Chapter 1
Jake
There was a lineup of people in front of the desk at the public library. When it was finally my turn, the beauty said, “Hi, how can I help you today?” She beamed at me.
I almost fumbled my words. Uh, I could think of a few ways she could help me. Best not to follow that train of thought too far. “Hi, I’ve never used the library before and—”
She clapped her hands a few times and led me over to a desk to the right. “Oh, fun, come with me.” Her excitement was palpable for all things books, and I could feel her studying me as I filled out the form and handed it back to her.
She slid me my new library card then settled her elbows on the desk, her full attention on me. “Now for the good part; what kind of books are you looking for?”
Her smile never left her red-painted lips, and I found myself smiling back. She was practically wiggling in her seat with how excited she was, and hope bloomed in my chest that my half-baked plan might actually work.
“Well, I’m a tow truck driver. It is a lot of hours behind the wheel, and I need some entertainment. Something to keep me alert and occupied. I was thinking audiobooks might work. I haven’t read much since high school though, so I have no idea what to pick.”
Her smile got even wider. She shook a stray strand of hair from her face and squared her shoulders. “Okay, close your eyes. I’m going to ask you a series of questions, you answer with the first thing that pops into your head.”
I nodded and closed my eyes.
“Top Gun or Twilight?”
“Top Gun.”
“Beach or mountains?”
“Mountains.”
“History Channel or reality TV?”
“History.”
There was a bit of a pause, and when she spoke again her voice was lower. “Do you believe in love at first sight?”
I opened my eyes and scanned her face. Fuck, she was gorgeous.
Not just because her makeup was perfect, which it was.
She had a glow about her, and all of her sunshine was radiating directly at me.
I wanted to bask in it. To let the warmth seep into every cell of my body and give me the strength I needed to get my shit together. “Yeah, I think I do.”
Her blush deepened, and she popped to her feet. “Follow me, let’s find you some books.”
Ten minutes later, we were back at the main desk. I watched as she scanned a stack of audiobooks onto my new card. Little did she know these flimsy plastic cases held my last-ditch effort to keep my career as a tow truck driver from ending before I hit forty.
“So, I grabbed you a variety of authors to try. Some James Patterson, some Clive Cussler, and of course the King.” She held one audiobook case against her chest. “Mr. Stephen King himself.” Once everything had been scanned, she pushed the stack to me across the counter.
“Thank you, Natalie.” I read her name off the gold tag pinned to her chest. Even her name was beautiful.
“You’re welcome, Jake.”
I grabbed my stuff and almost walked away but paused and looked back.
The line up in front of the desk was just as long as when I had arrived.
Kids, adults, and the dull hum of whispered conversations formed the background.
It was oddly idyllic. I could see why someone would want to work here.
“I’ll be back in a week to get some more books; will you be working?
I’d love for you to be the one to help me again. ”
She flicked her eyes over me from my chest to my feet then back to my eyes again.
I could only imagine what she was thinking.
She was perfectly put together from the shine of her hair to her little, flat sandals.
I, on the other hand, was sporting a few days of stubble, jeans, and a t-shirt flecked with engine grease, dirt, and mud stains.
Clunky work boots that started life as black and were now barely holding onto dark gray.
“I’ll be here.”
******
I pulled into the yard of Safe and Sound Towing, ready to start another twelve-hour shift.
“Hey, Jake,” the office manager Myra yelled from across the garage.
I raised my hand in greeting. I felt her eyes on me as I went about my morning routine of grabbing my gear and checking over my truck.
She was the only one who knew I’d been struggling.
One too many awful wrecks. One too many dead-on-arrivals.
One too many families destroyed. I didn’t know how much longer I could do this.
I headed out to the yard towards my rig, but Myra was hot on my heels.
Once we were out of range of the other guys, she got right to business. “How are you holding up?”
I concentrated on smoothing my thumb over a chip in the paint and avoided her gaze. “I’m—”
“And don’t bullshit me. Don’t tell me you’re okay if you’re not.”
I rested my forehead against my fist before I pushed off from the truck. “I’m trying something new today to see if it helps.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. It was early fall but the highway I worked on climbed in elevation, so it was chilly in the yard. “Is this something legal?”
I gave Myra a half smile. “Yes, it is legal. No, it won’t make me impaired and yes, I will let you know if it works.”
She narrowed her eyes as she studied me but ultimately gave me one efficient nod and headed back to the office. I blew out a breath. I needed to get this anxiety thing figured out. Myra was doing her damnedest to give me the space and time to do that, but I knew I was running out of time.
I put my lunchbox in the back seat and slid behind the wheel.
On the passenger seat, I had the audiobook of The Stand by Stephen King.
Natalie seemed the most excited about this one and I wanted something to talk to her about when I saw her again.
I pulled out of the gravel drive and onto the highway, headed for my first call.
Myra had me going fifteen minutes away to a call for a car with a flat tire.
She had been giving me the easy stuff since I confessed to her that I was struggling to mentally handle the fatal crash calls.
She’d never come right out and say it, but despite that she rules the office like a kingdom, she truly cares about each and every one of the people who work here.
I found the stranded car easily enough and got to work changing the tire.
A flat tire wasn’t uncommon, and I had changed tires as often as I changed socks since I started this job.
The movements were familiar, but the feeling of tightness in my chest was new.
My jaw ached from how tightly I clenched my teeth as I took the lug nuts off, one by one.
Wind coming off vehicles traveling a few feet from me at 120 kilometers an hour hit my back as I rolled the spare tire into place. I had the car’s hazard lights on and a pylon out but what the hell are those going to do against a distracted driver?
Sweat prickled my forehead as I double-checked that the nuts were all torqued tight and rose to let the customer know I was done.
I collected my payment with shaking hands and got the hell back into my truck.
The audiobook came back to life as I started the engine and pulled back into traffic.
A dull ache had developed behind one of my eyes, and I tried to focus on the story.
Thinking about made-up people and their made-up problems distracted me from my very real ones.