A few quarters hit the desk. Then a handful of pennies. Mrs. Lockey reached into her purse and dug around, pulling out an empty pack of chewing gum and a couple dimes and a nickel.

“Mrs. Lockey,” I said. “You don’t have to…”

“Yes I do,” she said. “I owe you thirty dollars, Gavin. I am not a freeloader. Not some teenager looking for a handout.”

I laughed. “I would never think that of you.” I put my hand over the change on the desk. “This is fine.”

“I’m ten dollars short, dammit.”

“I’m not going to lose sleep over it.”

“But I am.”

I finally stood up and walked around the desk.

Mrs. Lockey was back to digging in her purse. She found a crumpled up dollar bill that was probably fifteen years old. She threw that to my desk.

“Now I only owe…”

“You’re okay,” I insisted. “Mrs. Lockey.”

“Call me Ellen.”

“Ellen.”

“I don’t like this.”

I sighed.

I didn’t like it either.

She came in for an oil change and there were a few other little issues. I didn’t tell her about those issues. I just had Rich fix them up. Her actual bill should have been over a hundred dollars.

“You’re a good man, Gavin,” Mrs. Lockey said.

“So I’ve heard.”

“And you’re sure this is okay?”

“All okay.”

“I’m bringing you and your workers something to eat.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“But I’m going to do it.”

She turned and slowly walked out of the office. I sighed and lowered my head. It was exhausting being nice sometimes.

I wished my phone were going off again.

Fucking text messages.

I had become that guy. Text messaging a woman. I never thought I would end up in all of this craziness. But it was back to reality for me. Back to my old house. My old dog. My old business. Back to rubbing a couple dimes together hoping for a dollar to appear.

That was just how life went in the town.

I leaned against the corner of my desk.

Donny came into the office. “Hey, Gavin. That truck needs brakes. I can’t let it slide.”

“Alright. I’ll call. Work out something.”

Donny pointed to my desk. “Mrs. Lockey?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Dumping out her change. Christ.”

“She’s a stubborn one,” Donny said.

“That she is. Then again, I think we all are.”

“Sometimes being stubborn is a way of survival, Gavin.”

I nodded. “Hey, what else do we have going on?”

I pushed from my desk and walked to the door to the garage bays. Donny opened it and held it for me. It was loud. Busy. Which was good. Busy meant the shop had a chance at surviving. Then again, considering the change on my desk, that wasn’t going to pay the bills. In my heart I knew I had to stop giving people deals. But that’s not how we survived in this town.

Donny pointed to all the vehicles in the bays and what was waiting. For a second I thought about selling the business to him and Rich. And Hank even. Hank leaned under the hood of a pickup truck.

Selling the business wouldn’t do a damn thing. None of them had money. And if anything, it would only make Sterling want the business more. If he still wanted it. The guy had yet to call me and talk to me about it. But why would Olivia say anything to me then? Why would she plant that in my head?

I gritted my teeth. Fucking women always had a way of twisting up my heart and confusing me. But this was different. This wasn’t the emotional connection. This wasn’t the physical connection. It was the outside world. That connection.

“Okay,” I finally said, just to speak. “Keep going. Just keep fucking going, Donny. As you wrap them up, put the invoices on my desk. Anything serious pops up let me know. But you can call about those brakes on the truck.”

“Oh?” Donny asked.

“Fuck it,” I said. “You know what we charge.”

“You sure?”

“I’m sure,” I said.

Donny just stood there, staring at me.

“Hey, Gavin,” Rich called out. “You have a visitor.”

I turned.

I never saw Hank move so fast in my life. He jumped away from the pickup truck and wiped his hands on his shirt and jeans. I made a mental note that the big guy did have the capability to move if need be.

I walked toward the open bay and fully expected to see Olivia.

I knew she couldn’t keep herself from me. Which was good because I was wondering what the implications would be if I just showed up in the city looking for her. Me, the dirty mechanic in my pickup truck, pulling into a parking lot with all those expensive and private cars. Me, in my dirty jeans and messy t-shirt, with scruff on my face, messy hair, tattoos down my arm, looking nothing like what belonged in those fancy business offices.

It made me smile.

I stepped from the garage and crossed my arms. Truth was, just thinking about Olivia made my heart jump a little. She made all the reality of the bad shit disappear. Falling for her… that had already happened. My job now was to find a way to mix our lives together without messing up too much.

No matter what, she made me smile and that meant something.

I waited for Olivia… but she never showed.

Instead, Whitney was walking toward the garage.

 

* * *

 

“Good God,” Rich said as he stepped up next to me. “Who is that?”

“Nobody good,” I said.

“She looks damn good to me,” Rich said. “And even if she’s not good… she’s still good. Get what I’m saying?”

I looked at Rich. “How about you get back to work?”

“Seriously, Gavin, she’s here for you? What the fuck is this? You packing some kind of monster between your legs that all the rich girls want?”

I laughed. “Rich, if you don’t get back to work right now I’m going to show you what a monster looks like.”

“Just give me one more minute with her,” he said. “Just to stare. Jesus. I don’t think anything that stunning has ever been in this town.”

I sucked in a breath. Guys like Rich were the reason why girls like Whitney looked the way they did. By all means, I understood it. A tight blue dress that pushed her cleavage high and gave the impression she was just one misstep away from having an accident and showing herself. The way the dress hugged curves that looked too impossible to be real. The way the dress was short but not too short.

Her perfect hair. Her perfect face. Her perfect smile.

It was all there, sure.

And she was looking right at me.

Hank got to Whitney first but she quickly pointed to me.

“Gavin, who is that?” Donny asked.

“Don’t worry about it,” I said.

I met Whitney in the parking lot. I looked over at Hank and gave a nod. His eyes went wide and he smiled. Then he gave me a thumbs up. For the first time since I got the business from Gus, Hank approved.

“Can I help you?” I asked.

“You can do a lot for me,” Whitney said.

“I’m sure I can.”

“Your guys are, uh, well… they’re all eye fucking me.”

I turned my head and sure enough, there was Hank, Rich, and Donny, shoulder to shoulder to shoulder like three young boys seeing a busty woman in a bikini for the first time.

“My office,” I said. “Now.”

I led the way into the office and shut the main door and locked it. I made sure to lock the door to the garage bays too.

Whitney looked around, her lip curled with judgment.

“Not quite the fancy boardroom,” I said. “But this is a garage. Not a tech company.”

“I’m not here to talk about your appearance,” Whitney said. “Which, by the way, I don’t mind at all. The whole suit and tie thing is annoying if you ask me. Watching these men get dressed… takes them longer than me.”

“That I don’t believe for a second,” I said.

“What? I wake up and look like this.” Whitney turned her hip a little and smirked.

I laughed. “Right. And I’m basking in the success of my small business here.”

“That’s why I’m here,” Whitney said. “I saw the pictures. You and Olivia at the memorial. She used you, Gavin. To get out of there. And I’m sure she showed you a good time. But she’s just working the angle that works for her and her father.”

“You can certainly leave anytime you wish,” I said. “That was me being nice. Say something again about Olivia and I’ll tell you how I feel. Which is why you should get the fuck out of here. For good.”

Whitney nodded. “Right. Denial.” She walked to the door and then paused. “You know, I’ve known her almost my entire life. Her father is not a good person. And maybe I don’t necessarily fault Olivia for the way she is because it’s all she’s known. Me? I’ve seen a lot. My mother was a drunk and an addict, who put me through hell. I’ve never said that to anyone before.” Whitney swallowed hard. “It’s embarrassing to admit. But I don’t think Olivia can help the way she is and the way she does things.”

I put my hands to my desk. “What do you mean?”

Whitney turned and slowly inched toward me again. “It’s all she knows. Sterling says jump and she says how high… and how much do I get…”

“She’s a business consultant.”

“No. She’s a show off. She’s the pretty girl. The innocent girl. The trusting face while her father rips apart everything in his path. She’s the decoy. The distraction. She’s the-”

I slammed a hand on the desk. “That’s enough of that.”

“I’m sorry, Gavin. I can tell you care about her. I think that’s seriously sweet. Romantic. Like…” Whitney touched her chest and bit her bottom lip. “Like, if that was me, I would do anything for a guy like you. If you even gave me half of what you’ve given to her…” Whitney shook her head. “Shit. I get flustered around you, Gavin. Sorry.”

I didn’t know what to think as I stood there.

Whitney turned and put a hand to her mouth.

Reluctantly, I walked from behind my desk. I got close enough to Whitney that I touched her arm.

“Hey. What are you doing here for real?”

Whitney turned and there was not much space between us. She put a pointer finger to my chest.

“Please don’t tell anyone what I just said about my mother,” she whispered. “I don’t know why I said that. I just blurted it out.”

“Who the hell am I going to tell?”

“I trust you,” Whitney said. “And the real reason I’m here… she’s meeting with them now.”

“Who? And who is them?”

“Gavin, I’m not lying to you,” Whitney said. “Olivia is with her father and the people that want to rebuild your town. It’s happening right now.”

I stepped back from her.

“You can be upset at me,” she said. “That’s fine. I just want you to be prepared. So you don’t get screwed over. Sterling talks about writing big checks but not many of them cash, okay? And the ones that do are usually the ones that go to him or his daughter. I know nothing of your life or living in a town like this. I won’t hide from that. But I’ve watched them hurt a lot of people. The truth? You were the first person I saw that night in the bar. I even told Olivia…” Whitney smiled. “I called dibs on you. Childish, I know. But I saw you first, Gavin.”

Silence eased between us as I took everything in.

“I think I’ll say what I said before, Whitney. You need to go.”

“Okay,” she said. “I’m not here to start trouble.”

“But you’re trying.”

“I’m just telling the truth. What do I have to win or lose by lying to you? You have no interest in me. No matter what I wear or what I do. I could slide my hands down my body and back up. I could reach around…” Whitney slowly turned, showing her back. “I could grab this little zipper and pull it. I mean, the doors are locked, Gavin. It’s just you and me.”

She flirted with the zipper.

I went to the door and unlocked it. I opened the door and gave a nod. “There. Door’s open now.”

“Of course,” Whitney said. She walked to the door and paused. I could smell her. Perfume. Wealth. Something I didn’t trust. “I’m not lying. She’s meeting right now with them. She doesn’t know any better. And what’s going to happen? She’s going to get you to sign something. And then you’re going to lose your business. And your land. Sterling will get what he wants. He’ll drag you through court and he knows you can’t afford lawyers like he can. So you’ll end up taking a deal worth pennies on the dollar. Enough that you won’t be broke but not too much. You’ll spend more on lawyers than what you’ll get. And then? You’ll be working for him when he rebuilds.”

“And you’re telling me all of this why?” I asked.

“I already said it. I saw you first. I think you’re… the way your guys were eye fucking me? I’m eye fucking you right now, Gavin. And I’m sort of tired of using my eyes…”

“Have a great day, Whitney. Thanks for stopping by.”

“Of course,” she whispered. “I promise, Gavin…” she touched my chest again. “When this all crumbles, I’ll be there for you. I can show you things you never thought possible. I can do things…”

I side stepped and pointed to the outside.

Whitney finally left. I watched her walk all the way to her car. I wasn’t the only one either. Rich, Donny, and Hank all stood there, too. They were watching her in a different way though. I wasn’t looking at her body or anything like that. I was trying to figure out what the fuck was really happening.

A guy got out of the driver’s seat and hurried to open the backdoor of the car for Whitney. She then looked right at me and blew me a kiss.

I turned my head and saw Rich staring at me. He nodded and gave me a thumbs up. I threw him the middle finger and went back into the office.

I punched the desk a few times and that did nothing.

I sat down and ripped open the drawer and grabbed for the picture of me, Luke, and Nikki.

I opened up about everything to Olivia. I gave her it all. I didn’t want to let Whitney’s words get to me, but, fuck, Olivia knew everything about me.

I grabbed for my phone and stared at it.

“No,” I whispered. “I trust her. I trust her.”

An hour later my phone went off. A text from Olivia.

I need to get out of here, Gavin.

I stood in the garage at that point, and I stared at the message longer than I should have.

Then I wrote back to her.

You know where I am.

She wrote back quickly.

Does that mean I’m allowed to come over?

Of course I wanted Olivia there.

But here was the problem…

I didn’t want her to leave - and I wanted the whole fucking truth.

 

* * *

 

I shut the garage down early and sent everyone home. We still had some work to do but I told the guys it was just promised work for tomorrow. They understood what that meant and they had no problem with leaving early. Rich offered to buy the first round of drinks and I declined. To my surprise, Hank was willing to go. It was good to see them leave and have the same destination. I stood there alone, all the garage bays closed up, the sun starting to set, and I wondered what it would be like for them. For guys like Rich, Donny, and Hank. They could never cut it in the real world. Or the corporate mandated kind of world. The town couldn’t either. But that’s not what Sterling wanted, was it? He wanted to rebuild and chase all of us out to have people from the city move in. That’s what it was. The perceived town life for the people who were sick of the city.

It really pissed me off.

And the more I stood there, the more pissed off I got.

I then watched as a vehicle pulled into the parking lot. A large, dark blue SUV.

I watched as the vehicle turned and stopped. The driver’s door opened and it wasn’t a hired driver that got out.

It was Olivia.

She was wearing a fancy business kind of dress. Everything black. Everything proper. Everything that screamed rich or executive level. She stood there and stared at me, outside the SUV, her hair down past her shoulders. She was so naturally beautiful. No makeup on her face. Not trying to look anything fancy.

She was just… Olivia.

I met her halfway across the parking lot and I scooped her up in my arms for a much needed hug. And a much needed kiss.

I touched her face. I held her.

The way she looked at me… she could destroy me. And I would probably let her. Just to get a chance at her love.

“We need to talk,” she whispered.

“Yes, we do,” I said.

But we didn’t talk.

The garage was closed. The garage was empty. We were alone.

If things were going to go to hell, then I was going to party in the fucking flames.

I lifted Olivia up again and held her tight, bringing her eye level to me.

We kissed again.

I smirked.

I turned and started to walk her toward the office.