That’s when Duke had taken over the project. The guys they employed at Twisted Steel were all great. Skilled in their trades and consistently turned out fantastic work.

But this persnickety ’34 wasn’t going to submit to anyone but Duke. So, Mick kept people away from Duke, enabling a mind-set Asa referred to as “the machine whisperer.”

There was no need to hammer home who was boss. No, Duke was a chill dude for a reason. Machines didn’t give a damn how much you needed them to work. They didn’t worry about breaking down. Moods were irrelevant to whatever Duke wanted to fix so he always figured he might as well keep his act together instead of losing his shit.

Instead, they responded to patience and determination.

A little bit of magic, some luck, lots of skill, and endless patience and the ’34’s engine had a rumbling growl. And when they finished up, the car would be one of their best builds yet, bringing them enough cash—and attention as the customer was a car enthusiast with connections at several magazines—to continue to make their mark as masters of their craft.

Asa stopped by, interrupting Duke what turned out to be two hours later. “Carmella just arrived. Let’s not scare her away with our bad manners the first day.”

“Especially as I pretty much ambushed her when I made the job offer.”

Twisted Steel had been in a bind and Duke was not even the tiniest bit embarrassed at how fast he took it up as a chance to be around her more.

She walked in, impressed by the place immediately. Sure it was a shop; she’d been in them on a regular basis pretty much her entire life so there was always a sense of homecoming. But some shops were shitholes. Most were in the middle somewhere.

Twisted Steel, though, was special.

It was clear they took pride in what they did and the product they created.

“Morning, Carmella.”

Hello, tall, dark, and handsome. Hazel eyes took her in. Long, dark hair was tied back to expose one hell of a face. Tawny skin with ink peeking out here and there. He wiped his hands on a cleanup rag.

Asa Barrons. The other owner of Twisted Steel. He held out a hand and drew it back. “Sorry, I was just dealing with a funky carb. Let’s just pretend I shook your hand and then I won’t get you dirty.”

Too bad. She bet he could get a girl really, really dirty. Carmella knew PJ Colman, Asa’s girlfriend. PJ looked really happy every time Carmella saw her since getting together with Asa.

Instead of saying it and getting fired her first five minutes on the job, she smiled. “Hi there, Asa.”

“We’re glad to have you here. Let me take you to the office so you can meet Lottie.”

She followed him back to the administrative area that overlooked the work floor via a wall of glass. A petite woman with thick-rimmed glasses looked up.

“Lottie, this is Carmella, she’ll be taking over for you.”

Lottie waved as she came over and pulled Carmella into an unexpected hug. “Hi! Come on over and put your bag away. Asa, get back to work. I’ll get Carmella started after some coffee and a tour. Don’t worry, I won’t scare her off.”

“Okay then. Again, welcome to Twisted Steel, Carmella.”

Asa left and Lottie snorted. “They’re nice guys to work for. I’m bummed to be leaving.” And then she pretty much told Carmella her entire life story as she showed her where to stow her coat and other stuff.

“This’ll be your desk unless you want the other one. They, the guys I mean, use whichever desk you won’t be using a few times a day. I like this one because that one is right under the vent so it’s freezing in the summer and hot in the winter. Plus from here you can keep an eye on the floor where everyone works and the front door too. We don’t get much street traffic. They do have open hours for the showroom but there’s a receptionist over there so you don’t have to deal with any of that stuff. They only see clients by appointment. Asa and Duke have offices just through here.” Lottie indicated two side-by-side offices. “They see clients for consults usually over in the showroom, though.”

Sweet baby Jesus, how did this girl even breathe around all those words? Lottie was like a hummingbird, flitting all around, talking at hyper speed.

“Let’s go out and meet everyone. They’re finishing a job right now so I’ll warn you they might be short and a little punchy. They’ll deliver tomorrow and then there’ll be a huge feast here.” Lottie paused and looked Carmella over. “Good, you’re not wearing heels. I tried that when I first started. You’ll find yourself running around too much for heels.”

Ha. Heels in a shop? Not likely. She liked not breaking her bones too much for that.

She followed Lottie out but Duke was already approaching, smiling. “You’re here. Good. Come on so I can introduce you around.” He put his hand at her elbow and drew her away from Lottie, who didn’t even stop chattering for half a beat.

Despite Lottie’s warning, no one was anything less than friendly and welcoming to her.

Twisted Steel had a great crew. The Ford they were finishing up was stunning work. She walked around it, pausing here and there to appreciate the craftsmanship on every level.

“This is sweet,” Carmella said, meaning it.

Duke grinned. “I can’t lie, it’s fucking gorgeous. I’m glad it turned out so well, but damn, I’ll be sorry I can’t keep her.” He polished up the chrome of a side mirror.

He charmed her, this man who looked at his work through the eyes of a little boy.