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He released Brett who fell to the ground on his hands and knees. His loud wheezing filled the air. The man eyed Brett then flicked his gaze back to Draven.
“Just a little misunderstanding,” Draven said.
“We don’t want any trouble around here, so you boys take your misunderstanding elsewhere.”
“Yes, sir.” Draven gave a short nod to the elderly man. He grabbed Brett by the arm and forced him up to his feet.
Brett inhaled sharply and glared at Draven. He rested back on his truck, taking deep breaths. Draven took a step back away from him and held his hands up. The older guy stood there for a moment before he went back inside the store.
Draven waited a moment then turned back to Brett. “Replace her tires.”
“You can go fuck yourself,” Brett snapped.
Draven moved toward him, but Brett scrambled out of his reach and ran to the other side of his truck. He held a hand to his stomach while he continued to struggle to breathe. There was a small gathering across the street, watching. Draven bit back a growl. He rested his hands on his waist and glanced around. Just that quick he had forgotten they were out in public.
Draven’s gaze landed on a sheriff’s patrol car sitting at the red light at the corner. The light switched to green, and the cruiser turned the corner and headed their way. Draven stood where he was and folded his arms. He watched the car approach, waiting to see if Brett would flag the deputy down. It slowed for a moment then continued on. Draven glared at Brett and pointed at him.
“Don’t make me find you again.” He walked around the front of Brett’s truck and entered the street.
Brett quickly moved back to the sidewalk. Draven smirked and headed to his truck. He just hoped the fucker heeded his warning. Next time, he wasn’t going to be so nice.
Chapter Seven
“It’s going to costhowmuch?” Cashea groaned.
Her head dropped into her hand as she listened to the man on the phone rattle off pricing for replacing her tires. She squeezed her eyes shut, praying that she was still back home in her bed, dreaming. It was bright and early. She was in the office, which was surprisingly slow for a Monday morning. Usually, Dr. Reddy’s office would be bustling with parents bringing in their children for their doctor’s appointments. Maybe it was because it was the summer and families were spending more time together and vacationing. Cashea wasn’t sure what the reason was, but she was thankful for the small break. Come fall, there would be anabundance of appointments and kids being brought in with new sniffles and more.
“Miss Moss, we do have an option of a credit company that would help you with the expenses. I can give you that information to read if you want,” Hal, the mechanic, said.
Cashea sighed. She didn’t need any more credit cards at the moment. She had proudly paid off all of her debts and tried to only use them when absolutely necessary. Welp, walking to work this morning proved that it was necessary. She had even had to pay for her car to be towed to his shop.
Another expense she couldn’t afford.
“Let me look into some things,” she said. She lifted her head and tucked her thick hair behind her ear. She would stall just a few more hours if need be. It seemed as if she would be running at least one of her cards back up.
“Oh, sure. You know how to reach me, dear,” the older gentleman said.
She ended the conversation with the promise to call him by the end of the day. She sat back in her chair and glanced out into the waiting room. Only two patients so far. She’d already gotten them checked in for Dr. Reddy.
“Everything all right?” Tiffany asked from behind Cashea.
She turned to see Dr. Reddy’s nurse leaning against the wall. Cashea stood from her desk and moved the bell to the counter in case someone else came into the office. She motioned to Tiffany to follow her toward the hall. Tiffany had welcomed Cashea immediately when she’d first begun working for the pediatrician. The medical crew had been sharing the duty of receptionist until they’d hired someone.
“Yeah and no,” Cashea said. She leaned back against the wall and ran a hand along her face. “Let’s just say Hal can give me new tires and get my car ready for me today, but I’d have to basically give him my firstborn.”
“Ouch, that bad?” Tiffany reached out and rubbed Cashea’s shoulder. Her big brown eyes were full of compassion. Her deep-brown skin glowed against her blonde-and-brown braids she had pulled back away from her face. She was one of the first people to help introduce Cashea around, and that’s how she’d met Sara, Tiff’s best friend. She’d heard Cashea singing one day in the back while she’d made copies of patient education materials and hadtold her that her friend was hoping to start up a cover band.
“Yeah. I’ll be breaking out the credit card to pay for this.”
“Insurance won’t pay?”
Cashea winced. She had chosen the cheapest coverage she could get away with. Now she certainly regretted it, but who would have known she would have to replace two tires because an asshole couldn’t deal with rejection from a woman?
“I have a high deductible and might as well just pay for the damn things.”
“Why don’t you file a police report? Make him pay for what he did to your car. That’s not fair. You shouldn’t be dealing with this.” Tiffany scowled. She folded her arms.
“It’s my word against his, and who is going to believe me over someone like him?” Cashea shook her head. She might as well chalk it up as a loss and cough up the money. Even a year later, she was still the new girl in town while Brett’s family had been in Ironhaven for generations.
