“With fame and money comes a lot of bad decisions,” Mom smiled sadly. “He’ll get tired of it. He may be restless now, but behind all that restlessness is a heart that needs a home.”
“I think you’ve said that about every guy in this town,” I arched a brow, remembering how she used to say the same thing about Braden. “Maybe you just mean to say they’re allboredand can’t keep their pricks in their pants.”
Mom chuckled and shook her head. She stood up, bringing her dishes to the kitchen sink. “That may be true, but they eventually settle down. Most of them, anyway.”
I was long since used to my mother’s view on love. While she had never dated anyone after my dad to my knowledge, she still wanted to believe in love. She still wantedmeto believe in it.
“Whatever you say Mom. Any chance you could take me to the garage to pick up my car?” I asked, changing the subject so she wouldn’t feel the need to broach the B topic.
“Of course, are you ready to go now? I’ll drop you off, then I need to swing by the Armstrong’s.” She turned back to the counter.
“Why?” I tilted my head, my brow furrowing slightly. Mom waited until she’d finished rinsing her dishes to reply. She turned around, leaning against the counter and gave me her best smile.
“I need to pester Bill. He’s got to do his speech for the wedding, and Lord knows he’ll put it off until the last minute and be woefully unprepared.”
“Woefully unprepared?” I said with amusement. “He should just make you write it.”
“I’ve got my own speech to write,” Mom smiled, pushing off the counter. She grabbed her purse from the hook by the door and headed outside. I followed her, shaking my head.
When I was little, I used to wish that Mom and Bill would fall in love and get married. I loved going over to the Armstrong’s house. I’d always felt like a part of the family and at one point, I got it into my head that it would be perfect if Bill and my mom tied the knot. Only I knew that it would never happen: Bill had been madly in love with Tessa’s mom, and even though she’d been dead for a long time, he had never gotten over her. Plus, Tessa’s mom had been my mom’s best friend. I knew without a doubt I could never entertain the thought of falling for the love of Tessa’s life. Bill and Mom were kindred spirits; both of them raising their kids alone despite heartbreak.
Once we got to the garage, I grabbed my purse and told my mom I’d meet her back home in a couple of hours to go shopping before I slid out. I watched her drive away before I started walking towards the office door. I passed Braden’s old Chevy S10, the same one he had in high school. Remorse settled on my shoulders as the memories that accompanied that truck washed over me. I didn’t know why I was feeling remorse…it wasn’t like I’d ripped Braden’s heart into pieces. Frowning, I opened up the office door and walked inside.
Chuck’s Garage was tiny and cramped. It smelt like metal and grease and was completely empty save for the receptionist sitting behind the front desk. Like most people in town, she looked vaguely familiar but I couldn’t recall her name—she hadn’t been in the office when I’d left my contact information. She had curly strawberry blonde hair cut in a bob and freckles that dotted her nose.
She looked up when the door closed behind me. The easy smile she’d been wearing prior to looking up vanished. “Guess you’re here for the Camry.” She said, without a note of friendliness.
I arched a brow, wondering what I’d done to deserve this icy reception. As far as I’d known, I had never had a falling out with her before, although her voice seemed slightly familiar as well as her appearance. Suddenly, it dawned on me.
“Oh! You’re Chuck’s niece, aren’t you? Michelle? You dated Gordon for a bit?” I exclaimed, picking up the receipt without looking at it right away.
“It’sMelissa,” she corrected hotly, her eyes narrowing at me. “And that was forever ago.”
“Sorry, Melissa. How much do I owe?” I asked, stopping before the desk. I looked down, searching through my purse for my wallet.
“Nothing. You don’t owe a thing,” she responded coldly. I looked back up at her, blinking blankly.
“Pardon?” I asked. Melissa responded by rolling her eyes and gestured to the paper in my hand. I read the receipt. There was no price on the bill, just a summary of what work had been done and Braden’s signature at the bottom right corner. “But…Braden said he had to replace the radiator?”
Melissa made a strange sound of exasperation and rolled her eyes again, as if I was the most obtuse person in the world and she didn’t have any patience at all to deal with me. “Obviously,someonecovered it for you. Although I have no idea why he’d do such a thing,” she muttered, suddenly focusing all of her attention on her computer screen.
Realization struck me like a bus. “That goddamn bastard,” I swore, seething with anger. “Where is he?”
The world’s most unhelpful receptionist shrugged a shoulder, refusing to respond or look at me. I tore out of the office and into the parking lot. Braden’s truck and the tow truck were parked out front, so it was obvious he was here somewhere. My best bet was inside the garage. That’s where one would usually find a mechanic, anyway.
One of the garage doors was open, so I stomped inside. “Braden Miller! Get your ass out here right now!”
A young guy dressed in blue coveralls with the nameMilesembroidered on the pocket looked up from the car he was working on. He spotted me, standing with my hand on my hip and fire in my eyes, and grinned.
“Jesus Braden, what’d you do now?” he asked with amusement, turning his head towards the right side of the garage. I followed his gaze to a sedan. Braden was leaning into the engine bay, some kind of wrench or socket in his hand. He didn’t bother looking up from his task.
“Fuck off Miles. Take your break now,” Braden responded without looking up from the car. Miles set his wrench down and chuckled, heading to the office to give us some privacy. I watched him leave, my foot tapping impatiently against the floor. “Most people would just say thank you and carry on with their day,” he finally said, his muscles straining as he worked the wrench to get some part free.
It was a distracting sight, and I had to clamp my mouth shut for a moment to prevent myself from drooling.
“Why did you pay for it, Braden?” I demanded, my eyes narrowed with anger. I stalked closer to him, my eyes never leaving his face. “I never asked you to do that.”
He looked up, his eyes instantly locking with mine. “I felt like being charitable,” he shrugged, smirking.
