Page 8 of The Hookup Type

“Well, right now, I’m trying to roll my car into an auto shop to get an oil change,” I admitted. “What’s up with you?”

“What do you mean you’rerollingyour car? Where are you?”

I pictured his facial expression and laughed. “I’m not actually rolling my car, Jaxon. I’m driving down College Drive. But my car sounds like it could quit on me at any moment, so I’m letting her coast as much as possible.” Another round of beeping came from the dashboard, and I did my best to ignore it.

“Pull over and wait for me,” he ordered. “I’ll be right there.”

“Where areyouat?” I hugged the curb and came to a stop. I turned off the engine and immediately regretted my decision.

“I’m at my place,” he shouted. It sounded like I was on speaker. “I’m heading out now.”

“You’rejust sitting at home? Did you call me because you were bored?” I teased and reclined my seat.

A door slammed shut, and I was no longer on speakerphone. “You called me this morning, and I was in class.” He returned my playful tone. “You don’t know my schedule yet?”

“Ah, yes. It is actually at the top of my priority list this week—memorize Jaxon’s schedule.”

“I wasn’t sure if you needed something, and look at this. When I called you back, you conveniently did!”

“Since when do I need a reason to call you?” I snapped. “I didn’t plan for this combustion.” I gestured toward the hood of my car even though he couldn’t see it.

“You don’tneeda reason. There just usually is one. I mean, I get why you call me so often. I’m a very entertaining way to pass the time.”

“Well, don’t worry. If I’m getting in the way of your sexy phone time, I’ll call less often.” I smirked and got out of the car. The thought of Jaxon having sexy phone time suddenly left me with a bad taste in my mouth.

“Sexy phone time!” He laughed. “You’re something else.”

I grinned and leaned against the hood. A few cars passed me on the road, and it occurred to me that I had no idea what Jaxon drove. About five minutes went by before he arrived.

“I see you,” Jaxon said and ended our call. He stepped out of a dark gray Jeep Wrangler and shook his head. I could tell he got his hair cut this morning. “Why don’t you have your caution lights on?”

“I mean, I clearly scream caution.” I smiled shyly as he closed the space between us. He pulled me in for a hug and brought me close to his chest. He smelled like he was fresh out of the shower.

“Can we talk about this babe magnet of a car you drive?” I stepped back to distract myself from how incredible his arms looked in his cut-off shirt. “Why the hell have I been our chauffeur when you drive this!”

“Parking passes are expensive and stupid here.” He shrugged. “You have a pass, and I don’t.”

He wasn’t wrong. I had a parking pass, and there were times I still couldn’t find a spot in the morning.

“Pop your hood,” he instructed and walked to the front of my car.

I reached in and pulled the lever. As soon as the hood lifted, a light wave of smoke fluttered in all directions.

“For fuck’s sake, Mace.” Jaxon waved his hand around to try and see the damage.

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing. He looked completely appalled at the situation.

As soon as he made eye contact, I put on my best straight face and waited for him to continue. He sounded even more disappointed than he was about the smoke. “When were you due for an oil change?”

I couldn’t say it. I had never in my life felt more embarrassed to admit that I ignored something so blatantly obvious. “I am alittleover my miles,” I answered slowly.

Jaxon shook his head again and smirked. He leaned in so he could assess the dashboard and looked up at the sticker from my last oil change. “Eight hundred miles ago!” he yelled.

He pushed off of my seat and ran his hands over his new haircut. It had to be a muscle memory thing since he barely had any hair to run his hands through. He put his hands on his hips and stared at me with an open mouth and a face that read, “This bitch”.

“I know it looks bad.” I laughed, unable to hide how entertained I was by the whole scene. “But do you mind giving me a ride to my place after I call a tow? Clearly, I won’t be driving this to the auto shop.”

“I can fix this,” he said casually and gestured for me to follow him to his Jeep.

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