CHAPTER 29
JIMMY
Loss of sleep had my feet dragging on the walk to work the next day, but I had zero fucks to give. The bright blue sky and the crisp morning air perfectly reflected my sunny mood.
Last night was the best night of my life.
I’d suffered a lot of hangovers in the past, but none of them were worth it. The high of a great party always came with a low the following day.
Regret. Remorse. Repeat.
But the high of being with Mackenna? It stayed with me and gave me something to look forward to.
I couldn’t wait to see her tonight.
But for now, I had something else to look forward to. Truck driving.
As I approached the shop, I saw the rig sitting out front. Without the trailer attached, it looked a lot smaller. Travis was wiping down the shiny red exterior of the driver’s side, right over the black and white company logo on the door.
Hank and Sons Transport.
Travis finished up just as I made it to the garage. He eyed my coveralls. “You got clothes on under there?”
“Jeans and a T-shirt,” I replied. “Why?”
“You don’t need to wear the uniform on the haul. Gets hot in the truck sometimes. You can hang it up in the office. That’s where we keep the extras.”
Unzipping the front, I shrugged out of the material, then went into the office. Hank was there, punching some numbers into a calculator.
“Where should I put this?” I held up the coveralls.
“Any hook on the wall over there will do.”
I hung it up in between spares belonging to Colton and Hank.
“When you come back tonight—” Hank reached under his desk and slid out a square cardboard box. “—you can use this one from now on.”
When he opened the lid, he pulled out a pair of identical coveralls—all except for the nametag. I swallowed hard at the sight of the embroidery over the left breast pocket.
Jimmy.
I coughed and tried to man up because I wasn’t about to get misty over a damn nametag.
“You didn’t have to do this,” I told him, running my finger over the lettering. “Don’t get me wrong. This means a lot to me, but I hate to make you invest in this when I’m not here for very long.”
Waving his hand, he made a dismissive sound. “You deserve to have one of your own, even if you’re not in it for the long haul. Plus, you’ve been doing one hell of a job. You’ve shouldered a lot of the responsibilities around here. Made my life easier. I’m proud of you, son.”
Ah, shit.
Was the old man trying to make me cry? He was the one who gave me a job when I desperately needed it, and here he was making it seem like I was the one doing him a favor.
Hank made me feel something I hadn’t felt in a long time.
Pride. The kind of pride that made you feel like a better version of yourself. For the first time in a while, I wasn’t the guy who failed.
“Thanks,” I managed gruffly.
“That’s not all I’ve got for you.” He pulled open the top drawer to his desk and grabbed my watch. “Good as new. Sorry it took me a while to get it back to you. It took a lot of tinkering, but I got it to work.”
The time was set correctly and the hands moved around the face. Holding it up to my ear, I listened to the old familiar ticking. A comforting sound.
“This is awesome.” I smiled as I strapped it to my wrist. “Guess I know who to come to if it gives out on me again.”
“I hope you do. I’d love it if you came back to see us, even after you’re a big-shot college student.”
The mention of my impending school year didn’t cause excitement like it used to. In fact, I was surprised when my stomach tightened with dread at the thought of leaving this town, this job, and Mackenna. I shook it off, blaming the weird mood on lack of sleep.
“Oh, by the way,” Hank said, pulling an envelope from the back pocket of his coveralls. “Your paycheck.”
I couldn’t contain the smile on my face as I folded it and stuffed it into my jeans. I was still grinning like a fool when I hopped up into the semi where Travis was waiting.
He looked over at me from the driver’s seat. “Buckle up, Jimmy. Your life’s about to change.”
With a loud rumble, the rig roared to life. Travis was right about the semi having power. I could feel the roaring engine all around me through the seat, through the floorboard.
As we drove away from Tolson, I discreetly pulled the envelope out of my pocket. My first paycheck. There wasn’t a ton left over after Hank deducted what I owed him for my car, but it was more money than I had before.
It was enough to do something that was long overdue—take Mackenna on a real date.
I’d wanted to cover the damages on her car, too, but she wouldn’t let me. Luckily, when I mentioned what happened to Hank, he said it was ‘on the house’ as long as I put in the labor. Said it’d be good practice for me.
And it was good practice. Not only that, but it helped me put my energy into fixing what had been done, instead of having murderous thoughts about some asshole I’d never met.
Memories of the night before flashed through my mind as we made it out onto the interstate. The way it felt to be inside of Mackenna bare was mind-blowing and intense. Sex had never felt like that, and it wasn’t just because we didn’t use a condom.
I could pinpoint the exact moment I fell in love with her. When lust turned into something deeper.
I’ll always know it’s you, she’d said, then she brushed her thumb over my bottom lip.
That one touch.
I felt it all the way to my soul.
If I hadn’t been lying down, it would’ve brought me to my fucking knees.
I wanted to tell her, and I almost blurted out those three words. But telling Mackenna I loved her the first time my dick was inside her seemed like an asshole thing to do.
So I kept my mouth shut and tried to show her instead.
As I moved on top of her, I looked into her eyes and swore I saw the same love reflected back at me.
I was pulled from my daydreaming when some static came through the CB radio, and I went back to appreciating the experience of riding in a semi for the first time.
The four-hour drive flew by as Travis and I listened to music, and talked about everything from our hometowns to our women. He was excited about his wedding and having babies with his wife. Apparently, they planned to start growing their family right away.
Before I knew it, we were at our destination, and Travis was hooking the trailer back up to the rig. He walked me through the process, saying terms like fifth wheel and kingpin. In less than twenty minutes, we were back on the road.
When we stopped at a truck stop down in Effingham, I used the restroom while Travis paid for the fuel. After I came out, I grabbed a Dr. Pepper and a bag of chips from the back of the store.
I was waiting in line to pay when my eyes zeroed in on a small rotating display on the counter. More specifically, a necklace dangling among a wide assortment of jewelry. It caught my attention because it immediately reminded me of Mackenna.
When it was my turn to pay, I toyed with the little purple starfish on the silver chain.
If I bought this for her, was I breaking rule number one? Mackenna said not to get her flowers because it was a waste of money. Did that apply to necklaces, too?
Fuck it.
I just knew she had to have this.
Decision made, I plucked it off the stand and slid it toward the cashier with my soda. Then I pointed at the box of Magnums behind the counter. “Those, too.”
Maybe tonight’s date wouldn’t be a total crapshoot after all.