I wouldn’t call it a favor, but Kat has helped me out a time or two, so I owe her. I’m also smart enough not to be on her shit list.
I cross my arms over my chest, staring these jokers down. “It’s a job, and this is how we do business. Would any of you idiots point to the door if a woman needed help?”
I know the answer, but I want to see them squirm because every one of them would do exactly what I did.
Silence. All eyes are everywhere but on me.
“Damn straight. Now get to work before I fire your asses.”
Trig is the first to depart our little sharing circle. “You won’t fire us. We clear cars out of here faster than anyone else would. Besides, if you have any shot at a date with this woman, you’re gonna need us.”
I hear snorts from Carson and Wind’s throats, holding back laughs.
I let my head fall back toward the ceiling, my eyes rolling with it. They are going to beat this to death and then beat it some more.
That’s all I hear for the rest of the afternoon. The comments and jabs are tossed across the space as they take aim at my preferred relationship status. Single.
Do I date? No. Have I slept with a woman here and there to scratch the itch? Sure, but it’s been a long time. It never ends well, and I don’t have time or any desire for that kind of drama in my life.
Eventually, Wind and Trig head out for the day, and Carson hollers that he’ll be back. The quiet that follows is nice. I print the specs for the BMW and check my watch. 5:10 p.m. Maybe she won’t be back after all.
I take a stack of invoices to my office and lay them on the desk when I hear the door bang closed. There’s shuffling and the click of heels, which tells me it’s her rather than Carson.
I head back out, and the woman stands on the other side of the counter, just inside the door, with her back to me.
“Do you always ignore business hours, or is it just my time you seem to discount?” I mean it as a joke, but she spins, appearing flustered as she blows her long hair out of her eyes. “I wasn’t sure you’d be back.”
She adjusts the large purse draped across her body, and the corner of her mouth twitches. “I seriously contemplated it, but then I realized if my car is broken, I need someone who’ll get. It. Done. You seem just King-of-the-Pride-Lands enough to make it happen.”
She waits for a response, all unease slipping right under the satisfaction of her sarcasm.
I cross my arms over my chest. “King of the Pride Lands?”
She shrugs one shoulder, her chin tipping up slightly. “Felt fitting. You’re. . .a lit-tle liony.”
The sparkle in that one blue eye stirs something within me I can’t quite identify, but I need it to knock the hell off.
I hear noise as I step up to the counter. She twists, dropping down to—
“I have to get your car seat, ok?” she says softly. “Don’t move. I’ll be right back.”
She straightens, and behind her is a little boy, four or five, maybe, sitting in one of the three chairs beside the door. My eyes flick to the carrier beside him, holding a baby dressed in an outfit with pink dinosaurs.
It starts to fuss, and she bends to rock it. “Shhh. I’ll be right back, Love Bug.”
“Do you need help?”
She turns, wobbling on one heel tucked somewhere underneath her high-waisted dress pants. “Uh. . .no. I just need to grab his seat and her base.”
Her phone rings, and she searches her large bag. The little boy stares up at me, his legs gently swinging back and forth. She finds her phone and checks the screen, her lip tucking between her teeth. Her eyes flick to mine and then to the boy.
She swipes and takes five steps away, answering.
No longer able to see her, the baby’s lips curve down and quiver as she starts to cry.
I glance over, and the woman is pacing, her hand on her forehead and whispering in forceful tones. I can’t help but wonder who’s on the other end of the line, getting an earful.
I lift my ball cap and run my hand through my hair as the baby’s cries build. I roll my neck and step out from behind the counter, squatting in front of the boy. The girl’s lower lip juts out further.
