Page 86 of Something Tattered
"I wasn't stuck," he said. "I like carting you around. You think I'm out here picking you up because I thought your car wasn't working?"
"Well, yeah," I said. "Otherwise, like tonight, I would've just driven out to meet you."
"That's whatyouthink."
I stared up at him. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, Ilikepicking you up. And I like taking you home."
"Why?"
"Other than spending time with you?"
"Well, yeah."
Joel shrugged. "It gives me the chance to check things out, make sure everything's okay."
At first, I didn't get it. But then I recalled the very first time he'd brought me home. We'd arrived just in time to catch my uncle galloping off with that horse. "Is this about my relatives?"
"In part."
"I guess I should've mentioned, they won't be back for at least a month."
"Yeah? How do you know?"
"It's their pattern," I explained. "Whenever I catch them, they wait a few weeks before coming back. And one time, they didn't come back for two whole years."
"Because they lost interest?"
I winced. "No. Because they were living in Italy."
"Why Italy?"
"Who knows? But the timing was perfect. I was away at college, and with them out of the country, I didn't have to worry about them swiping my stuff while I was gone. So, in a way, I've been pretty lucky."
"You call that lucky?"
"Well, you know, glass half-full, right?"
Joel gave me a look that was decidedly glass-half-empty. "That's one way to look at it. About your car, where is it now?"
"I don't know. Derek didn't tell me."
His jaw tightened. "Right."
I hesitated. "So, what do you think? About the engine, I mean."
"I think the guy's full of it."
I felt a surge of hope. "You think so?"
"Iknowso."
I blew out a long breath. "Well, that's good. I'll call him Monday and get it worked out."
Joel didn't look thrilled. "Why not now?"
"It's a Friday night," I said. "No one will be working on it this weekend anyway." I tried to laugh. "And plus, I think I've had enough of Derek for one day."
