Page 23 of All I Feel

But where my uncle had focused his efforts on the performance side of things—something I still enjoyed—I’d found my niche in body work. Over the years I’d worked with Logan, there’d been so many folks who’d heard of his shop and needed body work. He’d had such a great reputation that everyone had wanted him and his team to take on projects they weren’t equipped to handle.

I saw the need and decided to give it a shot.

Lucky for me, my best friend was just as interested in cars, and a few years ago, Phoenix and I went into business together. We were now the proud co-owners of Townsend &Stone Auto Body. It was just the two of us and Faye, our business manager and the woman Phoenix had been trying to convince for the last six months to go on a date with him.

I’d made it to the end of the hall, where it met the front office space. And I wasn’t surprised to see what I did. Faye was sitting at her desk, trying to get work done, and Phoenix was leaning his forearms on the counter in front of her, grinning like an idiot.

My lips twitched, and I rolled my eyes. The poor guy was desperate to make something happen, but it appeared Faye wanted nothing to do with him.

Having sensed my presence, Phoenix flicked his gaze in my direction. “Are you heading back out there?”

I jerked my chin down. “Someone’s got to keep this place running.”

It was his turn to roll his eyes. “I’ll be right out.”

A smile tugging at the corners of my mouth, I shook my head and ventured into the shop. With the way I’d been feeling about Tessa lately, I couldn’t say I blamed Phoenix for spending time in that office. If Tessa had been working here, I’m not sure I would’ve stopped myself from leaning my forearms on that counter just like my best friend.

As I crossed the space, intent on getting back to what I’d been working on before I got the call from Tessa, I noticed a new vehicle had been dropped off. When I was in the mix of checking out the damage to the right rear side of the bed, Phoenix materialized.

Noting the look on his face, I decided to tease him. “Still no luck?”

“Luck?”

I grinned, jerking my chin toward the office. “WithFaye.”

He sighed. “Don’t get me started.”

“Maybe you’d be better off moving on,” I suggested. “It’s obvious she has no interest in you.”

“Oh, she has interest in me. She just refuses to admit it.”

Laughter spilled out of me. “Is that how we’re dealing with rejection these days? Telling ourselves that it’s the women who are in denial about their feelings?”

“Laugh all you want, Ace. Soon enough, you’ll see I’m not making any of this up. Some women just need time to see that everything they’re looking for, everything they need, is right in front of them.”

“Time?” I countered. “Haven’t you been trying to get that woman to agree to a date with you for months now?”

“I’ll wear her down one of these days. Besides, good things come to those who wait.” He shrugged. “And you should be glad for that, because let’s face it, that might mean extraordinary things for you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Phoenix swept his hand in the direction of the office. “You’re giving me shit about Faye, but at least I’m trying, confident my persistence is going to pay off. Where are all your prospects?”

I tried my best not to react in any way to that question. There was only one person I had my sights set on now, but I couldn’t tell that to my best friend.

It wasn’t that I thought Phoenix might get ticked if he knew I was into his sister, that I’d spent the day with her Sunday, or that I was going to be spending my evening with her tonight. Deep down, he knew the kind of man I was, that I’d never do anything to hurt her.

But the simple fact was that Tessa hadn’t exactly shared that her relationship had gone up in flames. I wasn’t goingto betray her confidence on that, and I certainly didn’t want to think what Phoenix would do when he learned that guy had cheated on his sister. So, I had no choice but to keep my mouth shut.

“I’m taking a page out of your book and waiting until I find that one that makes me forget any others exist.”

“Yeah, I bet that’s what’s happening.”

Since I had no safe rebuttal, I figured it was best to change the topic. Waving my hand toward the truck, I asked, “What the hell happened to this thing?”

He let out a long breath. “Believe it or not, the guy isn’t even from here. He came out on a month-long camping vacation with his wife, and it happened when they were getting themselves set up at the campground. He said something about how he had to maneuver the truck and camper around, and it jackknifed. The truck was left looking like this.”

“Ouch.”