When I replied with only a shrug, he sidled closer to say, "And you know which custom bike just went out, don't you?"
Shit.
I probably did.
Still, I said nothing because,Why encourage the guy?
He leaned in, like he was delivering breaking news. "Shark Attack."
I gave him a look. "You don't say."
"The hell I don't." After glancing around, he lowered his voice, like it was all hush-hush. "Word on the street is—"
"Hang on." I held up a finger. "What street?"
He frowned. "You know…the street, street."
I glanced at a nearby sign. "You mean Main Street?"
"Whatever," he said, looking suddenly annoyed. "I'm just saying, there's like this VIP-cage fight going on over this special bike."
Well, that was new."A cage fight."
"Yeah," he said. "ApparentlyoneVIP reserved Shark Attack, but thisotherVIP got there first. I think there's some sort of lawsuit."
I stared.That had to be the dumbest thing I'd ever heard."So, pistols at dawn?"
His eyebrows furrowed. "What do pistols have to do with it?"
Dumbass."Better than fisticuffs."
His eyes narrowed. "You're messing with me, aren't you?"
No shit.With a laugh, I reminded him, "Hey, you came up tome."
"Yeah, but not on purpose." He let out a smug little snort. "I mean…I'm not here because ofyou."He jerked his chin toward the bike place. "This shop belongs to my ex."
"Lemme guess. She got it in the divorce."
He stared like I'd just sprouted yellow antennas. "Shit, dude, I'm barely old enough to be married, forget divorced."
No kidding.And yet, if he mentioned something useful, I might be all ears. "So an ex-girlfriend, huh?"
He gave a satisfied shrug. "Yeah. She was a sweet girl, but I had to move on, you know?"
What a douche."She must be devastated."
"Don't you know it," he said. "If you want the truth, I'm a little nervous."
Was this guy for real?"About what?"
"Like…I haven't seen her since college. What if she begs me back? I mean, I'm already engaged to someone else, so…I'm just saying, it could get messy."
I smiled. "Or maybe she's moved on."
He stiffened. "Moved on?"
"Yeah, got someone new."
