Page 5 of Egg Me On
Jesus Christ. "Um, I'm his ride."
"His ride?" She clutched her phone tighter, eying my motorcycle, and possibly calculating whether she needed to call 911. "To where exactly?"
I exhaled slowly through my nose, counting to five in my head. "To the motorcycle shop. Someone said his car's fucked, so I came to get him."
"Mira, it's fine!" Aiden appeared in the doorway behind her, looking flustered. He was wearing a tight blue t-shirt with SUNNY SIDE UP across the chest and jeans that hugged every curve. Not that I was looking. He looked up at me and froze for a beat, possibly long enough for his sister to notice. “Oh, hey! Er, Cash, right?” he said, voice full of false cheer.
“You don’t even know his name?” the girl yelped.
“It’s not a big deal. Just a ride to work. And you’re going to be late to class if you don’t leave right now.”
The blonde—Mira, apparently—whipped her head around, pocketing her phone and planting her hands on her hips. "Aiden, you can take a day off if the car trouble is that bad. Or I can drive you in after class.”
“Yeah, but then I’ll miss the breakfast rush, and my ingredients will go bad, and it’ll all snowball. Then who would pay your college tuition?”
I huffed out a breath, trying to show my impatience with their arguing, but neither one of them noticed.
“I don’t think one missed morning is going to bankrupt us,” she protested. “Besides, if it does, I can take student loans.”
He grinned and kissed the girl on her cheek. “It’s fine, Mira. I want you to get started on the right foot. It’s just a few more years of hard work.”
“But… but… this is your ride? A motorcycle? With a complete stranger?"
"He's not a stranger, he’s a regular customer. Likes his bagel sandwiches with avocado and runny eggs, and takes his coffee with two sugars.” Something about the fact that he almost forgot my name, but knew my exact order, made me smile. On the inside. I didn’t like to smile on the outside. “He works at the shop. Doing motorcycle things.”
She whirled back to me, eyes narrowed. "You work at the motorcycle shop?"
"Yeah." I shifted my weight, already tired of this conversation.
“What motorcycle things?”
“Mechanic,” I said.
Aiden was eyeing me, an apologetic smile playing at the corners of his mouth. His hair was slightly damp, like he'd just showered, curling at the temples in a boyish way that was kind of cute. I looked away.
"Sorry, my sister's a little protective," Aiden explained, edging past Mira onto the porch and planting himself in front of me. Hewas short enough that I could see over his head. Or rest my chin on his head, but I liked that he thought he could defend me from the terrifying girl. "Mira, this is Cash. Cash, my younger sister, Mira."
Sister. That made sense, and I supposed they did have the same pretty hazel eyes, though Mira’s were scary fierce while Aiden’s were warm and kind. The sort of eyes I could stare into for hours, examining the play of green and gray around his irises.
Not that I planned on staring into Aiden’s eyes. That would be weird.
Mira crossed her arms, mirroring my stance. "Do you know how many motorcycle accidents happen every year? Especially in states without helmet laws? And how many are caused by cars not seeing motorcycles? I’m in pre-law, Aiden. I know how to do research—"
I cleared my throat and held up the spare helmet I’d brought.
"Mira, please." Aiden sighed, stepping fully onto the porch. "My car's dead, and I need to get to the FRMC. I bought a ton of ingredients yesterday, and they’re sitting in the truck, and they’ll go to waste if I don’t open. Besides, Cash drove all the way here to do me a favor."
I grunted. "Silas sent me."
Aiden's face fell slightly, and I felt a twinge of... something. Not guilt. I don't do guilt. But whatever it was, I didn't like it.
Mira didn't look convinced. "Why can't you just call an Uber?"
"Because it's rush hour, and it would take forever, and we're broke, remember?" Aiden's voice had an edge to it now.
She rolled her eyes, then met mine over Aiden’s head. "Fine. But if you let him die, I’ll never forgive you. He’s my only family. Understood?"
I nodded.
