Page 123 of Faking It With the Small-Town Bad Boy

play.”

His face pales slightly, but it’s restored seconds later. “Yeah, I could

have gone to Mike, but I like your work, Leah. You’re the best in town

for restoration, and everyone knows it. Besides, you’re the only one

who knows how to do the best engine upgrades. If anyone is going to

get me the car of my wedding dreams, it’s you.”

“Yeah, keep sweet-talking me. It’s not going to make me do another

favor for you.”

We share a laugh for the first time in a while, and it’s less tense than

it normally is. I know he’s here for something, not just to stop in and

see if I screwed him over on this deal. He knows deep down I

wouldn’t do that. I’m better than that.

In fact, I’m better than I have been lately, and I know I should

mention it.

“Hey, about last week,” I say under my breath. “I’m sorry for yelling

and… and for throwing the cup. I wasn’t throwing it at you, but I was

mad.”

His features settle somewhere between shocked and confused; it’s

hard to read him. “What are you talking about, ladybug? The whole

thing last week is in the past. No hard feelings.”

“Yeah, but I should have kept my cool. I shouldn’t have an outburst

like that, and not when you’re offering me money. I’ve been in a bind

lately, and with everything going on on top of that—it’s been hard.”

His head falls slightly, and he sips his water, almost as though it’s a

shield to him. “Yeah, I know it has been. I’m sorry to spring this all

on you, too. It’s not that I wanted you to work on the car to make it

awkward, but I truly thought we could be friends through all of this.”

For a minute, I want to take back my words and strike him between

the eyes with my water bottle, but I refrain for now. “Ryan, how

could we be friends? It was a decade of being together. We were

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