Page 66 of The Price of Love

“Oh, god. How embarrassing.”

“I thought it was adorable.”

“Are we really gonna do this?” she asks.

“Date?” With any other woman, I’d consider it an invitation into her bed, but that’s not my aim with Shadow. I like her too much.

She gives me a flirtatious smile. “Did you have something else in mind?”

“A lot.” I smirk. “But as much as I’d love to see you out of your clothes. I’d rather get to know you better.”

Her eyes soften. “Are you too good to be true, or are you just delivering a line?”

“I admit I’ve been known to charm the ladies with smooth talk, but this ain’t it.” I put the palm of my hand against her cheek. “Ellen,” I say, using her real name. “Let’s see where this can go. I know it’s complicated, but we’ll take it slow. All I know is I wanna keep talking to you every night. And I’d like to take you on a real date. Are you in?”

She gazes into my eyes for several beats, which makes me nervous. What if she says no?

“I am,” she says. “But it’s still complicated.”

“No doubt.” I brush back the hair that’s fallen across her forehead. “But I think it’s worth it.”

“Me too.” She gives me a mischievous grin. “But I didn’t think it through. Now I have to sit on the back of your bike, pressed against you for the next two hours. With the motorcycle vibrating between my legs the entire time.”

I smirk. “Remember, I drive fast. It’ll only be an hour and a half.”

CHAPTER 28

JAZMIN

I tighten the last bolt on the exhaust manifold before I step from under the car. “This one’s done,” I call to Nails, who’s standing behind the service desk counter.

“You don’t need to replace the pipes?” Nails asks.

“Nah. They can last a while longer. With James laid up with his back, I don’t wanna hit them with more bills.”

“Would you replace them if they could pay?” Nails asks.

I think about it for a second. “If it was my car, no. Somebody else’s? Probably.”

“Do we have salvage pipes in back that are better than what’s on it?”

“I’m sure we do.”

“Then put ’em on.”

“There’s no way Cora can scrape together the money.”

“They’re on the house,” Nails says and returns to the paperwork she was working on.

I smile. “Yes, Sergeant.”

That’s why I like working at Black Briar Motors. I’ve seen customers panic when they realize they can’t afford to fix their only means of transportation. But with the Thorns, if someone needs help, we help. That’s why we hustle other ways—like Casino Night.

Casino Night. Dimples called last night and recruited me to work it tonight. It’s not my thing, but I’m a prospect. Besides, if Dimples asks, I’m in.

“Prospect,” Nails calls. “Do you have time to do the work today?”

I nod. “Yeah, it won’t take me long. Besides, Storm’s bringing Shadow to pick up her bike, so it’ll give me something to do while I wait.”