Hot Laps (7 page)

On the way home from work, in a Casten daze, I forgot to get something for dinner.
I’d skipped lunch earlier too. With the amount of alcohol I’d consumed the night before,
it was definitely time for some food.

There was this amazing fast food place up the street that I usually went to drunk
but guess what, I was sober. So I called in my order and then picked it up on the
way back to my apartment.

As I waited for my chicken fingers and creamy garlic sauce, my thoughts drifted to
that sexy engine builder and the possibility of getting to know him a little more.

Who knew working could be so great.

Anna worked, her parents made her, and she told me all these horror stories about
office drama. Given, she worked for an insurance company in Charlotte with a bunch
of snotty assholes, including her mother.

Me? It was determined today that I worked with the hottest man on Earth and his son
would be mine soon.

Obviously, my mind drifted to him inspecting me like he did that engine in his stall
today. After we met, I watched him work. My desk overlooked the shop through these
large glass windows.

Lucky me, huh?

He spent the afternoon in what Bailey told me was a tear down of an engine. His head
never lifted, his hands thoroughly studying every part he removed. The determination
he put into just an engine let me know that this boy wasn’t just a boy. He was a gifted
motherfucker and I intended to find out just how talented he was.

Oh the possibilities.

“Here ya go, Hayden,” John called out to me.

“Thank you much.” I did a little bow to John, the owner who gave me free food all
the time and spun on my tip toes with my bag of awesomeness. That’s not that easy
when you’re wearing flip-flops.

“Hayden?”

I turned around when I heard my name. I recognized that voice anywhere.

My eyes froze on Casten about ten feet away with an older woman, eating.

“Oh, hey, uh … yeah,” I was like some kind of fish out of water, gasping for words
instead of air. “Hey …”

Casten’s eyes locked with mine and he winked. “Hey there.”

I don’t know why, but my cheeks immediately turned red. I could even feel the heat
radiating from me and warming the air.

Blinking, I settled my stare on him and his hands wrapped around his milkshake. Look
at those hands! So strong, long fingers that could surely inspect any block. Thoughts
quickly turned back to his engine work today and his meticulous work. I knew then
Casten Riley would be very good at anything he chose to do with his hands. I came
to that conclusion right then in front of him and his grandmother.

Oh God, gain some fucking control over yourself.

Please tell me he couldn’t hear my thoughts.

Just then, Casten’s brow came together, briefly, before he grinned and relaxed his
expression.

Okay, maybe he heard. Damn it.

Up close, laid back and wearing shorts and flip flops, he was even more gorgeous if
that was possible. I couldn’t understand how one family could have so many pretty
people in it.

I couldn’t meet his eyes for some strange reason. They scared me right then. As did
my own thoughts.

Or maybe it was the woman next to him who scared me. I didn’t want to say anything
stupid in fear that that was his grandma. I wasn’t exactly sure it was his grandmother
but I assumed it had to be.

He had this strange intense look on his face like he wanted to say something while
his grandmother beamed at me.

He went to say something and then his cheeks flushed. Was the engine builder blushing?

“This pretty girl here is Grandma, Nancy.” He ruffled her hair playfully. “Grammy,
this is Hayden. She’s Tate’s niece.”

“Nice to me you, Hayden.”

Despite my nerves, I shook her hand and then had this rush to just get the fuck out
of there in fear I would say something dirty to him in front of his grandmother. I
couldn’t have that. No way.

I suddenly felt stupid because I couldn’t form a response to save my ass nor could
I break away from his eyes.

With my eyes on my feet, I mumbled, “Okay, see you.” And walked out before I could
say anything else.

Only problem was I fell flat on my face.

Immediately I jumped up, trying to save myself the humiliation. Casten was there right
away helping me up. “Are you okay?”

I started laughing, like hysterical giggles that this would happen to me right then.

“I’m good.” I said, picking up my bag of food that thankfully didn’t get squished
and ran to my car.

Of all the days to trip!

Scraped knees and a raw toe later, I was back inside my apartment eating my food and
reflecting on the last hour where I made a complete fool of myself.

“You should probably quit,” I told myself after my fourth chicken tender smothered
in garlic sauce.

“Nah, because then how else will I afford this luxury lifestyle.” Again, I said this
to myself.

I moved out four months ago when my parents told me I needed to grow up. Maybe growing
up, or being responsible, didn’t include searching Craigslist for a roommate but in
my opinion, I liked to think it was resourceful. It probably wasn’t responsible that
I lived off my college savings from my grandparents either.

Mine and Adam’s apartment was in a part of town where bars on your windows and doors
should have been required. It had a security system but a lot of good that did since
it was broken.

When you walked inside, dingy white walls reminded you of the heavy smokers who once
lived there before us.

When you walked in, an old burnt orange couch Adam’s mom gave us sat pushed against
the wall. It was our only seating.

Straight ahead was the kitchen where neither of us cooked unless it came from a box
or could be made in the microwave. Off the kitchen was a balcony that I jumped off
two weeks ago and sprained my ankle trying to avoid the landlord looking for rent
money.

Down the hall was two bedrooms and one bathroom that you literally had to turn sideways
in to close the door. Then when you did, your knees slammed against the door.

It wasn’t a great place, but I was on my own and that felt good.

Now, if I could keep from embarrassing myself at work, or getting fired, I would be
okay.

I didn’t quit my job. Instead, I went back on Wednesday, believe it or not. And I
hadn’t been fired yet. Part of me thought after last night Casten might have told
his dad he needed to get rid of the harebrained lunatic who keeps staring at him.

Apparently he hadn’t done that yet.

That morning there was someone waiting for me at my desk wearing capris jean and a
JAR Racing tank top that looked about two sizes too small. Not that she was a huge
woman, just maybe not small tank wearing material.

She had a photograph of me and Anna I placed on my desk last night in her hand, scrutinizing
me already. You always know when someone is judging you. She was judging me.

“Can I … uh … help you?” I asked, eyeing her cautiously.

“I’m not sure if you can,” she smiled matter-of-factly, leaning against the partition
to my cubicle that was right at leaning height. “Are you the new girl?”

“Yeah … and you are?”

“I’m Casten’s mother.”

Holy shit on a motherfucking shingle. That can’t be right. Did she really gain that
much weight? Not that this lady was overly large but if you saw the picture on Jameson’s
desk of his wife in a bikini, well, this was like two of her.

Not that I minded. I still wanted to cuddle with her, and look at her now, she was
perfect for cuddles. Even better for me.

“Sway?” I asked in a voice that isn’t very audible, it was more of a timid whisper
combined with scared shitless and little bit of bite your fucking tongue.

I was meeting Sway Riley? Like, the Sway Riley? Casten’s mother?

Oh my God.

“I’m Hayden Harris.” I managed to say after she looked at me as if something was mentally
haywire in my brain.

I couldn’t really blame her at this point for looking at me like that. I was never
good at meeting people, especially parents. Look what happened when I met Casten’s
grandmother. I fell on my face.

Moving past her, I sat down at my desk to make sure I didn’t fall.

“Well,” she smiled softly tipping her head casually as though she was completely comfortable
around me. “I must go see about a boy.”

And then she left.

Without saying another word.

I watched her walk away, her head tipped high, her brown hair knotted up in what looked
to be a two-day-slept-on-ponytail and bright pink running shoes.

I didn’t see her again and believe me I was waiting. It was like the president was
here or something and I was afraid the secret service was going to come get me.

Around noon, I saw Casten again. So far my day had been hopelessly watching him below,
hard at work and never looking up.

He came upstairs with a Burger King bag and dropped a Whopper Jr. on my desk. “Hungry?”

I dug into that burger as if I’d never eaten before. I was starving.

He laughed but sat down on my desk near the window that overlooked the parking lot.
“I see you’re still alive. I was a little worried I’d have to follow you home and
make sure you could drive after that fall.”

“Yeah …” was all I said with a mouthful of burger.

He swallowed, his laughter only held back by his own mouthful of burger.

“I met your mom …”

Casten’s head flinched toward mine, shocked. “My mom is in Washington right now with
my sister. How’d you meet her?”

“Oh … uh …” I was so confused and I think he sensed it. “She came in and said she
was your mom when I asked her why she was here.”

He laughed holding his stomach. “You must’ve met Rosa. She’s been trying to convince
people for years she’s my mom.”

This fucking family was going to be the death of me.

By the time Friday rolled around of my first week, I was planning on getting pretty
drunk if I could help it. This working shit was difficult.

“Morning, Hayden,” Bailey called out as she walked by. “We have a meeting before the
guys leave.”

She kept walking and I gathered immediately, by her beckoning finger at me, that I
was meant to attend this meeting.

As I followed, it was then I took in how beautiful Bailey was. Long dark black hair,
stunning legs, I could literally go on for days about how naturally beautiful she
was. I doubted she even wore make-up. No wonder she was married to Lane.

This week I had learned a lot about the Riley family. Lane used to be a dirt bike
rider and let me tell you, he was hot. And, by hot, I mean the guy could probably
set fire to your skin when he looked at you with his piercing baby blues. All the
Rileys had blue eyes aside from Casten and Jameson. And though I hadn’t met them yet,
apparently his brother and sister had them as well as did his real mom, not Rosa.

Back to Lane and Bailey. To complete this knock out couple, they had this little girl
Abigale who was probably the cutest child I’d ever seen. Though I haven’t actually
seen her yet, just pictures.

When we got to the conference room at the end of the hall, I followed Bailey in and
took a seat next to her. Olivia was in there talking with another guy I gathered was
Dave Richie, a fabrication specialist.

Dave looked to be in his thirties, on the taller side and confident in his stance.
Dark brown hair that he kept short gave me the impression he was conscious of his
appearance. He did have a full dark beard though, as did a lot of men around here.
Personally, I loved beards on men. I only wished Casten’s light scruff was a little
longer.

I wonder if I could convince him to do that.

I really didn’t understand meetings or their purpose and I doubted I ever would. It
just wasn’t for me. Someone who is borderline alcoholic, had a caffeine addiction,
and never stopped moving was not meant to be in meetings where you had to sit still
and pretend to listen. It was like being in detention all over again.