Page 4 of One Good Crash
Well, that was nice.
Regardless, the guy deserved an apology and some sort of explanation. I looked back to him and said, "I'mreallysorry about that. I swear, I didn't see you coming, and…um…" I paused.And what?
How could I explain without airing a whole bunch of dirty laundry?
I was still searching for the right thing to say when my mom tried for another laugh. "Oh, stop," she said with a breezy wave of her hand. "That was just a fender-bender. And besides, he already told us to forget the car." She gave the stranger her sexiest smile. "I mean, these things happen, right?"
In a weird, twisted way, my mom was surprisingly correct. These thingsdidhappen, every single time I was stupid enough to let her back into my life.
I should've known better.
If I weren't so used to this sort of thing, I might've cried. But I'd dried those years ago, back in Nashville, when I'd decided that I was done with her for good.
And yet, here I was, in Brentwood Beach, Florida – Ground Zero for what my best friend had dubbed Mama Drama. WhatIcalled it, I couldn’t say – not without a lot of muttering and cursing.
Still, I tried to look on the bright side. At least I wasn't roadkill. That was something, right?
An electronic beep jolted me back to reality. I looked to see the stranger reach into his pocket and pull out a cell phone. He glanced at the display and made a half-scoff, half-chuckle before he began tapping at the screen, obviously texting back some sort of response.
I watched him in perplexed silence. Everything about him confused the heck out of me. Obviously, he'd been on his way to someplace important. And obviously, I'd just cost him a good chunk of money, not to mention the time and inconvenience.
Wasn't he supposed to be chewing me out or something?
So, why wasn't he?
He was still texting when my mom sidled closer to him and said, "When you're done, hand me your phone. I'll key in my number…" She smiled. "…just in case."
Oh, please."In case what?" I snapped. "He wants to send someone the bill?"
My mom blinked. "The bill for what?"
"For the car, obviously."
Her brow wrinkled. "But he already said to forget it."
The guy finished texting and shoved the phone back into his pocket. He looked to the limo and said, "Your ride's waiting."
"Oh." My mom's shoulders slumped. "So you want us to leave?"
"No." He looked to my mom and said, "I wantyouto leave." He flicked his head in my direction. "Butshe'scoming with me."
Chapter 2
I froze. "I am?"
True, hehadoffered me a ride, but I never said yes. Even now, I wasn't quite sure that I should.
Thanks to my mom, I'd seen more than my share of rich men, although not in the way she'd planned for tonight – thank God. Still, what Ihadseen had taught to me to be wary of guys with big wallets and even bigger expectations.
The guy looked to me and asked, "You need anything from the limo?"
Yeah. My sanity.
Stalling, I glanced around, taking in the empty buildings and deserted street. My gaze landed on his car, and I winced all over again. Feeling guiltier than ever, I looked back to him and asked, "Are you sure it's drivable? Your car, I mean."
He gave something like a laugh. "My car's fine. It's on the way."
Okay, that made zero sense. Again, I turned toward the accident. I couldn’t see the damage, and yet, I did know that his car couldn’t be fine. Drivable maybe. But fine? No way.
