Page 30 of Fast and Dirty

“You got West…”

His forehead is still against mine, and we’re both still trying to catch our breath. His hand has found the back of my neck and his thumb skims soothingly up and down the grain.

“Well what kind of a sound was it making before it died out?”

I do my best to collect myself and calm down the screaming sex fiend in my panties as he listens.

“Okay, I think I know what might be going on. Just sit tight, I’m going to grab a few tools from the shop and I’ll be there. No problem, don’t even worry about it,” he finishes before signing off and tucking the phone back in his pocket. “Freddy, he owns the supermarket. His car broke down on this way back from the Eagles club in West Bridge,” he explains. “I gotta go lend him a hand.”

Well if that’s not the biggest fucking turn on. A ruggedly sexy bad boy going to help someone without expecting anything out of it?

“That’s hot,” I murmur unabashedly and it earns me the sexiest smirk on the planet before he leans in and gives me a lengthy kiss. This one is hard; claiming.

“You’re not going anywhere?” He searches my eyes.

“No,” I shake my head.

“Good,” he gives one last kiss before backing away. “I’m going to see you soon,” he promises, before turning and jogging back down the street towards his shop.

West

“Alright Fred,we’re good to go,” I tell the middle-aged man with the leathery quality to his face after I get his Ford pickup tucked into one of my bays.

He shakes his head. “I swear, all I was hoping for was some advice over the phone. You didn’t have to drive out and get me at this hour.” He looks woefully apologetic, but I shut it down.

“Ah, come on. Not on that dark highway. Besides, I wasn’tdoing anything,” I assure him as I type up his invoice on the computer. Big lie. I was doing something major. Or I was about to. But Kira’s right. If we want to get to know each other, this thing with us -whatever it is - has to be more than just physical. And I’m surprised to find I want it to be more. It was different when I thought I wouldn’t be seeing her again and we were both scratching an itch. But I do like her. And the unexpected call of duty tonight saved me from a Guiness Book - worthy case of blue balls. We’re talking death. Turns out my dick isn’t safe around her no matter what she wears. So the drive out to rescue our local grocer gave me a chance to cool down.

“You’re a good guy, West,” Fred says down at me solemnly.

I look up and shoot him a frown. “Take that back,” I order and he chuckles as I hand over his invoice and he examines it.

“Okay fine, I take it back, you’re a shitty guy,” he chortles but I take him seriously.

“Can you handle that?” I ask.

“Uh…” he hesitates, still looking down at it before looking up and trying to school his features, feigning nonchalance. “Yeah, yeah. No problem.”

“You know what,” I tell him, standing and gently taking the paper from his hands. “These things are always unexpected, so let me get you on one of our payment plans, and I have a pretty good idea where I can get an alternator for that model for cheaper - that is, if you’re okay with gently used?” I sit back down and rearrange a few items in the cost equation.

“You can’t do that, West,” the poor guy looks like he feels an inch tall.

“I can,” I correct him. What he doesn’t know is that I have a bank account of petty cash to cover parts and labor when a customer can’t pay right away. I stand and hand him his revised invoice. “This community depends on you, and you needyour truck to haul supplies and produce,” I point out. “Besides, it’s not a free ride, it’s just a little help.”

He sighs, before folding it and putting it inside his jacket. “I still say you’re a good guyhe maintains as I hear a honk outside the office.

“That Madeline?” I tilt my chin, in the direction of the headlights approaching outside. He nods. “Say hi for me,” I tell him, seeing him out.

13

KIRA

After Agnes and I stock up on the essentials - i.e., milk, eggs, bread, mint chocolate chip ice cream and Trulys, we’re making our way out of the supermarket when I stop in front of a bulletin board I hadn’t noticed when we first walked in.

“Hey are these new or old?” I ask her, tilting my chin up at the board cluttered with all sorts of neon colored paper in the form of post it notes and fliers. The ones that have caught my eye say Help Wanted at the top. The wardrobe overhaul didn’t cost much, but I’ll only be able to pay for my half of the junk food and booze for so long before money runs out.

Agnes lets out an exaggerated grunt beside me and makes a big show of putting down her share of the grocery bags we were schlepping. “How long are you going to stand there looking for a new career? I told you that you don’t need to be in a hurry to pay your way anyway.”

Yes, she has, multiple times. And even though it’s only been a week and a half, I love the old biddy to pieces for it - even if she won’t tell me what she gets up to on Friday and Saturday nights. I just assume that she and Naked Ned are having some kind of geriatric naughty time and try not tothink about it. But anyway, she’s long owned her house and gets to live off her and her husband’s social security. But still, that doesn’t mean I should be getting a free ride. I actually want to embrace my independence and learn how to live in the real world.

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