When a man who has lost his belief that there are any good men meets a man who sees inside his hidden depths, he's unsure what to do…
Gabriel Simmons loves his work at Vaughn Choppers. Building custom bikes and restoring cars is his passion. He has a knack for it and for bringing out their hidden depths. The man he meets while doing a favour for his boss and friend tests him, drawing him out of his shell. He wants to find out what makes Mace tick. The man resists him yet looks at him as if he wants all Gabe has to give. Gabe is more than willing to take him up on the offer he sees in his eyes. But first he needs to get Mace to verbalise his desires.
Mace Hutton is being driven daft by a man who is nothing like any other man he has been attracted to. Gabe is a danger to his hard-fought plan to keep free from entanglements. The contrast of his big bear of a man size and his gentleness makes Mace long to feel Gabe's touch. He can't take the chance…yet Mace cannot get the man out of his mind. He's been burnt enough to know there are no good men out there. Or have his assumptions been wrong? Is there one good man who is just right for him?
Reader Advisory: This book is best read in sequence as part of a series.
General Release Date: 11th October 2013
Gabriel 'Gabe' Simmons had turned into the parking area of Vaughn Choppers and was making the left to the employees’ spaces when a wonderful specimen before him caught his attention. The gate slid closed behind him as he pulled into his space, parking quickly then getting out of his black Chevy Avalanche LTZ. Gabe closed his door before striding over to the vehicle in the space two spots over from his. He placed his hand on the side of the Plymouth Barracuda, touching the battered paint of the car. From the way it looked, he knew it was a 1971. He circled the car, peering inside, and saw the interior was fully restored. Gabe wanted to hear how that engine sounded.
As far as Gabe knew, he was the only one in the shop currently with a car restoration project. None of the men he worked with had mentioned they’d bought a car to restore so he didn’t think it was any of theirs. All the men in the shop loved anything on wheels—they all had various vehicles they worked on when they weren’t busy building choppers. He stood back, looking at the battered exterior, and shook his head.
"Whoever owns you needs to get your outside to look as good as your inside seems to be." He turned then strode to the shop door that led to the office instead of to the garage as he usually did.
Since it was so early, they weren’t open for customers yet so he opened the door with his key. Once inside, he locked the door behind him. Although he knew the shop would be filled with workers, Gabe couldn’t hear them in the soundproofed office. Gabe bypassed the counter where the part-time receptionist usually sat and made his way to the side hall, heading to the offices. He moved past his and headed towards the one farther down the hall. He turned into the open office door.
"Hey, boss, who does the Plymouth Barracuda be…" Gabe trailed off as he realised his boss wasn’t alone.
Kincaid ‘King’ Vaughn didn’t stop kissing his partner Alistair James with a hungry demand. Used to them, as well as how they got when apart, Gabe sat in a chair averting his gaze as he waited. He figured Ash would ask King to leave early and he would. Gabe needed to find out from King if there was anything he needed him to do. He was grateful that Ash was back from his trip out of town—Kincaid got growly and out of sorts when he wasn’t there.
"What did you say, Gabe?" Kincaid’s tone was deeper than usual.
Gabe focused back on the two men. Ash was leaning on the low filing cabinet behind the desk, a familiar smirk on his face, while Kincaid sat in his chair behind the desk.
"It’s good to have you back, Ash. I didn’t see your Escalade in the lot," Gabe said.
"Arnold dropped me off," Ash replied then gestured between Kincaid and Gabe. "How many times did you have to oil him?" He pointed at Kincaid.
Gabe knew Arnold was Ash’s head of security and his bodyguard when he travelled. This trip had been three weeks longer than any Ash had taken before.
"Twice since you left. We were about to give him an oiling again today if he kept being an asshole. The men will be relieved you’re back." Gabe laughed.
Oiling was their way at the garage to let a person know they needed to chill. The oil was sprayed on someone when they were acting nuts about a custom job or something else—basically, when they got unbearable to deal with.
"Well I’m not going anywhere any time in the foreseeable future, so they should love that." Ash stood and placed his hand on the back of Kincaid’s neck. "You always act like such a growly bear when I’m gone."
"I miss you." Kincaid shrugged, placing his hand over Ash’s.
"Come home with me." It was a demand.
Kincaid rose. "See you tomorrow."
They headed for the door. Gabe followed them outside.
"Damn, I need to take care of the car." Kincaid stopped, looking towards the car.
"Whose is it?" Gabe moved beside it, running his hand down the side.
"Stop ogling the car. It’s not yours," Kincaid teased.
They all knew he loved cars, and they knew he loved to rip them apart before putting them back together even more. Before he’d got into motorcycles, he’d worked in a classic car restoration shop.
"It’s sweet inside, from what I can see." He gave Kincaid his puppy dog look.
"Fine, go and take a look." Kincaid laughed then threw him the keys.
Gabe caught them and was inside it in moments. He touched the seats, noting the interior was indeed as good as it had looked from the outside. He inserted the key and turned on the engine. It started with a nice, throaty growl. Gabe revved it then frowned, popping the hood and getting out.
"Something’s off."
"What? Mace did the engine restoration himself, but took it to Howard’s to have it checked over, since it was his first time doing it. He’s been working on the car piece by piece. Today is supposed to be the last step with the outer body painting," Kincaid said.
"Who’s Mace?" Gabe opened the hood and started looking around the engine, trying to place what was off.
"A friend of ours. He’s the head of the department that Aidan works for at the University of Hollisville. What wrong with the car? I can’t believe Howard’s would do a shoddy job," Kincaid said.
When Kincaid mentioned Mace’s job, Gabe remembered having heard of him although he had never met him. Gabe didn’t believe such slipshod work could have been done by Howard’s either. He’d worked with Michael Howard before—he was the owner of Howard’s Garage and Restoration, which was less than ten minutes away, located on the same side of Teylan Street.
Talia Carmichael is a romantic who believes that family, no matter if it is by blood or those you choose as family, is integral to who you are. She is an author who writes sexy stories in a variety of genres. She believes in creating stories that encompass all that falling in love or lust entails, from the highs of that first blush of attraction to the lows of not knowing if you can make your coming together as a couple work, and then finally to the acceptance of the reality of making a life together. It's all about the journey.
Among her books you'll find contemporary, futuristic, fantasy, and paranormal settings with M/M and m?nage themes that will have a happily-ever-after. Her books are passionate, intense, and real…to fill the craving.
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