Chapter Eighteen

“Wipe the nozzle every time you’re done.” Tim wiped the foam off the steamer. “You’ll do it so often it will become second nature after a while.”

I nodded, following along with his process of making a cappuccino. I had only been here an hour but felt like I was picking up things fast. I was glad it was only Tim, Jon, and me. Jon was a nice guy with a friendly, open smile that lit up his face. Same age and height as his wife, with dark buzzed hair and brown eyes. After letting us in and helping set up, he pretty much left Tim and me alone, saying he needed to do ordering and paperwork in the back office.

We opened at six thirty and had a steady stream of half-lidded customers desperate for caffeine. Having risen early to catch a ride with my dad, I had already sucked down four cups myself. Now my eyes and limbs twitched with the overdose.

“You think you can try the next one?” Tim grinned at me, brushing his long brown hair out of his brown eyes. I had only been out of school a year, but he felt so much younger than a senior, probably because I had hung around guys like Colton and Hunter, who were nothing like the average high school boy. Tim was even smaller than the typical guy his age but was friendly and happy, and blushed every time I looked at him.

“Yeah, I think I can.” I nodded. “My boyfriend in Italy had a smaller version of this machine. I feel like I’m just making coffee at home.”

“Boyfriend?” Tim’s face dropped. “An Italian boyfriend?”

“Yeah.”

A deep sound rumbled behind us, like someone was clearing their throat. Tim and I jumped and twisted to the counter.

Hunter stood on the other side, his jaw locked, his blue eyes digging into me.

Shit. Had he heard? Why did I care if he did? He had Krista. I shouldn’t feel bad. If anything, he should know I hadn’t sat around waiting for him either. Still, chagrin heated my face, and my nerves braided into a single shriek of alarm.

“You work here?” he growled, his nose flaring. He wore his old jeans and a gray T-shirt that bore the kind of grease stains that wouldn’t come out no matter how many times you washed it. But Hunter could wear anything and look sexy as hell. I tried not to remember how he looked naked, which was like attempting to swim up a waterfall.

“First day.” I didn’t move, holding on to the coffee machine as if it would keep me standing. “I didn’t… I mean… It wasn’t my plan to work this close… not that I thought about it. Just if you thought I was…”

“You were what?” He set his large travel coffee thermos down, tilting his head.

“Working this close to the garage on purpose.” Shut up, Jayme. Could I die now? Please, floor, swallow me up. Maybe I could dive into the cappuccino machine and steam myself to death?

“Why would I think that?” His lips were pressed together.

“You wouldn’t, of course…” I shook my head. Dammit. Why was he the only person on earth who made me bumble around like a complete moron?

We stared at each other for a few beats. Tim’s gaze went back and forth between us like a tennis match.

“You want me to fill that?” Tim finally spoke, pointing at his thermos, breaking Hunter’s gaze from me.

“Yeah. Thanks.”

“Your usual medium roast coffee?” Tim stuck the mug under the machine, not waiting for his answer.

Usual meant he was here a lot, which shouldn’t have been a surprise. The garage was only a few yards away. Naturally, since I had decided to stay away from him, our paths crashed into each other again.

“Also toss in one of those.” He pointed at a chocolate-dipped biscotti. With tongs, I reached in and put one in a bag, handing it to him. Tim took his money.

Hunter drew out the biscuit, took a bite, and watched me as his mouth wrapped around the cookie, a wicked grin shaping his mouth as he swallowed it. “Damn. Italians sure know how to make a biscuit.” He grabbed his coffee and strolled casually out of the café.

I felt the jab spear into my chest. He had overheard and wanted me to know it. Anger built behind my eyes. I wanted to run after him and chuck all the biscotti at his head. Krista was in my face every day… his baby growing in her belly, but I was the one who should feel bad because I had a boyfriend in Italy?

“You have a boyfriend, right?” Tim’s words broke my glower at the door, where I watched Hunter jog across the lane to the garage. “This Italian guy, right?”

“What?” I snapped at Tim, my ire lashing at him.

“You said you have a boyfriend…” Tim’s gaze went across the street, then back to me. “But you two still seem to have a thing.”

“A thing?” I blinked.

“Jayme, you and Hunter were the talk of the school last year. Probably the town.” His voice softened. “I heard what people said about you after Colton died, that you and Hunter had probably been hooking up behind his back the whole time.”

“What?” I inhaled sharply. “That’s not true.”

“I didn’t think so. You seem way too sweet to do that, but the gossip was bad. What they wrote on your locker.” He shook his head, his eyes full of pity. “I hated what Savannah was saying about you. Hate that she works here.” He tapped his hand on the counter, licking his lip nervously. “You still really like him? I mean… he’s with that girl… gonna have two kids with her.”

I blinked, feeling my world slide right back to high school. Suddenly I could feel the raw vulnerability of everyone scrutinizing the worst moments in my life and twisting them into something ugly and disgusting. Hunter and I were still a reality TV show here.

Being gone had helped my perspective. I had grown used to no one knowing my past. No one caring about my huge tumble from popularity to one of the most hated girls at school. I liked being simply Jayme, not the girl who people thought let her boyfriend drive drunk, let him die, then went after his twin brother.

“I really don’t want to talk about high school or Hunter.” I closed the glass door to the bakery display, moving to the back, pressing my palm into my chest. “We need more sugar and milk.” I didn’t let Tim respond, as I was already halfway to the storage room, trying to close the door on all the pain the memories stirred up.

Taking deep breaths, I closed my eyes and leaned against the wall. I knew how strong I was, that I could hold myself up without anyone’s help, but I missed sharing my feelings and nightmares with Hunter. He was the only person who understood what it was like to fight these demons no one wanted to hear about anymore. People only saw the shell of a person. If you looked fine, then you should be fine.

As much as I had grown, I realized I was still a mess inside. Coming home only made it evident I had only temporarily tucked this stuff away in Italy, and now the box had popped open, scattering debris everywhere.

 

 

Just before I got off work, I had a voicemail from Aubrey that my car was ready. I walked over and went straight into the waiting room area instead of the garage, hoping to limit my Hunter interaction.

“It’s fixed already?” I questioned, stepping into the cool air-conditioned room. Aubrey curled her lip at the sight of me.

“What do you mean? The car part has been here since Friday. Not sure what took so long.”

The car part was in on Friday? That didn’t make any sense. Hunter told me yesterday they hadn’t gotten it in yet. Maybe she was mistaken.

“Sign these.” She pushed forms to me. “Doug wanted me to notify him when you got here.” Her face twisted is disgusted disbelief. “You’re not that pretty. Whatever you do to make guys fall over themselves to make your life easier, I will never understand.”

“Easier?” I dropped the pen in my hand, staring at her. “Are you kidding me? Does losing someone you love in a horrific car accident that paralyzed you for weeks and caused you to learn to walk again sound easy to you?”

She rolled her eyes, walking into the garage, like my experiences were trivial. I felt like the girl in high school had changed, dressing up in the skin of Savannah, so she would no longer be teased or bullied. Yet she’d turned into a bully herself.

“Jayme.” Doug ambled into the room, a huge goofy smile plastering his face. “Good to see you!”

“You saw me Friday, remember?” I chuckled, infected with his simple joy as he wrapped me up in a quick hug.

“Yeah, but it’s always good to see your beautiful face.”

Aubrey made a noise behind him, turning it into a hum as she went back to typing at the computer.

“You work across the street now?” He winked, grabbing my paperwork. “Now I know why Hunter was in such a foul mood this morning. Only time I’ve seen any emotion come from that guy lately is since you’ve shown back up.” He handed me the sheet. “Installed the new radiator, new filter, and topped off all the fluids.” His finger went down the checklist.

“Thank you.” I glazed over the information, my eye landing on the total at the bottom. “Wait… I don’t understand?” My mouth parted. Hunter told me the estimate without labor would be in the three- to four-hundred-dollar range. The tally at the end was one hundred seventy-five dollars.

Doug shrugged, a gleam in his eyes.

“I can’t let you do that.” I shook my head. “Didn’t the part cost more than this?”

“We got a really good deal.” He set my keys on the counter.

“Doug.”

“That’s the total, Jayme. If you have a problem with it, talk to your mechanic.” He took a few steps toward the door, glancing back at me. “I’m having a party on Friday. You should come.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Why? I want you there. You’re my guest.” He winked again before pushing through the doors.

My brain still couldn’t get over his generosity. Doug had approved it, but I knew it had been Hunter’s idea, which only jumbled everything in my head and heart.

“See?” Aubrey clacked at the keyboard, her shaped eyebrow lifting. “From the day you walked into this town every guy has fallen over themselves for you.”

“What is your problem?” I hiked my bag higher on my shoulder. “I was always nice to you, even when your so-called boyfriend and friends weren’t. Are you that much of a follower?”

“Whatever, Jayme. Like you could see outside yourself or Colton to notice me enough to be nice.”

Breath heaved through my nose as I slapped my credit card down, not wanting to engage. She probably had a fair point; staying quiet while others bullied was as bad. But it was strange she didn’t have a problem with the actual group that was mean to her. Just me.

Grabbing my receipt, I found my jeep washed and ready for me right outside the garage. Peering back inside I watched Hunter work on a motorcycle, hovering over it, his broad shoulders flexing as he worked. I wanted to go thank him and tell him I appreciated what he did for me, but I stopped when his head twisted, glancing over at his shoulder at me, our eyes catching.

Detached. Icy.

He turned back to the motorcycle, like I didn’t even exist, as though I was no more than a stranger to him.

Swallowing back the pain scratching across my heart, I climbed in the jeep and drove away. It hurt like hell, but this was probably what we both should do. Act like we were strangers until it became so.