Page 34 of Cole

“You’ve always looked good with grease on your hands. Not many guys can pull it off the way you do,” Kiki purred, the last echoes of her heels dying away as she reached me.

I didn’t respond, just kept working on the bike.

“Are you still pretending to ignore me, Cole?” Her flirtatious tone shifted to one of irritation.

“I’m not pretending to ignore you,” I answered. “I just don’t have anything to say.”

She circled me like a vulture before leaning against my workbench. “It has been a minute since the two of us hung out.”

“We’ve never hung out, Kiki. I’ve told you enough times, I’m not interested.”

She mock pouted. “Jeez, Cole. You don’t have to act like it’s a chore to have me around.”

In the beginning, I’d had nothing against Kiki. She’d come into The Clutch as someone’s girlfriend, though she’d quickly slept her way through the ranks. She’d hit a ceiling, however, when she’d reached me, Maddox, and Gage. A fact that never failed to infuriate her.

“You said it, not me,” I muttered, standing up and wiping my hands on a rag. “What do you want? I didn’t invite you back here, and its off-limits to anyone who isn’t a Hound.”

She leaned closer to me, clearly trying to have her low-cut top do most of the talking. “But not off-limits to that little jailbait bitch who was back here earlier?”

Ah, so that was the reason for this unwanted visit. Kiki seemed to think that she had dibs on The Clutch and every man in it.

“She’s twenty-one,” I told Kiki. Ronnie had confirmed it.

“Yeah, exactly…” Kiki rolled her eyes and then seemed to get a grip on herself. She changed tactics. “Your problem, Cole, is that you need to let off some steam. I can see it. You’re wound way too tight.”

“Actually, as of about an hour ago, I’m pretty unwound… perfectly relaxed, in fact.” I let Kiki fill in the blanks.

Her expression hardened, and she leveled me with a stare. “Are you serious? With that little Goody Two-shoes?”

I set my wrench down and leaned against a counter, more than ready to be done with this conversation.

“Are you done?” I asked her. “This is boring.” My causal dismissal sent Kiki’s hands into fists.

“Are you serious? Any of the guys in this club would do anything to get with me⁠—”

“Then go and hit up one of them. There’s nothing for you here, and there never will be.”

Kiki turned on her too-high heels and stormed out of the shop, slamming the door on her way out, like a cartoon caricature of a scorned woman.

I heard a chuckle from the other end of the shop and noticed Maddox sitting at the break room table. He had a box of first-aid supplies open in front of him and was attempting to change his bandage himself.

“Did you catch that whole thing?” I asked, sitting opposite him and shooing his big, clumsy hands away from the bandage so I could take over.

“You still have it,” Maddox said, holding his arm out to me when I beckoned.

“Still have what?” I asked, cleaning the wound.

“The classic Bailey bitch shutdown. That was pretty cold,” he replied with a stoic expression as I liberally poured iodine over his wound.

“If I were looking for dating advice, I wouldn’t be coming to you for it,” I said, trying not to smile.

“That’s fair. I have no fucking clue what I’m doing either. We’re like the blind leading the fucking blind.”

That got me to laugh. “True, but at least I’m not starting out being in love with my best friend’s sister.’

Maddox’s dark eyes flickered to mine. “Very funny.”

“Yeah, I’m known for my stand-up,” I sighed.