Page 47 of Faking It With the Small-Town Bad Boy

see the same in Percy, watching him relax like he’s just come up from

a deep dive underwater without any snorkeling gear on. He inhales,

the nurse comes by to unhook me from the machines, and I get

dressed in the bathroom.

“You did stain the backseat of my car,” Percy hums, walking me

outside. “But I know a girl who does some good car work in town.”

I snicker under my breath at his irony. “Very funny. I can fix an

engine, not upholstery, but—” I stop, something heavy in my heart.

“Wait, what happened to the engine I was under? After it fell, did it…

it’s not broken, right?”

“I don’t know for sure, Leah. I’m not good with cars, but it did look a

little crushed when I found you. I thought it was oil on the floor, but

it was blood. There was also some kind of heavy chemical smell. It

wasn’t like bleach, but it was like burned fruit or something. It was

nasty, but I didn’t really have time to look over the car while I was

trying to make sure you were still alive.”

“Thanks,” I sigh, shaking my head while he drives us down the main

road. “I guess I should have started by thanking you. I can’t believe

the engine fell, though. I feel so stupid about the whole thing.”

“It wasn’t your fault. Just be happy you made it out alive.”

“No, thanks to you,” I add.

He bows his head, pulling down Dingy Hills towards my home.

“So, what should we start with?”

He gives me a crooked look. “What do you mean, start with?”

“If we’re going to pretend to date, we have to know a few things

about one another, right?”

“I suppose.”

He shrugs, parking by the front of the house and not the shop. It’s a

telling suggestion—and I should be working—but I agree to go inside

first for some coffee. He sits at the table, while I fiddle with the coffee

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