Ethan (Alluring Indulgence #5)(19)
Author: Nicole Edwards

Beau turned to look at Ethan, noticing how calm he was on the outside, but he could see the rage swimming in his stormy blue eyes.

“Get in your truck, Beau. I’ll follow you home.”

“Yeah! You heard him. Go home with your girlfriend!” Ricky yelled from his perch on the floor, sounding like an adolescent bully. “Told you he was a queer, Ralph.”

Before Beau could make Ricky eat his fucking words, Ethan had grabbed him again, forcing him back several more feet. As calm and unruffled as Ethan appeared, Beau was satisfied to see he was flipping Ricky off as he walked away.

Unable to say a word, his body still a maelstrom of anger and outrage, Beau managed to nod his head and allowed Ethan to steer him toward his truck. Once inside the cab, it took him two tries to get the key in the ignition because his hands were shaking, but once he did, the sound of the radio blaring and the roar of the engine pulled him from the trance he’d been in. Glaring out the window, he saw Ralph helping Ricky to his feet.

Beau had to wait for the wrecker to pull out before he could follow, and while he waited, he contemplated getting out of his truck and beating the shit out of the little bastard just because he could.

A horn blared, startling Beau. He looked out the front windshield to see Ethan waving a hand in his direction. Stomping his foot on the gas, Beau let the truck’s oversized engine roar as he bolted out of the parking lot, the back wheels losing traction as he slid onto the main road before he easily got the truck back under control.

Forcing himself to calm down, Beau let off the gas a little as he headed back down Main Street. His apartment wasn’t far from the shop, so it didn’t take long for him to get home and obviously Ethan didn’t have any issues keeping up with him.

Once his truck was parked, he sat with his hands gripping the steering wheel, his mind settling as the adrenaline drained from his body. God he was tired all of a sudden.

A tap on the window had him slowly turning his head. Ethan was standing outside the truck, the wind gusting around him. He made a motion for Beau to roll down the window, but Beau opened the door instead. Rather than getting out, he turned slightly to face Ethan, another shot of adrenaline tearing through his already emotionally drained body.

Ethan.

He was there. Not two feet away from him. The man’s calm mask was solidly in place, but Beau could sense the tension in his body. He had to wonder whether he was the reason for the way Ethan’s shoulders bulged against the black button down shirt he had on over a dark gray t-shirt. Or maybe Ethan was still riled from Ricky’s foul mouth.

“Where’re you gonna put this?” Ethan asked, looking around as though he were trying to find the secret place Beau might stash a fully stocked mechanic’s toolbox.

Apparently Ethan was back in business mode.

Shit. He hadn’t thought about that. It wasn’t like he could get the damn thing up to his apartment on the third floor. Shrugging, Beau didn’t take his eyes off of Ethan. “Hadn’t thought that far.”

Ethan actually smiled and Beau found himself frozen in place. The man was so fucking handsome. Blue-gray eyes that darkened to a deep, cobalt blue when he was angry; a stern, angled jaw covered with at least a week’s worth of beard, along with a slightly crooked nose that looked as though it’d been broken at some point, although Beau couldn’t for the life of him remember when that could’ve happened. And when he smiled, Beau wasn’t sure he’d ever seen anything quite like it.

He had the urge to touch him, to reach out and run the backs of his fingers down Ethan’s stubbly cheek. To grab him, crush his mouth to Ethan’s and take everything he’d desired for months. The memory of the night he’d kissed Ethan hit him like a surprise blow to the head.

Great.

Now he seriously wanted to kiss him.

Chapter Six

Ethan found himself staring at Beau, watching every nuance of his expression, even the way his chocolate brown eyes stared back at him as though he weren’t actually seeing him.

Was he still in shock maybe? Or just reliving what had just happened?

Unable to look away, Ethan tracked Beau as he climbed down from his oversized truck, a fire red GMC Sierra 3500HD – the kind of truck chicks went crazy for and threaded a ribbon of jealousy through the cowboys who got close enough to witness its power. As far as Ethan was concerned, it suited Beau to a T, but would be a colossal pain in his ass to work on for its sheer size alone.

When Beau climbed down to the ground just a few feet in front of him, Ethan let his gaze rake over him, hoping he wasn’t being quite as obvious as he felt. He couldn’t help himself. Something about the man, the way he carried himself, had Ethan’s entire body taking notice. He was absolute perfection.