I heard the door open behind me and was relieved to no longer be alone with Beau. I looked over my shoulder and saw a skinny blond man in coveralls. Damn. I’d been hoping for another customer. Someone like the tired mom who’d just left would help diffuse the situation.
“Not now,” Beau shouted at the man.
“But—”
“I said not now.”
The man nodded and stepped back out of the lobby. Fuck, I was in trouble.
“I want to make something very clear,” Beau said. No more than two feet separated us. I could feel the tension coming off him. I didn’t understand it, but something about him—his commanding tone, the way he loomed over me, his total lack of any fear—made me want to give in and stop fighting.
Fuck, if I were honest, I wanted to get on my knees. Feeling that way made me resent Beau and his arrogance even more. I’d been with plenty of men and women, but I was usually the aggressor. I’d never had anyone make me feel as eager to surrender to them as this man.
“This is my shop,” Beau said. “I make the rules here. I decide whose car gets worked on first. I decide what I prioritize. If I owe someone a debt, I pay it. I respect your brother, but I won’t have him sending his minions to harass me. If that’s how this is going to go down, he can take his business elsewhere.”
“I don’t think you’d like the consequences of that.” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I regretted them.
“And what exactly would those consequences be?” he asked, taking a step closer to me. “What do you plan to do if I refuse to give in to your impolite demands?”
Had I been impolite? Obviously I was being an asshole now, but at first… I’d acted just like my brothers and my father would. They always spoke as though they assumed everyone would do their bidding. Was I ever going to learn how to do the same and have someone take me seriously?
Just because I was built more like my mother than the hulking masses they were didn’t mean I didn’t deserve respect. Yes, I was younger, but I was pretty damn sure they’d been commanding obedience since they were my age.
What the hell was I supposed to say now? The honest answer was that I would set Remington loose on them. That sounded really mature. And, of course, Remington would be pissed as hell that I hadn’t managed to accomplish the task he’d given me. “When do you anticipate finishing the work on my brother’s car?”
Beau smiled, and I waited for him to mock me, but all he said was, “I’ll finish it as soon as I can. Maybe tomorrow.”
“It’s in your best interest to work quickly.” Before he could respond, I turned and walked off, absolutely refusing to look back, no matter how much I wanted to. Was he watching me with those eyes that could burn right through a person, or had he gone back to work as if I’d never been there?
I got into my car, cranked the engine, and backed out of my parking space. Only as I was driving off did I let myself glance at the door. The gorgeous bastard was standing there, watching me. He had the fucking nerve to wave.
Goddammit. Why had I looked, and why did I know I wasn’t going to be able to get the arrogant son of a bitch out of my head for the rest of the day?
Two
Beau
I smiled as I watched Corbin walk away. I’d pissed him off, just like I’d intended to. I needed him to stay mad at me because if he didn’t, if he looked at me again like he wasn’t sure whether he wanted to punch me or kiss me, I was going to do something I’d regret.
My gaze drifted down to his ass. Damn, I really wanted to get my hands on it. I bit my lip to keep from calling him back. What would he do if I dragged him into my office, put him over my desk, and… No, trouble like Corbin Theriot was the last thing I needed.
Samantha, the best mechanic in the shop and my assistant manager, stepped out from the back. “Who was that?”
“The youngest Theriot brother. He came for Remington’s SUV.” I motioned toward the vehicle I’d modified for Remington.
“Is something going on between the two of you?”
There weren’t many people who’d dare ask me something like that, but Sam knew me about as well as anyone. She’d worked with me before I’d gone to prison, and she was the first person I contacted when I opened up shop again. “Why the hell would you say that?”
“The smile on your face just now and the way you got all in his face, posturing like you do when you want someone quaking in their boots.”