Erik Santana has been waiting as well. His wife finally divorced him over his “unnatural obsession” with cars, allowing him the freedom to pursue the woman he’d fantasized about for years.

Apple remembers noticing Erik and his powerful muscle car before but this year, instead of showing off his prized possession, his attention is focused on seducing her. When he introduces her to his private collection of vehicles, her arousal is uncontrollable. What they do in, on and around those super-hot rides fulfills every sexual fantasy Erik and Apple ever had.

“And what's your passion, Apple?”

She met his gaze and had the distinct feeling he already knew her secret. A hot quiver of lust shot shot straight to its target. Her voice was husky when she finally gave him his answer. “Sports cars. And some muscle cars.”

“Like my GTO?”

She gave him a shrug of admission but in her mind she was suddenly naked, sprawled on the hood of his black beauty and he was unzipping his jeans…

“When did it start for you?”

His question yanked her back to reality. “My love of hot cars? Hard to say. I remember noticing them when I was too young to drive, then all my early, uh, dating, took place in cars. Hard to separate the two things for me. You?”

“Same. Except maybe I was even younger. While my brothers wanted toy trucks and police cars, I only wanted the ‘cool’ models. And if it made engine revving sounds, so much the better.” He paused as though to give her a chance to ask another question and, when she didn’t he said, “Okay, Apple, time to prove how much you’d like that raffle ticket.”

“I’m guessing you’re not wanting to know my thoughts about America’s immigration policy.” That earned her another one of his devilish grins.

“Not quite.” He pulled the ticket out of his pocket and set it on the table between them. “I admitted that I was hoping to see you here. I was actually keeping an eye on the entry doors so I might see you when you first came in. When you did, I nearly knocked someone over in my rush to say hello to you. I was a few feet away when you stopped at the Lamborghini. What I think I saw after that…well, let’s just say, I reacted to your reaction and it would mean a lot to me to find out that I’m not as unnatural as my ex-wife thought I was.”

Apple could certainly empathize with that. She didn’t know anyone who would consider her sexual response to sports cars normal. It was one of the reasons she figured she would never get married. What she was having trouble wrapping her mind around was the fact that this gorgeous man, who apparently shared her intense passion for automobiles, had been thinking about her for two years. Having kept his distance while he was married said a lot for his morals.

She glanced at the ticket then studied his face. If she told him the truth and he laughed or was disgusted, she might be embarrassed but really wouldn’t lose anything. If he accepted her confession without shock, she just may have met a man worth getting to know. She crooked her index finger to bring him close enough for her to whisper in his ear. “I was imagining that I was humping my brains out on that baby’s front end.”