Not wanting her to catch me staring, I climb out of the truck and walk over to where she’s working. I don’t disturb her, but I stand against the open doors and watch from there.
“What do you want, Max?” She doesn’t look up from what she’s doing, but she knows I’m there. I take it as a sign to move closer to see what she’s working on. Bullshit, I just want to be close to her.
“How’s it going?”
“Great,” she drawls, and although I can’t see her eye roll, I know it’s there.
“You’re here late for a Friday.” I cross my arms and continue to watch her work. She turns to give me a long look, trying to gauge whether I’m messing with her or not.
“Do you want your car finished?” She glares over her shoulder.
“Of course.”
“Well, if you want me to work on it, then I need to put in extra hours. We’re rammed here.”
“Don’t you have a date tonight?” I can’t resist asking.
“Nope. Do you?”
“Nah.” She arches her eyebrow at my reply and continues working. “Why are you always here?”
“I like working when it’s quiet and no one else is here. It means my dad can’t boss me around.” Without looking around, she reaches for another tool.
“Is it hard working with your dad?” I move closer and perch against the car to watch her.
“Sometimes. He likes everything done his way. I don’t get any special treatment just ‘cause I’m his daughter. In fact, I think he’s harder on me than Aaron.”
“Aaron’s your cousin?” I know this, but I want to keep her talking, to find out more about Leigh Storm because she doesn’t give much away.
“Yeah, more like the big brother I never had,” she mutters but a small smile appears on her face. Does she even realize she’s smiling?
“Your mom?”
“Not in the picture.” The smile vanishes and she flashes me a glare telling me not to push it further.
Instead, I change the subject. “There’s a race tomorrow.” Causey said he was sitting this one out, but I’m totally up for it.
“Always is on the weekend,” she mutters, something sounding like disapproval in her tone
“You going?”
“Nope.” She exchanges a wrench for a small screwdriver and slides the wrench into her back pocket, along with the screwdriver already in there.
“Why not?”
“Why would I?” For a minute, I have a crazy thought that she’s only saying she won’t go because I asked her but she wouldn’t do that. Would she?
“I told you before; I need a kiss good luck?”
She snorts. “I’m sure you’ll manage to find someone else.”
“Maybe I want a kiss from you.” I watch her, at the way she braces her hands on the edge of the engine and tenses her shoulders.
Turning to face me, she pins me with her glittering green eyes. “Look Max … I’m not like them.”
“I know.” I stand my ground, defiance written all over her face, making me want to take her and kiss her until neither of us can breathe.
Shaking her head, she gives a small laugh. “You’re wasting your time.”
“It’s never a waste of time with you.”
She gives me a strange look, opens her mouth to say something, but her attention returns to the GTO.
Not put off at her reluctance, I try again. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“Not at the quarter mile.”
“Well, I’ll see you here.”
“Whatever, Max.” She sits down on the creeper and disappears under my GTO. After a few long seconds, I leave her to it—not entirely satisfied with the way the evening went. I can’t tell if I’m making any progress or not. But it won’t keep me from coming back to watch her work.
Chapter Ten
To my complete disappointment, she doesn’t come to the race on Saturday, and that’s when I know I’m in deep trouble. I have fallen for a girl I hardly know, and what’s worse is she can barely tolerate me. I searched for her before the race, and although I find Aaron with the blond girl from before, Leigh is nowhere to be seen. Some random chick whose name I didn’t make an effort to remember rides home with me, but again, I drop her home. Not before she catches my face between her hands in a grip that would rival a vise and kisses me.
As I drive around on Sunday afternoon, I tell myself it’s not because I’m looking to see if she’s at the garage. But when I pull into the lot, the doors are up and I hear music coming from inside. The smile that spreads across my face has no business being there. Not to mention the way I feel even thinking about her and the settled, warm feeling that spreads across my chest. I deliberately turn up at the garage when I know no one else is working; when it’s the two of us, she’s not as frosty.