“So, Princess, what are you doing in this part of town?” I asked, leaning back and eyeing her. She looked good. Real good. I would have recognized those big brown eyes anywhere. Yeah, maybe that was a testament to how much her rejection had stung back in the day. Last I heard, she had moved down to the city and didn’t come around here too much. But then if I’d been her, I wouldn’t have bothered with this damn place either.

“Princess?” She frowned. “Where did that come from?”

“You know where.” I grinned widely when she crossed her arms defensively over her chest and glared at me. She was hands down the cutest girl at school, but she was also from the right part of town while I, the pariah, came from the wrong end. Her parents were uptight as hell, but I had figured even a girl like her needed to have a little fun once in a while. You figured wrong, Jesse. She had shot me down.

“Nope,” she retorted, clearly pissed. “I’m just here because I need help with my car. It broke down about a mile away, and I need to get it fixed.”

“Surprised you come by here anymore,” I remarked. I knew I was acting like a bit of an ass, but what were the chances of the one girl in this place who had sent me up in flames, turning up at my garage and needing my help? I was going to milk it, just a little bit. Anyone would have done the same thing.

“I’m not in town for long,” she snapped. “And I’m not in the mood to have you playing all high and mighty.”

“Me, high and mighty?” I held my hands up. “Pretty rich coming from you, but I bet you know a lot about rich, huh?”

She tapped her foot on the floor impatiently.

I could tell she was fighting the urge to chew me out. Okay, so this was a little fun.

“You know, I could just go back and call roadside assistance,” she replied coolly. “I don’t need you, or this shitty little place—”

“Yeah, good luck with that.” I shrugged, glancing back to the car I’d been working on, playing it as cool as I could.

“Oh, aren’t you going to stop me?” She arched one perfectly-shaped eyebrow. “I don’t need to give you my business, you know.”

“No, you don’t,” I agreed. “But if you call roadside assistance, they’re just going to send you back to me. The nearest tow truck is a hundred miles away and they’re not going to drag it all the way out to the ass-end of nowhere when I’m just nearby.”

She sighed heavily again, clearly annoyed.

I could feel the tension crackling in the air between us, just like it had back in high school.

Her shoulders slumped. “Fine,” she replied, shaking her head. “I’m not in the mood to fight about this. Are you going to help me or not?”

I paused for a long moment, letting her think for a split-second that I might turn her down. Obviously, there was no way I intended to pass up on the chance to help Mia Foxton out. I wasn’t exactly averse to spending a little more time with her. “Sure.” I shrugged, as though I could take it or leave it.

She took a deep breath and exhaled with sheer relief. She was wearing a tank top and it made her boobs rise and fall enticingly.

“Where were you headed? I’ll give you a lift into town and then come back and work on your car.”

“I was headed down to my parents’ place.” She chewed her bottom lip. “But my stuff is in my car and I need to pick it up. Can you run me down there first?”

“Sure thing, Princess,” I replied with an unholy grin. I still couldn’t get my head around Mia Foxton in my little garage.

She opened her mouth to challenge me, thought better of it, and let her jaw snap closed. Clearly, it was a bad day for her. She was obviously pissed about more than just the car.

I brushed by her, and was sure I felt a little spark of static move from her body to mine. Yep, nothing had changed. Amazing how things could just stay the same like that.

We got into my old truck and made our way back down to her car. I noticed her hands fisted on her lap. Jesus, what had gotten her in such a state? Anyone would think the world had ended and I was the one to blame.

I helped her move her bags from her car to mine. “You planning on moving back, or something?” I asked.

She shot me a look that told me it would be a good idea for my paycheck if I were to keep my damn mouth closed. Well, that sucked for her, because I had never much been good at that. Apart from when it came to one thing, but I shoved that reminder from the past to the back of my mind. I was having fun. No need to dredge up those memories now. They are almost like dreams that never happened. An unhappy little boy’s nightmares.

“None of your business,” she replied tartly.

I hid a smile. She was so prim and proper. “So, what are you up to while you’re here?” I asked.

Mia sat rigidly on the passenger seat with her arms crossed over her chest and the corners of her mouth tilted down. She turned and looked at me with a surprised expression, as though she’d never had to make conversation with anyone in her life. She was probably used to being driven around in the city by her chauffeur.

Well, I hated to break it her, but I wasn’t anyone’s chauffeur.

“Attending Julie’s wedding,” she replied, rubbing her hand over her face absently.

“And then you’re back to the city?” Jesus, I could have bitten my tongue out. Why the fuck couldn’t I mind my own business?

She opened her mouth, then furrowed her brow, and fell silent for a few seconds. “You know, I’m not sure what I’m going to do after that.” She sounded genuinely lost for a moment.

If I hadn’t known better, I might have felt sorry for her, but I did know better. She was a spoiled little rich girl having an existential crisis in her twenties, because what else do you do when you have everything you could possibly want?

I arrived outside her parent’s place, one of the fanciest houses in town. Actually, more a mansion than a house. Someone must have been monitoring the entrance as the wrought iron gates opened slowly. No way would I be going in there. I jumped out and hauled her bags to the ground.

She sat there staring straight ahead, as though she didn’t want to go in and face them.

I walked around to the passenger door. “Unless you want to help me fix up your car, you better get moving, Princess,” I nudged.

She blinked as though realizing where we actually were. “Right, right.” She opened the door, then paused and glanced back over at me. “Thanks, Jesse.” She nodded. “For the lift and sorting my car out. I really appreciate it.” With that, she grabbed her bags and started dragging them up to the house.

I found myself unable to move. I just stood and watched her make her way up the drive. Then I shook my head, got into my truck, and kicked the ignition. What the fuck was I doing, staring at her like a horny teenager? Just because I had a thing for her in high school didn’t mean that I still had to be drooling over her like a stray dog. I headed back to the shop. Time to put her out of my head. As soon as I was done with her car, I would be done with her.

And I was more than all right with that.