Page 70 of For Eva

“Cigarette?” he said, narrowing his eyes at me. “You shouldn’t smoke. It’s bad for you.”

I nodded. “Yeah, so I can give you my insurance info or whatever and—Wait, what?”

“Smoking. It’s bad for you.”

I looked up at him, tilting my head and squinting. “Oh, yeah, I know. I’m quitting next year.” I turned and opened my car door, reaching into the passenger’s seat for my bag. I pulled it out and began to dig through my wallet.

“Fuck, I know it’s here somewhere,” I mumbled as I rifled through old receipts and credit cards, dropping several that bounced off my Doc Martens onto the street.

He reached down and picked them up, handing them to me as a smile spread across his face.

“Thanks. Can’t ever find anything when you need it, huh?” Another nervous laugh escaped my lips as I gave up the search, plopping my wallet into my bag and leaning against my car door.

He took off his ball cap and rubbed his hand along his dark brown hair before placing it back on his head, the smile still planted firmly on his lips.

Damn. Is he kinda hot? Like in anI-play-sports-and-drink-beer-with-my-old-frat-brothers kind of way?

“It’s okay,” he said, chuckling at my frenzied attempt to find the insurance card. “Really. I don’t think it even did any damage.”

“Seriously?” I asked, pushing myself off my car and heading over to assess the situation as he followed. “I mean, I don’t care about my car, but there’s definitely some missing paint on yours.”

“Eh, that’s easy,” he said, brushing my fingers as we touched the chipped spots.

A wave of red heat rose to my face as I instinctively pulled back my hand and tucked it away, crossing my arms over my chest.

“Anyway,” I said, clearing my throat and standing upright. “I’ll give you my number, and you can call me if you want that insurance info. I’m sure it’s at home.”

He cocked his head for a moment as if he were considering something, then nodded. “Yeah, okay.” He paused and stuck his hand out. “I’m Aaron, by the way.”

“Eva,” I said, grasping his strong hand and smiling. I was taken in by his big blue-gray eyes and continued to hold his grip until I realized I was in a complete daze. I shook my head and blinked. “Yeah, so, let me give you that.” Once again, I dug through my bag, finally producing a pen and random gum wrapper on which I scribbled my name and phone number.

“Thanks, Eva…Holloway,” he said, examining the wrapper and grinning.

“You’re welcome, Aaron…”

“Mitchell.”

I nodded, sneaking another peek at him before averting my gaze. “Well, I’m supposed to meet my friend, so…”

“Yeah, I’ve got a softball game to get to,” Aaron said, motioning down the street.

“Okay, well, please call me, and I’ll give you all my info. Seriously. I feel like an idiot.”

He laughed. “Don’t feel like an idiot. Butdostop smoking. Those things’ll kill you.”

“1991. It’s my year, I can feel it.” I raised my fist and chuckled as he stepped backward, then turned and headed toward his car.

Aaron looked back at me once more and smiled before getting in his BMW and pulling out into traffic. I took a deep breath and leaned against the hood of my Rabbit. I watched as he disappeared down Clark Street, putting my hand to my head and wondering if it was woozy from the impact of the crash or the guy I’d crashed into.

I dropped my keys on the small table by my apartment door and walked into the kitchen to grab a glass of water. Lunch had extended late into the afternoon and involved several large margaritas which had me absolutely parched and a little sleepy. I guzzled the liquid as I pressed the blinking red button on my answering machine and plopped on the couch.

“Hey, it’s me.” Eric’s voice flowed from the speaker. “Sorry I missed your call last night. I was at a meeting, then Keith and I went out to dinner to talk about the solo project. Give me a call, I’ll fill you in. Good stuff happening soon. Talk to you later.”

I smiled and rested my head on the back on the couch. He missed me. I missed him. Because we were friends.

But what if…

“Hey, Eva,” the next caller began as the tape continued to play. I jerked my head up and looked over at the machine. “It’s Aaron. You know, from the car thing earlier. Don’t worry, I haven’t decided to sue,” he added with a laugh.

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