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Eventually, he spoke. “Where is she?”
“Route 63, outside the entrance for Moose Lane.”
“Tell her I’ll be there in ten.”
“Did you hear that, Tea? Archer will come help you out.”
“Tell him it’s okay, he really doesn’t have to—”
“He’s already gone.”
Tea hung up and rested her forehead against the steering wheel. She looked at her phone, the battery almost dead. She called her mom anyway.
It went to voicemail.
“M-mom.” Her voice croaked. She wanted to unload all of it. Dad’s car. Not being able to get up on a water ski. The COVID outbreak. The quarantine. The kiss. But her guilt seeped in, blocking her from speaking any of her truths. “I miss you,” was the only thing she could manage before she hung up.
Ten minutes later, Tea watched as Archer’s truck approached from her rearview mirror. She got out of the car and watched him park in front of her. He didn’t look in her direction as he rounded the Chevy.
He stopped in front of the hood and placed his hands on his hips. “Yeah, this is toast.”
Her gut twisted. “So it’s not fixable?”
His gaze flicked to her, his expression soft. Apologetic. “I’m not sure. I called the mechanics in town; they’re coming this way with a tow truck.”
She pursued her lips and turned away from him.
“Thank you, Archer,” he mocked in a high-pitched tone.
She scowled at him. “I didn’t ask you to come.”
“Oh, well in that case.” He pointed to his truck. “I’ll head out then.”
Tea narrowed her eyes into slits.
He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Come on, you needed someone, and I’m happy to help.”
“Classic Midwest boy, doing the nice thing.”
“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with being nice.”
“Except when he’s not being honest about how he really feels.”
He took a few steps toward her. “All right, you know what—”
His thoughts were cut off by the tow truck that pulled up next to them. The man leaned out his window, a cigarette dangling from his frowning lips as he eyed her car. “Well, that certainly doesn’t look good.”
Tea and Archer sat side by side at Northern Auto Mechanics, neither speaking a word, when Larson, the man from the tow truck, appeared in front of them.
He looked at Tea, then slowly shook his head. “Sorry, darling. It’s not looking like we’re going to be able to save this one.”
She leaned her elbows on her knees and placed her face in her hands.
“Completely totaled?” Archer asked.
“More than that. I’m surprised the car was even running. This thing was pretty dangerous to have on the road.”
“How much would it cost to repair?” Tea mumbled.
