Mustang Sally (18 page)

“Hell no, Mustang.” He rubbed his nose on hers. “I love you even more tonight than I have before. More than I thought possible. I want you with us for the rest of our lives. I can’t live with less.”

Eli handed her to Alanso for a moment. He lunged for his discarded jeans. From the pocket, he withdrew the box he’d been dying for her to accept.

He took a deep breath and prayed this time he’d do this right.

Sinking to his knees, Alanso joined him. The other man held his hand as he flipped open the velvet casing.

For the first time, Sally took a good look at the ring they’d commissioned for her. A big diamond, the exact shade of pink as her car, nestled between two gleaming white stones. One for him. One for Alanso. Five smaller pink baguettes completed the unbroken circle around the band. Rainbows danced on her pale skin as the many facets reflected the halogen lights above them.

The entire gang of Hot Rods closed rank around them, forming a tight circle that protected the trio at the center of the group.

“Salome Rider, will you marry Alanso and me?”

“Hell yes!” She flung herself at them, bowling them over.

They laughed together as they cuddled close. Alanso plucked the ring from the box and slipped it onto Sally’s hand. She peered at it, then dashed tears from her cheeks before kissing first Eli, then Alanso. She made out with him some more, then Eli again.

The Hot Rods congratulated them one by one. Someone flipped on the faux fireplace at the end of the rug the threesome lounged on as they left the room. The trio lost themselves in each other and the complex relationship they’d forged.

It may have taken a long time to cure, but it would never break.

Sally raised her head and promised them both, “I’ll love you forever.”

“Hot Rods for life,” Alanso whispered.

Eli settled for simplicity. “I’m yours.”

Epilogue

Kaige grinned as he filled in the five guys and their women, who anxiously huddled around the camera on the other end of the video chat, even if not all of them were visible on the limited screen. “Yep. Looks like Eli and Alanso are chained for life. Or will be. Soon.”

“If you really believe they haven’t already been committed to her—to the Hot Rods—for years, you’re crazy.” Morgan shook her head.

“Are you paying attention over there, Super Nova?” Even Dave got in on the lecture.

“Yeah.” He dropped the smartass act for just a minute. It’d been his shelter for so long he wasn’t sure how to let go sometimes. “It’s good. They’re changing. We all are.”

“I hear Eli’s giving you a lot more responsibility on the business side of things,” Mike chimed in. As the operation owner for the crew, he had a lot in common with Cobra. “That’s a damn fine idea. You’ve always had an eye for strategy and new leads. Don’t let this screw with your head. Trust your gut. When you’re all working together, only good things will come.”

He nodded. “That’s not what’s worrying me.”

“Ah, now we’re getting somewhere.” Kayla leaned forward in her husband’s hold. “Finally going to admit everything isn’t fine in paradise?”

“That’s the thing, Kay.” He sighed. “It
is
perfect. I’m afraid I might mess it up.”

“And not on the garage stuff,” Neil supplied.

“Hell, no. I’ve got that under control.” Kaige scratched his eyebrow. “It’s the other shit. I mean, this is great for now. But what if I find someone I want to be with? You know, a woman? How the hell did you guys make that work? There are no other chicks here. Just Mustang. She’s amazing, but she’s not going to be enough for us all. She’ll always belong to Cobra and Al first.”

“Why can’t your group grow?” Mike hugged his wife and their daughter tight to his chest.

“I don’t know if we’re ready for that.” Kaige grimaced. “It took this long to get where we are with people we’ve known all our lives.”

“Well, do you have someone in mind?” Joe narrowed his eyes.

“Nah, nothing like that.” Kaige shrugged. “Just thinking ahead, I guess. This means too much to me to get down a road I can’t finish driving.”

“Why not enjoy the ride for a bit?” James encouraged him. “You’ve already got one Eli—you don’t need two worriers. Besides, hasn’t he proved that the best-laid plans don’t always work out like you thought? Sometimes you’ve gotta roll with what you’re handed.”

Kaige nodded. “I suppose you’re right. I just have this feeling…”

“I get that sometimes too.” Neil adjusted his crotch. “You’ll get used to it. Go find Mustang and her guys. They’ll fix you up.”

“Ug. Not
that
kind of—” Kaige cracked up. It wasn’t often he got kidded by another kidder. “Okay, okay. Right. But when my time comes, you better get your long distance minutes ready. I’m gonna need some help.”

“We’ve got your back, Nova.” Joe nodded. “And so do your Hot Rods. Now put my cousin on the line so we can congratulate him properly.”

“For that you’d have to come in person.” Kaige extended the invitation that was always open.

“We may do that sometime soon.” Mike smiled. “Certainly for the wedding.”

“All right, then. Hang on.” Kaige strode out of his room and into the main area of the Hot Rods apartment. “Yo, Cobra. There are some people here who want to talk to you.”

He plopped the laptop on the coffee table and covered his ears as the nine-member crew, plus their kids, squealed and shouted their congratulations while Eli, Alanso and Sally grinned on their side of the screen.

A smile crossed his face as Mustang showed off the ring they’d helped Eli pick out.

His friends were happy. That made him happy too.

For now.

About the Author

Jayne Rylon is a
New York Times
and
USA Today
bestselling author. She received the 2011 Romantic Times Reviewer Choice Award for Best Indie Erotic Romance. Her stories usually begin as a daydream in an endless business meeting. Writing acts as a creative counterpoint to her straight-laced corporate existence. She lives in Ohio with two cats and her husband, who both inspires her fantasies and supports her careers. When she can escape her office, she loves to travel the world, avoid speeding tickets in her beloved Sky and, of course, read.

Look for these titles by Jayne Rylon

Now Available:

Three’s Company

Nice and Naughty

Play Doctor

Dream Machine

Healing Touch

Men In Blue

Night is Darkest

Razor’s Edge

Mistress’s Master

Powertools

Kate’s Crew

Morgan’s Surprise

Kayla’s Gifts

Devon’s Pair

Nailed to the Wall

Hammer It Home

Compass Brothers

(Written with Mari Carr)

Northern Exposure

Southern Comfort

Eastern Ambitions

Western Ties

Compass Girls

(Written with Mari Carr)

Winter’s Thaw

Two to Tango

Where There’s Smoke

Hot Rods

King Cobra

Print Anthologies

Three’s Company

Love’s Compass

Powertools

Love Under Construction

Two to Tango

Coming Soon:

Compass Girls

(Written with Mari Carr)

Hope Springs

Sizzlin’ Summer

Falling Softly

Hot Rods

Super Nova

Rebel On The Run

Swinger Style

Barracuda’s Heart

Men in Blue

Spread Your Wings

Play Doctor

Developing Desire

Nothing’s sexier than seven men with hot rods.

King Cobra

© 2013 Jayne Rylon

Hot Rods, Book 1

After Eli’s mother died, his father honored her life’s mission as a social worker by taking in several kids from the wrong side of the tracks. Not all of them stuck, but those who did became Eli’s quasi family.

Their bonds, forged in fires set by their personal demons, are unbreakable—or so Eli wants to believe. Especially since he and Alanso, his best friend and head mechanic, witnessed the overpowering allure of polyamory while visiting the Powertools crew.

Much as Eli would like to deepen the relationships among his foster brothers and sister in the Hot Rods Restoration Team, he’s hesitant to risk everything on a quick romp behind a stack of tires.

But when Eli catches Alanso exploring their mutual fantasy at a known hookup spot in a public park, all bets are off. And Eli must decide if it’s time to jump in full throttle—and trust his instincts to guide him through the night. If the pair can dodge the potholes in their own relationship, maybe they can race together toward the unconventional arrangement with Mustang Sally they both desire.

Warning: Fasten your seatbelts, this is going to be a wild (and naughty) ride!

Enjoy the following excerpt for
King Cobra:

Eli London stared at the drop of sweat gathering on the shoulder of one of his mechanics, Alanso. He flexed his fingers around the torque wrench he’d retrieved for the man, refusing to let go and trace the path perspiration took over deceptively wiry muscles.

Inked artwork brightened as the bead dampened several tattoos. First a tribal scribble, then a portrait of Al’s long-lost mom, and finally the top of an intricate cross that disappeared beneath the bunched fabric clinging around his waist. Torn and oil-stained coveralls hugged a high, tight ass.

All Eli could think of these days was that damned ass, which Alanso now shoved out in his direction while the bastard tuned some rich kid’s engine. With hardly any effort at all, Eli could smack it. Or bite it. Or screw it.

Son of a bitch.

Nothing good could come of this obsession. Damn his cousin Joe for putting crazy thoughts in his brain. The guy was a member of a construction crew that liked to work hard and play harder together. Their polyamorous bedroom gymnastics had become obvious when Eli and Alanso had walked in on a scene he couldn’t forget. But just because that bastard had been lucky enough to find a whole team of buddies his wife adored—no, loved—didn’t mean such a wild arrangement could work for everybody in the world.

Eli had no right to wish for the same. Yet lately, each time he looked at the half dozen guys and girl he considered his grease monkey family, he found himself sporting a hard-on stiff enough to jack up a tank with. Thankfully, the oblivious gang hadn’t identified the source of his recent frustration. Though they certainly had borne the brunt of his bad temper, adding guilt to the unslakable arousal stripping his gears, leaving him spinning his wheels.

Stuck and stranded. Alone with his dirty little secret.

Except for Alanso.

Why had that mechanic been the one to witness Joe and his crew’s alternative loving along with Eli? Probably because they went most everywhere together. Eli shoved the memory of his right-hand man’s right hand from his mind. Or at least he tried. The guy had tortured Eli with greedy pumps of his trembling fist while the crew’s foreman, Mike, demonstrated just how hot it could be to take on one of his own. By screwing Joe while the mechanics had stared, in awe of the power exchange.

Eli knew that if he slammed Alanso against the 426 inch engine block of that 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T coupe, the man would spread and welcome him.

Boss, friend…brother.

And that’s where the fantasy turned to battery acid, burning Eli’s insides with the bitter taste of responsibility and logic.

How could he want a guy he considered family? How could he violate that trust?

He couldn’t afford to lose Alanso.

Not from his business, definitely not from his life.

So he could never seize what he craved. Frustration bubbled over.

“What’s taking so long, Diaz?” Eli knocked thick, bunched biceps with the tool he carried. “We’re trying to make a profit here, you know?”

Alanso couldn’t seem to wipe his glare away as easily as he rid his brow of the moisture dotting it. He snatched the wrench from Eli and returned to his task without taking the bait. If Eli couldn’t screw, the least the guy could do was give him the courtesy of engaging in a decent fight. His teeth ground together.

“You hear me,
huevón
? This isn’t some charity case. Hot Rods is a business. Don’t spend all day on a five-hundred-dollar job.” Eli thumped the hood, knowing how the impact would reverberate.

Alanso’s shoulders tensed. The clench of muscles along his spine altered the shape of his tattoos. Still, he said nothing about the low blow—or how he’d repaid the Londons a million times over for their hand-up through a solid decade of friendship and loyalty—and continued about his job. One he was damn fine at performing. No one could make an engine purr like Alanso.

“You want half-assed, go hire a motorman from the chain in town.” He didn’t bother to acknowledge Eli with a look.

Still, as Alanso’s boss and best friend, Eli knew that tone well enough. It’d be accompanied by Al’s tattooed middle finger sticking up along that wrench, he’d bet.

The defiance made Eli long to grab the other man’s chin and force him to gaze up. Maybe then Alanso would see the desperation making Eli more unhinged than Mustang Sally during a particularly bad bout of PMS. God help them all.

He’d never wanted something he couldn’t have so badly before. Except maybe to heal his mom during those horrid weeks she’d spent dying.

Terror and a soul-deep pain that never entirely faded turned him into something no better than a cornered animal. Eli lashed out. “Good idea. Maybe they’d spend less time checking me out and do their goddamned work.”