Page 100 of Love It or List It
Less than half a year ago, that business was a proud mark of Austin’s success and independence.Now it was causing him headaches and had been bumped so far down his list of priorities he wasn’t sure when he would get back to it.
Frustrated, Austin slammed his laptop shut and scowled at the kitchen cupboards.
Restless energy suddenly filled him, and he stood up abruptly.Then paused.What to do with all this energy?He could walk Pepa, sure, but that didn’t actually appeal.He wanted—he wanted—
He wanted Joe to pin him to the bed—or maybe a wall?—and fuck the restless energy out of him until he was a spent puddle of twitching exhausted muscles.
Fuck.
Well, not fuck.That was another problem too far down the priority list to address or even acknowledge, other than the fact that it was making him a little cranky.
Once Joe was settled back to sleep and Austin was sure he was breathing easy and not about to wake again, he turned his focus on dealing with one of the many tasks that needed doing.
He left a note by Joe’s bed saying he was on a grocery and pharmacy run, and then headed out.Maybe he could actually make something edible tonight.If he bought more beef—and guarded it better—he could make pasta.
The drive through Essex did him some good.Feeling indulgent, he sifted through the change in his cupholder and located the three bucks he needed for a ten-pack of Timbits.If nothing else, at least he could count on some simple carbs to cover the hard edges of his feelings.Besides, it was never a good idea to grocery shop on an empty stomach.
But these days nothing he did for himself ever went unpunished.He turned back onto Main Street out of the Tims drive-through and made it a total of two blocks before he had to hit the brakes.In front of him, a minivan had stalled.The driver had put her four-ways on and was standing next to the road, tugging at her hair like she had no idea what to do.
Which, yeah, even if shedidknow what to do, Main Street just before rush hour wasn’t a great time to have a breakdown—mental or automotive.
Austin put his own four-ways on and pulled over.“You need some help?”
When she turned, he could see she had her phone to her ear on the other side, but she must not have been getting an answer, because she lowered it when she saw him.“That would be great, actually.I’m not sure what happened, just all of a sudden the wheel went unresponsive and it was like driving a tank.”
“Power steering issue, probably,” Austin said.“Engine was fine?”The van was still running, now that he was looking.
“Yeah.I just kinda freaked out.”
“You have CAA or anything?”If she did, they’d come out and tow her for free, and she wouldn’t have to worry about it.
But she shook her head.“Never thought I’d need it.”
Austin had her pop the hood so he could do a visual check for any obvious issues, then stuck his head into the car and pulled the cover off the fuse panel so he could check that too.“Power steering still looks the most likely,” he said.If he had less on his plate, he’d have offered to take a look himself, but right now he had enough going on.“There’s a dealership down the street a couple blocks.If you want, I can drive it there for you.You can follow in my car.They’ll probably have a courtesy shuttle, if we hurry.”Dealership service departments were usually only open until four thirty or so.
“That would be amazing.”
Two minutes later, Austin pulled the van up in front of the service bay at the dealership.The van’s owner, whose name was Cheryl, parked his car in the side lot.Austin waved her over as the service manager came out to greet them.
The service manager was a grizzled middle-aged man with a beard and a shirt withBobbyembroidered on the pocket.He shook hands with Austin and Cheryl and asked, “What can I do for you?”
Cheryl looked at Austin.“Uh, he thinks my power steering died?So I guess can you fix it and what’s it going to cost me?”
Bobby nodded.“Sure, I can get you a quote for that.It won’t be done today, though.If you leave your keys, I’ll have the courtesy shuttle drop you off somewhere.”
After Cheryl followed his directions to the lounge where the shuttle driver waited, Bobby turned his attention to Austin.“Power steering, you said?”
“Like she said, it handles like a tank.”Austin shrugged.“I popped the hood and checked the fuses, and there’s nothing obvious there.She didn’t mention any leakage, so my guess is the belt.”He wouldn’t have been able to see that just from peeking under the hood.
Bobby tilted his head.“You a mechanic?”
“Most days,” Austin said wryly.“Didn’t have time to drive her out to my place, though.I gotta get dinner on the table.”
“Huh.”Bobby nodded and held out his hand to shake again.“Well, you ever decide you’re tired of working for yourself, we’re hiring.”
Austin opened his mouth to turn him down, then changed his mind.“Thanks,” he said instead.“I’ll keep that in mind.”
He needed that, he thought as he got back on the road toward the grocery store.Something that made a difference.A genuine compliment.One little thing to go right.
