Dirty Thoughts - Megan Erickson Page 0,63
with utter horror.
Asher ran his hand over the longer hair on top. “Jenna dyed it for me.”
Cal’s eyes cut to her, but she’d long ago learned not to wither beneath the steel of his gaze. She shrugged. “He wanted to dye it.”
“Yeah? And if he wanted to get his tongue pierced, you’d let him do that too?”
“I actually do want to get my tongue pierced,” Asher said.
Cal’s eyes widened. “Yeah? I’ll pierce your mouth shut before I sign to let you get your tongue pierced.”
Jenna laughed and smacked Cal’s chest with her hand. “Calm down. It’s just hair.”
“It’s fucking blue,” Cal muttered.
“He likes it, and there’s no harm.”
“Fine,” he said and then pointed at the teenager. “But no fucking piercings!”
“Who’s talking about piercings?” Brent’s voice called from inside the office. He strolled out, wearing a pair of jeans and a faded gray T-shirt. “Because I’ve got—”
“No one wants to know,” Cal growled. “Swear to God, Brent, no one wants to know.”
Because Jenna never learned not to poke the bear, she turned to Cal. “I kinda want to know.”
Cal’s jaw clenched, and Brent winked at her. “I’d let you find out if I didn’t think Cal would cut off my balls.”
“I’d do more than cut off your balls,” Cal said.
Brent raised his eyebrows. “See?”
“So . . . ” Asher lifted up the bag of sandwiches. “Anyone hungry?”
That effectively shut down the conversation, which was a good thing, because Cal was glaring at Brent, and Brent seemed positively delighted about it. They walked to the back room, and Brent went with them, humming under his breath.
“Don’t you have things to do other than hanging around the garage on your day off?” Jenna asked Brent.
He shrugged, and his slate eyes, so like Cal’s, shuttered. “Just getting some paperwork done.”
“Do you need help?”
Brent waved her away. “You and your boyfriend”—he winked at her—“have a nice romantic lunch together.”
“Brent!” Cal said over his shoulder. “Quit being a pain in the ass.”
“Can’t.” Brent tipped an imaginary hat to Jenna. “It’s when I stop being a pain in the ass that you gotta worry. Later, kids.” He walked into the office and shut the door behind him.
Cal’s gaze kept straying to Asher’s hair as they ate. Then he’d shake his head and look back down. Jenna figured he’d get over it in time. His lips were stained red from the lollipop he’d had in his mouth, and he looked infinitely kissable. She needed to think about something else. “So how’s business?”
Cal shrugged. “Good. Busy.”
“You talk to your dad any more about working on bikes?” Jenna asked.
Cal spoke after he’d swallowed the bite of his sandwich. “I haven’t said anything yet, but I’m getting ready to put my foot down. I hired a realtor, and I’ve been checking out some places I can rent to open up my own shop.” He glanced around and then spoke quieter. “I hate to do that, because I don’t want Brent to get caught in the crosshairs of the fight, but why should I let Dad make all the decisions? He a stubborn son of a bitch.”
“He’s not that bad,” Asher said softly, crunching on a pickle.
Cal raised his eyebrows, but before he could respond, Jack’s voice came from the garage. “Where’s the kid?”
“Back here!” Asher called, and Cal’s eyebrows rose higher.
“Doesn’t your dad have off today?” Jenna asked.
Cal stared at the doorway, his tongue touching the corner of his mouth. “Yup.”
“So what’s he doing here?” she asked.
“I’m sure he’ll tell us.”
Jack strode into the room. She’d only seen him briefly at the restaurant that night all hell broke loose, so she got a better look at him now. He was a huge man, easily six foot four, and stocky. His face was craggy, probably from all the time he’d spent in the sun and all the cigarettes he’d smoked. He’d never been friendly to her, but then he’d never been outright hostile either. He saved that for his sons. Max always got the worst of it. Jenna had always thought Jack had a soft spot for his oldest son, even though he rarely showed it.
“Cal.” Jack’s voice was a crack.
“What’s going on?” Cal asked.
“Need the kid.”
“The kid?”
“Did I stutter?”
“Why do you need the kid?”
Jack was staring at Asher now like he had two heads. “Why the fuck is your hair blue?”
“Dad, why do you need the kid?”
“Airport. And seriously, why is his hair blue?”
“What are you talking about?” Cal sounded incredibly confused, and Jack looked pissed off that he had to