The Mechanic - Vanessa Waltz Page 0,184
but my car got broken into while I was volunteering.”
“Well, I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Yeah, it kind of sucks.”
We lapsed into silence as we finished the pizza. I devoured three more slices, savoring each bite.
Does he eat like this all the time?
Why wouldn’t he? After many sips from the equally delicious wine, I felt myself slip into a warm, happy stupor.
“So where did you grow up?”
I snapped to attention. “Hm? Oh—well I moved around a lot as a kid. First I lived in Richmond, then Fremont, Oakland, Antioch.” We were wading in dangerous waters. “How about yourself?”
His face tightened. “Chicago. Well, I was there until my mother passed.” He shrugged. “Then my father sent me overseas to a boarding school in London.”
God, so he did go to a boarding school.
Years of lying in bed while reading Harry Potter and fantasizing about what it would be like to live in a castle full of children made me burn with jealousy. “What was it like there?” I said in an awed voice. “Were there houses?”
He tilted his head and a slow smile spread across his face. “You mean like Gryffindor and Ravenclaw?”
I laughed and took another sip of wine, trying to hide my embarrassment.
“No, I’m afraid not. They’re not all they’re cracked up to be.”
I sank in my chair, my bubble of excitement bursting. “Are you kidding me?”
“The environment could be stifling. You’re in this studious environment from sunup to sundown. I was homesick a lot. It was lonely. At first, it was fun, but after a while you miss your mom and dad.”
It was sad to hear that. Luke stared at some point over my shoulder, his eyes echoing with the loss of his mother and the pain of being sent away after her death. I couldn’t imagine what that must have felt like. I wanted to erase that unhappy look on his face.
“You’re ruining my fantasy!”
He laughed and shrugged. Luke looked at me as if he was making his mind about something. His fingers drummed on the table and he reached inside his jacket.
“I need to ask you to fill out one more thing. You have to understand that I don’t trust easily, and I need you to complete this form so I can do a background check.”
I shrugged. “No problem.” I had nothing to hide, right? It wasn’t any different from applying to a job. I took the form and filled everything out, which included my address, phone number and social security number. A voice inside me said that it was a lot of private information to give to a complete stranger. Then Luke slid over the two thousand dollar check already written in my name and I took it. I felt guilty taking it. It was such a nice dinner.
When I returned the form, he glanced at his watch.
“Well, shall we?”
I took one last sip of wine and stood up as he threw cash on the table. We walked through the bustling restaurant. The hostess reached into the closet to retrieve my sad, synthetic wool coat and I watched as Luke shrugged on his. I noticed his patent leather Italian shoes and felt so cheap by comparison. I was an impostor, a Cinderella, but with his hand on the small of my back, I didn’t feel like one.
The glass doors swung outward and the chilly air struck my bones. Luke walked beside me with his hands deep inside his pockets.
“I’ll walk you to your car.”
“I took the BART and MUNI to get here.”
The cold stung his cheeks with pink. “Oh. Why’s that?”
I tried to look somewhere behind his head, anything to avoid meeting his gaze. “Well, like I said, my car was broken into and it needed to be fixed.”
His voice was flat. “But repairing a windshield only takes an hour.” He wasn’t getting it.
Tears welled in my eyes.
Don’t cry, you idiot.
My hands balled into fists until my fingernails bit painfully into my flesh.
“Yes, well, I couldn’t afford it. So they kept my car.” I couldn’t quite keep the pain out of my voice.
None of us said anything for a while. No doubt, he was looking for some phrase, some appropriate response for this situation he had been taught in his gentlemen classes at his overseas boarding school.
“I’ll call a town car.”
His thumb moved rapidly over his cell phone. I swallowed the lump in my throat.
“No, really. It’s okay. I’m fine with taking the BART. I do it all the time. It’s no big deal.”
“Neither is calling a town car.”
I wanted to argue, but his hand reached out and touched my shoulder, squeezing it.
He wore a nonchalant smile on his face, as if he hadn’t noticed the tears welling in my eyes, but of course he had and was just trying to make me feel better.
“Okay.”
A few minutes later, a sleek black Mercedes rolled next to the curb. I revolved on the spot with a heavy feeling in my stomach. Well, that’s it.
“Thank you so much for everything, Luke.”
He nodded. “I’ll contact you in a few days if all is well.”
He swept down and planted a swift kiss on my cheek. The spot burned like a hot poker and the faint smell of his shampoo drifted inside my nose. I could still feel the imprint of his lips on my face.
The kiss surprised me so much that I forgot to say goodbye. I let out an embarrassing giggle and ducked into the security of the smooth, leather car interior. Luke leaned down near the passenger’s side to exchange words and a handful of cash with the driver.
Feeling light, I laid my hand across my cheek where he kissed me for a long time, marveling at how something so brief could feel so good.
I still felt like I stumbled into some kind of fairytale when the car dropped me at my house. Maybe a fairytale wasn’t accurate. It was like a bizarre dream. In what world did a gorgeous billionaire pay women to date him when he could have any woman he wanted?
I stepped out before the driver could open my door and gave him an awkward wave. Whoops.
He gave me a cursory look and sped away when I stepped on the sidewalk. I shrugged as I watched the town car blast down the street. I struggled to open my door for several minutes until I realized I used the wrong key. Finally, I pushed it open and strode inside.
The back of Natalie’s head was against the couch. She whirled around as soon as I entered and stood up, looking apprehensive.
“Jess, look, I’m sorry for what I said.”
Seeing her looking so tired in her pajamas stirred my guilt. She waited for me all night and probably wondered if my face would appear on the evening news.
I was too tired to argue. “It’s fine.”
Her hands fidgeted. “You didn’t text me.”
“Ah, sorry. I forgot,” I said as I hung my coat in the closet.
“Well, how was it?”
A huge grin spread across my face. “I think I’m in love!”
She grinned. “Seriously, what was he like?”
“He’s young and gorgeous. And nice and—” I shivered at the mere memory of him. “I don’t know what he’s like, but he is hot. He looks like Ian Somerhalder!”
Her eyebrows were somewhere in her hair. “Wow. Well, what does he want from you?”
“I don’t know yet. I can pay you back now, at least. And I can get my car.” I slid my feet out of the heels and bounced across the room, brimming with happiness.
“I’ve never seen you like this.” Natalie’s voice was flat. “Am I dreaming?”
I shrugged and backed into my room, laughing at her stunned face. “I’m going to bed. Night!”
I set my purse on the bed and set the two thousand dollar check on my nightstand, feeling myself deflate once again. Don’t get attached to him. He might become my boss, but he’d never be my boyfriend.
Still, it was nice to dream.
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