"Did you forget something?" Lex asked.
Tony smiled at the amusement he could hear in Lex's voice. "Yes, you."
Lex's laughter filled Tony with warmth.
He liked that sound.
"You just left," Lex pointed out.
"And I wish I could stay longer, but I really do have to get back to work."
"You never did tell me what you do."
"I'm a mechanic." There was a bit more to it than that, like the fact that he owned his own garage, but he was still a mechanic at heart.
"A mechanic?"
Tony glanced down at his phone, confused by the trepidation he could hear in Lex's voice. "Yes, a mechanic. Is that a problem?"
"No?"
Tony frowned. "You don't sound real sure."
"No, no, I am. I just…you shower, right?"
"Of course I shower." What kind of question was that?
"Every day?"
Tony clenched his jaw. "Lex."
Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all. Tony refused to be with anyone who was ashamed of him because he had a blue-collar job. He might own the business, but he was a mechanic at heart and always would be. He took pride in what he did.
"It's just so hard to get grease and grime out of fabric."
"What?"
"My suits are Armani, Tony. My shirts are silk. Could you imagine what engine grease would do to them?"
Seriously?
"I mean, I'm not even sure my dry cleaners could get the stains out, and he's a magician with fabric. He's gotten red wine out of my shirts more times than I could count. But I just don't know about grease, Tony."
Wait… "You're freaking out because of a little engine grease?"
"Well, yeah." Lex made it sound like he was being perfectly reasonable.
Tony didn't know whether to laugh like a lunatic or start shouting. Both were a very strong probability. "You're not upset that I'm a mechanic?"
"No, why would I be?"
"Because you're freaking out over it." Seemed plain enough to Tony.
"It's grease, Tony. Grease and grime and other yucky stuff."
Tony's eye began to twitch.
"Do you know what that can do to my clothes? Or how hard it is to get it off your skin?"
