Page 31 of Whispers and Wildfire
And somehow, by the time I left the coffee shop, I was convinced I needed to get that job just to show him who was right.
CHAPTER 9
Luke
“No.”
Annika sighed. “You didn’t let me finish.”
“You don’t need to finish. It’s a hard no.”
I leaned back in the chair and nodded to Ollie as he walked through the lobby to the garage. A sense of longing tugged at me. I wanted to be out there, getting my hands dirty, not stuck behind a desk.
Annika leaned forward, her elbows on the front counter, her eyes imploring. “She’d be perfect. You need someone to fill in. She needs a temporary job. She’s smart and capable. You could probably teach her everything she needs to know in a day, and she’d be off and running. You could get back to your job.”
I did want to get back to my job, but Melanie was not the answer. “It would never work. We can’t stand each other.”
“It was just the shock of seeing each other for the first time in a while. You’d get over it.”
“If we were going to get over anything, you’d think we would have by now.”
“I admit, you two seem to have some unresolved feelings—”
“No, we don’t.”
She tilted her head. “Are you sure about that?”
“Absolutely. I don’t have any feelings for Melanie. Except loathing.”
“What are you even mad about?”
That was a great question. What was I mad about? “I’m not mad about anything. Except that she moved back to my town, almost hit me on the road, and then took my seat at the bar.”
Annika blinked a few times like she was confused. “Or something happened between you all those years ago, and you’ve never resolved it?”
I scoffed. “That’s ridiculous. I don’t even remember what happened.”
“Liar.”
“Come on, you know me. When have I ever held a grudge?”
“Two words. Evan Bailey.”
I started to argue, but she wasn’t wrong. Evan and I had been sworn enemies when we were younger. “We get along great now.”
“But you didn’t for a long time. And don’t say it was because of the feud. You two took the feud to another level.”
“Okay, you have a point about Evan. But he doesn’t count anymore. We’re friends.”
“Which proves my point.” She gave me a triumphant smile. “If you can become friends with Evan Bailey, you can learn to get along with Melanie.”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. Freaking sister logic.
“I know she’s…” Annika trailed off, as if trying to decide how to describe her.
“Dramatic? Full of sass? Frustrating as hell?”
“A little bit extra. But she’s also very smart, and sweet, and personable.”
