Page 58 of Unexpected Delivery

“Why did you just buy me not one but two fancy dresses if you’re hoping I’ll back out?” she asks, turning toward me.

“Not hoping…” I sigh heavily, focusing on the road. “When Hayes went into the military, I moved to Baltimore with a couple of friends. I was in school, learning how to be a mechanic, but I met my mentor, and Dave was old-school.”

“You never finished trade school?” she asks, running her fingers over mine on the hand that rests on her thigh. “Big deal. I dropped out of college too.”

“I wanna hear more about that,” I say, clearing my throat. “But there’s a little more to it than that. Basically, there was a whole culture that I got sucked into. Dave was in his prime in the eighties and nineties, back when productivity was king. He didn’t care how we did it, but he had unrealistic goals of what could be accomplished in a day or even a week. Long story short, the guys I worked with had an affinity for uppers, which I eventually grew fond of myself. I’ve had ADHD since I was a kid, but I never took medication for it. The psychiatrist I saw when I was trying to get off the hard shit told me I was self-medicating, if you believe in that kind of thing.” I sigh heavily, glancing over to see if I can gauge where her head is at. Her face is placid, so I go on. “Coke really did seem to level out my system. It helped me focus without making a ton of mistakes, but drugs are expensive, and you don’t make shit as an apprentice. Eventually, I started buying enough that I could supply my friends, then charging enough to cover whatever I was using. It was a whole cycle until I was selling to friends of friends, and it became an actual side hustle.”

“That sounds complicated.” Her tone isn’t hateful, and she doesn’t pull her hand away.

Thank God.

“Anyway, Dave died—heart attack. His wife ended up selling the shop, and I was pretty aimless.” I frown, flipping on my blinker. Dave wasn’t perfect. He was a hard-ass with unrealistic expectations, and I still miss the hell out of him. He took me under his wing and taught me everything I know. He’s why I can charge what I do, and without him, I wouldn’t be anywhere close to the mechanic I am today. “I eventually realized not all shops were as lax with their drug-testing policies. I started cleaning up my act, met Morris when I was at my lowest, and he gave me a second chance.”

“So, all of that is over?”

“I drink a beer here or there to be social.” I shrug. “Weed is legal here, so I’ve been known to enjoy a gummy on occasion, but my ADHD is under control. I see my doctor regularly, take my prescription as directed, and I’m pretty fucking boring. I’m not perfect, by any means, but I don’t even go out these days.”

“I’m not sure that’s boring, but thank you for telling me.”

I glance over, and she’s staring out the window. “The client I just signed knew Dave way back, but he stopped working with him, probably because of all the shit I just told you. He sought me out because he wants a rebuild of a bike Dave made for him that was totaled. He also wants a couple of bikes for his sons, but he’s no-nonsense as fuck. He gave me the third degree for hours, despite the facthe came to me.”

“And how will I help? Or, I mean, why will having me there help?”

Fuck.

This very well could come off like I’m using her if I don’t frame it right.

“Three bikes is a huge time commitment. I think he wants to be sure I’m not going to take his money, blow it on drugs, and give him a subpar build. Normally, I’d tell him to go fuck himself, but it’ll more than pay for your hospital stay, so I’m trying to go the responsible route and not let it hurt my pride.” My teeth grind together. His attitude rubs me the wrong way. Still, I’m willing to stay humbleonlybecause it’ll help build up our savings again once we pay the hospital bills. “I told him about you and Gracie to put his mind at ease, but then he asked to meet you…”

“Wow, he does sound like a judgmental dick,” Arbor says, lacing her fingers with mine. “It’s not your responsibility to pay for my hospital bills. And Ireallyhate the idea of you being forced to work with someone who has been treating you poorly.”

“Nah, it’s no big deal,” I assure her. It’s not like I haven’t heard worse. “Once he’s satisfied, he’ll leave. I won’t have to deal with him, outside of progress updates, until I deliver the bikes.”

“You guys are bending over backward to take care of me and Gracie, and I hate that I have nothing to offer.”

“Arbor, seriously…” I growl, making the turn onto our street. “No more of that bullshit. You bring so much to the table. Morris was probably going to die alone before meeting you. The man never put a single ounce of effort into trying to connect with anyone. Not until you.” I flip on my turn signal, and we make it onto our driveway. “Hayes spent years beating himself up when we all know he did the best he could, but delivering Gracie gave him a confidence I haven’t seen since high school.”

Arbor squeezes my hand. “And what do I do for you?”

“You make me want to be better. You remind me there’s more to life than what I thought was it for me.” It’s also really fucking nice that she doesn’t look at me like I’m a fuckup like the rest of the world does. “You and Gracie…” My head shakes. “I would be devastated if I came home from work one day and the two of you were gone.” I pull up in front of the garage and put my SUV in park.

“The three of you feel like home to me too,” she says softly. “But I’m still not sure how you don’t think I’m taking advantage of you. Aren’t relationships supposed to be fifty-fifty?”

I scoff. “If I know anything from watching my family pack, it’s that sometimes one person pulls one hundred percent of the weight. That gave my other dads the chance to relax and help my mom with the kids. Then they rotated. Maybe that’s the wrong way to explain it. They were all in all the time, but on days when someone needed a break, they knew they could relax because there was an entire pack to pick up the slack. You’re still healing. If you want to come into the shop and do paperwork and admin stuff, then do it. Especially if it’ll make you feel better, but you’re not a chore we got stuck with.”

Arbor stretches over, her fingers landing on my jaw. She tilts my face to hers and leans in, pecking a kiss on my lips. It’s over way too fast, and she settles back into her seat, unbuckling her seat belt. “It looks like I’ve got baggage of my own, but okay. I’ll do my best not to bring it up again.”

My head tilts.

That was kinda easy.

Everything in me wants to take the win, but it seems a little like she’s agreeing solely to defuse the situation. Not that it was a fight or even a disagreement, so I’m not sure why I feel like something is off. At the same time, pushing right now probably isn’t the right call.

I’ll just have to be mindful and keep an eye on things in the future.

One way or another, she’s going to realize my words are true.

The next night, I get dressed fancier than I have since prom. I saidno fucking thankswhen Hayes tried to lend me his suit, but I did spring for a polo shirt under my favorite jacket. It’s a black army style and has a zip-out hood that I keep tucked away in the collar.

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