“Didn’t think you’d be up.” I closed my car door behind me before I crossed the dusty lot.
Bud was inside a rickety carport, wiping the grease from his hands onto an old rag. “Timing’s off.” He pointed to the old beat up Chevy in front of him. “Get in and let me use the timing gun.”
Slipping inside the car, I turned the key, revving the engine while I waited for Bud to give me the signal. After a few curse words, he slammed the hood closed and I got out, shaking my head.
“What brings you to my neck of the woods so early?” He didn’t even glance up at me as he spoke.
“Mabeline has seen better days.” We both walked toward my car, and I leaned into the driver’s window, pulling out the two coffees and fast food breakfast.
“Aw hell, son. What did you do?” He snatched a coffee from my hand and began to drink the scolding liquid without as much as a thank-you. I stifled a laugh as it dribbled down his three-day scruff and blended into the stains of his old gray T-shirt.
“Got in a fight with a Prius.”
Bud’s eyes widened before he shook his head. “I’d hate to see how that faired against this beast.”
“You think I can pull a headlight?”
“I’ll have Russel grab it for you and you can pick it up when you stop by again.”
“Actually, I need it today. I have … plans later.”
“She must be something special if you’re fixing to pick her up in Mabeline.”
I didn’t answer, trying to hide my smirk by drinking a sip of coffee, and burning my lip in the process.
“You know where everything is,” he mumbled as he grabbed the bag of food from my hand and retreated to the dilapidated single-wide trailer at the edge of the lot.
Hours had passed, and my body was coated in sweat and grime, but Mabeline was parked outside my apartment, finally looking like her old self. I slipped into my shower, moaning as the cold water cascaded over my tired, tender muscles. Avery and our date drifted into my thoughts as I scrubbed off the hard work of the day. I expected her to give me shit about every detail throughout the night, so everything had to be perfect.
I’d already picked out a royal-blue button-down and dark blue jeans. I didn’t own Italian shoes like Doc Rose, but I could still clean up pretty nice. After shaving my face, I almost looked like the type of guy a girl could take home to her mother. Almost.
I hurried through getting ready and put down a plate of food for Dax before heading out the door.
I knew Avery would be exhausted after her shift, so dancing was out of the question, no matter how badly I wanted to feel her body pressed against mine again.
Damn it. I pulled into the lot twenty minutes early. The sun had already vanished behind the tall buildings, and the muted wail of an ambulance in the distance helped muffle the hammering of my heart. Am I actually nervous? I’d never cared about impressing a girl before, and the feeling was so foreign, I contemplated calling the entire thing off. But when Avery stepped outside the hospital in jeans that hugged her slight curves and a fitted white tank top, I knew I couldn’t back out. Leaning back against my car door, I shoved my hands into my pockets and waited for the moment her gaze met mine.