you in the building is going to bring in a shit-ton of business.”
“Ah ha! So I’m just window decoration, there to lure sales?”
“Told you I wasn’t a stupid man. I know an asset when I see one.”
He laughs, and then pulls me down for a kiss. One leads to another and soon we’re finishing in the shower, with me bent over with my hands on the tile and him driving into my soap slick body as hot water sprays over us and the room fills with steam.
CHAPTER NINE
Ashlynn—
I follow behind Rusty as he leads me to his motorcycle shop. It’s in a town just west of Atlanta called Doraville. We turn in the lot. There are two sides to the business. One side is a retail storefront, and the other side is a garage with several bay doors. There’s a sign on the wall that reads Rusty’s Custom Chop Shop. Lettering on the plate glass windows states, Full Service, Performance Engine Building, Custom Builds, Financing Available.
There are several bikes parked out front. I’m not sure if they’re ones he’s built or just customers’.
He parks near the door, and I take the spot next to him and climb out. He pulls off his helmet, drops it on the seat, and grabs my hand, leading me in. I’m impressed with the place, and I can tell by his face, he’s proud of it.
There are about half a dozen shiny bikes parked inside the store, all with beautiful lines and all custom as hell.
“So, Chop Shop… What does that mean?” I ask.
“Means I build custom chopper style motorcycles.”
“They’re beautiful.”
There are a few racks with shirts and helmets and accessories and a full wall of parts hanging on pegboard. A counter in the back is set up with a register. The guy behind it is on the phone, but lifts a hand and waves hello.
Through an arched doorway on the right is another room. Rusty leads me into it. It’s got more merchandise and some chairs for waiting. Beyond it is an office with a small glass window.
I follow Rusty into the office. It’s a good size and air conditioned, thankfully, with a desk on one side. It’s what’s on the other side that catches my eye. A custom bike is parked like a showpiece. There’s also an armless leather couch and a round glass coffee table with a funky tripod stand made out of chrome springs. The walls are lined horizontally in what looks like scrap wood, with assorted sizes of planks of varying ages and stains that look cool as hell. Framed prints of the business and some magazine and newspaper write-ups decorate it.
There’s another metal door opposite the waiting area. When Rusty opens the door, I see it’s the garage. Noise and hot air roll in. We walk through, and I see three guys working on bikes in various stages of repair or build. There are several ordinary stock bikes being worked on in the first two bays. Beyond that I can see several custom works of art.
The men look up and stare at me. One gives a whistle until Rusty cuts him off with a slashing motion across his throat.
“Listen up. This is Ashlynn. She’s takin’ over for Flo, so cut her some slack while she gets the hang of things around here. I expect you to show her the utmost respect, understand?”
They nod.
“One more thing. She’s got a sweet ride that’s gonna be parked out front when she’s here. Anybody touches it, I’ll cut off his dick.”
With that, he leads me inside the office without even giving me their names. I’m still a little opened-mouthed over that last comment, but he carries on like he didn’t just threaten all his employees with bodily harm.
“So this is where you’ll hang. I need you to do the invoicing mostly and pay the bills. Things like utilities, parts suppliers and such. The guys up front will order the parts, so you don’t have to worry about any of that end. I’ll also need you to submit payroll and make sure it’s done on time. The guys get a little pissy if their paychecks are late.”
“I’m sure.”
“Things might be a little cluttered. Flo was crap at filing. Never could find anything.”
I take in the cluttered desk. “Why’d she leave?”
“Probably because she knew I was about to fire her ass. She started seein’ some guy, and I’m pretty sure she started using. Crystal meth would be my guess. He was a shitty influence. I