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"Then we're off to a strong start."

I grab the second creeper and slide beneath the truck beside him.

"She walked into the kitchen, picked up my spoon, and started eating something I've been working on."

"Did she like it?"

"That's also not the point."

"Did she?"

I reach for the wrench.

"Yes."

"So far, I'm struggling to find the emergency."

"She figured out the cardamom."

Jack turns his head.

"And?"

"Then she told me what the sauce needed."

"Ah."

I stop working.

"What does ah mean?"

"Was she right?"

I go back to the brake line. Jack waits.

"Javier."

"Yes."

"She was right?"

I tighten the fitting.

"That's not the point."

His laugh echoes beneath the truck.

"Stop saying that."

"Then stop missing it."

"I still don't know what it is."

Neither do I. Except that she gets under my skin. Which may actually be the problem.

I roll out from beneath the truck.

"What am I supposed to do with her?"