Page 198 of Ice Mechanic

I tap my chin. “If I remember correctly, when Evan and I broke up, you firedmeprecisely because you know who youractualfamily is.”

“Are you still holding that against me? I was downsizing, April. It wasn’t personal. You’re a business owner now. You know how it goes.”

“You’re right, Mr. Kinsey. I’m a business owner now, which means I’m very aware that what you did as a boss to an employee that day was wrong. Please be prepared to face the consequences of your actions.”

Now, Kinsey’s face twists with bitterness. “I’m very hurt to hear you speaking this way, April. After everything I’ve done for you and your dad, I would think you’d be more grateful.”

“Grateful?” I speak as calmly as I can because I know Mr. Kinsey will call me out as ‘emotional’ if there’s even a hint of a tremble in my voice.

Eyes fixed and hands steady, I say, “Should I be grateful that you belittled me even though I fixed twice as many cars as the other men in the garage? Should I be grateful that you called me ‘sensitive’ because I spoke up when the other mechanics talked crudely about women? What about your parting ‘advice’ that I should ‘show more skin’ if I wanted a boyfriend?”

“You know I’ve only ever had good intentions for you, April. If you had all these issues with me, you should have spoken to me about it rather than let it build into this lawsuit nonsense.”

If those were examples of Mr. Kinsey’s ‘good intentions’, I’d hate to see what he does when he’s got bad intentions.

I tilt my chin up. “I worked hard in your shop, hoping to be acknowledged for my skill and not my gender. This isn’t about me being too sensitive. This is about respect. If you respected me, Mr. Kinsey, you wouldnothave spoken to me the way you did in that office.”

His jaw tightens and he straightens to his full height. “If that’s how you feel, I guess there’s no point in talking.” His nostrils flare. “And to think, I came here hoping to make an offer for a joint garage. If you were a little less emotional, April, we could have worked together. Instead, I’ll now be suingyoufor stealing my customers!”

There’s that ‘emotional’ word again.

I step closer, my voice dropping to a harsh tone. “Let’s be real here, Mr. Kinsey. You didn’t come to see me today with an offer to join forces because you truly think so highly of me. You’rescrambling for a solution because your shop has been declining ever since I left.”

His eyes flash with ire. “Don’t think any of your newfound popularity will last, April. This business is hard. Very hard. All kinds of unexpected things can happen.”

“Are you threatening me, Mr. Kinsey?”

“It’s merely advice from someone who’s been running an auto shop longer. This business can get very dirty. That’s why most women steer clear of it.”

I lift up my calloused hands. “As you can see, I’m not afraid of a little dirt nor am I afraid of you. But since you had the audacity to threaten me on my own property, I’ll make a promise of my own.” I step closer, my eyes blazing. “I will continue to repair every car that rolls into my shop, expand my garage and make a name for this place until no one remembers that your garage exists. And one day, you won’t be scared that I’ll take customers away because there will be no… customers… left.”

Mr. Kinsey moves threateningly toward me. At once, a car door slams shut and we both look to the left where Chance is standing with his hands folded, his brawny arms tight against his T-shirt.

Mr. Kinsey rethinks whatever he was going to do or say. Instead, he huffs back to his car, slams the door and speeds out of the parking lot.

Chance jogs toward me. “Are you okay? That looked like it was getting heated.”

I smile and the knots in my stomach loosen for good. “Chance?”

“Yes, Tink.”

“You and I aren’t finished with our earlier conversation. We’re going revisit why you sued people on my behalf without even telling me. And I also want to know what your lawyers found on Stewart.”

He nods slowly. “Yes, I guess… that’s fair.”

“I also need to talk to Rebel about putting up some security cameras just in case.”

“I’ll have it done by tomorrow,” Chance says, tapping something on his phone.

“But first,” I slide my arms around his waist, “I want to say… ‘thank you’.”

“For what?”

“Reminding me how strong I am.” I rise on my tiptoes. “And showing me we’re even stronger together.”

Chance leans down and whispers over my lips. “Always, Tink. Always.”

EPILOGUE

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