Page 46 of Whispers and Wildfire

I backed away from the counter. “You drive me nuts. You know that, right?”

“Sorry. You look fine. You work in a garage, no one will notice.”

“Exactly.” I turned, pushing away the temptation to keep arguing with her, and went into the garage. I actually wanted a cup of coffee, but I couldn’t get one after that. Not from up front, at least.

Fucking Melanie.

I went to my office, dropped into my chair, and raked a hand through my hair. A not-so-pleasant scent caught my attention. What was that? It smelled like dirty laundry. I sniffed the air again. Where was it coming from? Had I left something in my office? It wasn’t exactly tidy, but there shouldn’t have been anything that foul.

Wait.

Leaning down, I sniffed my armpits.

It was me.

I grabbed the hem of my shirt and pulled it down. Dirty. Visibly dirty. Sliding my chair back, I straightened my legs to inspect my jeans. They didn’t look clean, either.

Apparently, I hadn’t been paying attention when I’d grabbed my clothes. I must have taken them from the dirty basket, not the clean one.

Yes, I had a clean basket. Don’t judge. At least my clean clothes weren’t on the floor.

I really did look like I’d slept in a dumpster.

The last thing I was going to do was admit to Melanie she’d been right. I’d avoid the lobby and live with Patrick’s barely drinkable coffee. And I was not changing my clothes. I’d just work on one of my restoration projects and get evendirtier. I was a mechanic, after all. Who needed clean clothes when you worked on cars all day?

My phone buzzed, so I swiped the screen to check. It was a text from someone who wasn’t in my contacts.

Hey, it’s Jenna. I was hoping you could come take a look at my grandpa’s car.

She didn’t just want me to look at her grandpa’s car. I’d have bet my entire garage and every car in it. She wanted me to ask her out.

And why not? She was cute. I hadn’t dated anyone in a while, so maybe it was time. I could look at her grandpa’s car, then take her out. See if we hit it off.

Frustrated, I dropped my phone on my desk. I couldn’t do it. It was the stupidest thing. She was attractive, and there might have been some chemistry between us. Or there should have been.

But somehow, the thought of going out with Jenna was strangely repulsive.

What was wrong with me?

I was tired and grumpy. That was all. I decided to wait and text Jenna back when I wasn’t in such a crappy mood.

Leaving my phone on my desk, I went out to the garage in search of coffee. Unfortunately, the pot was empty. With a sigh, I decided to suck it up and go back to the lobby and the fresh—and undoubtedly better—coffee Mel had made.

Melanie’s voice carried through the door that led to the lobby. I paused, listening. She wasn’t using an accent or character voice, but there was something in her tone—a barely concealed sharpness. Who was she talking to?

I pushed the door open just enough to peek through and almost groaned. Gary Boggs stood in front of the counter wearing his typical sour expression. He was a local classic car enthusiast who did a lot of business with my garage. That should have been a good thing, but I wasn’t sure if dealing with him was worth it. He was never happy.

“I’ve been waiting for an update,” he said. “Tried calling a few times. Still nothing.”

“I’m sorry about that. Our usual front desk person left on maternity leave, so I think a few things have fallen through the cracks.”

“How is that my problem?”

“I don’t suppose it is, although I’d think knowing the reason might lead to understanding.”

“I understand, all right. It’s always the same with him. Lazy as all hell. Luke Haven is unreliable and always has been.”

I rolled my eyes. He was such a dick. I put my hand on the door and was about to saunter in and put him in his place when Melanie started to laugh.

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