Page 59 of A Surefire Love
She exhaled as she rested them for a moment.
“Blaze?” a voice boomed.
Her eyes flew open. Her head swam with disorientation. Ten lines of1s filled her screen. Had she fallen asleep with her fingers on the keys?
Thomas loomed in her doorway. A smirk tugged at his lips. “Sleeping on the job?”
She wiped her face. Ignoring the accusation might not be the best solution, but what could she do? Admit she had been? “I needed to talk to you about your latest trade-in.” She clicked into the mechanic’s report and turned her screen toward him.
He lifted an eyebrow as he stepped in.
She outlined what she’d done to correct his mistake.
He braced a hand on her desk as he leaned close to study the numbers. “Half of this is stuff no one would account for, short of having service go over it with a fine-tooth comb, which we don’t do. As for the tires, you already arranged a fix. I don’t get why I’m in here.”
“Ifthe service department obtains the right size tires with enough tread left, they can get us out of this bind. But it’s better to use a tire gauge, like you’ve been trained to do.”
He straightened and slid his hands in his pockets. “It’s a common tire size. We’ll have a fit for that car in three days. Maybe less. And don’t forget this trade-in was tied to the purchase of a new car.”
“We are not in the business of salvaging tires. Our policies exist for a reason. Can I trust you to follow them?”
“Sure, but when people take their business somewhere else, you’ll know why.”
“As a salesperson, it’s your job to help them understand and appreciate the value you’re providing.”
Her phone vibrated against the desktop, and she jumped.
Thomas couldn’t look any more unimpressed.
She forced herself to her feet, hoping to regain some of the respect she’d lost. “This impacts your margins, as well as the department’s. If you need a new tire gauge, request one from the parts department.”
“Sure thing.” He rolled his eyes on his way out.
She couldn’t say she deserved better. She dropped back to her seat. With her new, do-it-immediately system, she turned her reports in on time, but her department still wasn’t meeting the financial goals. If they couldn’t get there soon, she wasn’t sure what her boss would do. Especially once he heard about her little nap.
23
On Thursday night at The Depot, Anson spotted David two seconds before he pulled out a chair at Anson’s table and sat with his arms crossed.
On the high school basketball team, they’d been uneasy allies, bound to each other by their mutual goal of winning. These days, David seemed to favor only two attachments: his younger sister, Marissa, and his best friend, Sterling. Since Anson associated with neither, he couldn’t imagine what common interest had inspired this visit.
David seemed content to sit like a ticking bomb, so Anson risked cutting the silence. “What can I do for you?”
David shrugged and looked toward the stage.
Blaze threw her head back, crooning a love ballad. She sounded good—a surprise only because she’d stayed home sick from Rooted the night before.
Anson asked if she needed anything, and she’d replied with two words:Just sleep.
Not sure if she’d take the stage tonight, he showed upanyway. When her voice greeted him, the tension in his chest loosened.
“She tried out for the school musical once.” David’s eyes followed her across the stage. “They turned her down. Said she could sing but not act.”
That was a weird piece of trivia to retain for ten years. “I’m sure she could act if she put her mind to it.”
“Better than Prissy Johnston, anyway.”
“Haven’t heard that name in a long time.” Anson wouldn’t have remembered their school’s biggest theater buff without the prompt. That David retained her name—and had thoughts on her acting skills—suggested he’d paid more attention to their classmates than Anson realized. “What’s she up to?”
