Page 540 of One More Kiss

I turned to the little girl. “See this?” She studied the small object in my hand, then nodded. “This is an oxygen sensor. You know how you put gas in a car to make it run?” She didn’t respond to my rhetorical question, so I continued. “These help to make sure the car is using the fuel properly. When it gets too much gunk built up, it can't get a good connection, and the engine won't run right.”

She nodded like she understood. “My name’s Madison.”

“My name is Mick,” I returned.

“Is this where you work?” Her eyes flitted around the big space, and I smiled.

“I sure hope so, otherwise they might be upset if I use their things.”

The little girl’s bright blue eyes returned to me, and she shot me a gapped-toothed smile.

“Madison,” the woman admonished. “Let's not bother him. He’s already going out of his way to help us.”

Madison threw an apologetic look my way. “Sorry.”

“It's okay,” I replied.

She wandered off, and a few seconds later, I heard the door close as she climbed into the backseat. The woman, whose name I still didn't know, stood next to the front bumper, looking nervous as ever. “Your spark plugs were looking a little worse for wear, so I went ahead and replaced those, too.”

Her brows dipped down in concern. “What do I owe you?”

Instead of looking at her, I focused on the spark plug in my hand. “Don't worry about it.”

“I have to give you something,” she said. It was impossible not to read too much into that statement. She seemed to have come to the same conclusion, because she fell all over herself trying to correct her words. “I mean… Whatever I owe you, I'd be more than happy to…”

I bit back a smile, not wanting to make her more uncomfortable. “They're only a couple bucks apiece. It's really no big deal. Just glad I could help.”

I popped the last one in, then closed up the hood and turned to her. “Anything else?”

She shook her head. “No, I… Thank you again.”

I gave her a tight smile. “You're welcome.”

“I, um…” She thrust one hand in my direction. “I’m Andrea.”

I took her hand in mine, and a jolt of sensation rocketed through my body. I quickly released her. “Nice to meet you, Andrea. I'll let you guys go.”

With a little bob of her head, she hopped into the car and cranked the engine. Her eyes met mine through the windshield as she put the gear car in gear and started to back up. From the backseat, Madison waved at me, and I lifted my hand in farewell. A tiny spark of something shot through my chest, and I fought the urge to rub it as the woman—Andrea—backed out of the bay and turned to leave.

She threw a tiny wave of thanks my way, and I nodded to her as she turned out of the lot and disappeared down the street. Heaving a sigh, I headed back in and closed up the bay door. Damn. It’d been nearly twelve years since I’d been around a woman but she’d thrown me completely off balance. Maybe Travis was right. Maybe I needed to get out more, meet some people… find a woman.

My heart thumped against my ribs at the thought. Right now, the only woman I could focus on was the beautiful, mysterious redhead who’d just pulled away.

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