12. Jess
Jess
“Past Jessica is a stupid bitch!” I screamed as I turned my ignition key, only to get a sluggish noise from my car’s engine. The check engine light blinked, taunting me.
I shouted out an incoherent string of curses until a knock on my window startled me. I let out a shriek, only to catch my breath when I saw who it was. The Finnegan family peered into the car window with genuine expressions of concern. I let out a groan and rolled down the window.
“So how long have you been watching me?” I asked, my irritation way past the point of embarrassment.
“Not long,” Danny said, obviously lying.
“Well, I’d really like to know what Past Jessica did to get you so mad,” Paige said with her usual smirk and snark.
“As a minor, I’d like to point out that you’re being a horrible influence on me,” Faye deadpanned.
“My car won’t start,” I replied, dryly. Past me should have never ignored that effing engine light.
Paige nodded, giving me some measure of empathy. “I can relate. I have a lot of beef with Past Paige.”
Danny, meanwhile, popped the trunk on a very old BMW parked one spot away from mine. “That’s your ride?” I asked, surprised.
“At least mine works,” Danny quipped. He returned holding a little gadget in his hand. “I need to get under your dashboard.”
“In front of your sister and your niece?” I snarked back as I got out of the car. “Kinky.”
“I didn’t realize you were into that, Danny,” Paige added.
“I’m grossed out and going to sit in the car,” Faye declared, heading to Danny’s BMW.
Danny rolled his eyes and ignored our teasing. Kneeling down, he plugged the device into a port under the dashboard. I didn’t even know it was there.
“How long has your check engine light been on?” he asked, turning the ignition.
I pressed my lips together. “I refuse to divulge that information as I feel that will lead to mockery. What are you doing?”
“Checking the error codes on your car,” Paige explained. “You can plead the fifth if you want, but all your car sins are about to be revealed.”
I opened my mouth to ask how they knew so much about cars when I remembered the pictures of Danny and the bearded man working on cars in his dressing room.
Danny chuckled, playing around with the device for a moment or two before standing up straight. I couldn’t tell from his expression what his doohickey had discovered.
“Is it bad?” I asked.
“It’s not horrible. Nothing that can’t be fixed quickly.” He pulled out his phone.
“Robby?” Paige asked.
“Robby,” Danny said with a nod as he placed a call. He reached into his pocket and with his free hand tossed a set of car keys to Paige.
“Who’s Robby?” I asked.
“Family friend,” Paige replied as she caught the keys before turning to Danny. “You don’t want us to stick around?”
Danny shook his head as “Robby” had answered his call.
“Robby! It’s Danny. I know it’s late, but would you be able to get to the studio and get us a tow back to the garage?
I don’t want to ruin any plans you might have with the kids.
You’re too good. I don’t suppose we’d have a solenoid for a 2009 Honda Civic in stock? Outstanding. See you soon.”
“So, we’re waiting for Robby?” I asked, mostly because it seemed like saying “Robby” was now a thing and rolled with it.
“He’ll be about twenty minutes,” Danny said with a nod.
The BMW roared to life and pulled out of the parking space at high speed.
It quickly turned ninety degrees before screeching to a halt.
Danny did not seem to approve as he gave Paige a scowl as she rolled down the window.
Faye paid no heed to the driving, as she had her eyes trained on the anthology I gave her.
“See you back at the hotel!” Paige shouted.
“Could you please treat my car like you’re not about to go on a drag race?” Danny pleaded.
“Who? Me?” Paige asked with big innocent eyes. She even batted her eyelashes. Then she revved the engine.
“You’re baiting her,” Faye said without looking up from the book.
Paige gave us her most devilish of grins. She gunned the engine hard multiple times before peeling out. Within seconds she had zoomed out of the parking lot.
I tried not to laugh as I turned back to Danny whose lips were pursed.
“I love your sister. Unabashedly love her,” I gushed, partially to needle him.
“Is that because you think she’s awesome or because it amuses you when she annoys me?”
“Yes,” I replied simply and watched as Danny’s annoyance slipped into amusement.
Now that I wasn’t stressed out about my car, I took in his appearance…
hair slicked back and still damp from a recent shower.
An old ratty t-shirt from an elementary school fundraiser stretched tight against his chest with the sleeves struggling to contain his biceps.
A pair of sweatpants with stripes running down the side and a simple pair of sneakers completed his look.
It was the most casual I had ever seen him.
“I feel like I’m being judged for my fashion choices,” he said, observing me, objectifying him.
My cheeks grew hot. “Well, this is the most relaxed I’ve ever seen you. Maybe a little too relaxed.”
He chuckled and leaned back against my car. “Well, I’ve either been in a suit, jeans, or a scratchy tunic and leather pants these last couple days. After tonight, I thought I deserved some comfort.”
“I get it. I have an ugly pair of shorts back home with holes in them, but I refuse to give them up because they’re so comfortable. I call them my emotional support pants.” I admitted, noticing that he was now biting his bottom lip.
“You’re thinking of me in those shorts, aren’t you?”
“I’m trying to imagine the color.”
His eyes and grin told a different story. I had a feeling my grin was equally as sly.
“Purple and black stripes.”
He chuckled. “That sounds hideous.”
“They are, but they just feel good on me, you know?”
“I had a pair of sweatpants like that. Paige burned them.”
We both burst into laughter. “She couldn’t throw them away like a normal person?” I asked.
“Paige never does anything half-assed,” Danny said, still laughing.
“Then why does she let you keep that ancient BMW?” I asked. “I don’t know how you have any kind of game with that car.”
“Yeah, there’s a story behind that car,” Danny said with a long sigh.
“Am I going to hear it?”
He gave me a little smirk. “I don’t want to let you in on all my secrets, Jessica Richards.”
A flatbed truck pulled into the parking lot. An older man with dark skin and thick glasses waved to us from the driver seat. He spun the truck around so that it was in position with my car before slowly getting out and limping over to us.
“You were still in the garage, weren’t you?” Danny said, his tone was light but almost accusatory.
“Oh, you know how it is, Danny,” the man said, as they both gave each other a quick hug.
“You have other guys to do the work, so you can take it easy,” Danny scolded him.
“I'm fine, Danny. Now, stop being rude and introduce me to your lady friend,” he snapped back at him.
Danny kept his arm around Robby’s shoulder as he turned to me. “Jess, I want you to meet Robby Thomas. Be careful starting a conversation with him, because it’ll never end.”
Robby cackled with laughter. “He’s not wrong,” he said, shaking my hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Jess, despite your neglect of car maintenance.”
Danny’s jaw dropped. “Robby!”
“Oh, Paige called me on my way over and told me what’s what with you two,” Robby declared, as he pushed his glasses up on his nose with a dirty index finger. “So, if that’s the case, I have to give her grief.”
Stella’s words once again popped into my head. Some girl he’s falling in love with.
I blushed furiously and tried to shake it off. “I plead the fifth.”
Robby laughed. “Paige was right, I already like you.” He smacked Danny on the back of his head. “Come on, kid. Help me get her car loaded up.”
Danny rolled his eyes good-naturedly, then flashed a smile at me before going to help Robby.
Within ten minutes, my car was up on the truck bed, and we all squeezed into the cab of the truck.
Danny had asked Robby about his day, launching the man into an endless story about his morning.
About his breakfast. About his dog. He provided every single detail about coming into work, what happened with his crew and every customer who came through the garage that day.
Robby was beginning to recount his lunch (He was supposed to eat the salad his wife packed for him but snuck out at noon to get a burger) when we pulled into the garage. I did a double take at the sign above it which read “Finnegan Auto Repair.”
It was a large repair station with ten different bays for repairing cars.
The large room smelled of gas and exhaust. Large metal red cabinets with drawers of tools lined up against the back wall.
Apart from a haphazard spatter of dark stains across the concrete floor, the entire room was neat and tidy.
I tried to ask about the name of the business, but trying to get a word in edgewise with Robby talking was almost impossible.
By the time Robby had finished telling us about his day, Danny and Robby had rolled my car into one of the empty repair bays.
Danny had popped the hood and was prepping for a repair when Robby finally said, “-and that’s when I got your call.
Now are you sure you don’t want me to stick around and help you? ”
Danny shooed him away. “Go home, Robby. I don’t want Celeste coming after me because you had a late night.”
Robby peered at me over his thick glasses, a smirk on his face. “Are you okay with me leaving you alone with this malcontent?”
“I think I can handle him,” I replied, with a not-so-serious nod.
“I’m sure you can!” He cackled and headed for the door. “You still have your keys, right, Danny? Just lock up when you are done.”