Finding Faith (Return of the Dragons)

And despite the fact that he really had no right to feel it, pride still filled him.

Smiling with quiet satisfaction, she replaced the spark plug and shut the hood, grimacing at the sight of her dirty hands. “I just need to run to the parts store I saw and get a new plug.”

The last thing he wanted to do was take the smile off her face, but he had a feeling his next words would do it. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the parts store is closed. It closes at noon on Fridays and doesn’t reopen until Monday.”

As expected, her smile faded, and she shot him a frown. “Um, what do y’all do if your car breaks down over the weekend?”

“Wait until Monday,” he replied with a shrug and a wry smile. “Remember, everyone here knows everyone else. If we need a ride, or even to borrow a car, there’s always someone ready to help.”

Frown deepening, she walked to her open door, reached inside, and reemerged with some type of wet wipe. Cleaning her hands off, her frown deepened, and it was all he could do to not reach out and smooth the lines between her eyes.

His fingers twitched with the need, but he clenched them into fists. Too soon, he chanted in his head. Way too soon.

“The other d—women have cars I could borrow if I need to get back to town before Monday, I guess.” Biting her lip, she shot a contemplative look at her truck. “I know it won’t necessarily hurt the engine if I drive it back home today, but I hate to. I don’t guess I have a choice, though.”

He briefly wondered over the stutter in her words, but quickly dismissed it. Hope filled him as she left him with the perfect opening. He just hoped she’d accept. “You don’t have to do that. I’m more than happy to give you a ride back home.”

Eyebrows shooting up, she gazed at him in silence for a moment. He couldn’t tell what she was thinking, which surprised him. For the most part since they met, her eyes had been expressive, and it had been easy to tell.

“I don’t want to put you out. Especially on a Friday. And I’m not too keen on leaving my truck parked in front of the grocery store all weekend.”

“It’s no trouble,” he replied with a shrug. “I don’t have any plans, anyway. And if you’re comfortable driving it a short distance, you can leave it in the back-parking lot of Aaron’s. It’ll be out of the way, and it’ll be safe there. No one will mess with it.”

She continued gazing at him for a moment, and he was sure she was going to be stubborn and refuse—but to his surprise, she nodded slowly. “If you’re sure it won’t be any trouble.”

“Not at all. The shop’s on the corner, so just turn right and the entrance to the parking lot is just behind the building. My truck is back there too, so I’ll meet you there.”

Hesitating a moment more as she searched his eyes—for what, he wasn’t sure—she finally nodded and turned to climb inside her truck. As much as he wanted to watch her longer—he always wanted to look at her, it seemed—he turned and started striding back to the shop. He wanted to, if not make it there before her, at least meet her there.

He was halfway there when he heard her truck start up and back out of the spot. As she started slowly making her way down the road, he winced. He could clearly hear the engine missing out and how rough it was running.

Relief that she agreed to his plan washed over him. Logically, he knew she would have been okay if she drove it home, but he would have worried. And since he doubted she’d call him to let him know she made it safely, the worry would have stretched out until he heard from her again.

They hadn’t known each other long. Calling to let him know she’d made it okay probably wouldn’t even occur to her, and he wasn’t sure it would go over well if he asked her to.

She made it there just before he did, and she was sliding out as he approached. Slinging her purse over her head, she walked to the other side and pulled out two of the water gallons. Giving him a small smile, she started to walk to his truck.

Okay. Clearly, she wasn’t wasting any time.

“Not that one. That’s my work truck. My personal truck is the blue Chevy next to it. The doors are unlocked, so you can put them in the back.”

Her eyebrows rose slightly as she took in his Silverado, a newer model than hers. Deciding he’d risk her giving him another lecture on women being able to handle their own shit, he quickly grabbed the remaining two gallons and followed her to his truck.

Eyes narrowing slightly when she saw him with the water, she opened her mouth and then shut it again with a shrug, not remarking on it as she walked back to lock up her truck.

“Thanks,” she said softly once she returned. He nodded, opening the passenger door and gesturing for her to get in.

He wanted to hold his hand out so he could help her up, just like he wanted to linger before he took her home. But he had a strong feeling she’d decline both, so he kept his hand to himself while he held his tongue.

It was all harder than he’d thought it would be. He wanted to give her time to get used to him, to come around, before he pushed for more. Hell, he basically wanted to give her everything, which surprised him, because he hadn’t known he could feel like that for someone.

That part was easy. He wanted nothing more than to give her what she wanted, what she needed. What surprised him was that as much as he wanted that, he was still chafing with impatience.

He wanted them to truly get to know each other. He wanted to move beyond acquaintances to friends, or maybe, hopefully, more.

Find your patience, Cody, he lectured himself. Do not pressure her or scare her off, man.

He could do those things. But that also didn’t mean he couldn’t take his time driving her home, either. Every little bit counted.