Page 2 of Another Constant

I glanced from my brother to the door leading up front before I dropped the socket wrench into my toolbox and started in that direction.

I was five feet from the door when it opened and Big Jay popped his big ass head in.

“Um, boss, I tri?—”

“The fuck up? This broad better be six-six and three-fifty the way she out there handing you your ass.” I pictured some big, funky ass broad up here showing her ass, so naturally when I made it to the front and there wasn’t anybody who fit that description in sight, I was confused. The only person in the shop couldn’t have been the same motherfucker in here raising hell. Not the way her backside was shaped, shit the way her backside was stacked had me mesmerized. Until she turned around and I saw the fire in those big otherwise pretty ass eyes of hers. Her eyes were on me for all of five seconds before they found themselves back on Jay.

“Excuse me, but this is not the man I handed my keys to. Where is he? You said you were going to get him.” Shorty’s fury shot at Jay with a quickness.

I’d never seen Jay cower, but as soon as she looked at him, he looked at me like I was about to save him. I was.

“Look, sweetheart, I didn’t say he was. This here is the owne?—”

“And? As a matter of fact, the other guy I handed my keys off too told me the same fucking thing. I don?—”

“Anybody ever told you that you’d catch more bees with honey than shit?” Her attention and fury rested on me from the moment I opened my mouth. Fuck, she was beautiful, so beautiful that if the next few words that came out of her mouth came right, I might’ve been inclined to swiftly fix whatever issue she was having.

Her eyes narrowed and she tilted that big ass head of hers to the side. “It’s flies, and no, because I only got shit right now.”

I laughed.

“What can I help you with, shorty? Why are you here giving my employees hell? It’s ten in the morning, too early for all that.”

She sucked her thick ass lips. “So you’re the real owner? Or somebody else claiming to be the owner? Because I’ve definitely heard this before.” She once again cut those eyes in Jay’s direction

I laughed and shook my head because I knew exactly who she was talking about. I had just got down on ol’ boy and fired him for telling people he was the owner and doing fucked up work at my shop. She wasn’t the first person to come through about some work she had done here, and the way he had been moving, she wouldn’t be the last.

“Nah baby, I’m the owner. Now what is the problem?”

“First I found a hole in my floor and no it wasn’t there when I dropped the car off months ago. Then I look up and my shit is booted. The boot might sound like a personal problem, but nah, it’s not. My driving record is perfect, so I had them pull up where I got the tickets, and they were all written while my car should have been here, getting worked on. Course I’m questioning how if my car is getting worked on over here, why the fu-freak every ticket is either on Quincy or Taylor. Now if you need me to I can give you the?—”

“Nah, I got you. How much were the tickets and everything you paid to get the boot off?”

She looked from me to Jay before pulling her phone out. “Hold on, let me pull it up.”

It was about five seconds before she was holding out her phone for me to see. I grabbed it and she stepped back, resting her hands on her hips while I scrolled the invoice from the city. Maurice had damn sure taken a joyride in shorty’s shit and was using it like it was his car.

She was steaming and I saw exactly why. I wouldn’t have even pulled up yelling. I would’ve come through blasting nothing but heat.

“I’m about to send this to myself.” I was already messaging myself the pdf before she could respond.

“Um ok.” The heat she came in here was going out, which I was grateful for. I didn’t usually take it easy on motherfuckers, but she was too damn pretty for all that balling her face up shit.

Once I sent myself what I needed, I handed her phone back. “Come show me the hole,” I then requested.

She nodded then led the way. I followed her, eyes damn sure locked on her backside, because her shit was thick, so fucking thick I just knew err’thing on her sexy ass was hers.

When we reached her car, she opened the passenger side door and lifted the floor mat. Sure as hell, there was a fucking hole. It wasn’t big, but it was big enough something could damn sure come in her car.

I shook my head and examined the hole. “I’ll handle it. What did you initially bring the car in for?”

“My brakes were making a sound. They still make the sound when it rains, but I don’t drive when it rains, so I guess I wasted money an?—”

“You should be able to drive your shit whenever.”

She looked off. “I’m no?—"

“I’ll fix it and you’ll get your funds back soon. Anything else, mama?”

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