Chapter 5

Cairo

I was distracted as hell;that was the only reason I forgot to tighten the drain plug under the transmission and ended up with a face full of oil.

Sputtering and cursing, I grabbed the socket wrench and tried to breathe through my nose as I carefully tightened the plug to the correct torque. Then, grabbing the rag on my belt, I slid my way out from underneath the baby-blue Karmann Ghia. I slapped my hands on her bumper and growled, "You're a piece of work, Sweetcheeks," before sitting against the trunk.

"I'm sorry."

For a second, I had the crazy thought that the car had responded to me, but I twisted and saw Meli standing in my driveway, carrying a duffle over one shoulder.

It should be awkward to see someone you kissed—especially a soul-scouring, cock-throbbing kiss like we'd shared. But for some reason, looking up at her right now, all I felt was peace.

Slowly I stood, wiping my face with the rag. "What are you doing here?"

"Is he finished? I'm sorry he gave you so much trouble."

She hadn't answered me. Maybe for the best, the way my heart was thumping in excitement.

But cars? I could talk cars all day. "Sweetcheeks is a he?" I thought of most cars with the female pronouns.

Meli's smile flashed. "He has a stick." She mimed wrapping her fingers around a shaft and fuck I could feel my cock starting to go hard in my jeans. "And sometimes he leaks prematurely."

It wasn't until she gestured at the oil on my neck and shirt that I realized what she'd meant. Meli looking as innocent as an angel with her clean blouse and pink apron was bad enough. Meli making dick jokes and premature ejaculation jokes?

I had to fight down my smile, hiding it behind another scowl.

Doing my best to ignore her innuendos, I cursed my hard-on and turned back to the car. "Nah, it was my fault I got splashed. And yeah, he's done."

A pause. Then, "How much do I owe you?"

The idea of taking her money yet again…I dunno why, but it sat wrong in my stomach. Without answering, I shook my head and started for the house.

It wasn't until I pulled my t-shirt off over my head, and heard her suck in a breath behind me, that I realized she'd followed me. Well, I was filthy, and we needed to talk.

"Give me a minute," I snapped, stomping toward the master bath.

It took more than a minute—much more. The damn oil was in my ears, in my hair, everywhere. It took some scrubbing, and when I emerged, I felt…raw. And not just my skin.

I didn't expect Meli to still be here—what was with the duffle bag?—so I didn't bother getting presentable. Let's be honest, I'm not the "get presentable" kind of guy anyhow.

So that's why I was still drying my hair with a hand towel when I stepped into the living room wearing only a pair of gray sweatpants and stopped short.

Meli O'Donnell was sitting cross-legged on my sofa, and the sight caused my brain to skitter to a stop. Not because she was there, but because she looked so fucking perfect there.

"Nice place," she said before I could speak, and the way she glanced around the room—and her little smirk—told me what she actually thought.

The living room, and the dining nook, and the spare bedroom—and the back patio—were covered in pieces of machinery. Not just car parts, but all sorts of things; the kitchen table was unusable thanks to my recent attempt to figure out the gears of a grandfather clock I'd picked up at the thrift store.

To me, it wasn't mess; the place was just…full. Full of my projects. I figured it didn't matter if others might see it as chaotic, because there wasn't ever going to be anyone else in the house.

But now there was, and it was impossible not to look at the place through her eyes.

"Thanks," I muttered sarcastically, stalking toward the kitchen.

I could feel her gaze on my skin, and yeah, the sensation—the same soft prickling I felt as the fan dried water droplets—caused me to shiver. I grabbed a beer, and when I turned, she was right there, peering at my stove like it was fascinating. Maybe it was.

Fuck, having her in my house, in my space, was doing all sorts of shit to my insides, and I didn't like it. My cock was trying to stand up and say hello, and that was weird as hell, because it's not like she was doing anything the least bit sexual.

She wore a white blouse and capris, for the love of shit. It's not like she was here to seduce me.

Oh, please say you're here to seduce me!

What? No.

No.

I gulped the beer.

I mean, that kiss had been something else. And I wasn't one to turn down female companionship…but whatever this was between us, I would rather get my Kteer under control and go back to my life.

Your lonely life, you mean?

I wasn't lonely. I was just…happier when I didn't have to worry about other people.

Not liking the way this train of thought was going, I barked, "What are you doing here?" again. And then, before she had a chance to answer—although she had turned from her inspection of my pan rack—I followed up with, "And what the hell was that in your shop today?"

To my surprise, she blushed. Hard. She blushed and glanced down at her hands, now twined in front of her. She looked awkward and uncomfortable, and I could kick myself for doing that to her.

"I…" She swallowed. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I panicked. And then you were there, and I really needed you, and I'm sorry I took advantage of you."

If I'd thought my stomach and my chest were a mess before, hearing her saying you were there when I needed you like I was some kind of hero made them even worse. Or maybe better.

"You took advantage of me?" I grunted, placing the half-drunk bottle on the counter and resting my butt nearby. "I kissed you."

Hazel eyes peeked from under long lashes. "I'm sorry," she whispered again.

"I'm not." The words were out before I could think about them, but once they were, I realized they were true. I wasn't sorry for kissing her. It was like my Kteer had demanded it, and for those few seconds, the world had been right again.

But she was staring at me like she couldn't figure out if I was telling the truth. I didn't bother convincing her; I just crossed my arms in front of my chest.

And when her gaze dropped to my muscles, I'll admit my Kteer preened a little.

"I…" She took a deep breath and dragged her gaze back up to mine. "My mom was trying to set me up with someone. Someone totally opposite from what I wanted. So I panicked and told her I already had a boyfriend, and then you were there, and it was kinda perfect. You were exactly who I needed."

We'd come back to that later. "Who do you want?"

She hadn't expected that question, judging from how she blinked at me. Then, shrugging, she turned away to drag her finger along the front of the stove.

"My sister is marrying a doctor. His brother is also some kind of fancy doctor, but if he looks anything like my future brother-in-law, that dude needs some meat on his bones…" She shook her head, her attention seemingly caught by my appliances. "You know, your house is cluttered, but it's not dirty."

"Thanks for noticing," I snapped, reaching for the beer again. I might spend my days crawling over and into car engines, but I liked being clean—it was an orc thing. I cleaned the house each morning…working around the projects spread out in various places.

I guess I needed to put that clock back together tonight, huh?

"So you're not into skinny doctors. Who are you into?"

The way she flushed again, her gaze darting across my chest, then away, told me all I needed to know.

And I should've been thrilled; she was obviously interested in me. But unlike past encounters, my body wasn't behaving properly. Oh, my cock was rock hard now, throbbing against the inside of my sweats…but it was almost painful. I didn't like this, not at all, and I wasn't about to grab Meli and fuck her, feeling like this.

Or at least, that's what I thought, until her gaze dropped to my crotch, and I heard her suck in a breath.

Oh hells, I hadn't put on boxers. The thing was probably tenting my sweatpants, wasn't it? I didn't glance down but cursed under my breath and turned around to face the cabinets. I pretended I was pulling out the tea kettle and two mugs, but really, I was trying to hide my cockstand.

"Your family wants you to date a doctor? A human doctor?" I was firing the words off like a weapon, trying to cover my awkwardness. "Can't imagine they were thrilled you chose a dirty orc like me, a mechanic."

"You're not dirty," she said in a quiet voice behind me.

I kept my back to her as I filled the kettle and started it boiling, but yeah, my Kteer preened at what was probably supposed to be a compliment.

"Did you choose me because I was the most likely to piss off your mother?" I snapped, "Or because I was there?"

Her hand closed around my forearm, and I startled. I hadn't realized she was so close, and just like before, that heat ran up my arm and settled into my chest. I couldn't help it; I glanced down at her and met her eyes.

"You would have been…" Her tongue flicked across her lower lips, and I had to swallow down my groan. What the hell was wrong with me? "You were my first choice, Cairo," she admitted in a small voice.

I had to close my eyes.

"How long are they in town?" I managed. How much longer would I have to pretend?

She sounded surprised when she said, "Until the weekend, but I came to tell you…I mean, you don't have to hang out with them or anything."

"I served my purpose?"

Her fingers squeezed, and I had to fight to keep from reaching for her.

"I'm sorry," she said again before she sighed and released me.

I stepped toward the stove to fuss over the perfectly self-sufficient kettle. I didn't want tea, I wanted something a fuck of a lot stronger…but I needed something to do.

I heard—felt—her take a deep breath. "My mom and sister are staying in my apartment for the next three nights. Harper suggested I come stay with you—I think she thought she was doing me a favor."

Reacting to the humor in her tone, I spun around, but she was already holding up her hand. "Don't worry, I'm not here to crash on your couch. I packed a bag, and I stopped by to see if Sweetcheeks was finished, so I could drive him to Jess's house."

I was already shaking my head.

"He's not done?" Meli asked.

"No, he's done, I even changed his oil. Don'tmake a dipstick joke." She blinked, clearly surprised at my attempt at humor. "You can take him back, but Jess doesn't have a spare bed."

Meli blinked. "What?"

"Giza's staying in Jess's second bedroom." When she blinked at me, I explained. "Because Karnak's house doesn't have any beds, since he turned the whole place into an art studio and moved in with Jess."

Her eyes had widened, and now she smacked her forehead. "Shit! That's this week? I'd forgotten! Giza's one of your friends, right? He came over with your first group?"

Friends? I shrugged. "I know him." It was as much as I'd admit. "He's here through the holiday."

"Fuck," she muttered, and I couldn't help the way my lips curled up at one corner.

I thought of Meli as sugar and sweetness, and to hear those pretty little lips curse like that made me smile. Made me want to taste her again.

Everything made me want to taste her again.

"I have a couch," I offered. Then, when she jerked around to stare at me in disbelief, I realized what I'd said. Not that I'd offered her a place to stay—because hello, she'd looked at me like a hero before, of course I wanted to help—but because I couldn't ask her to sleep on a couch. "I mean, I can sleep on the couch. You can have my bedroom."

She'd opened her mouth, clearly planning on objecting to staying here, but now closed it and cocked her head to one side. "I…can't take your bed," she finally said slowly, as if getting used to the idea. "You really…don't mind me staying here?"

Mind? Shit, my entire body was vibrating with joy.

I wondered if Giza knew more about Kteers than I clearly did. The older male might have some insight into why mine had clearly gone haywire.

But I shrugged, trying desperately to pretend like the idea of her in my bed wasn't mouth-wateringly perfect. "I don't. We're dating, after all."

Her little snort wasn't quite a laugh, but I'd take it.

"Cairo…"

"Look," I growled, turning back to her. "It's not that big a deal. I'd offer you a bed, but my spare room is filled with an antique Force outboard engine spread over the floor. Do you know how hard it is to find parts for those things?"

She was grinning now as she shook her head, a sort of indulgent smile. "I look forward to hearing about it, though."

Did she? Frowning, I tried to read her. Was she teasing me, or did she honestly want to know?

"Are you hungry?" she piped brightly. "Least I can do is make dinner, since we're dating and all."

Well, I hadn't been, not until she said that, but now my stomach growled. "I have ground meat in the fridge."

"Any onions? I make an excellent burger."

What kind of male could turn down that offer?