Page 34 of My Lucky Charm

“It’s not,” she says. “It was my fault. I’m not used to city driving, and it’s like the Wild West out there, and I thought it was safe, so I made a left turn on a yellow, and—” she claps her hands together. “Blam.”

“Blam?”

It’s dark, but we’re standing under a streetlamp, and as she blams, she turns, and that’s when I see the red mark. I again instinctively want to reach out and touch her cheek, but clench my fist in my pocket instead. “Your face.”

Her hand goes to her cheek. “Oh. I didn’t realize . . . the air bag.”

“Geez,” I say. “You look like you got punched.”

“Awesome.”

An uncomfortable pause, and I try to fill it with “Are you sure you’re okay?”

She manages a smile. “I think so.” She watches me. “Although I guess I lied to you.”

I frown.

“You asked if I was going to crash your car, and I said no.” She shakes her head. “It’s like I jinxed myself.”

I’m not sure what to say, so I look around and see pieces of a shattered taillight in the intersection. “Well, the car stuff—” I pull out my phone— “will be taken care of.”

“You’re sure,” she says.

“It’s just a car.”

She nods. “Okay. Will your insurance cover it?”

I don’t have the heart to tell her that even if it didn’t, I could pay for the repairs out of pocket. It’s not the kind of thing I like to flaunt. “I’m sure they will. I’m just glad no one was hurt.”

“Right.” She nods, like she’s putting a puzzle together. “You know what this whole thing means?”

I don’t respond because I can tell she’s going to answer the question whether I do or not.

“It means . . .” A smile crawls across her face. “The next time you pretend to be a complete jerk, I’ll know better. Because now I have proof you’re not.”

Chapter Nine

Eloise

I’m going to get fired on my first day.

Fabulous.

After the police finish the paperwork, Gray poses for a photo with the guy who hit me.

Surreal.

They determine the SUV isn’t drivable, and when the tow truck has it loaded up, everyone else leaves, including Dallas, who had a dinner to get to, but who didn’t want to leave us without a ride.

So, it’s just me and Gray. And Gerard.

“The worst part of this whole thing is that you aren’t going to get to eat that food,” I tell him, trying to make light of what could’ve been a much worse situation.

“That’s the worst part?” He quirks a brow. It’s the first sign of amusement I’ve seen on his face since we met. I like it.

“Aren’t you hungry?” I ask.

He looks away and shrugs. “You should probably head home now. I can have Gerard drop you.”

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