Page 52 of Without You

“No kidding?”

“Not like I met him and he told me to go for it,” he explains, “but his story, his music, his faith, the way he loved June.”

I nod, understanding completely. Johnny Cash is a legend in country music, so it doesn’t surprise me that Chase would admire him, but, like me, it’s more than just the songs he sang. It was the way he lived his life. He apologized for mistakes he made and was aware of his faults.

Once he’s seen all there is to see, including peeking under a couple of the tarps to see what other vehicles I’ll be working on next, we lock up the shop.

“Keys are in the truck.”

He grins and murmurs, “Small towns, am I right?”

“They’re the best. I rarely lock my door at home, either.”

“I can’t imagine.”

“Well, to be fair, I don’t live in a million-dollar mansion,” I joke as I go around to the passenger door.

“Aww, gee, that’s too bad,” he says jokingly.

“Not all of us can be rock stars.”

He laughs and then like an excited kid in a candy store, he climbs in behind the wheel and doesn’t even wait until I’m in my seat before he starts it up with a smile on his face. He looks at me with comically wide eyes and I lean against the door, seat belt firmly in place because I have a feeling this might be a crazy ride.

“Holy shit,” he repeats what he said earlier. “That’s. Awesome.”

I grin at his giddiness. “Like that sound, do ya?”

He throws the truck into drive and we take off out of the parking lot of my shop. “Oh, yeah. I like that sound. This truck might be the best thing I’ve ever driven, and I once drove a Lambo so… here’s your warning. Your idea of giving this sucker away for the foundation is a fucking amazing one but I’m gonna have a real hard time letting go of this so this one’s mine and I’m hiring you now to build one like it, but make it a little different because this one’s mine.”

“I can do that. We’ll have to coordinate with Eric on when I have time.”

“I’ll have my people call your people,” he teases.

“Jackass,” I joke.

“Thank you. Now. Where am I going? And are we still grabbing food somewhere?”

“Planned on it. A friend was going to join me but if you’d rather…”

“Let’s hit up a diner or fast food and you can show me all the spots around town. I’ve actually been looking to buy some land I can hunt on, maybe build a little cabin. Maybe Benton’s it for me.”

“Yeah? All right. Let me shoot off a quick text. Once you hit Murphy’s for burgers, you’re gonna be moving in next week.”

“You’ve not led me astray yet so I’m gonna believe you on that one. My trainer can kick my ass later for eating a greasy cheeseburger.”

I slap him on the shoulder. “That’s the spirit. Turn left here then a right at the stoplight.”

“This the only one?”

“No. Smart ass. We have three.”

He throws his head back and laughs. “My mistake. Damn, I love this place already,” he says, looking out his window, straining to keep an eye on whatever caught it.

Meanwhile, I grab my phone to text Katie and hope she’s not mad.

Me: Hey, are you going to be pissed if I cancel dinner tonight?

Katie: Pissed? No. Of course not. Are you embarrassed of me? That why you’re bailing? LOL

---