Page 31 of Keeping Laryn
Casper took a chance. He stepped into her personal space, not touching but definitely crowding her. To her credit, she didn’t cringe away or push him back. She simply lifted her chin to continue to be able to meet his eyes.
“I’ve seen your car, Laryn. Early nineties Honda Civic. Looks like a piece of shit, but purrs when you start her up. The state of someone’s car tells me a lot about them as a person.”
“What does mine tell you about me?” she asked quietly.
“That you’re a hell of a mechanic, which I already knew. That you take care of what’s yours. That just because something looks a little rough around the edges, doesn’t mean it’s not worthloving. That you value what you have. That you’re practical. Should I go on?”
She shook her head silently.
Taking another risk, Casper lifted a hand and brushed the backs of his fingers against her cheek in a barely there caress. Her skin was soft and smooth. And even in the crappy lights of the parking lot, he could see her skin flush at his touch. She was so responsive, so honest with her unconscious reactions to him. It was heady to know he affected her so much, and not for the first time, Casper wanted to kick himself for not noticing sooner.
“Thank you for tonight. For making sure everything in my bird was top-notch. Safe. Perfect. For agreeing to come to Anchor Point. For being who you are.”
“You’re welcome.”
Forcing himself to take a step back, Casper grabbed hold of the door frame with a white-knuckled grip. It was either that or wrap his arm around this woman and pull her against him and find out if her lips were just as soft as her cheek. “Go on. Have a seat. You can tell me everything she needs when we get to the bar.”
She grinned and sat in the driver’s seat. Casper closed the door and jogged around to the other side, looking around to check the area automatically. In the air, he felt fairly confident that he could see danger coming his way…or the instruments around him could. But evil could hide more easily on the ground. And while he felt safe on the naval base, that didn’t mean it was completely danger free. He and his friends were trained to always be on the lookout for anything that seemed out of the ordinary. Thankfully, the parking lot at the hangar appeared safe enough at the moment.
He climbed into the passenger side of his car—which felt weird, but he’d never admit that to Laryn—and smiled as shegestured with her head to his seat belt impatiently. He buckled himself in and nodded at her.
She’d moved the seat up so she could more comfortably reach the pedals. Then she revved the engine and pulled out of his parking spot as if she were in one of the dirt races she’d attended so regularly as a child with her dad.
Casper laughed out loud and grabbed hold of the oh-shit handle above his head. He wasn’t nervous, wasn’t afraid. Laryn was full of surprises—and he couldn’t wait to discover each and every little thing she hid under the stoic and serious face she showed the rest of the world.
CHAPTER EIGHT
By the time they reached Anchor Point, Laryn’s cheeks hurt from smiling. Tate didn’t seem discomfited in the least by her driving. She knew she had a lead foot and was a little reckless on the roads. It didn’t help that the streets were fairly empty, since it was nearing one in the morning.
Tate’s Taurus was in amazingly good shape for being as old as it was. Of course, it wasn’t as ancient as her Civic, but she was still itching to get under the hood and take a look. The brakes felt as if they could use new pads, and there was a slight hitch when she pressed on the gas, making her think the lines needed to be flushed out.
She expertly parallel parked along the road before looking over at Tate. For a split second, she worried that she’d done what she usually did…turned a man off because she was more knowledgeable and had more skills behind the wheel than he did. But she should’ve known better. This was Tate. He had enough confidence in his own skills not to worry about someone else being better behind the wheel. If flying helicopters was an Olympic sport, he’d win gold every time. And probably have a shit-ton of endorsements as well.
“So? What’s the verdict?” he asked.
“I’d give her a solid B,” Laryn told him.
“Only a B?” he asked with a slight frown.
“That’s better than average,” she reminded him.
“But not an A,” Tate returned. “Can you bring her up to snuff?”
In response, Laryn simply smirked and raised a brow at him.
“Of course you can,” he said with a chuckle, answering his own question. “Come on, let’s get inside and grab a drink before we’re too late and they shut the place down.”
Laryn nodded and got out of the car. That’s when she happened to look down…and only then realized she was still in the coveralls she wore at work. Not exactly “going out” attire.
Doubts hit her hard. Behind the wheel or under an engine, she was confident and sure of herself. But in the real world? Not so much.
“Laryn?” Tate asked.
She hadn’t realized he’d come around to her side of the vehicle, and he was now standing in front of her, looking at her with concern. She had no idea how long she’d been standing there, unmoving, but obviously it was long enough for him to wonder what the hell she was doing.
“I’m not dressed appropriately,” she blurted.
“What? Sure you are.”
