Automotive.”
Chapter Nine
“You’ve been avoiding my calls.”
“I know,” Mackenzie said with a nod.
Ashton sent her a disgruntled look as he took a seat at the bar. “Why didn’t you tell me Kaelyn was the same deranged chick who was suing the dealership?”
Mackenzie popped the cap off a bottle of beer and plunked it on the bar in front of him before replying, “Because you didn’t ask. And from day one I told you not to go there.”
He glared at her standing behind the bar with a hand at her dainty hip. “You see what good that did.” The second he spotted the raven-haired beauty on stage, he knew he’d be a goner.
“So what happened?”
His body tensed. “She overheard me on the phone with my brother talking about the dealership,” he muttered, then cursed under his breath.
“Oh,” Mackenzie said and seemed clearly amused. “I wish I could have been there for that!”
Ashton raised the bottle to his lips and took a sip before answering coolly, “No you don’t. It was quite heated.” He shook his head and muttered, “I had no idea she was a pistol.”
“You should have seen her in college when a jock made a pass at her,” Mackenzie began and chuckled. “You could hear Kaelyn going off clear on the other side of campus.”
Ashton shook his head again. When he had swung around on the deck and found Kaelyn standing there, he had immediately ended the call. He’d barely got his clothes on before she was shoving him and his toolbox out the front door with a slam. Ever since he’d been trying to get her to talk to him, but after three days, Kaelyn still refused to listen to anything he had to say.
“She accused me of pretending to be interested so I could sweet talk her into dropping the charges.”
Mackenzie folded her arms and leveled a look at him. “Yep. That sounds like Lynn, but can you blame her?”
Ashton sucked in a deep breath. No . Once he’d had a chance to think about how the weekend had played out, he couldn’t blame her at all.
“Trust is hard for her. Her father walked out on her. Even her last relationship ended badly,” she explained.
He felt his jaw clenched. “What do you mean by bad ?”
Mackenzie hesitated then leaned over with elbows on the counter. “She was with this guy for almost four years when he decided to break it off a week before their wedding and marry someone else.”
Ashton shook his head as anger seeped inside. “Damn.” When he thought of her with any other man something possessive and territorial came over him, especially if that person hurt her.
“Kaelyn really thought they had a future. But he’d been lying to her for years. That bastard already had a two-month-old son.” Mackenzie released a few choice words as she grabbed a frosted glass. “Ash, you should have been honest with her.”
Ashton drew a deep breath. She was right. He should have told her from the start who he was instead of allowing her to continue to think he was just a delivery guy and part owner of Kilmer Appliances.
“I fucked up,” he admitted.
Mackenzie poured beer from the tap, filling the glass and nodded. “I agree. So how are you going to fix it?”
Ashton sighed. He didn’t have a clue. By the time he’d made it into the office the next morning, he still hadn’t figured out a plan.
Ashton waved at his assistant, then walked back to his office and tried to take his mind off of Kaelyn by burying himself in his work. He had several financial reports to review and he was planning to accompany Glen at an auto auction later that afternoon. Anything to get him to stop thinking about her. He was reviewing last month’s impressive sales report when there was a knock at the door.
“Excuse me Mr. Kilmer, do you have a moment?”
He looked up to find one of his long-time mechanics, Rafael Cavazos, standing in the doorway. “Hey, come on in.” Ashton waved him into the room, glad to have a momentary distraction. The
Chapter Nine
“You’ve been avoiding my calls.”
“I know,” Mackenzie said with a nod.
Ashton sent her a disgruntled look as he took a seat at the bar. “Why didn’t you tell me Kaelyn was the same deranged chick who was suing the dealership?”
Mackenzie popped the cap off a bottle of beer and plunked it on the bar in front of him before replying, “Because you didn’t ask. And from day one I told you not to go there.”
He glared at her standing behind the bar with a hand at her dainty hip. “You see what good that did.” The second he spotted the raven-haired beauty on stage, he knew he’d be a goner.
“So what happened?”
His body tensed. “She overheard me on the phone with my brother talking about the dealership,” he muttered, then cursed under his breath.
“Oh,” Mackenzie said and seemed clearly amused. “I wish I could have been there for that!”
Ashton raised the bottle to his lips and took a sip before answering coolly, “No you don’t. It was quite heated.” He shook his head and muttered, “I had no idea she was a pistol.”
“You should have seen her in college when a jock made a pass at her,” Mackenzie began and chuckled. “You could hear Kaelyn going off clear on the other side of campus.”
Ashton shook his head again. When he had swung around on the deck and found Kaelyn standing there, he had immediately ended the call. He’d barely got his clothes on before she was shoving him and his toolbox out the front door with a slam. Ever since he’d been trying to get her to talk to him, but after three days, Kaelyn still refused to listen to anything he had to say.
“She accused me of pretending to be interested so I could sweet talk her into dropping the charges.”
Mackenzie folded her arms and leveled a look at him. “Yep. That sounds like Lynn, but can you blame her?”
Ashton sucked in a deep breath. No . Once he’d had a chance to think about how the weekend had played out, he couldn’t blame her at all.
“Trust is hard for her. Her father walked out on her. Even her last relationship ended badly,” she explained.
He felt his jaw clenched. “What do you mean by bad ?”
Mackenzie hesitated then leaned over with elbows on the counter. “She was with this guy for almost four years when he decided to break it off a week before their wedding and marry someone else.”
Ashton shook his head as anger seeped inside. “Damn.” When he thought of her with any other man something possessive and territorial came over him, especially if that person hurt her.
“Kaelyn really thought they had a future. But he’d been lying to her for years. That bastard already had a two-month-old son.” Mackenzie released a few choice words as she grabbed a frosted glass. “Ash, you should have been honest with her.”
Ashton drew a deep breath. She was right. He should have told her from the start who he was instead of allowing her to continue to think he was just a delivery guy and part owner of Kilmer Appliances.
“I fucked up,” he admitted.
Mackenzie poured beer from the tap, filling the glass and nodded. “I agree. So how are you going to fix it?”
Ashton sighed. He didn’t have a clue. By the time he’d made it into the office the next morning, he still hadn’t figured out a plan.
Ashton waved at his assistant, then walked back to his office and tried to take his mind off of Kaelyn by burying himself in his work. He had several financial reports to review and he was planning to accompany Glen at an auto auction later that afternoon. Anything to get him to stop thinking about her. He was reviewing last month’s impressive sales report when there was a knock at the door.
“Excuse me Mr. Kilmer, do you have a moment?”
He looked up to find one of his long-time mechanics, Rafael Cavazos, standing in the doorway. “Hey, come on in.” Ashton waved him into the room, glad to have a momentary distraction. The
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