Falling for the Wingman (The Kelly Brothers, Book 3) (7 page)

The other mechanic handed her a can and grinned. “When you done loosening that tight bitch up, maybe we can use it on your sister.”

“What are you talking about?”

Before he had a chance to answer, a woman’s voice with a prissy Southern drawl came from the opening of the garage. “Alexandra, I need to speak to you in your office immediately.”

Alex would bet anything that Kourtney was here to talk about Caleb, especially after their performance at the Sugar Belle last night.

Jermaine’s grin widened as he hid behind the car’s hood with her. “Just spray it between her ass cheeks, and maybe she won’t be so high and mighty,” he whispered before running over to another car.

It was tempting, especially after Alex peeked around the hood and noted the designer dress her sister was wearing. “I’m kind of busy with this engine at the moment.”

“I don’t give a horse’s patootie what you’re doing—my business is far more important than yours. I need to talk to you about your recent behavior, and I’m not leaving until you promise that you’ll stop embarrassing me.”

Alex sprayed the lubricant on the lug nut and replaced the socket wrench. After one final shove, the nut loosened. She continued to work at it, never looking up from her work. “Let’s face it, Kourtney, I’m always going to be an embarrassment to you, so there’s no need to have this conversation again.”

“Alexandra Leadbetter,” her sister said with a stomp of her stiletto-clad foot, “you get your behind in your office right now.”

“Whatever you want to say, you can say it to me here.”

“I am not airing your dirty laundry where everyone in town can hear it.”

“If you would come into the garage, you wouldn’t have to shout.”

“I’m not stepping foot in this filthy place. I’m meeting Mrs. McClure for lunch in ten minutes, and I refuse to get one speck of grease on me.”

Alex laid the socket wrench aside and eyed the can of WD-40. It was tempting. So very tempting.

Jermaine returned. “You’d best let her get it out of her system because there ain’t no telling what she’ll do until she gets her way. I’ll keep working on Miss Martha’s car.”

“Fine.” Alex handed the socket wrench to him. “If I’m not back in five minutes, it’s because one of us is dead and the other is trying to dispose of the body.”

The other mechanic laughed and started working on the next stubborn bolt.

Alex stretched the kinks out of her back and pulled off the black bandana she used to keep her hair out of her face when she was working, using it to wipe off some of the grease on her hands.

Kourtney wrinkled her perfectly shaped nose. “You are so disgusting.”

“Want me to share?” She stretched out her dirty hand.

Her sister squealed and squeezed her Michael Kors purse to her chest. “Don’t you dare touch me!”

Alex laughed and finished cleaning her hands before tossing the dirty bandana in the laundry basket. “Let’s go to my office and get this over with so I can go back to work.”

Kourtney followed her through the garage, still clutching her purse and contorting her body to ensure there was at least a good foot between her and anything she passed. “Have you ever considered hiring a cleaning lady for this place?”

“It’s a garage, Kourtney. We fix cars. There’s always going to be oil and grease everywhere.” Alex caught a glimpse of herself in the window of her office. A black smear marred her cheeks, and her hair curled around her face like a frizzy halo. So very different from her sister, whose pale blond hair was teased and curled to fall in perfect ringlets.

She rubbed the smear off her cheek and collapsed into her chair. “Okay, let ’er rip.”

Kourtney eyed the office with only a fraction less disdain than she had the garage. “I’m here to tell you to stop being the town slut and trying to seduce Caleb.”

“Town slut, huh?” She rocked back in her chair. “Didn’t that title used to belong to you?”

Her sister’s lip curled into an unflattering snarl. “No, it didn’t, but I can tell you what did belong to me—Caleb. And as far as you’re concerned, he’s still mine.”

“And what does Ryan think about that?”

“That is no concern of his.”

“I would think it is, especially since you two are getting married in a few days. Does he know he’s the one you used to cheat on Caleb? I mean, if he’s open to y’all being swingers—”

“Ugh! How dare you suggest something so vile! And I’d already broken up with Caleb before I started dating Ryan.”

“Funny, because Caleb came home from Afghanistan thinking you’d be waiting for him.”

“I left him a note.”

Despite the fact they’d both shared the same lawyer father, it seemed Kourtney had never learned that anything she said could be used against her. “So, going back to the comment you made about having already broken up with Caleb, you admit that you two are no longer dating and that he’s up for grabs?”

Her mouth opened into a perfect, red-rimmed circle before snapping shut. “It means he’s up for grabs for anyone but you.”

“Too late for that. I’ve been enjoying his company quite a bit.” She gave her sister a suggestive grin, which only fanned Kourtney’s ire. “Besides, you were the one who insisted I have a date for the wedding. I’m just grateful Caleb agreed to stay in town for a little fun.”

Kourtney’s surgically enhanced bosoms strained against her dress with every rapid shallow breath she took. “Now, you listen here, Alexandra. I ignored what I heard about your little performance at the Iron Line Sunday because I thought you were just distracting him long enough to get him out of town, but after last night, I have no doubt you’re doing this out of spite. You will keep your hands off Caleb, and you definitely will not make a slut of yourself in front of everyone in town again. Do you hear me?”

If she’d just set out to make her sister jealous, she could count this as a success. But she wanted more. She wanted Caleb. “And what if
he
can’t keep his hands off
me
?”

A blood vessel throbbed along Kourtney’s neck. “I mean it. I won’t have you taking what’s mine.”

“Then you should’ve thought about that before you left a great guy like Caleb because now that I have him, I sure as hell ain’t letting him go.” Alex rose from her chair. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do, and you have a luncheon date with your future mother-in-law.”

Alex left her shock-eyed sister in the office and dived under the hood of Miss Martha’s car, not caring how long it took Kourtney to pull her shit together and leave. Her whole life, she’d gone along with her older sister’s demands because it had been much easier than trying to resist. But now she had something to fight for, and it felt good to finally stand up to her.

****

Caleb sat in his car down the street from the garage and stared at his good luck charm. He hadn’t missed the flash of recognition in Alex’s eyes when he’d shown it to her last night. For the last year and a half, he’d never wondered where Kourtney had gotten the figurine, but now it seemed to make sense. Alex had made it. It looked like something she would make, what with the leftover parts and the wry smirk on the angel’s face. It matched her sense of humor.

He tilted his head back and groaned. Sleep hadn’t come easy last night, and he wished he could’ve blamed the ache in his chest from the deep-fried Southern cooking he’d been consuming since he’d arrived in Jackson Grove. Instead, he knew who was to blame—Alex. He had no idea how it happened, but at some point last night, he’d forgotten about Kourtney and become all too aware of how tempting Alex was. Hell, he’d even called her sexy and meant it right before he’d kissed her.

This was seriously fucked up. He’d come here to win back his girlfriend, not hook up with her younger sister.

He checked the time on his watch. It was 4:56 p.m. Plenty of time for a quick call to gain some brotherly advice. He pulled out his phone and dialed Adam’s number. “Got a minute?”

“For you? Definitely. Just give me a second.” Part of a muffled conversation broke through, along with the crisp British accent of Adam’s associate, Bates. Then Adam came back. “Sorry—I just needed to wrap up a few things.”

“No problem.”

“So I’m assuming this is about that woman you went to win back?”

“Yes, only…” Caleb’s voice trailed off. In the last forty-eight hours, he’d begun to wonder if he’d ever known the real Kourtney. “Only now, I’m wondering if I really want her back.”

“Meaning?”

“I’m still in Jackson Grove, and I recruited her sister, Alex, to help me win her back by making her jealous.” The ache in his chest returned. “But to be honest, I’m feeling a bit confused.”

“You’re not the only one. Care to enlighten me?”

“Well, first off, I get here to find out she’s going to marry some other guy on Saturday.”

“And you still want her back?”

“Two days ago, I would’ve said yes, but today, I’m not so sure.”

“What changed?”

“Well, for starters, I’m actually enjoying hanging out with her sister. Alex gets me. She’s laid back, no fuss, loves cars.”
Is very easy to kiss and has me wishing this wasn’t all part of an act.

His heart thudded to a stop.
Holy shit! I’m falling for Alex
.

“Sounds like a winner. What’s holding you back?” When he didn’t answer, worry seeped into Adam’s voice. “Caleb, are you still there?”

“Yeah, I am but…” He ran his fingers through his hair. “I think I’m in some serious shit here, Adam. On one hand, I still love Kourtney.”

“Even after she left you for someone else?”

His throat tightened. The shock of her betrayal still stung, especially after all the things she’d said in her letters. But every time he read them, he was certain that was the woman he wanted to marry. “I wish I could explain what happened while I was away.”

“Send me one of those emails you were talking about, and Dan and I will run them through our bullshit analyzer. Hell, I’ll even ask Lia for her assessment.”

If the letters hadn’t been so personal, he’d forward them in a heartbeat. “My problem is, I’ve been spending so much time with Alex that I’m forgetting about Kourtney.”

Adam paused before saying in his most sincere voice, “Then maybe that’s a good thing. She sounds like she’s moved on. Maybe you should, too.”

“But with her sister?”

“That’s never stopped you before. Remember Lauren Riser in tenth grade?”

Caleb couldn’t help but chuckle. He’d gone out with Lauren’s younger sister, Bailey, then broken it off with her for her much older and more experienced older sister. The two sisters fought so hard to keep him that he’d been able to score with both of them before moving on to the next girl. “I am a little older and wiser now from that experience.”

“Not to mention, having a few more notches in your belt. I never understood how you always had girls ready to hop into bed with you.”

“Let’s face it—I’m the most charming out of all of us.” His laughter died, though, and he grew more somber. “I haven’t slept with Alex.”

“That’s refreshing.”

“No, I’m serious, Adam. I haven’t, but last night, I came this close to following her to her place. The only thing that held me back was this overwhelming sense of wrongness. I’d feel like I was taking advantage of her, and she deserves better than that.”

Another pause from his brother. “You know, I think this is the first time I’ve ever heard you turn down a chance to sleep with a woman.”

“Well, technically, she didn’t offer, but if she did, I still would’ve said no.”

“Because she deserves better?”

“Yes.” Caleb rubbed the center of his chest where the ache had returned with a vengeance. “Alex does. She’s a girl I’d have no problem bringing home to meet Mom.”

“Unlike her sister?”

Caleb pressed the heel of his hand to his temple as he remembered that disaster. His mother had come down to Florida a few months before he deployed and had taken an immediate dislike to Kourtney. “Yeah, I think even Mom would like Alex.”

“Speaking of Mom, did you ever ask her why she hated Kourtney?”

“No.” He’d been too angry at the time, too ready to defend his girlfriend and certain his mother had taken one look at Kourtney and dismissed her.

“Then maybe you should give her a call and ask that now before you propose to one of them.”

“Hey, not all of us find our future wives after Mom bids on them for a charity auction.”

Now it was Adam’s turn to chuckle. “And for the first time in my life, I was glad Mom decided to play matchmaker. But seriously, she’s a good judge of character, and maybe she saw something in Kourtney you’d been blind to.”

“I’ll think about it.” He checked his watch again. It was 5:02 p.m. “I’ve got to run now, though. Another fake date with Alex.”

“From what I’m hearing, there’s nothing fake about them. Admit it—if you hadn’t met Kourtney first, would you have fallen for Alex?”

Caleb didn’t answer. Instead, he hung up to keep from admitting to his older brother how spot-on he’d been.

And to keep from admitting to himself that maybe he’d been chasing the wrong sister.