Page 126

“It’s the jack,” he answered as he moved past her to squat down in front of her flat tire. “It will allow me to jack up the car and remove the tire.”

In the time he used to answer her question, he had removed her hubcap and had loosened the bolts on her car’s wheels.

“Aren’t you going to take off the bolts?”

He grinned up at her. “They’re lug nuts. And no. If I do that, the whole thing will fall off while I’m jacking up the car, and we don’t want that to happen,” he explained.

She liked it that he didn’t seem to mind her questions. She watched as he finished loosening the lug nuts, then he looked under her car and set up the jack and began pumping it so that the car lifted up.

It was when her bottom lip started to hurt that she realized she was biting it. But who could blame her? Watching his shirt strain across his back muscles and watching his pants pull tight against his butt was positively mouth-watering.

Gah! I need to be hosed down! And it’s not because of the humidity.

But it didn’t stop her from admiring the view.

Matt made quick work of loosening the lug nuts and carefully placing them in a pile, then removing the flat tire. He had the spare tire on the car far too soon, in her opinion. She tried to think of another question to ask him so she could hear his sexy Spanish accent.

“You’re good at this. Have you changed many flat tires?”

Great, that could go into the most stupid question hall of fame.

Matt looked up at her. “This is my second, but it’s not a tough process.”

He slid the spare tire on and put the lug nuts in place, then used the wrench to tighten them.

“Oh, I didn’t tell you my name,” Lainey said. “I’m Lainey. Lainey Simpson. I work here at the bank.”

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Like he hadn’t already figured out she worked at the bank.

Matt stood up. She had to lean her head back to look up at him.

“I’d shake your hand, but mine are all greasy.” His grin was mesmerizing.

“Wait a moment.” She turned to open the car door and dove in for her purse. She pulled out a packet of Kleenex and grabbed the water bottle from the front seat. She pulled out a couple of tissues and poured water on them, dousing her dress at the same time.

Of course I did.

Lainey powered through like it hadn’t happened, and handed the damp tissues to Matt.

“Here you go. That way you can have clean hands when you drive home.”

“I appreciate it. Let me put all of this back in your trunk first.”

I’m an idiot. Lainey mentally slapped her forehead.

When he came back, he took the proffered tissues.

“Thank you, Lainey Simpson.”

Was it her imagination, or was his accent even more pronounced when he said her name? She watched as he wiped the grime off his hands.

“I’ll be back in a moment.” Matt sauntered off to the trash can near the street next to the restaurant, dumped the tissues, then came back.

Lainey was happy to have that time so that she could arrange for her hormones to no longer be in control of her brain and her mouth. As soon as he was within a few feet of her, she thrust out her hand.

“I can’t thank you enough.”