Page 61 of The Cask

I was still lost in thought when my phone vibrated against the table.

“Omari?” I answered as I stood and moved across the room. “Are you here?”

“Yeah, I just parked.”

I reset the alarm. “Okay, I’m coming out.”

Shoving the phone in my pocket, I stepped out into the rainy night. Protected only by the awning, I pulled my jacket a little tighter. Omari jogged over to me in a pair of grey sweatpants and a matching grey hoodie. My eyes pinged all over his body, particularly his crotch.

Oh, hello!

Forcing my attention away from his dick, I silently cursed myself out for the thoughts that started to form at the sight of him.

When he was a few steps away, he slowed to a walk. There wasn’t a lot of room for us both to be protected from the rain, so we were extremely close.

“Hi,” I whispered. Unsure of what happened to my voice, I started again. “Thank you for coming.”

He took my face in his hands and without a word, he brushed his lips against mine. I wasn’t sure if it was the kiss or the wind that sent a chill down my spine.

“You don’t ever have to thank me for coming when you need me,” he said so softly my ears tingled. He let me go and looked at my car. “What’s wrong with it?”

“My tires.”

“You have a flat? You need me to change it?”

“I only have one spare and they are all flat.”

His head flew around as he took me in. His brows furrowed and the crease between them deepened. “What do you mean they’re all flat? How does that happen?”

“I’ll show you.” I stepped onto the sidewalk only for him to grab my arm and pull me back.

“No, you stay here so you can stay dry. I’ll check it out.”

I tugged at his damp hoodie. “You’re going to get soaked.”

“I’ll be fine.” He jogged to my car and inspected each tire. He circled it twice before coming back over to me. “You need all new tires.”

I let out a short laugh. “Yeah, I know.”

“What the hell happened?”

“I have a theory, but I came out and didn’t notice at first. Got in and my car said my tire pressure was low. And then”— I gestured to my vehicle— “I saw this. It’s cold and rainy and—ugh!”

He pulled me into him. “I got you. Where would you want to have it towed?”

Groaning, I buried my face into his chest. “I don’t know! Everything is closed.”

“Do you have a dealership that you typically work with or do you go to a private mechanic?”

“A dealership. And they’re closed.”

He nodded. “We’ll call a tow truck and have it towed to the dealership. You can fill out paperwork and drop it off after hours and they’ll call in the morning to follow up.”

“Really?”

“Really.” With one arm still around me, he used his other to take out his cell phone. He held me tight as he called a towing company and gave them instructions. “Do you want to wait in my car?”

I nodded. “Yes.”

---