Headlights, Dipsticks, & My Ex's Brother

by Heather Novak

  I stared at her and frowned. She stared right back at me, slowly eating a piece of popcorn, challenging me. Then, as if my brain was afraid of her look—and to be honest, it was—an idea sprang up out of nowhere. “I’m going to record short videos on how to check things on your car and put them on Instagram.”

  Tamicka nodded, pointing a red fingernail at me. “There it is. Get to work. I have math to do.”

  Chieka jumped up and ran around the desk. “My phone’s better than yours and I’m pretty sure Rosa is going to need some time to get over her prank. Let’s go.”

  We both looked at Rosa, who was trying to dry the tears still streaming down her face.

  “Whatever,” I said, but laughter cut off the end of the word. Chieka started laughing, too, and we leaned against each other for support.

  “Y’all know you shouldn’t drink at work, right?” Tamicka called, but she couldn’t hide the amusement in her tone.

  When my stomach burned, and my sides hurt, I pushed on Chieka’s shoulder and pointed to the door. “Come on,” I wheezed. “We’ll use your car too.”

  She put her arm around my shoulder and pumped her other fist in the air. “We’re going to be famous!”

  “Sure we are. With all ten people who’ve liked our profile.”

  She shrugged. “Ten more than we had last week!”

  I nodded. “Accurate.”

  We headed out the back door to the employee parking lot. Chieka’s Subaru Outback was parked in the back corner, which would be perfect for filming. She unlocked her car and I paused before popping the hood. “Let’s start with how to lift the hood. The basics. Let’s get every woman—every person—unafraid of their cars.”

  Chieka pulled out her phone. “Get ready for Hollywood, Edith Becker!”

  We shot small clips well into the afternoon, and for the first time in a long time, I was glad we were slow. It took us a few takes to stop laughing at my awkwardness, and a few more of me stumbling over my words. By the time Ray’s delivered lunch, we had gone over the basics that every person who drove a vehicle should know.

  Chieka sat next to me at the lunch table and we scrolled through the videos, picking the best ones. “I’ll put one up a day with a bunch of hashtags,” she said. I had given her the login information Luke had given me.

  “Awesome. I’m going to pretend I know what hashtags are. Luke said to use Edie’s Auto?”

  She shook her head and rolled her eyes. “It’s like you’re an eighty-year-old man in a twenty-five-year-old’s body.”

  I shrugged. “I take after my grandpa.”

  Tamicka knocked on the doorframe as she came in.

  I eyed her for a long moment before asking the question. “How much more do we need?”

  “One hundred forty thousand six hundred dollars and eighty cents.”

  I groaned and leaned my head against my hand. “How are we going to make that in another week?”

  She thrust a piece of paper at me. “I took some liberties.”

  “Shocking,” I replied, taking the paper from her and reading it out loud. “Women, stop being afraid of your car! Come by Edie’s Auto for a sixty-minute workshop. Fifty dollars per person, children under twelve free.” I looked up at her. “This is genius.”

  She lifted her eyebrows. “I know!”

  “This is…soon. And a lot of postage.”

  She snatched the paper out of my hand. “Hence why I’m going to see my girl Lindee at the library so she can get me the hookup on copies. Then Rosa, Henry, and I are shoving these into every mailbox in the city.”

  I stared at her. “T-Money, that’s a lot—”

  She put her hand up and I shut up immediately, because I valued my life. “Don’t want to hear about it. We’re your squad. This is our job.”

  I bit my lip to keep the emotions in.

  “If you cry,” she warned, “I won’t make you Christmas cookies.”

  I immediately plastered on the biggest smile I could make. Tamicka had promised to learn how to make her amazing cookies Edie-safe and I needed them in my mouth.

  She nodded and waved her hand above her head. “See you tomorrow!”

  My heart was so full it could burst. Sure, at fifty dollars a head, we wouldn’t make much. But it was something and it was proof that these ladies had my back through thick and thin. I shook out my hands and took a deep breath, trying to tamp down the hope blooming in my chest.

  Hope, however, was a dangerous thing.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Edie’s Tip #30: Sometimes the best trips are the ones you take without looking at the map...other times you just get lost and have to ask for directions at the Taco Bell drive-thru at 2:00 a.m.

  Before we closed on Saturday, Tamicka had given me the good news. “The fliers worked. Every workshop is sold out.”

  I smiled. “Better add more workshops.”

  Tamicka put her reading glasses back on and started typing. “I’m emailing the new class dates to every local radio and television station and newspaper. Also, you need to call Uncle Morris.”

  I stared at her for a long moment until she lifted her eyebrow and everything magically clicked. I smacked myself in the forehead. “I should’ve done that first thing!”

  “Mm-hmm,” she replied, turning back to her computer. “You should have. Go do it now.”

  I pointed at her. “I’ll do one better. I’m going for a visit.”

  It was a short motorcycle ride to the fire station—a fact my homeowner’s insurance company loved. I pulled in next to the F-150 whose windshield I had replaced in May. I cringed, realizing that was the last time I’d had a conversation with Uncle Morris. I was going to be in trouble.

  I swear, time was running faster and faster every day. Especially for two stubborn people married to their jobs. As I walked toward the open garage door that housed the town’s fire engine, a tall and very attractive man stepped out and smiled. He took three giant steps forward and wrapped me in his arms, lifting me off the ground.

  “Jack,” I wheezed. “Can’t breathe, dude.”

  He laughed and set me down. “Where’ve they been hiding you, kid?”

  “Under a hood, as always.”

  His huge grin lit up his face. He was white, tall, broad-shouldered, and handsome. The brown freckles that cascaded along his nose and cheeks had darkened with his tan. His reddish-brown hair curled behind his ears, and even I had to admit, it was all really working for him.

  I sighed, wishing I felt anything more than platonic feelings when he smiled. A stomach flip, some butterflies, that damn bat in my chest. Anything.

  But alas. “Yo, is your dad around?”

  He laughed. “I’m assuming that’s a rhetorical question. Yeah, he’s in his office. Come on.” Jack put his giant arm around my shoulders and led me into the garage. I waved at the chorus of hellos from the other firefighters. We had gotten our first female firefighter this year, which was pretty damn cool.

  Jack knocked on Uncle Morris’s doorframe before ushering me in. “Look who I found,” he said to the older man behind the desk, ignoring the fact that he was on the phone.

  White eyebrows shot up to a salt and pepper hairline and Uncle Morris smiled his big, toothy grin. “Ray, gotta call you back. My niece just walked in! Yeah, she is. Bye.” He stood and walked around his desk, arms open.

  I dashed over and hugged him, a sense of peace washing over me. His hug was a lot like his son’s—they were a similar build and probably could bench press about the same. Even though Uncle Morris’s hair had turned white, he still looked like he could scare a fire out of a house.

  I blinked away the tears that stung the back of my eyes as I realized how starved I had been for a family-like connection. Uncle Morris wasn’t really my uncle, but my dad’s high school best friend. He’d stepped in and assumed the role as uncle when we were born. It was probably why, much to his dismay, I could never date Jack.

  “Jacky, get us some coffees, eh?” Uncle M
orris said and then motioned for us to sit in the two chairs in front of his desk. “Tell me what’s going on with you, kiddo. You haven’t come to visit.”

  I sat down and rolled my eyes. “You haven’t come to visit either. How’s the windshield?”

  “Good as new as long as I don’t put another ladder through her. She’s probably got another hundred thousand miles left in her.”

  Laughing, I said, “If you replace every single part in the car.”

  He shrugged. “Eh, I like that car. And then you get business.”

  Jack brought our coffees and set them down. I smiled as he tossed one sugar packet and a stir stick next to my cup. “Thanks, Jack,” I said.

  Uncle Morris sighed, grabbing his cup and drinking his black coffee like it wouldn’t dare burn him. He swallowed and motioned between us. “You sure there’s nothing there? I’m getting old. I need grandbabies.”

  Jack and I exchanged a look and cringed. We had gone out on one date a few months ago after Will and I split. We had a great time, but there was nothing between us but platonic feelings. The kiss was...let’s just say, awkward.

  “Pa...” Jack warned.

  I reached out and grabbed Uncle Morris’s arm. “You raised us as family, Uncle Morris. It’s a little bit like kissing my cousin.”

  He shrugged. “Cousins got married all the time in the old days.”

  Jack shoved his hands in his pockets and shook his head, looking down at me. Faint pink tinted his cheeks. “He’s worse than Ma. She at least tries to set me up with the ‘nice girls’ from church instead of my cousin.”

  I shoved at Jack’s arm. “Go, get out of here before he gets any worse.”

  Jack laughed, then leaned down and kissed my cheek. “Awesome to see you, Edie.” He closed the door on the way out.

  I pointed at Uncle Morris. “Don’t. Not going to happen in this lifetime.”

  He looked defeated for a moment and then shrugged. “Hey, a man can try. So, tell me what brings my long-lost niece to visit.”

  “I need to pull together a very successful fundraiser.”

  He nodded, reaching for a pad of paper and pen. “Okay, done. When do you want to do this fundraiser? And for whom?”

  “Is the end of this week, beginning of next week too early?”

  He raised his eyebrows and searched my face. “That’s very soon. What’s it for?”

  I took a big, fortifying gulp of coffee and winced, pretty sure smoke was coming out my nose. “Do you make this with lava?” I choked.

  He thumped me once on the back. “Of course. I keep a stash of lava behind the firehouse. Stop trying to sidetrack me.”

  His tone was playful, but I heard the undercurrent of power in his voice. It was that power that had kept every single firefighter alive over the last ten years. It was that power that raised the funds to keep four full-time firefighters on staff in a town of only fifteen thousand. Most of the small towns surrounding us were volunteer-only.

  “The fundraiser is for me.”

  He stood. “What?! What’s wrong? I’ll kill that—”

  I gripped his arm. “I’m okay! It’s for the shop.” I briefly wondered whom he would kill, but decided not to ask. Plausible deniability and all that.

  Settling back in his chair with his coffee, he motioned for me to continue. So I told him everything—well, almost everything. Nothing about my sex life or Jami’s new boyfriend. That was for Jami to share when he was ready.

  Uncle Morris was silent for a long moment, taking everything in. “I never liked that boy William. Could never figure out why Cynthia wanted that match so bad. Guess I’m not surprised.” He put his mug down on his desk. “I’d always thought there might be something there between you and Luke.” He shot me a sideways glance and my cheeks heated.

  He pushed himself up from his chair. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. He’s not my boy, but he’s a good one.”

  I waved my hand in the air, dismissing the notion. “Uncle Morris, he’s leaving and—”

  He waved his own hand to stop me. “Guys say they’re leaving all the time for silly, messed-up reasons. Mark my words, that boy’s had it bad for you since you were kids. He’ll be back.”

  I swallowed hard, not daring to hope. “Maybe.”

  He sat down in his desk chair and picked up the phone. “And if not, my Jacky is still available.” I threw my head back and laughed as he dialed a number. “Martha, it’s Morris. I need a permit for a fundraiser.” He paused. “Saturday?” he asked me. I nodded. There was a loud, shrill response. “Yes, this Saturday.” He looked up and winked at me.

  My answering grin was so big, it nearly hurt my face. Maybe, just maybe we could do it. Maybe we could save the shop. Maybe Luke would—no. I couldn’t even think the words. But my heart beat out a staccato beat to let me know she was thinking the words anyway.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Edie’s Tip #44: At some point, you’re going to lose your cell phone between the seats. We promise not to laugh at you when you bring your car in, panicking…because we’ve been there too.

  After settling on a plan with Uncle Morris, I headed back to work to lock up and then walked back home. I stumbled and nearly fell flat on my face when I saw Luke standing in my driveway...in front of my Camaro.

  The smile on his face made him look years younger. “Guess what?”

  My mouth fell open the moment I connected the dots. Somehow my heap of a car was now sitting in my driveway. Which meant he got the piece to make it run. “How?” I breathed. The part I’d needed was more than I could afford.

  He walked up to me and wrapped his arms around me, then gave me a kiss. “I know a guy who owns a couple of junkyards back in North Carolina. Hit him up last week and he came through for me. Got the part today. Chieka helped me sneak in while you were gone.”

  Tears filled my eyes. “You fixed my car.”

  He laughed, tightening his hold. “That I did, Reeses. Wanna go for a ride?”

  “Do I want to—are you crazy?! OF COURSE I DO!” I ran to the car and caressed her body before opening the door. “Hello, Ella-Jean, my beautiful woman. The love of my life. How are you?”

  Luke was smirking as he climbed into the passenger side. He dangled the keys in front of me and I almost ripped off his fingers grabbing at them. “Careful, I need those for later.” He winked.

  I ignored him and fit the key into the ignition. Deep breath in, deep breath out. Then I turned the key.

  After a few seconds of tense clicking, the engine caught, and I cheered. It was like she was hugging me with excitement. We buckled up and I backed out of the driveway, turning us toward town. She shook, she rattled, she needed new seats, but she was a dream.

  We drove through downtown and looped around, the purr of the engine making me forget about everything except the man next to me. I was sitting next to Luke, holding his hand, while driving Grandpa’s car, and everything was right.

  Then Luke’s phone rang.

  He pulled it out of his pocket and answered immediately. “Alice May, what’s up?”

  The carefree, proud man who had been sitting next to me disappeared. In his place was the man whose soul was cut to shreds. “But the baby’s okay? That’s good, that’s good.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Yeah, bed rest sounds awful. I’m glad your sister is there too.” He ran a hand down his face. “Listen, I’m finishing up something. Can I call you later?”

  My hands tightened on the steering wheel and I directed the beautiful car back home. Luke hung up and tucked his phone away. “Sorry about that.”

  I waited a beat, making sure my voice would be steady. “She okay?”

  He looked out the window, his hand tapping on the door. “Her doctor put her on bed rest today. Had a bit of a scare. But she’s okay. And the baby.”

  I nodded. “I’m so glad.”

  As we pulled into the drive, my gut had already told me what I didn’t want to admit. With the car running, I could probably get thirt
y thousand for it. Luke’s gift would double what we had saved. I cleared my throat, unable to think about it until he was sound asleep and I was left alone with my thoughts. “Come on. I make a mean scrambled egg for dinner.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Edie’s Tip #22: A road trip without tunes is like wine without alcohol – pointless and unsatisfying.

  How Uncle Morris put this whole thing together in only a few days was mind-boggling. The fundraiser, held in the field between my house and the shop, was almost as fun as the Halloween carnival the town hosted every year. Sure, we didn’t have the scary carnival rides that looked like they would topple over in a strong wind, but Ray was there cooking burgers, Celine was slinging coffee, the pie-eating contest had sold out, the Date-A-Firefighter auction was set to start at sunset—I had told Jack to wear his tightest white shirt—and now the oil change competition was about to begin.

  Rosa ran up to me, cheeks flushed. “Got the vehicles all lined up for you. Similar makes and models. We’ve got fifteen entrants.”

  I motioned for her to lead the way, reaching out to fist-bump Tamicka, who was in charge of the silent auction. Most items were going for under one hundred dollars, but a few, like the weekend trip to a Mackinac Island cabin, were raking in some serious dough. Hell, if I had any money, I’d bid on that too. I couldn’t remember the last time I took two days off in a row.

  We were charging fifty bucks to enter the oil change contest, winner taking half the pot. Surprisingly, people actually signed up. Not surprisingly, none of them had ever been to my shop before. This is why they thought they could beat me. Amateurs.

  Thanks to volunteers who wanted a free oil change—we would make sure it was done right before they pulled away—we had fifteen sedans parked in a row with the supplies next to them. The contestants mingled, talking trash and bragging about what they would do with the money.