Page 125
The man didn’t move closer to her, but he again looked all around. “Where is this Maurice? Why isn’t he here already?” She heard just a hint of disapproval in his voice.
“I didn’t want to bother him.”
“Hmmm.” Yep, definitely disapproval. “How long do you have to wait for Triple-A? If it’s too long, maybe I can change your tire for you.”
“They said I might have to wait two hours. But who are you?”
The man chuckled. “That is an excellent question. My name is Matt Aguilar. I’m a chemist for a pharmaceutical company in Baltimore. I was here to see an old friend of mine,” he said, motioning to Home Port, “but he was more interested in meeting someone new tonight.”
He gave a resigned shrug, so Lainey laughed.
“That’s a bummer. I’m sorry about that,” Lainey said. “If it makes you feel any better, I was stood up today, too.”
“You were? I find that very hard to believe.”
He was so giving off a good vibe. Not like the creepers at Clemson University or the lame-butt lawyers working for her dad. “Hey, I’ve got an idea. Instead of yelling across a parking lot, how about you come closer so we talk like normal people,” Lainey suggested.
“I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable, since you were out here alone.”
“Now, sugar, that is the sweetest thought I’ve heard in ages. But please come closer. If I feel uncomfortable, I’ll yell for Maurice and he’ll come running.”
As the man walked closer to her, she realized just how big he was. No wonder he hadn’t gotten closer to her in the beginning.
“You’re right, a man your size could have given me quite a jolt if I wasn’t expecting you. Just how tall are you, Matt Aguilar?”
“Six foot three.”
“My guess is you played offensive or defensive lineman.”
“I did grow up in Texas, so there was a little bit of football in my past.”
Lainey laughed. “I imagine so.”
“And you know football? Why?” he asked as he smiled down at her.
“I went to Clemson in South Carolina. You can’t attend that university without becoming indoctrinated.”
“Southern football, there’s nothing like it. Except for maybe Argentine fútbol.”
“Soccer right?”
He nodded.
“Is that where you’re from? Argentina?”
“Yes, I came here when I was five years old. My mom got a job here as a chemist for DuPont.”
“That’s impressive. So you’re following in her footsteps?”
Matt nodded. “Do you want to pop your trunk so I can see what I’m working with?”
Lainey bit her lower lip. Why did that question sound so dirty? Why did she like it so much?
Lainey hit the trunk icon on her key fob and watched as Matt looked inside. Since she had recently cleaned out the garage, she’d also cleaned out her trunk, so she knew he’d only find the tire and some tools.
“It looks like we’re good to go.” He unbuttoned his cuffs, then rolled up his sleeves on his buttoned shirt. Lainey’s eyes widened. Under the lights of the parking lot, she saw just how muscled his forearms were under his bronzed skin. Outside of an action star in a movie, she’d never seen a man’s arms look so strong. Matt swung the tire out of her trunk with one hand and a wrench and some other thing with his other hand.
“What’s that?” she asked, pointing to the thing she didn’t recognize.
