6. Riot
Riot
I t wasn’t my morning to mow at the library but I had left a bizarre spot in the front bushes yesterday. I hedged them best I could but there was an awkward empty space where the branches grew in the wrong direction, leaving a little alcove that begged to be filled.
I woke up early, grabbed the materials I needed, and headed there.
The spring sunrise was beautiful that morning and I stood up straight, pushing my shoulders down to let my face warm against the rays. I took a step back to appraise the small contraption I’d arranged. I fiddled with the bolts before feeling accomplished enough to put my tools back in my truck.
As I pulled the tailgate down, I spotted her. Her car at least. I was too far away to see inside but when I squinted in her direction, the engine started up. It turned over so rough I was surprised to see that dinosaur of a car peel out so fast.
Weird. Yesterday morning she said she was working on her computer and fell asleep.
It was possible. But two nights in a row?
I began to wonder if she had somewhere to stay.
I remembered the look in her eye the day before when she had dropped that armor of a facade for a split second and genuinely asked for help.
That moment had stirred something in me. I wanted to help her. And that made me nervous. This girl could be here for ulterior reasons, and I didn’t need more occasions to engage with her. Still, she didn’t seem to know who I was, so as long as that held, I was safe.
She peeled out, slowing down when she passed the entrance where I had been working. Had she seen me? My nerves ticked up a notch.
After chugging the remaining hot Gatorade in my car, I gave my face a quick slap. I had to keep my guard up; she was still media, after all.
Six hours dragged by at the auto shop before my shift manager told me I could go home a little early if I had gotten all the necessary quotes out, which I had. Four hours ago.
I was about to pack up when the office line rang. It was the regional AAA affiliate. There was a disabled vehicle right on the outskirts of Godot and it was just too far for them to cover.
“Riot, can you check it out? Last job of the day then you’re good to take off,”my manager, Rodger, said.
I scanned the wall of keys to the tow trucks and service vehicles.
“We got a tow here?”
“Nah, Evan had to take it out about an hour ago. It probably just needs a jump. Grab some cables and try to get it back here and we’ll take a better look.”
I sighed. My truck bed was still full of all the materials I’d used that morning but if it was an easy jump, it would be quick.
Or so I thought.
As I turned the corner, I spotted the car on the side of the road and recognized it immediately. I groaned and cursed under my breath.
I rolled to a stop, parking in front ofNicolette Parker who leaned one hip against her relic of a Cadillac and shielded her eyes.
“I don’t know what happened, it just cut to a stop, it’s never done—”She launched into her story but stopped short when my feet hit the pavement. She dropped her arms and tilted her head toward the sky.“You gotta be kidding me. Of all the garages in this entire county, they send you ?”
My feet cut to a stop and I bristled at the sneer on her face. I turned to get back in the truck. Fuck it, she didn’t want my help, she could call one of her many resources.
“Wait! Fine, I’m sorry.”She threw up her hands.“Can you get it going? ”
I bore my eyes into the whiny little witch. Her fingers ran through her blonde hair, glinting off the sun. A light gleam of sweat glistened across her chest—
I pulled my attention back to her car, walking over and popping the hood up. God, how old was this thing?
“Jesus…”I said under my breath. She took a step toward me, and I caught the brief scent of lilacs.“When was the last time you drove this thing?”
“Easton’s a big city. I didn’t need it much, and it got me from there to here, didn’t it?”
I hung my head between my shoulders and growled to myself to take deep breaths. If I could deal with convicts in prison and the judgmental people back in Godot, I could deal with a petulant city girl.
I checked the batteries and the fluids but to be honest, I wasn’t good with Caddies, especially ones this old.
“Gonna have to get a tow back,”I said.
“Isn’t that what you’re here for?”she asked, her tone laced with attitude.
I turned and caught her peering into my truck bed. She dropped the tarp she had been poking around.
Nosy, little asshole.
I glared at her. Her arms crossed under her chest, which pushed a bit of cleavage over the top of her neckline.
Her skin was flawless. A little paler than the rest of us but smooth and perfect, nonetheless.
She probably had a nightmare of a skincare routine.
A girl that beautiful had to be high-fuckin’-maintenance.
“Do you see a tow cable?”I chided, pointing to where she’d been snooping.
I shook my head in disbelief and turned back to the engine in front of me, poking around another minute before pulling out my phone.
“Evan,”I barked.“Need a tow on 79 North before the town border.”
He grumbled something while I stole another glance at Nicolette who was now shamelessly rifling through the parts in my truck bed .
“Hey!”I shouted at her, but she wasn’t startled in the slightest. She turned her face to me, looking bored, before rolling her eyes and leaning against my truck.
She bent one of her long legs and rested it on the tire behind her.
I turned my attention back to the phone where Evan muttered something about forty minutes.
Slipping my phone back into my pocket, I jerked my head to tell her to get into the truck.
“Wait, we’re leaving my car here?”
“Evan has the last tow truck and he’ll be here in about forty minutes.
You can either ride back with me, wait for him in your hot car, or you can walk six miles back to town.
”I gave her a pointed glare before she ran both hands through her hair, bunching it in her fists.
I saw her eyes flit to her ankle, which she gave a quick rotate before moving back toward her car.
For a second, I thought she was going to wait inside it for the tow truck and I don’t know why I was let down by that. Instead, she ducked inside, grabbed a stuffed backpack, and slung it over her shoulder before shooting me a glare and moving toward the passenger side of my truck.
I caught her stealing another glance in the truck bed before she got in. An anxious tick moved through me.
Had she figured out who I was since our last encounter? If she had, what was she looking for? Did she think I carried dead bodies around in my truck?
When I got in the car, the walls of the truck cab seemed to close in. I was painfully aware of the warm body next to me, despite how cold and prickly she was.
I was content to drive in silence but a minute after we got moving, she spoke up.
“What is all that stuff, anyway?”
Something inside me ached to tell her the truth. The way she spoke to me. The attitude. All of it was so refreshing compared to the blatant avoidance I was used to. She was so“un-Godot”, I found myself pulled to her in an inexplicable way. But I had to remember who she was.
A reporter. The media. The enemy.
She was not the person to find a kindred spirit in.
“What stuff?”
She scoffed.“All those half-built pieces in the bed of your truck?”
My heart skipped a beat, but I remained neutral.“They’re spare auto parts. I work for a garage, remember?”It came out more sarcastic than I meant it, but I was hoping if I gave her enough attitude, she’d drop it.
“Do you often fashion auto parts into lawn spinners and wind chimes?”
My head snapped to her. I couldn’t help it. How had she seen those shambled, half-built whirligigs and deduced they were wind spinners? I had to give her credit, she was brighter than I thought. You need to be more careful, Riot .
She looked at me with a smug half-smile on her face. My eyes darted to her lips and the small, arrogant dimple on her cheek. I didn’t know if I wanted to push her out of the car or kiss her and my stomach tightened.
I opened my mouth to reply with something snarky but, thankfully, my phone rang. I recognized it as the garage and hit the answer button. It connected to my Bluetooth automatically.
Before I could answer, Rodger started talking.“Hey, Cherry Mitchell has a dead battery at the elementary ballpark, can you swing by on your way back to the shop?”
I hissed a curse under my breath. First Nicolette Parker, now Cherry Mitchell. Could this day go any better? I tensed at the anticipation of the look on Cherry’s face.
“Cherry doesn’t particularly care for me, Rodger,”I warned.
“Sorry, you’re the only one out in the field and if you’re driving back on 79, you should drive right past the ball field.”
I closed my eyes. It was only a jump. It’d be easy. It’d be quick. I quirked an eyebrow in Nicolette’s direction, asking if she minded.
She rolled those obnoxious gray eyes and shrugged her shoulders before fixing her annoyed gaze out the window. Little pain in the ass.
“Alright, be there in five.”
“Great, thanks, Riot.”He clicked off .
I froze. I held my breath. Nicolette took a sharp breath in. I stared out the front windshield like my life depended on it.
“ You… ”her voice dripped with venom,“are Riot Asher?”
I didn’t turn my head, but I could tell she gaped at me, glaring daggers at the side of my head. I stayed silent.
“Why did you tell me Riot was away for the week?”she asked but the tone of her voice told me she already knew the answer.
I stayed silent. She scoffed again and threw herself back into her seat, small waves of that blonde hair dancing across her bare shoulders as she shook her head.
“Wow, you are a real piece of work…”she muttered. The anger bubbled up my throat, tightening my grip on the steering wheel.
“Can you blame me?”I asked.“You’re a reporter, no?”