A Restored Man (20 page)

Cole chuckled. "I do. But as long as I can still kiss you, that'll hold me off. For a while," he said, adding the last as a challenge.

Ty shook his head and stepped back. "We're not kissing at the shop."

Cole stilled and blinked. "Are you kidding me? Oh hell no!"

Ty looked at him, his focus fixed and unflinching.

Cole walked up to Ty, straightening to his full height, and clasped his hands behind his back. He leaned forward and inched his mouth close to Ty's so he was barely a breath away. He firmly held Ty's gaze and opened his mouth, extending his tongue to trace Ty's full bottom lip.

Ty's lips parted and his eyes closed. His hands rose slowly to grip Cole's waist.

Cole licked Ty's lip one last time before retreating.

Ty swallowed and took a deep breath before opening his eyes to glare at Cole.

"You said no kissing. So—"

Ty lunged forward and latched onto Cole's mouth. Cole grabbed Ty's shoulders for balance as Ty aggressively pushed him back against the bench table. Cole's heart pounded against his chest and echoed in his ears. A possessive growl bubbled within. He shifted his weight and rolled Ty so
his
back was against the table.

A pained groan escaped Ty and Cole immediately stopped.

"You okay?" Cole asked, backing away to give Ty a few inches of space.

Ty winced as he shifted. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Cole pulled Ty and held his waist for support. "Sorry about that."

"Don't be," Ty said as he slowly straightened. "You made your point. We can kiss at the shop but I don't want to broadcast anything in front of the staff."

Cole nodded in agreement while carefully watching every tiny movement Ty made. Something was hurting him and Cole didn't want to apologize again and risk upsetting him by shining a spotlight on his discomfort.
Fuck! This whole pausing shit gives me a headache
. "We can probably get these cars finished in about an hour," Cole said, deciding on something safe to say.

Ty nodded. "Yeah, probably a good idea."

They worked on the cars, letting the music filtering in the air fill the silence. Cole glanced at Ty on occasion but didn't see any signs of lingering discomfort. Ty would sometimes catch his gaze and smile.

That smile.

Ty had managed to corner the market on the concept of tease without trying. When they finished the service on the cars, they shifted their focus to wrapping up the details on the Drayton rig. Cole took on the tasks that would keep him separate enough from Ty to actually be able to focus on his work. He was screwing in a door handle and jumped when his cell phone chirped. He dug into his pocket and looked at the caller ID.

"Hey, what's up?" he said to Julian when he answered.

"Um, I've been sitting out here for about fifteen minutes. Do I need to barge in there with the cavalry?"

Cole looked up at the wall clock. "Shit, man, I'm sorry. I lost track of time. I'll be right out," he said, disconnecting the call. He glanced over and saw Ty walking toward him.

"Sorry about that. I didn't realize the time," Ty said, nearing Cole.

"Neither did I. Julian's fine. I think he was worried about me having driven everyone to kill me off or something."

Ty chuckled. "No. I think we want to keep you," he finished with a smile.

"Stop teasing and kiss me before I go," Cole said. There was no way in hell he was walking out of the shop without a kiss but he wasn't going to push Ty and risk hurting him again.

Ty reached out and cupped Cole's face then placed a gentle kiss on his lips. Cole closed his eyes and inhaled sharply as Ty's lips slowly brushed against his own in a tender, barely there touch. Cole let his arms hang loosely at his sides, unable to coordinate his limbs to move and hold onto Ty. They finally withdrew from the kiss with Ty's gaze carefully watching Cole.

"See you tomorrow," Ty finally said, brushing his thumb across Cole's cheek.

Cole smiled weakly and nodded, enjoying the heat of Ty's hands on him. He backed away slowly once Ty released him. He finally exited the shop and jumped into Julian's truck.

"Did you have a good day at the office, dear?" Julian mocked.

Cole smiled broadly.

"Good" didn't even begin to describe it. He was going to have to start coming up with a few new words to describe how happy he was.

Cole sat quietly on the living room couch at night reading up on the upcoming car model releases. The week had flown by at the shop, and the constant teasing now included stolen kisses. He was happy. Well, he'd be happier if he could move things along with Ty, but he knew better than to push too hard. There was a hint of hesitation in Ty he hadn't been able to decipher so he stayed true to his word and let Ty take the lead.

At least for now.

"Is it okay if Ty comes over on Saturday for dinner?"

Julian looked up from his notebook. "Sure. I'm assuming you're cooking?"

Cole nodded. "I'm thinking lasagna."

"Sounds like a special occasion. You've never cooked that for me," Julian said with his signature half smile.

"When you kiss me the way Ty does, I'll make you a banquet," Cole said with a wicked grin.

"Um, no. Not even for that much food. Just make a list of what you need and we'll pick it up at the store."

Cole tugged on his beanie and leaned his head back on the couch. "Can you call and invite Aidan?"

"I'll ask Matt to call him. If I called, he'll think something's wrong and start interrogating me," Julian said with a chuckle. "Does Aidan know you're putting the moves on his brother?"

Cole vehemently shook his head. "Hell no. He already hates me so I'll leave that up to Ty to break it to him or he'll figure it out on his own when he comes over. Besides, we're going really, really slow."

Julian looked up from his notebook again. "Blue balls?"

Cole smirked. "I think they're bordering on purple. He's killing me."

They both laughed and resumed their tasks—Julian forever writing in his notebook and Cole thumbing through a car magazine.

"You should have introduced him at the party," Julian said.

"I wasn't sure he'd be able to come by so I was surprised when he showed up. I didn't want to scare him away introducing him to everyone. He met my mom and she made a not-so-subtle comment. And he met Carmen, too." Cole shook his head. "I'm shocked that didn't send him running away."

Julian chuckled. "Yeah, she's…um…"

"Pushy as hell. But I love her."

"And her daughter is great," Julian added quietly, scribbling in his notebook.

Cole looked up from his magazine. "Have you guys ever thought about having kids? I always thought Matt would make the good family man, but after seeing you with
Pulga
, I was kind of surprised."

Julian scowled. "Surprised?"

Cole rolled his eyes. "Oh, c'mon. You never struck me as the daddy type. But Matt, I can totally see him with babies and all that…stuff."

Julian's expression softened. "I can see that."

Cole pitched the magazine on the table and turned to face Julian. "
Pulga
grabbed on to you like a tick. She never does that. Kids pick up on things sometimes better than adults do."

"I don't think it's polite to refer to your niece as a blood-sucking insect," Julian said, absently scribbling in his notebook.

Cole grinned wickedly. "You're avoiding the subject. I must have hit a home run."

Silence.

"What the fuck do you write in that notebook every day? Is that like a diary or something?" Cole asked, craning his neck hoping to sneak a peek.

"I don't keep a diary."

"Project notes?" Cole asked. It wasn't beneath him to annoy the hell out of Julian until he gave him an answer.

"Sometimes."

"Grocery lists?" Cole asked, leaning forward on his crossed arms.

"Maybe."

Cole stared at Julian intently. "Something to do with you and Matt?"

Julian's jaw muscles flexed.

Cole dove in for the kill. "House plans, baby names, wedding vows?"

Julian's gaze shifted up slowly, his death glare in full force.

A smile slowly spread across Cole's face. "Did I hit a grand slam?"

Julian stood from the couch with his notebook in hand. "Take your baseball analogies and shove them up your ass," he said, heading up the stairs. "Lock up before you go to bed."

Even Julian's death glare couldn't ruin Cole's mood. He launched into the kitchen and grabbed the notepad to make the grocery list for Saturday's dinner.

Ty arrived at the shop an hour late and immediately began knocking off items from the project checklist, finally wrapping up the last of the details on the Drayton rig. The rig would be ready within the hour, just in time, before the scheduled service appointment for two additional cars.

His focus kept wandering back to Cole circling the rig to inspect every line and gap to ensure everything was perfect. Behind that façade of somewhat crass humor was a man who had a deep love for his family and an intense work ethic. His expression, focused, his movements efficient and precise, and his knowledge and skills broader than any of the other techs. Ty smiled to himself and looked over at Cole again. He could literally see the wheels turning in Cole's head so fast Ty was certain smoke would start emerging from his ears.

"So what are you making for our dinner date?" Ty asked to break the silence.

Cole knelt and adjusted one of the hinges with a screwdriver, comparing the gap with the adjoining area.

"Cole?" Ty asked.

Cole jerked, as if deep in thought and only now heard Ty's voice for the first time. "Where do you go?"

Ty cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

Cole straightened and fidgeted, shifting the tool between his hands. "When you come in late to the shop. Where do you go in the morning?"

Ty wiped his hands while he debated on the best answer to give. He hated talking about the accident but he didn't want to lie to Cole. "Doctor's appointment," he finally said.

Cole set the tool down in the chest drawer and walked over to Ty. He stood in front of him and shoved his hands in his work pants. "Is that also where you went last week and on the weekend?"

After a few moments, Ty relented and nodded.

Cole chewed his bottom lip and tugged his beanie. "I'm probably going to totally screw this up so don't get offended, okay?"

Ty hid a smile. He knew Cole tried to control the random
best-kept-silent
outbursts, but Ty secretly loved them. "Okay."

"Four appointments in four weeks. Is, um…everything okay?"

Ty looked away and rubbed his hands together. His heart beat faster, thinking of what to say. He hadn't noticed how hard he was pushing his palms against each other until Cole stilled his hands with his own. His gaze snapped back to Cole's concerned expression. "Sorry," Ty said, shaking his head. "I see a few doctors for follow-up. I, uh…" He ran his hands through his hair and looked away again.

Cole stepped forward, closing the space between them. He pulled Ty by the waist. "Are you sick?"

"No. It's complicated."

Cole gave him a lopsided grin. "Everything with you is complicated. Keeps me interested."

"Only you would say that." Ty reached out and brushed his thumb along Cole's cheek. There was something honest about Cole that invited Ty to open up to him. But that inner voice urging him to jump in with both feet still battled with the demon on his shoulder that swore the desire burning in Cole's mismatched eyes would be short-lived. He wasn't a risk taker by nature, but he couldn't deny wanting to take a chance with Cole. "Aside from regular doctors, I have appointments with a physical therapist and a…a psychologist."

Cole scrunched his eyebrows. "Why are you seeing a shrink? I had a neighbor who used to grab the paper in the morning naked and lathered up in lotion to make it tougher for the aliens to get a hold of him.
He
saw a shrink."

Ty smiled. "People go to doctors for different reasons. It just helps sometimes to talk through things."

Cole casually slid his hand down Ty's hips and let his fingers graze over Ty's ass. Every inch of Ty's body was instantly on alert. "You can talk to me, save a buck. I'm a good listener," Cole said with a wicked, teasing smile.