‘Oh you’ll be as safe as houses love. The Harris family have lived on the outskirts of the bay for years. They actually used to come to all the community events when you were young, but Linda had some sort of scare one year on the beach. I don’t remember what happened, but since then, they rarely come into the bay.’
‘Oh what a shame.’
‘I know. I suppose she must have developed a fear of some kind.’
Georgina shrugged. ‘Maybe.’ She took another bite of her sandwich as she thought back to community events that had been held in the bay when she and her sister were just children. But no matter how hard she tried to remember a young Matt, she just couldn’t.
Chapter six
Rubbing her hands together as she waited outside, Georgina noted how clammy they were. She was actually nervous.
A few minutes later, she heard a low rumble as a vehicle that sounded larger than a car approached. Her mouth dropped open when she saw Matt driving a pickup truck.
He pulled alongside her and bobbed his head out of the window, his dark eyes twinkling and a toothy white grin parting his lips. ‘Good morning. I was just on a callout, so I’ve had to pick you up in Bertha.’
Georgina spluttered a laugh. ‘Bertha. Is that the name of the truck?’
‘Believe me. It’s not my doing. It’s dad. He names all the trucks.’
Georgina shook her head as she walked around to the passenger side. As she opened the door and climbed in, her heart hammered against her chest as she inhaled Matt’s aftershave. She closed the door and turned to look at him. She immediately melted into her seat as soon as she stared into his eyes. She knew he was attractive when she first met him, but she didn’t remember him being this good looking.
She looked away, her heart racing as she waited for him to pull away. But when the truck remained stationary, she turned to look his way again. He was still looking at her. He’d been studying her profile. Capillaries burst under her cheeks, sending them hot to the touch. ‘Erm. Why aren’t we driving?’
Matt reached across her, his face inches from hers, his hot breath brushing across her already burning cheek. The hairs on the nape of Georgina’s neck rose. ‘Safety is paramount. Please buckle up young lady.’
Georgina’s heart felt as though it might explode from her chest. She felt stupid. She always put her seatbelt on, but why not today? She blamed Matt’s intoxicating cologne.
Matt clipped Georgina’s belt in and then put the truck into gear. He flashed her a smile before lurching the truck forward.
The tension sizzling between them inside the truck cab was too much. Georgina had to break the silence. ‘I’ve found another parttime job.’
Matt took his eyes off the road for a second to glance her way. ‘Oh?’
‘Yes, it was by chance actually. I’m going to be working at Ruff to Regal, the new dog grooming salon in the bay.’
‘Have you worked with dogs before?’
Georgina shook her head. ‘No, but I love animals, and they seem to love me.’
‘I can understand why.’
‘Huh?’ Georgina’s tummy jumped at the comment.
‘You have an easy-going air about you.’
‘Oh...right. Is that why you offered me the deal? Me answering your phones in exchange for you fixing my car?’
‘Erm, no. My motive was purely a selfish one.’
Georgina wanted to question Matt further, but he switched on the radio, as if wanting to cut her questioning short.
They drove the rest of the way to the garage in silence, with just the garble of unfamiliar country songs breaking the sizzling tension. Matt pulled up just to the left of the garage and turned off the engine. He got out, and Georgina followed him into the garage.
The same country and western radio station was playing in the garage as well. Matt pointed over to a corner where there was an off-white-coloured door. It had either turned cream from sun exposure, or it had just yellowed with age.
‘The kitchen is in there, and the toilet is accessible from a door inside of there too.’ Georgina nodded. ‘Right. Now to show you the ropes.’ Matt led the way into the small office on the other side of the glass wall. ‘It’s pretty basic really. We offer a breakdown service and both my father and myself are also mechanics. Calls with either be enquiries about getting vehicles booked in for repairs or services, or someone calling because they have broken down.’
Georgina absorbed the information. ‘Will customers be calling in for prices?’
