “Who’s your favorite band?” he asked, offering her a small smile.

  After that, it was like they both relaxed back into the people they were the night before. Malcolm couldn’t even help himself. She drew things out of him he didn’t normally talk about–like
growing up working on cars and how hard his parents’ divorce was on him. The divorce was something he never talked about, and yet with Dani…it felt completely natural.

  “Do you see your mom a lot?” she asked. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you talk about her in all the years I’ve worked for you.”

  “She lives in Nashville now and she’s always on me to come visit, but…I usually only go once a year.”

  “How come?”

  He shrugged. “There just never seems to be a good time to go. We’ve got so much going on with the shop and Dad’s…I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but he’s slowing down a bit. I hate leaving everything on him so I can go play tourist with my mom.”

  “Hmm…”

  Turning his head slightly, he looked at her. “Hmm, what?”

  “I guess you sided with your dad then,” she commented. “You know, in the divorce.”

  “Not really. Why would you think that?”

  Now it was her turn to shrug. “I don’t know. It just seems like you’re completely settled in with him and he’s your priority. Not your mom.”

  Huh. He never really thought of it like that.

  “It’s not like I purposely chose sides,” he explained. “I’ve always enjoyed working on cars and it’s something Dad and I always did together. When they split up, I had to divide my time living with the two of them. Mom was still living in Raleigh at the time, so I stayed with her during the week and with Dad on the weekends. She moved and remarried after I graduated high school.”

  “Do you like your stepfather?”

  Did he? “Uh…yeah. Steve’s a cool guy and he takes good care of my mom.” He paused. “She deserves that. My father always put cars and the business first. It’s why he’s been married three times. So when she met Steve, it was…it was a little eye-opening.”

  “In what way?”

  “She…she blossomed,” he said and realized how stupid he sounded. “Or…I don’t know. Something like that.”

  “No,” she said, resting her hand on his denim-clad thigh. “I know what you’re saying. She suddenly seemed happier, right?”

  Nodding, he said, “She laughed more and I swear she suddenly looked…younger. I don’t know. I started to feel like whenever I was around, I was a reminder of the crappy life she used to have.”

  “Malcolm, you can’t look at it like that! Oh, my goodness! Why would you even think that? Did she ever make you feel that way?”

  “No,” he said firmly, and he meant it. “She’s always thrilled to see me and makes a big fuss over me, but…I guess it’s how I feel. I feel like an outsider when I’m there.”

  She was quiet for a moment. “Okay, I’m going to say something and please don’t take offense.”

  “O-kay…”

  “Do you think you feel that way because of your own feelings? Like…you see the life she has now and you resent it because it’s not the life you got to have growing up?”

  Well damn. Now he did!

  “I never thought of it like that. My folks divorced when I was ten, and even when they were together, it was never…it was never like it is with her and Steve. They do things together, he works a normal job, they have friends they go out and socialize with, they travel…”

  “All the things she never did with you and your dad.”

  “Exactly.”

  “You know you’re following in his same path, right?” she asked, and he could hear the hesitation–the uncertainty–in her voice.

  All he could do was nod.

  “I’m not trying to be mean and maybe I’m speaking completely out of turn, but…”

  “You’re not, Dani. Trust me. I see it happening and yet…I can’t seem to stop it.” They fell silent for several moments and he was thankful for it. “I love what I do and I’m good at it. And I think this is the way Dad’s done things for so long he doesn’t know how to change.”

  Beside him, she twisted in her seat so she could face him. “Malcolm, it doesn’t matter if your father changes. It’s not all about him. This is about you. If you’re not happy with your life, you’re the only one who can change it. Have you guys ever thought about hiring more people? I know you subcontract some of the body work out, but…what about just having a couple more guys on hand to help out?”

  “It’s an expense to hire more people and I’m not sure…”

  “You’ve got a long waiting list of clients and if you had a few more guys working for you, you’d get more cars in and out faster. It’s just something to think about.”

  “I know.”

  After that, Dani talked more about the benefits of hiring a couple of guys and he chimed in when he had something to say, and he felt like a giant weight had been lifted off of him. He never talked to any of his friends about his discontent or the ways he wished the business would grow and change and he realized it was something he should have done sooner because…he needed to.

  His father had started the business, but he was a partner in it now and he should have a say in how things went. Just because they had done things a certain way for so long didn’t mean they always had to do it that way.

  As a matter of fact, just because he had been doing things–like avoiding Dani–for so long, didn’t mean he always had to.

  And when they got to the hotel, he was done avoiding.

  4

  The hotel was similar to the one from the night before.

  They were staying in a suite.

  They had gone out to dinner, and as they headed back up to the room, Dani had butterflies in her belly.

  Tonight she wasn’t going to settle for kissing Malcolm on the cheek.

  Tonight she was going to be brave and take what she wanted.

  And man oh man did she want Malcolm.

  Being in such close proximity to him all day for two days had her on sensory overload. She could smell his cologne, study every feature on his face, listen to him talk and laugh…but mostly, she watched his hands.

  And fantasized way too hard about how they were going to feel on her skin.

  Yeah, tonight was the night.

  Malcolm opened the door to the room and once they stepped inside, she considered her options. Did she go change like she did last night or did she stay out here with him? Hmm…

  “I have something for you,” he said gruffly, breaking into her thoughts.

  “You do?” She smiled up at him and hoped she didn’t sound as giddy as she felt.

  Nodding, he walked across the room and opened his suitcase, pulling out a small plastic bag. Dani moved in close. He turned and handed it to her. “I saw it earlier when we checked in and knew you’d like it.”

  Gah…did he have any idea how much she loved when he did stuff like this?

  Peeking into the bag, she could feel her smile growing to almost painful proportions. Inside was a palm-sized stuffed animal–a pug. She had talked a lot over the last several years about her family’s pet pug, Penelope, and how she wanted a pug puppy of her own someday.

  “I know it’s not a real puppy,” he said, his voice low and so damn seductive, “but when I saw it, I knew you needed it.”

  Looking up at him, she felt tears sting her eyes. “She’s perfect,” Dani said quietly. “Thank you.”

  Here’s your moment…

  Gently placing the toy and bag on the table, she moved in close to him. “That was incredibly sweet of you.”

  Malcolm’s gaze was intense, and if anything, it made her bold.

  Carefully, she placed her hands on his chest and slowly moved them up and over his shoulders as she pressed in closer. “Very, very sweet of you,” she whispered before she closed the distance between them and pressed her lips to his.

  She was prepared for him to be shocked.

  She was prepared for him to maybe kiss her back briefly and then move away.

  But there was no way she was prepared for the total onslaught of sensations as Malcolm reached up and anchored one of those wonderfully large hands in her hair and took over the kiss.

  Holy. Crap.

  There was no easing into it; it went from lips touching to all-consuming in the blink of an eye and Dani did her best to keep up. The man kissed with the same intensity he did everything and she was more than happy to be on the receiving end of it. His tongue stroked hers in the most erotic way. Her head spinning, and she was more than anxious to move things from where they were standing in the living room to any surface they could lie down on.