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He reached in and turned on the lights. They illuminated right away. “It’s your starter. We’ll have to get you towed to Jenson’s garage.”

“Okay,” I said, pulling out my phone. “I’ll call Triple A.”

“No sense doing that. Triple A is gonna call Jenson’s, which is closed for the night. They’re the only mechanic in a fifty mile radius. You’re not going to be able to do anything until morning.”

I stared at him like he wasn’t speaking English. Living in a small town was new to me. For most things, you could get help any hour of the day back in Detroit.

“Come on,” Jim said. “I’ll give you a ride home.”

Jim

“Thank you, but it’s fine, I can call an Uber.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Jorden, there’s no Ubers here, you’re smack dab in the middle of nowhere in a town so small it’s only a dot on a map. Let me give you a ride home.”

She hesitated for a second, and I wondered if I was going to have to throw her over my shoulder and take her to my truck myself.

“Okay,” she said finally. “Thank you.”

“I’m parked over here,” I said, touching her elbow to direct her before moving my hand away.

We walked across the lot towards my truck. It was a beast, something I’d purchased when I was younger and more easily impressed by large trucks, but it was still in good condition and completely paid for, so I’d held onto it.

“I’m going to need a step ladder to get in,” Jordan joked as I opened up the passenger side door for her.

I could have pointed out that there was a little step partway up as well as a grab bar to help her get in, but instead I placed my hands on either side of her waist and boosted her up into the seat. She made a little squeaking noise as her feet left the ground.

“Give a person a warning first,” she grumbled.

“Sorry about that.”

As she settled into the truck I closed the door and jogged over to the driver’s side. Jordan was fumbling with the seat belt, and I took it from her hand and snapped her in.

“There you go,” I said, giving her a bright smile as I started the truck and put it in gear.

“Do you need directions?” she asked.

“Nope, I know right where you are.”

We headed through town, passing the strip of stores that made up the main drag. As we drove, the air in the cab seemed to get hotter by the minute, electricity snapping in the air the way it did before a big thunderstorm. But it wasn’t the weather causing the change in atmosphere in my truck, it was us being close together in tight quarters. When I saw Jordan stretch her collar away from her neck a few times like she was overheating, I knew she felt it too.

It didn’t take long to get to her apartment building. I eyed the squat building with distaste. It looked like no one had updated anything in this place since I was a kid. I bit my tongue to resist telling her that she couldn’t stay here. I had no right to tell her what to do. Yet.

Pulling into a parking spot, I turned off the engine.

“Hold on, I’ll help you.”

She opened the door but waited for me, which made me feel inordinately happy. I reached for her waist and lifted her down, accidentally on purpose dragging her body against mine on the way down. It was a quiet night, and I heard her sharp inhale as our bodies slid against each other.

When her feet hit the ground I told myself to step back, but my legs didn’t seem to want to move. I stared down at Jordan, my hands on her waist. She looked up at me with wide eyes, her breath sounding ragged.

“There’s something about you Jordan,” I whispered. “Something that makes me want to take you home and keep you with me forever.”

She made a show of laughing, as if I was joking, but when I continued to stare at her, she got serious again.

“I don’t know if you’re just playing with me or what…,” she started, her eyes showing her confusion.

“I’m not playing with you,” I interrupted. “The minute I laid eyes on you I was attracted to you. But it’s more than that, I felt a strong connection. Don’t you feel it too?”