Page 11 of A Wrench in the Plan
“You’ve always got a place here, Wrench,” he said. “You don’t have to worry about proving yourself all the time. I know you’ll be there if and when I need you. Just like I know you’re pissed at me right now because I won’t let you near that container.”
My face transformed into a scowl.
I’d forgotten about that fucker in the box for a whole three minutes, and now he had to go and put it in my face.
“I ain’t gonna apologize,” I said.
“Not asking you to,” he shot back. “But maybe you should focus on some of those other things for a bit.”
I narrowed my eyes at him trying to figure out what he meant by that.
“You want me to go knock someone up?” I asked, voice a bit high.
His head fell back as he let out a rare booming laugh.
“Fuck no!” He shook his head at me. “That sounds like a terrible idea.” I one million percent agreed. “I was talking more like, maybe, evaluate what you do have in your life right now. Try seeing it for what it is.”
“I don’t think I follow.”
“Just… think about things,” he said and then walked off.
I looked around the garage, wondering if anyone else had heard that strange-as-hell conversation, and was as confused as I was. Or better yet, heard it and got what I seemed to be missin’. But no one was even looking my way.
I shrugged, trying to shake it off. Then I got back to work, ducking my head under the hood with the intention of actually doing something this time.
I wasn’t under there long when I felt a tap on my back. I ducked out to see Travis standing there with a soggy brown bag. The way the grease was soaking through the bottom, I just knew it had to be a burger and large order of fries in there from the diner.
“When’d you leave?” I asked, sure that I saw him working two bays down not that long ago.
“Like almost an hour ago,” he replied, confusion filling his face. “I asked if you wanted to go with me.”
“Oh,” I said blankly. “I don’t remember that.”
“You seemed a little out of it, so I figured I should bring you back something.”
“Thanks,” I told him, snatching up the bag. “Guess I’ll go to the break room.”
And I did just that, leaving Trav to get back to work.
As I sat there eating that delicious as fuck burger made perfectly for me— ketchup and cheese only— I thought about the future.
Which had that day Trav had brought me to look at that house with him popping up in my mind. At the time, I thought it was weird that he suggested it might be a good idea for me to have a place of my own where Evan could move in and Cat could have a room to crash in.
Had he been trying to say that he thought Evan and I were in it for the long haul?
Was that the impression I gave off?
I hadn’t thought about it before.
And between the conversation LT just threw on me and the idea that Travis had, I was starting to feel like I’d been missing something huge.
I couldn’t let the idea go for the rest of my shift. It was like it was all I could think about. Which, maybe, was a good thing. It had distracted me from the rage that had been filling me up the past few days.
Was it a good idea? Should I take him up on his offer about the house? I mean, I’d still be right next door to him and my sister, but at least the walls were thicker. That was a huge plus. I knew Evan had a shitty living situation, so he could get away from that. I really wanted to help him with that because I hated seeing how much it stressed him out.
But…
Would Evan want to move in with me? Not to mention what the fuck that would mean. Would he rather do it as a roommate type of thing? Would we be able to keep going like we had been? I mean, neither of us had slept with other people in months, but there was a sense of security in knowing we could. I wasn’t sure that sounded right, though. More of a sense that things between us wouldn’t get too heavy or complicated as long as that option was there.
