Page 71 of Stuck with my Mechanic Daddies

The way it had felt right. Too right.

And the way, now that I had space from it, I was completely freaking out.

Lila listened intently, her expression shifting from excitement to understanding as I finished.

When I finally stopped talking, she nodded, like she’d already made up her mind. “Okay. First of all, that sounds incredible. Second of all, why the hell are you freaking out?”

“Because I don’tdothings like this.”

She threw her hands up. “Nor did I. Now look at me. It’s a great life, and surprisingly, Medford is a great place to have this kind of fun before you leave.”

If I leave.

I still couldn’t say that bit out loud.

“You need to have some fun with me.” Lila’s eyes lit up. “The Starry Night Theater is doing a movie night tonight. Classic Hollywood theme. Youhaveto come. It'll be a great distraction.”

I hesitated. “I don’t know.”

“You do know,” she corrected, pointing a finger at me. “You need to get out of your head for a bit. Plus, it'll be fun! People dress up, there’s popcorn, fancy cocktails. It'll be so much fun.”

“Uh.Maybe.”

But before I could fully agree, she grabbed my hands, her eyes gleaming. “Ooooh, wait. You know what this calls for?”

I narrowed my eyes. “What?”

“A makeover.” She was already hopping up.

I groaned. “That is not necessary.”

She shot me apleaselook. “Are you kidding me? Aurora, this is your moment! You're going through a transformation! New town, new experiences, new romances.”

I gave her a look. “That's debatable.”

She waved me off. “Point is, you need to embrace it. And that starts with looking hot as hell tonight.”

I sighed but couldn’t help the little laugh that escaped. “Fine. Do your worst.”

Lila clapped her hands. “You willnotregret this.”

A few hours later, I was staring at my reflection in stunned silence.

Lila had outdone herself.

Gone was the slightly frazzled, overthinking woman who had walked in earlier.

In her place was someone breathtaking.

My hair, which I usually just let fall in soft waves, had been styled into a cascade of glossy, old Hollywood curls, each strand perfectly framing my face.

It felt luxurious, elegant—like I belonged on the silver screen.

And my makeup. Holy cow, the makeup.

Lila had given me a flawless, velvety complexion, subtly sculpting my cheekbones and dusting a soft shimmer onto my skin.

My eyes, normally justthere, now looked huge, framed by bold black liner that flicked out into a sharp, graceful wing. A soft wash of gold shimmer on my lids caught the light just right, making my green eyes gleam.

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