Ruby Falls (9 page)

“Let me take a look at that for you, ma’am,” he offered, bending down and examining the tread. A moment later he stood back up. “Picked up a nail. I can fix it for you over at my shop. Won’t take five minutes.”

“Umm, well, that would be wonderful. Thank you,” Summer said, smiling at him.

“My name’s Justin Morgan. I’d shake your hand, but I wouldn’t want to get your hands dirty.” He looked down at his palms, smeared with black grease and dirt, and smiled back at her.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Morgan. Call me Summer.”

“Summer,” he repeated, nodding. “You must be the woman staying out at the Garrett place.”

“Yes, that’s right. How did you know?”

“I recognize the truck,” he said, nodding toward it.

“Of course,” she replied, embarrassed.

“Well, let me hook it up, and I’ll pull it to the shop. It’ll be easier to just put it up on the rack, than to mess with a jack on the street.”

“Okay. I really appreciate the help. If it’s not too much trouble, that is?”

“No. No trouble. The tow truck’s right here,” he gestured over his shoulder, explaining as if she wasn’t quite right.

“Yes. Yes, of course. I just meant, you’re probably a busy man, and…”

He’d already headed back to his tow truck. He climbed in, whipped it around, and backed it up to the pickup. Climbing out, he began hooking her truck up. “Summer, you may want to stand on the sidewalk while I get this done.”

“Oh, right. Let me just get my purse.” She opened the door, bent over, and grabbed her purse. Slamming the door shut, she turned. He was standing there, watching her. She noticed his eyes on her legs, and then they slid up to her face, and he just smiled. “What?” she asked.

“Nothing. Just waiting for you to get out of the way, darlin’.”

“Oh, right.” She moved up on the curb, embarrassed.

In a matter of minutes, he had the pickup hooked up. He walked around to the passenger side of the tow truck and opened the door. Turning, with his hand on the door, he looked over at her and asked, “Ready?”

She climbed in, her cotton dress hiking up above her knees as she did. She noticed he didn’t miss it, his eyes skating over her legs.

“All set?” he asked, as she pulled down her hem.

“Yes, thank you.”

He smiled and slammed the door shut, walking around the truck.

While he did, she glanced around the inside of the tow truck. There was a soda can in the cup holder, a pack of cigarettes and a cell phone on the seat, along with what appeared to be gas station and ATM receipts tucked half in the fold of the seat.

The driver’s door opened, and the truck shifted with his weight as he climbed inside. He started the engine and pulled away. At the next corner, he made a turn and continued down for a few blocks.

She saw the garage on the right. It was an old cement block building, painted white with red trim. It looked like it had probably been built back in the twenties or thirties. There was a tiny office on the right and three garage doors on the left.

Turning into the lot, Justin pushed a remote clipped to his visor. One of the glass garage doors began to slowly roll up. He pulled into the open bay and rolled slowly forward until he had the pickup positioned over the lift.

Summer noticed there was another set of overhead doors on the opposite side, straight in front of them.

Justin opened his door and climbed out. He moved some levers in the back, and the pickup truck slowly lowered. Then he began unhooking the chains.

Summer climbed out her door and stood to the side. She looked around the inside of his shop, as he’d called it. It was an old stone building with three bays. The ceiling showed exposed open rafters to the roof. There were three overhead, old-style, metal lamps hanging down. There was a workbench against the sidewall and parts scattered everywhere. The other two bays contained vehicles, both in a state of repair, one up on a lift, the other with the hood open.

Movement drew her attention away from her study of the shop, and she glanced over to see Justin climbing back into the tow truck.

He started it up, pressed a button on the remote on the visor again, and the glass overhead doors in front of the truck began to rise up. Then he pulled the tow truck forward through the doors and around the side of the building.

A moment later, he walked back into the garage and over to Summer. He dug in his pocket and held two quarters out to her. “There’s a soda machine in the corner over there, and there’s an office through that door if you want to sit down. There’s air conditioning in there.” He nodded to the door on the right wall. “This won’t take long.”

“Oh, okay. Thanks,” Summer replied, turning to look where he’d indicated. She looked back at him and reached up to take the coins. She watched as he walked over to the lift and set the supports under the truck frame.

He took an air ratchet and loosened the lug nuts on the tire. Then he pushed a button on the lift, and the truck began to rise. He finished taking off the lug nuts and took the tire down. He took it to the side and used a tool to yank out the nail. Then he began patching it.

He glanced up at her, noticing she hadn’t moved.

Turning, she walked over to the soda machine, deposited the quarters, and pressed a button. The can dropped with a heavy thud, and she bent to retrieve it. She popped the top open and took a sip, her eyes closing as the cold beverage slid down her dry throat. Opening her eyes, she saw him looking over at her.

When he saw her looking back, Justin turned back to the tire.

Summer turned, self-consciously and walked through the doorway into the office. It was a tiny room, taken up mostly by the huge old wooden desk and matching old wooden swivel chair. There was a pair of metal chairs facing the desk. Behind them, to the right, was a door leading to the outside and beside it a small, five-foot by five-foot plate-glass window.
Justin’s Garage
was painted on it in gold lettering.

Summer gingerly sat in one of the metal chairs facing the desk with her purse in her lap and glanced around the room. The first thing she noticed was that everything in the room was covered with a coating of dust. There was no computer, not even a modern phone, but an old black rotary-dial model. There were copies of receipts for auto parts stores and invoices to customers scattered across the desk. Parts catalogs and repair manuals were stacked haphazardly on one corner of the desk. Summer thought it wouldn’t take more than a good nudge to send the whole pile crashing to the floor, but apparently they had been there for a while, judging by the thick coating of dust on them.

She glanced up, noting a mounted fish of some kind and a deer’s head hanging on the wall behind the desk. Old pin-up calendars from years ago still hung on the walls. A small window to her right held an old window air-conditioning unit. It hummed loudly as it struggled to keep the small office a temperature that one could only consider to be, slightly cooler than outside.

After a few more minutes, the office door leading to the garage opened, and Justin came in, along with a rush of hot air. He had a can of soda in his hand, and he took a long hit off of it. Sitting on the edge of the desk, he looked down at Summer. “All ready to go, ma’am.”

“Oh, thank you so much. You’re a life saver.” Summer opened her purse and asked him, “How much do I owe you?”

“No charge, darlin’.”

“What?” Summer looked up at him stunned. “I have to pay you for your time.”

“I said, no charge. Don’t insult me. Did you think I’d leave a pretty lady like you struggling to change a tire on a beat up old pickup? And you in a dress and heels at that.”

“I would have managed somehow.”

He laughed. “Yeah, right.” Smiling unapologetically, he took another hit off his drink.

“I beg your pardon?”

He stood and turned toward the door. “Come on, Summer.”

She followed him out into the garage and watched as he backed the truck out for her, then got out and held the door open while she climbed inside.

Slamming the door shut, he leaned in the open window, his arms folded on the frame.

“Well, thank you again, Mr. Morgan.”

“Justin,” he corrected.

“Justin.”

He tossed a business card on the dash. “Call me if you have any problems, and tell Steve I said hello.”

“Yes, I will. Thank you.”

“Take care, now, Summer.” He grinned, then turned and walked back into the garage.

Summer watched him walk away, noticing the roll of his broad shoulders and the way his slim hips moved with his gait. He sure had a sexy walk. She grinned, shook her head and drove home.

*****

Jessie pulled in the drive and parked around back. She got out of the car, glanced over, and saw Cary working on repairing one of the tractors. She could hear him cussing as she approached.

“Damn it!”

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

He barely glanced at her. “I’m trying to get this damn piece of crap working again. If I could just get this damn part off,” he said, straining and banging on it with his tools.

“Where’s Summer?”

“Went to town,” he mumbled, continuing his pounding and cussing.

“Really?”

“Um hmm,” he replied, never looking up from what he was working on.

“Where’s Daddy?”

“Went to get a part for this tractor, and I need to get this one off before he gets back.”

“When will they be back?”

He finally straightened up long enough to answer her. “Look, Jessie. I don’t know. I’ve got work to do here, okay?”

“Fine,” she snapped back, stalking off toward the house.

Cary glanced back at her and shook his head. Christ! Women! Especially that one! Her mood could flip at the drop of a hat.

Jessie stomped into the kitchen and began pacing back and forth, silently fuming. What the hell was his problem? He didn’t have to be so short with her. All she’d done was ask a few simple questions. He’d practically ignored her, standing there, so caught up in his stupid tractor repair. She stopped and tapped her foot. Well, if he thought he could ignore her, he had another thing coming. We’ll just see about that! And then she decided to get his attention in a big way. She marched upstairs and changed outfits.

A few minutes later, she came outside carrying a bucket of soapy water and a sponge. She walked over to the side of the house, her head held high and grabbed up the hose. Turning it on, she hosed down her car. “Well, we’ll just see how long you can ignore this, mister,” she murmured to herself with a smug smile. She began soaping her car up with the sponge.

Cary glanced over at her and did a double take.

There was Jessie, standing there washing her car in nothing but her bikini. And she was putting on quite a show to get his attention. “Goddamn,” he whispered.

Glancing over out of the corner of her eye, Jessie smiled when she saw him watching her.

Cary turned back to the tractor and tried to keep working. That only encouraged her, he soon realized, to get even more animated with her show. He finally could take no more, and he smiled and shook his head. Giving up, he tossed his tools to the ground and walked over to her. “Okay, babe. You got my attention. Jessica Simpson’s got nothing on you.”

She turned innocently to him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, I think you know exactly what I’m talking about, darlin’. I think you’ve watched that Jessica Simpson
Dukes of Hazard
music video one too many times, and it’s put ideas in your head.”

“If you’ll excuse me, I think you can see that I’m working here.”

“Touché!” he replied, laughing. “Yeah, you’re workin’ it, babe. I’ll give you that.”

“Oh!” she yelled, shocked and turned the hose on him, hitting him full blast in the chest. She saw the look on his face and was immediately remorseful. “I’m
so
sorry, Cary.”

Before she knew what he was about, he picked up the bucket and threw the water in it at her.

She screamed, standing there frozen with the shock of the cold water hitting her. She looked down. She was covered with soapy water.

Cary took advantage of that moment to wrestle the hose away from her. “You’re in trouble now, girl,” he warned, advancing on her with a grin.

She screamed again and ran behind the car.

“Come on, Jess, I’ve got to rinse the soap off,” he taunted, advancing on her.

She tried to run for the faucet to turn off his water supply, but he caught her, hitting her good with a spray from the hose. She shrieked and screamed, “Cary, stop! Oh, it’s so cold!”

He finally dropped the hose. “Yeah, I can see that, darlin’.” He laughed, looking her up and down, his gaze finally connecting with her eyes.

They stared at each other a moment, until the sound of an approaching vehicle broke the spell. Cary tore his eyes from hers long enough to glance up the drive. “There’s your dad’s truck coming up the driveway, Jess. You better get your butt in the house, and put some clothes on, girl.”

“Oh, crap!” she shrieked and ran for the house.

His laughter followed her up the porch stairs.

A short time later, Summer was pulling back up the gravel drive to the farmhouse and around back to park. She saw Steve and Cary standing next to a tractor, working on the motor. Well, Steve appeared to be doing the actual work. Cary was smoking a cigarette and giving suggestions.

Summer got out of the truck and gathered up her packages.

“Hey, darlin’. Where ya been?” Cary asked.

“In town. I had to pick up a few things. Oh, I almost forgot.” She spun around back to the pickup. Reaching in through the window, she grabbed the business card off the dash and walked over to the tractor.

Steve stood as she approached, wiping his hands on a rag. His gaze swept over her, appreciatively. Damn, he sure liked when she wore one of those sundresses she’d picked up. She looked so sweet and feminine, and she had great legs.

“Here,” she held the card out to him. “He said to tell you hello.”

Steve took the card and looked at it. The smile disappeared from his face, and his eyes snapped back up to hers. “Where did you get this?” he demanded, frowning.