“Oh... I forgot it was in there,” she explained, not looking at him.
I am really not an idiot, really.
He took off his jacket and gave it to her to hold without a word. He rolled his sleeves and reached in to lift the tire. She observed he had a nice lean muscular build and decided she might have judged him a little too soon. Her father had always told her not to judge a book by its cover. Maybe he wasn’t just a suit after all; he seemed to really know what he was doing.
He ran to his car to get his jack and tire iron. She ran behind him, trying to keep up and took the opportunity to lay his jacket on the sleek black leather of his front car seat.
“As the saying goes: It’s better to teach a man to fish so he can feed himself than to give him a fish that will feed him just once,” he explained as they walked back to her car.
“I’ll teach you how to change your tire. That way, if it ever happens again, you won’t bestranded,” he said, emphasizing the last word; mocking her. Mildly offended and annoyed, she acted coy. “If you wish.”
He loosened the wheel lugs using surprising force. “You have to put some elbow grease into this part.”
She enjoyed the sight of his shoulder muscles at work.
“Counter clockwise. You want to just loosen them,” he explained. “Here, come down here and do one for me.”
She crouched down and took a shot. It was a lot harder than she thought it would be.
“Having a little trouble?” His wide grin teased her on many levels.
She was determined to prove herself strong. She was strong. She pushed on that tire iron and gave it her all; and she got it.
“Good for you,” he told her, excited. “You’re pretty strong for...” he stopped himself short.
“A woman?” she said, half defensive, half teasing.
“I was going to say ‘for such a small woman’,” he explained.
“I’m not small. I’m five feet four,” she countered.
“I mean slight… petite. It’s not an insult.”
“I’m doing all of them,” she told him and proceeded to do so. He watched her intently.
When she was done, he positioned the jack under the wheel and cranked it up.
“When the tire is completely off the ground, you can take the tire off. Why don’t you do it?”
“Um...no, you go ahead,” she told him, not intending to get dirty.
“Angela, it’s your car.”
Although she was impressed he remembered her name, she had no intention on collaborating.
“And I’m wearing my good shirt,” he joked.
Jerk.
“But you’re already dirty,” she observed.
“Why don’t you get dirty too?” he teased, a wide grin plastered on his face.
Sexy jerk.
“First, you take off the lugs. Put them in your pockets.” She reluctantly did as she was told, putting the lugs in the pockets of her pink sweater; she was better dressed for the occasion than he was.
“Now take off the wheel.” He watched and smiled as she struggled, getting herself completely filthy in the process.
