Page 113 of Ice Mechanic

I’ve been dismissed, but I pretend to miss the social cue.

“I can stick around in case you need more of my transportation services,” I say. “Weren’t you booked for the entire day?”

“Rebel contacted the clients scheduled for this afternoon and rescheduled them for tomorrow, so we’re not expecting any more arrivals. Besides, don’t you want to rest today? You had a big game last night.”

“Max graciously allowed us a morning off. Training isn’t until three.”

Her eyes widen. “You’re still training today?”

“It’s hockey season. There’s no day off.”

She makes another sound from her throat and concentrates on her work. I peer over her shoulder, watching as she fiddles with wires—taping some together, pulling on others, and testing a few with a meter.

April’s eyes pass over me and back to her toolbox. “You’re still here.”

“Do you need something from in there?” I point to the open lid.

She sidesteps me, but it’s a small space and her shoulder ends up brushing my chest. “I got it.”

I watch, fascinated, as she returns with the tool and gets to work on the engine.

“How did you clear the garage out so fast this morning?” I ask. Every time I returned from driving to the mart, she had sent someone on their way.

“We catalogued the vehicles based on the reported issues. That way, we could work on the ones that were a quicker repair.” She brushes a thumb over her nose and leaves a grease streak.

I take a nearby towel. “Really? What’s considered ‘quicker to repair’?”

“Some vehicles only need an oil change. That takes bout twenty to twenty-five minutes… what are you doing?”

“You’ve got something on your face.” I grip her chin and swipe the towel over her nose.

“Aww, so cute!” May yells from across the garage.

“Chance, if you distract April one more time!” Rebel threatens.

I throw both hands up in surrender.

April blushes slightly and almost stumbles as she returns to the car.

I follow her. “If what the vehicle needs is a simple oil change, why did people bring it to you? Was it just to meet you?”

“No. To them, itwasan issue that couldn’t be fixed.”

“Huh?”

“Not knowing the answer doesn’t mean the answer isn’t simple.” She wiggles a plug in the engine. “Their mechanic probably changed the fuel regulator but didn’t change the oil. Sothe vehicle would still have the ‘check engine light’ on, despite having a new fuel reg.”

“Fascinating. A new part wasn’t enough to fix the problem.”

“Right. So, the fuel gets into the oil because of a bad fuel regulator. So then that bad fuel gets into the base of the engine and when the engine is running, it sucks in oil through the PCV valve, which sucks it back into the engine.”

I bob my head like I understand a word she’s saying.

“The PCV circulates unburned fuel mixture back into the engine to protect the atmosphere. If the oil mixes with the fuel because of a bad regulator, then it’ll pass more than the vehicle is designed to handle.”

“And that’s bad, right? That sounds bad.”

She chuckles. “Yes, that’s bad, Chance. Now can you step aside so I can work?”

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