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Ok, I’ll admit to myself he’s a big part of how I’m feeling today. We’ve been inseparable since the disastrous double date. He’s even made time to come with me when I visit my mom.
And, another first for me this last time, when we left, I didn’t get upset. We had a great visit. She still doesn’t acknowledge or recognize me, but any moment is time spent with someone who means everything to me.
“Hey, tonight I have a fancy work dinner to go to. Will you come?” Victor asks. His voice dips with what I can only describe as hesitance.
“What level of fancy are you talking about? Heels, nice dress, and makeup?”
“You look better without.” His words make me swoon. He likes me as I am.
“Smooth, okay, I’ll do it. I can be fancy Collins for you.” My smile widens at his toothy grin. There’s a small part of me swelling with pride. I can feel the change in myself. I’m growing and the weight of the world doesn’t seem so heavy.
“Ready to take off?” I ask.
Victor nods, throwing his arm out the window. I put my girl in drive and press on the gas. As we drive, I feel this heavy girl’s traction to the road, gripping the turns, and rumbling with an almost deafening sound.
“I get it now.” Victor’s voice carries straight to my heart.
“What do you mean?”
“The way you talk sweet about her. I get it.” His hand swirls around the car.
I throw my free hand in the air, feeling validated. “Finally!”
He laughs and rests his hand on my leg as we continue to drive around. Out of the corner of my eye, Victor’s shoulders have dropped and his hair brushes through the wind. He rubs his thumb in small circles. He looks so relaxed. I bite my lip and decide to pull over. Victor looks over at me, confused.
“What’s up, baby?” Victor’s head snaps toward me with the most confused look.
“Want to drive?” I sigh.
“Are you serious?” He bounces in his seat, looking like he could explode at any moment. “Don’t toy with me, Collins.”
“I’m serious. So, do you?”
“Hell yes!”
We jump out and run around the car. He slides into the driver’s seat softly with such respect for what this car means to me. I explain some shifters that are different and to be easy on her at the start.
He listens and does exactly what I tell him. His smile is etched in my memory. We get to a good straight stretch of road and I tell him to give her a little power. He screams in the girliest way possible, making me burst into laughter.
“What was that?” I am wiping my eyes from laughing so hard.
“I don’t even know what that sound was!” He laughs along with me. “That was incredible.”
“I told ya.”
“You are once again… correct.” He points his finger toward me, ticking it back and forth.
“Alright, let’s head back to the shop. If I have to be a fancy girl tonight, then I need some time to get ready.”
“I’ll pick you up at seven.” Victor turns the car around and we ride back to the shop in a comforting silence.
I give Leland a rundown of what I need for the car before Victor and I rush off in opposite directions. Thankfully, my car just needs minor adjustments.
As I rush back to my house, I give Massey a call to come to help me with dresses and makeup. Thank God she is a girly girl and can morph me into a classy look. Massey arrives just as I put my truck in park.
“Can I do this?” My shoulders tense the more the minutes pass. “Massey, what do I talk to these people about?”
“If I can navigate these dinners, you can conquer them effortlessly. Honestly, the partners or primary clients don’t talk to their significant others much. Spouses talk to spouses or girlfriends. Think of it as a power play dinner. Victor will probably do all the talking.”
