Page 11 of Jumping In

I nod and swipe my card to pay and mumble a thank you. Grabbing my cup and box, I turn toward the door. “You know,” Beck says, and I turn back toward her. “I’ve watched you two dance around each other for years now. It’s like she’s your sun and you can’t help but orbit around her over and over again.”

Sighing, I shake my head. “I’m not blind, Mac,” she continues. “I’ll just say this, and you can do with it what you will. She might be your sun, but I’m pretty sure you’re her whole world. One day, one of you has to decide to take a chance.Don’t let the fear of getting burned keep you from reaching for what you want.”

Beck means well, she always has. Almost taking on the role of an older sister to me and MJ over the years, she probably knows more than she lets on. This isn’t the first time she’s told me to take a chance and try to repair things with MJ. But with my upcoming trial and MJ going to law school, I think I’ve solidified my fate. I’m no good for her; never have been. I give her a tight smile and then turn toward the door, heading back to my dad’s shop.

I shake my head and chuckle to myself. My dad’s shop. He hasn’t worked in the shop for seven years, ever since he first got sick, but it’s still his in my mind. It’s not my shop. Never mine. Just like Emmalynn Lawrence will never be mine, the shop will never truly be mine either.

I slam the hood down on the car I just finished working on and the sound echoes through the empty shop. The rumble of an engine and tires on gravel catch my attention, so I head to the door to see who just pulled up. I’m surprised to see Blake and Austin hopping out of Blake’s souped-up truck, and a smile tugs at my lips. Austin shoves Blake from behind as they walk up to the door. They may be twins, but they couldn’t be more different. Austin is always playing around while Blake is the more serious one.

“Mac, my man!” Austin yells and slaps his hand on mine, pulling me into a hug. I greet Blake the same way and welcome them into the shop. The guys take a seat on the leather couch set up just outside the office, and I grab a chair from the office to join them.

“What brings you two over here on a Sunday morning?” I ask.

“Had a meeting with the realtor and checked out the space next door for the restaurant,” Blake replies.

“No shit? That’s amazing!” I exclaim.

“It might not happen, but it’s our first pick for spaces in town if we can swing it.” Blake shares and I smile. I know money isn’t an issue because Blake and Austin’s parents are loaded. They’ll likely foot the bill for whatever the twins decide to do.

They fill me in on the meeting and their ideas for the restaurant, which sounds really cool. It would be nice if they could get the building next door. Besides the diner, there are no other restaurants in town. Having one so close to the auto shop could also be good for business when tourists come in.

I realize I haven’t been paying attention to the conversation when I hear Austin say MJ’s name. I shake my head and look up at him in confusion.

“Oh, that caught your attention, huh?” he jibes.

“What about MJ?” I try to tamper my interest but I can tell I’m obviously failing by the smirk on Blake’s face.

“She looked good yesterday. Grown-up. She seems happy,” Blake replies.

They fill me in on their little welcome home Grill and Chill and my chest tightens a bit. It would have been nice to see her and talk to her. But I’ve made my choice, kind of have to stick to it now.

“I don’t think she knows about the trial yet,” Blake comments and I look up to him in surprise.

“How? It’s been all around town.”

They both shrug. “We said nothing last night. I don’t think Shannon has told her either. So, unless her dad filled her in or some townie told her, she definitely doesn’t know,” Blake explains.

“I wonder what all she heard at the bookstore yesterday, then,” I murmur to myself.

“You saw her at the bookstore?” Austin asks.

“Yeah, she popped in with Shannon. She actually defended me, which was curious, especially if she doesn’t know about the trial yet.” I proceed to share the conversation my mom and I overheard yesterday.

“She must have just been defending you because she still cares about you,” Blake assures me.

“That much is obvious,” Austin interjects. “I’m pretty sure she expected you to show up last night.”

I shake my head in denial. We chat a bit more and then I tell the guys they are welcome to hang out, but I have to get back to work if I’m ever getting out of the shop today. I walk over to my workbench and grab the set of tools I need to work on the next car.

“Not to be that guy, but uh, what’s gonna happen to this place?” Blake asks.

I turn to look at him and raise my eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“Well, with the trial. You’re looking at prison time, dude.”

“Worst-case scenario, yeah. I don’t really know what will happen to the shop. Maybe Jake can help again,” I explain. Austin huffs out a laugh. “He’s apparently cleaned up his life in Cedar Bend.”

“Cleaned up and capable of doing what you do are two very different things, though,” Blake says with annoyance in his voice.

---