Happy Sunday, guys!
Thanks for the reviews, this story means so much to me :D
3.
"So, I have some bad news." Irina sighs, pulling the elastic out of her hair. Her platinum tresses fall down around her shoulders and down her back.
"I got an email from the women's shelter earlier. They want to postpone the hearing because Natacha had to go back to the hospital." Her voice is sad and weak, and it warns me. I'm not used to her being like this. Irina is always strong, the powerful lawyer who helps the less fortunate — women in particular. This case, however, hit extremely close to home.
Natascha is a human trafficking victim, lured away from her home in Ukraine by men in suits with false promises under false pretenses. They promised her the American dream and a white picket fence in return for a job: a dancing job. Just dancing, they said. A few months of dancing in clubs and then you'll have a lot of money, you'll be free. That's before they took her passport and money away from her, leaving her on the floor of a hangar, sharing a mattress with two other girls on the nights she wasn't forced to shed her clothing and offer her body for money she wouldn't even get in her pocket.
Irina knows Natascha's pain all too well. Irina feels that pain, she's had that exact pain, and because of this case, she's reliving it all, too — her own horror story.
I search Irina's face and find the nostalgic, disgusted look on her face she always has when she thinks about her first months in America. She was only nineteen, a vital part of the ballet scene in Russia — a star. After hurting her knee in a rehearsal accident, where the male dancer let her slip from his fingertips, her dancing was never the same and her entire body hurt. Irina saw her future slipping away, desperate for a solution.
"You'll be a dancer in America," they said. Barely two weeks later, Irina found herself in a one-bedroom apartment in a dark part of town with four roommates. None of them spoke English at first, and since they forbade the girls to speak anything but Russian to each other — in case they'd learn English and go tattle — there was a lot of silence and burned notes.
The dancing job they offered Irina, and the others entailed taking your clothes off in filthy places and spreading your legs in return for the money that would never be yours. Of course, they failed to mention that to the girls. What happened made Irina loathe men, and she vowed to never trust one again. Irina and I found each other after the horrible incident with Royce and his so-called friends. We met in a therapy group for women, hit it off right away. Our broken and painful pasts were the glue bringing us together. Irina and I went from strangers to confidants to best friends. Soon enough we realized there were feelings involved. I fell in love for the first time since Royce. We always felt secure, loved, and safe in each other's company and kept on growing closer and closer.
It felt strange at first, loving a woman. It's so different from being with a man, but somehow it all worked out. We've been together ever since, for three years.
The weekend seems to fly by, as it always does, and on Monday morning Irina drives me to work before she heads to her office. I kiss her goodbye, hands on her neck, as a giant Ford pickup truck drives up the lot.
I get out of the car, zip my jacket all the way up, and wave to my girl one last time before her Audi speeds off the parking lot. I glance at the truck out of the corner of my eye and head inside to the locker room.
Garrett's already in his office, dressed in his usual jeans and a hoodie when he's out of his work clothes.
I peek my head inside and greet the big boss, his smile warm and eyes glinting.
"You got here pretty early!" he says, getting up from his desk chair, getting a paper bag out from under the desk.
"Guess what," he holds up the bag with a blinding grin. I narrow my eyes and reach to take it from him, but Garrett holds the bag up over his head, taunting me.
"Come on!" I huff. Even in my heeled boots, I'm only reaching his shoulders.
"Happy Monday," Garrett sings and drops the bag into my waiting hands. I look inside and squeal when I lay my eyes on the Coca-Cola red overalls inside.
"Oh, that's just great, I love them!"
"I got your name sewn on it, Kate did it when she got to my house on Saturday," Garrett mentions casually. I gasp in surprise at the bomb he drops.
"No! You didn't!" Somehow our little talk on Friday gave the boss some balls to flirt with his crush.
"That's why you look so ridiculously glowy, all of a sudden." I cross my arms in front of my chest and grin at my boss.
"What are you talking about, Spice?" He tries to remain cool and collected, yet the flush in his cheeks gives him away.
"You totally got laid, that's what. Post-coital glow and all!"
"Well, then it's certainly a delightful morning!" a loud voice I don't recognize booms behind me. I whip my head toward the deep voice, meeting the rather impressive guy we'll be calling 'New One' for a while. My heart stutters at the sight of him.
He's extremely tall, about six foot five. His hair is dark, cut rather short in a military haircut, the soft texture hinting at natural curls. A wide smile on his face etches deep dimples in his scruffy cheeks, making him look youthful, fun, and so fucking handsome it dithers me.
I chuckle at the newbie's response to the conversation he walked in on. He has guts, that's for sure. I can tell I like him already, but I'm still cautious.
"You must be Emmett, right?" Garrett says, shaking his head to get into business mode and his mind off Kate.
The giant nods and holds out a hand as he walks over to us.
"Emmett McCarty, at your service." He shakes Garrett's hand with a wide grin, then looks at me expectantly. I eye his hand, large and calloused, a black watch on his wrist, a black beaded bracelet next to it. I bite my lip, clutching the new overalls tightly, knuckles turning white.
"Spice, see if the suit fits, okay? If not, I'll return it at lunch and get you another size; but Kate said you usually buy a medium." Garrett saves me from the handshake. I let out a shaky laugh as I rush out of the office, into the locker room, mouthing a silent thank you Garrett's way.
I hear the two men talk and laugh and I sigh deeply, my back hitting my locker with a loud thump. I wonder if I'll ever be capable of just touching someone without freaking out, shaking a guy's hand without my anxiety breaking through the roof.
A knock on the doorframe startles me just when I'm tying the laces of my shop boots. I look up from my seat on the bench, eyes meeting Emmett McCarty's sky-blue ones. His smile is still there, warm and genuine. He's gorgeous and charismatic, I can't deny that. It's been a while since I found a man attractive. Not since the Royce thing happened.
"Okay if I come in?" he asks, slinging his backpack over his one shoulder as he leans against the doorframe.
"Sure, I'll be out in a jiffy," I say nervously. I catch Emmett looking down at my tank-clad upper body from the corner of my eyes.
"Your, ah—" He chuckles apprehensively as he nods to my cleavage, averting his eyes. I look down and feel embarrassed, cheeks glowing red as I notice my top slid down, the cups of my red satin bra showing.
"Oh fuck, sorry," I stammer and readjust my shirt. I pull on the top of my overalls, zipping them all the way until my cleavage is concealed.
"No need to apologize, really," Emmett says slyly and winks again. I feel my insides grow warm and tingly when he does and curse myself for letting him have such an effect on me. My cheeks burn.
I pull my hair up into a ponytail before I run out like a coward, looking over the to-do list for the week.
About half an hour later, Paul and Billy arrive. Jake gets in a little later, as usual on Mondays. He's got his suit on already, the top flitting around his large body. He looks tired yet smiles, fist-bumping me after he pulls up the overalls over his T-shirt casually in the middle of the shop.
"Spice, Spice Baby! How you doin'?" He asks as his eyes lock on mine before he makes a beeline for the coffee machine near the window. He fills the bean compartment, several hit the floor.
"I'm good. You seem to have had quite the weekend?" I wiggle my eyebrows and wait for Jacob to hand me a cup of my own.
"Yeah, kinda went overboard on the Patron, though." He coughs, runs a hand through his messy, dark hair, and adds way too much creamer into his own cup, making me cringe.
"How the fuck do you call that coffee?" Emmett approaches, empty mug in hand, the ever-present smile on his face. He says exactly what I'm thinking. I smile at him. In the well-lit shop, I see that his hair is curly on top, where it's a tad longer, and I like it. He looks special, not the usual type of guy I was into when I was younger, or ever. There is something about Emmett McCarty that draws me in, captivates me. I have no idea what's going on.
"Yeah, well brother, I like me some cream," Jacob says, winking. They both start laughing. Guys…
"There's a lady in our midst, so behave," Emmett suggests, chuckling. I snort and take the cup of black coffee Jacob offers me. I roll my eyes at their macho behavior and move along.
"The lady likes cream like no other, man," Jacob jokes and nudges me in the arm as I walk past.
"Spice, get over here for a minute," Garrett calls, and I make my way into his office. I can feel Emmett McCarty's stare boring holes into my back — or ass. It depends on where he's looking, but it makes me sway my hips a little more than usual. I cringe at myself. Get a fucking grip, Rose.
"Yeah, what's up?" I ask.
"I want you to take Emmett under your wing. Jake can't be serious for two minutes straight and Paul is busy with the two motorcycles they brought in late last night." I look at Garrett, wide-eyed and surprised that he's setting me up with the new guy.
"I know you don't know him, but he seems nice enough. Billy's doing inventory today, so if it's not working out for you, you can take over from him tomorrow and Billy will guide him for the rest of the week," Garrett explains, soothing my anxiety.
"I thought he was a skilled mechanic?"
"Yeah, he is. But he's been out of it for a while and he asked me to make sure there was someone around who knows what they're doing. And since you're my top mechanic, I thought maybe you could show him how we work around here." He shrugs.
It makes sense, though. Paul is the expert on two-wheelers and Jacob can't keep a straight face, not even with clients in the showroom. Billy is the eldest worker here, about fifty-five, and Jake's father. He is cutting back on hours because of his bad back and takes some of the paperwork out of Garrett's hands. I don't want to cause Billy extra stress just because I'm being a little bitch. After all, these guys all have my back here, so I shouldn't be this worried.
"Okay," I answer. I shock myself since I sound so confident. Garrett doesn't seem to notice, though. He shuffles through order forms and invoices on his desk.
"Great! Go get 'em Spice. That Ford's all yours, I just drove it inside." He nods at the monstrous car closest to the garage gate. I recognize it from earlier this morning when I arrived at work. The guy who just pulled up when Irina dropped me off.
"So, this means you will mentor me, right?" Emmett asks, stuffing his hands in the front pocket of his olive green overalls. The garment didn't look like the usual stuff the guys wore, but seeing as he is so tall, and apparently also muscled like an MMA fighter, I figure he's brought his own. None of the spare things would fit him, anyway. The thick cotton strains around his muscular thighs, and he's got his sleeves rolled up to mid-forearm. Swirls of ink tease me, my curiosity peaks.
"I guess, if you're up for following orders given by a woman," I joke. I relax in his company somehow and scare myself when I wink at the man in front of me.
What the fuck am I thinking? You're fucking ridiculous.
"Oh, honey. I love a powerful woman who orders me around." His voice is low, a seductive tone as he arches a brow. I feel my face grow hotter and shake my head, focusing on the task at hand.
I don't even want to know what he means by that. Right?
Our girl is a little confused... So much feelings fluttering around.
What do you think of the story so far?
xo