Page 7 of Finding You

She couldn’t.

Why? Because she had rotten luck. Crappy job. Crappy boyfriend. She stopped herself right there. This was supposed to be the start of her new life, a promising life, and dammit, she wasn’t going to cry or…

“Oh…oh, shit, MacKenzie,” Devin said. “I’m sorry. Don’t cry.” His voice was laced with panic as he began looking around for…something. “I know I have napkins or tissues in here somewhere. Just…don’t cry!”

She couldn’t believe she’d actually started getting emotional in front of a stranger! And really, how could she possibly have any tears left? She figured after all the crying in the rain she did before Devin pulled up that she’d be done. Most of her life, she’d never been a crier. Just the thought of crying in front of anyone–even her closest friends–was beyond her own comprehension. She was just about to comment on it when a box of tissues appeared right in front of her face.

“Here.”

Taking it, she plucked out a tissue and glared at Devin. “Thanks.”

“I know I was being a little condescending, but…I really want to do this. I know it’s crazy, but I know I can do a better job than anyone else.”

Slapping the box of tissues down, she stared at him. Hard. “Why is this so important to you? It’s beyond inconvenient! By now, you could be home in Sweet Bear or wherever the hell it is you’re from!”

“Sweetbriar,” he corrected. “It’s Sweetbriar Ridge.”

“Okay. Fine. Whatever. But you see my point, right? You could be home now. Your wife or whoever is probably waiting for you.”

“I’m not married.”

Ugh…why did I even say that?

“Then…you’d be out of the rain.”

“I’m out of the rain now too,” he countered.

MacKenzie rolled her eyes. “Yes. You’re sitting in your truck in some random diner’s parking lot out of the rain. Yay for you,” she added sarcastically.

It was his turn to give her a dry look. “All I’m saying is that I don’t mind doing this for you. I don’t mind the waiting. I just really want a chance to work on the Mustang.”

“Why?” she cried, although she had a sneaky suspicion she knew. It was the car. It was a guy magnet. Her ex had begged her constantly to let him drive it or to sell it to him, but she never would, which was probably one of the reasons he started screwing around on her. But the Mustang was more than just a car to her. It was a part of her family. It had been her dad’s first car and he restored it–not professionally–but he did it all himself and MacKenzie could still remember sitting in the yard on a Saturday and watching him work.

It was the car she learned to drive in.

It was the car she drove to college in.

It was her last link to her dad.

There was no way she could entrust it to just anyone. She slid a look at Devin and saw the longing on his face and she wanted to tell him no–she really did–but there was something about him she wanted to trust, to believe.

And she seriously hoped she wasn’t making another huge mistake.

“I guess we can talk about it a little more over coffee…”

His entire face lit up like he’d just gotten the best Christmas present in the world. “That’s great! Trust me, this is going to be awesome! You won’t regret it!”

But she already had a feeling she would.

Three hours, two cheeseburgers, four colas, two coffees, and two slices of pie later, Devin looked up to see one of his tow trucks pulling into the parking lot. Part of him wanted to sag with relief while the other part was damn near giddy that he had finally convinced MacKenzie to give him a chance.

During their long break at the diner, he had managed to find out quite a few things about her. For starters, she didn’t trust easily, and she certainly didn’t trust people with the Mustang.

If he were in her shoes, he’d feel the exact same way.

She was driving west–most likely to Oregon–but had no real end destination in mind. Apparently her mother lived there, but she hadn’t seen or spoken to her in over ten years. Even though he wanted to point out that her mother might not live there anymore, it didn’t seem helpful. Her father passed away several years ago and she had no other family. Basically, she was just looking to start over. Behind her was a cheating ex-boyfriend, a crappy, dead-end job, and not much else.

He had a feeling everything she owned was in that Mustang, and it just made him sad for her.

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