Page 15 of A New Chapter in Rosewood Beach

“Come in!” Dean said, straightening up.

A tall, lean man with tousled blond hair and blue eyes stepped into the office. He was smiling so widely it was almost a grin, and Dean found himself grinning back at the other man without hesitation.

“Hi there.” Dean held out his hand for a handshake. “You must be Jeff Lawson.”

“Guilty as charged.” Jeff sat down in the chair opposite Dean’s desk. “Nice to meet you in person, Dean.”

“Nice to meet you as well,” Dean said, meaning it sincerely. Already he was impressed by Jeff’s friendly demeanor andcheerful attitude. He seemed like exactly the kind of person that Dean had been hoping to hire.

Don’t get ahead of yourself here, Owens,Dean reminded himself.You’ve still got to interview this guy and see what he knows.

After a couple of minutes of polite chatting, Dean began the interview questions, trying not to appear too friendly or encouraging. He wanted to see how Jeff would treat him if he was acting a bit coldly toward him. It was hard for Dean to do, since he already liked the other man and was naturally a friendly person, but it paid off, because it soon became clear that Jeff had a stellar attitude even if he wasn’t being treated with friendliness.

Jeff answered all of Dean’s questions about car repair thoroughly and without hesitation. He clearly knew a great deal, and what Dean liked even more was how enthusiastic Jeff seemed about the information. It was as though he didn’t just know about fixing cars, he absolutely loved fixing cars, and that enthusiasm showed on his face and in the tone of his voice.

“If someone were to come into the shop crying,” Dean asked, improvising the question on the spot, “what would you do?”

That had only happened once at Main Street Auto, and the customer had been Hazel, who had just gotten a flat tire while she had a terrible head cold. Dean had a feeling that the only reason she was letting herself cry was because he was there to greet her and give her a hug, but he felt the question would be a good way to gauge Jeff’s level of kindness.

“Oh gosh.” Jeff shook his head. “Well, I think the first thing I would do is offer them a tissue. Then I’d ask if I could help them, and if they were crying about their car troubles, I would reassure them that we could fix it for them as soon as possible. And I don’t know if you do payment plans or anything like that, but if youdo, then I’d want to reassure them that they wouldn’t have to pay everything at once, if they were worried about money.”

Dean had to hold back a huge grin. It was abundantly clear that Jeff had not only a good head on his shoulders, but also a kind heart. He also had a “get-it-done” kind of attitude that Dean liked a great deal.

“Tell you what,” Dean said. “There’s a car that just got in, and the owner doesn’t know what’s wrong with it. He wants us to figure out why it’s making a rattling noise when it accelerates, and he also just wants us to look it over and see if there are any other issues with it. Why don’t you come along with me, and we’ll take a look at it? Consider it part of the job interview.”

Instead of looking intimidated, Jeff’s face lit up. “Yeah? That sounds great.”

Dean stood up and Jeff followed him. Together, they went into the garage, toward the car that had been dropped off earlier in the morning. Dean felt a sense of excitement as they approached it. He knew that if Jeff handled it well, he was going to offer him the job.

“Go ahead and look the whole thing over,” Dean told him. “Try to diagnose that rattling sound and see if there’s anything else wrong with the car.”

Dean watched with interest as Jeff began to inspect the car. It was already on a drive on lift, so it was easy for Jeff to look underneath it as well as under the hood. He worked quickly, with a slight frown of concentration on his face. His long, thin fingers were deft and quick, and Dean noticed that they were still a little dirty from previous auto repair work.

What Dean didn’t tell Jeff was that he’d already looked over the car himself, so he knew exactly what was causing the rattling sound, and he knew that the car’s bushings were wearing out and that the struts should be replaced as well. He wanted to seeif Jeff was able to catch all of those things, and he also wanted to see how quickly the other man was able to diagnose the car.

It wasn’t long at all before Jeff turned back to Dean with a smile. “This car is in pretty good shape, overall. There are a few things that need doing, though. The rattling sound is being caused by the transmission, which needs to be replaced. The bushings are wearing out and should be replaced within the next year or so. I’d also replace the struts, although that’s not a safety issue.”

Dean found himself grinning. “You’ve got a job if you want it, buddy.”

Jeff’s face lit up. “Yeah? Yes, I do. Absolutely. That’s fantastic.”

Dean and Jeff shook hands on the matter, and Dean felt elated. He felt great about hiring Jeff, but he had to admit to himself that he still knew very little about the other man. He could only hope that he’d done the right thing in hiring him so quickly.

CHAPTER TEN

Vivian ran a cleaning rag across the surface of The Lighthouse Grill’s counter, an action that she’d done countless times before. She could easily do it without thinking about it, and her mind was definitely not on her cleaning. It wasn’t even on the pub’s dinner rush, which was just beginning to pick up for the evening.

She was thinking about a road surrounded by trees, and two cars parked along the shoulder. She was thinking about the way she’d felt when Terrence had arrived to rescue her after her accident. Most of all, she was thinking about the way she’d kissed him impulsively.

She hadn’t seen it coming, and she’d found herself doing it before she’d really had a chance to think it through. It was so unlike her to do something like that. My goodness, she hadn’t kissed a man besides Frank in decades. But after her accident, she’d felt overwhelmed by the reminder of how fleeting life is, and all at once she’d suddenly recognized the growing strength of the fondness she had for Terrence.

She’d always considered him to be simply a friend, although sometimes she had to admit to herself that he gave the impression of wanting more than that from her. She’d felt supported by him all throughout their friendship, and she knewhow much she valued him as a person. Now, however, ever since their kiss, she was beginning to peer at the idea of a romance between the two of them the way a child would peer at a Christmas tree from the top of the staircase on Christmas morning. She hardly dared to think about it, but at the same time she didn’t seem to be able to think about anything else.

I don’t know what to do with this,she thought helplessly as she straightened up and looked over the counter to make sure that it was spotless. She noticed a tiny speck of ketchup along the edge and hurried to eradicate it.

She continued down the counter, moving closer to where customers were eating and drinking. Faith was sitting at the counter reading a book, and Vivian felt comfortable enough with her to clean near her. As she scrubbed the counter, her thoughts floated back to Terrence, and she found herself scrubbing with far more vigor than usual.

“Careful.” Faith laughed, looking up from her book and grabbing hold of the tall glass in front of her. “You nearly knocked over my root beer float.”

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