I know this is how to start it. I used to mow all this grass as a teenager, helping Gran out around the place, so I’m not sure what the problem is here. After doing the same thing over and over about ten times, I shove my hands on my hips and curse at the stupid machine, fighting back the urge to kick it.
The sound of an approaching motorcycle causes me to roll my eyes.
Great. He would come back just when I decide to find something to keep me busy, getting grease and dirt all over my hands in the process. My interrogation of him will have to wait until some other time now.
I do my best to ignore the fact that Ace has returned and refocus on starting the lawn mower. I yank one more time, and when nothing happens, I curse loudly, out of pure frustration, “Fucking piece of shit!”
“Problems?”
I turn to see Ace standing before me with his arms crossed over his broad chest, looking more godlike than ever, staring at me expectantly with those brown eyes of his.
My shoulders sag, as I hate admitting defeat to this man. He’s such a crass know-it-all. “I can’t get it to start.”
He nods but doesn’t say anything else as he walks over beside me. The smell of soap and spice fills my nose, and I’m tempted to lean in closer to him and take a long whiff. His scent makes me want to lick him, but I fight hard to restrain myself, because that wouldn’t go over well.
The thick cords in his arms move after he stoops down and turns a small silver cap on the engine of the machine. “Did you check the gas?”
My cheeks redden as embarrassment floods through me. “I forgot about that.”
He closes one eye and peers down into the hole before shaking his head. “It’s bone dry.” He stares up at me. “How long have you owned this place?”
“I just inherited from my gran two weeks ago when she passed. Truthfully, I’m a little lost at how I’m supposed to keep the place running. I don’t know how she managed it all these years.”
It’s almost as if something resonates with him, because his normal scowl is replaced with a frown. “I’m sorry to hear about your gran. Were you all close?”
I nod. “She raised me and was the closest thing to a mom I ever had.”
Ace sighs as he rubs the back of his neck. “I’ll tell you what. If you knock fifty bucks a month off the rent, I’ll do all the lawn work around here. That’ll make one less burden you have to worry about.”
“Deal!” I say a little too enthusiastically, and Ace’s eyebrows draw in like he’s aggravated by my excitement, but I go ahead and attempt to start our relationship over. “I really think we got started off on the wrong foot.”
Ace holds up a hand, cutting me off. “This in no way means we’re friends. I’m just looking for ways to save myself some money. Got it?”
I flinch as the short tone he takes with me returns, and it pisses me off that he feels like he has the right to treat me like this. Maybe Gran’s idea to be nice isn’t meant for this situation, because he obviously has no interest in making amends. “Whatever.”
I turn and walk inside the trailer to finish going through some of Gran’s things to distract myself from the beautiful asshole who lives next door.
When Ace returns from the gas station, the constant sound of the mower working at chopping down the grass echoes through Willow Acres. At least the tidiness around the park that Gran prided herself on so much is getting back to normal. “We might be poor, but that’s no excuse to live like animals” is what Gran would always say.
I make myself some lemonade in the kitchen and then sit outside on the steps as I wait for Birdie to return home from her job as a daytime bartender at a small club in Cambridge. She’s been working so hard to worm her way into her boss’s good graces. Her goal of obtaining an evening shift position is pretty close to being attained. She’s been at Angel’s for only three months, and she’s already next on the list for a shift that’s known for the best tips. I’m proud of how hard she works. My friend has a great work ethic.
The loud rumble of Jeremy’s beat-up 1990s-model Trans Am