“Nope. Something else,” he smiles. “Come outside with me.” He grabs my hand and pulls me toward the front door.
“What’s going on? You’re all hyper,” I laugh.
He opens the door and spreads his arms wide. “Ta dah!” He exclaims.
I step beside him and look around. Bay is standing beside a navy blue Jeep SUV with a smile on his face. “Hi Bay,” I wave. Looking over at Zander, I ask, “What’s going on?”
“That,” he points, “is your new car.”
“What?” I say, shocked. “Zander, you didn’t.” Oh my gosh!
“I did,” he says, still with a big smile on his face. “Bay was helping me check it over last night after you left. It’s a few years old, but in great shape. It will fit you and all your friends, too.”
“Wow, Zander. You didn’t have to do that,” I say, walking over to the SUV. Bay hands me the keys and opens the driver’s door. It’s beautiful. I slide into the driver’s seat quickly. Cloth seats and a tan interior surround me, with power everything and a large screen on the console. I look behind me to see a roomy back with a glass roof. It’s big, but doesn’t feel huge to me sitting in the driver’s seat.
“Come check out the rest,” Zander says. I get out as he opens the back door to show me the back area. There are 5 more seats, andthe two front seats flip forward and move out of the way to get in the back. There’s still a decent trunk area too. It looks like new. “Do you like it?”
“I love it, Zander. Thank you so much. I haven’t even driven yet, though,” I reply, giving him a hug.
“You’ll be driving in only six months, and I didn’t want to pass up this deal. I’ve been monitoring local auto sales since we picked up your driver’s manual. A veteran Troy knows was selling it, and he offered me a great deal. This Jeep is an automatic, and my truck is a manual transmission, so you can learn both.”
“You spoil me, Zander. It’s perfect,” I smile. What a huge, amazing gift!
“Phew,” he wipes his brow. “I’m relieved you like it. It was a bit of a risk getting it without you. Let’s give Bay a drive home, then we can get to your first lesson.”
“Alright, we need to finish breakfast first. Bay, do you want some food?” I ask.
“Sure. I never turn down food,” he smiles.
I reheat a plate of the egg bake we made and hand it to Bay. Man, my heart is drumming in my chest, but for a great reason this time. After eating, we load the dishwasher, and then we’re off. I play with all the buttons as Zander drives and Bay explains all the features to me. We open up the roof since it’s a warm, sunny day. I really love this Jeep SUV.
We soon arrive at a nice-looking garage with four bays stretched along the length. “Want a quick tour?” Bay offers.
“Sure, I’d love to see where you work,” I smile.
“They service all our vehicles too, including Finn,” Zander tells me.
Bay leads us inside, where a cute young girl is sitting behind the desk. “Bay,” she squeals and comes running over, and he scoops her up. “Where did you go?”
“I had to drop a car off for my friend,” he tells her, pointing to me.
“Are you Bay’s friend?” She asks, “but you’re a girl.” She scrunches her little nose, looking me over.
“I am, but I’m a new friend. My name is Summer.” I smile at the cutie.
She squirms to get Bay to set her down. “You’re prettier than his other friends. I’m Olivia. I’m eight,” she says, holding out her hand to me.
I shake her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Olivia. I bet it’s hard work keeping this place running.”
“It is,” she nods quickly. “They’d be lost without me.” Oh, this one has sass. She reminds me of Lily bee. A touch of nostalgia rushes over me, but I shake it off.
“Ok squirt,” Bay says, smiling at her. “I’m going to give Summer a tour.”
“I’ll do it,” she tells him, taking my hand and dragging me into the work area.
“Squirt,” Bay says in exasperation, but I assure him I’m fine.
Olivia takes me to see the break room and the bathrooms and each of the cars in the bays, telling me who is working on each, as Zander and Bay follow behind. Then she leads me to an office. “Daddy, I have a new friend,” she calls, pushing through the door without knocking. A man who has to be related to Bay and Olivia looks up from his desk.
