slightly convoluted and hinged on the cooperation of a stranger—who hated my father—and my ability to convince Mr. Browning to sell his car to Evan Bailey. But I wasn’t going to let a silly thing like doubt or a high probability of failure stop me now. I was going to make it work.
“It’s not that crazy, is it, girls?” I glanced at Myra and Blanche. “I know there are a lot of ways this could go wrong, but for right now, this is what we’ve got. Our alternative is going back, and I’ll live in my car before I do that.”
Despite the uncertainty of my current situation, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt so light. I couldn’t stop smiling. I was free.
However, I didn’t want to show up at Evan’s shop unannounced. Maybe I was crazy, but I wasn’t going to be rude.
Plus, that was what Dad had done. I wanted Evan to know that I wasn’t my father.
I stopped for snacks at a little mini-mart about half an hour outside the city—because road trips required snacks—and looked up the number for Evan’s shop. My heart fluttered at the memory of his intense brown eyes, but I took a fortifying breath, and called.
“Bailey Customs.”
“Hi, is this Evan Bailey?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh, good. Um, you answered so fast and now I’m kind of nervous.”
“What?”
“Sorry. My name’s Fiona and my car needs a new clutch.”
“I don’t do that kind of work.”
“No, I know you don’t. But—”
“Are you local?”
“I’m not, but I’ll be in your area—”
“Then call Dusty’s Auto in Tilikum. Do you need the number?”
“No, I—”
“Okay. Bye.”
My phone beeped as the call disconnected. Had he just hung up on me?
Brushing my hair out of my eyes, I hit send again. Evan Bailey was going to help me. He just didn’t realize it yet.
6
Evan
My phone rang again and a spike of annoyance made my shoulders tighten. Same number. What the fuck was wrong with her? I’d told her to call Dusty’s in town. I didn’t replace clutches on whatever piece of shit car she was driving. Why was she calling again?
“What?” I barked into the phone.
“Don’t hang up,” she said, spitting out the words quickly. “Just please, listen. I know you’re not a regular mechanic and under normal circumstances I’d take it in to a repair shop. But I can’t.”
“Why?”
“I’ll explain in person, I just want you to know I’m on my way.”
“What?”
“I’m calling to let you know I’m on my way. I can help you get something you want, so you’re going to want to talk to me.”
“Why would you—”
“I know, it’s weird, but trust me, you’ll want to hear me out,” she said. Why the fuck was her voice so cheery? She sounded familiar, but I didn’t know why. “I’m pretty sure I can find the place, but if I have trouble, I’ll call you back.”
“No, don’t—”
“Thanks, Evan! I’ll see you soon!”
She ended the call and I looked at my phone. What was she talking about? She could help me get something I wanted? And why did I recognize her voice?
I was about to put the phone down when it buzzed with a text. Seriously, who was this chick?
But it wasn’t the same number. Great, who the hell was this?
Hey, you! I’m back in town. Want to get together?
My throat tightened at the thought that it might be her. But there was no way Carly would text me out of the blue like that. We hadn’t spoken in years.
I texted back: Who’s this?
It’s Jill, silly. Did you get a new phone and lose your contacts?
Jill? Who the fuck was Jill?
I hadn’t been with anyone since that stupid hookup last October. We hadn’t exchanged names, let alone phone numbers, so it couldn’t be her. And before that… it had been a long time since I’d been with anyone. It wasn’t like I dated anymore, and I certainly didn’t remember a woman named Jill.
Then it dawned on me. She was pink cardigan girl.
Why was pink cardigan girl texting me? I’d deleted her number months ago.
Whatever. I had work to do.
I got busy working on the Super Bee and completely forgot about the girl who’d called. Until Sasquatch got up and a second later, I heard a car outside. I wiped my hands on a rag and went out to see who was here.
The car that parked out front had seen better days. There were dings and dents all over the body, a crack in the windshield, and the front bumper was crooked. Bits of