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For a moment, neither of them spoke, but when Aiden’s phone beeped, he jerked and made his goodbyes. Janae watched him leave, trying not to think about why the house suddenly felt colder without him.

Chapter 12

Aiden blew out a breath and straightened from where he had been leaning over an engine. The parts that were supposed to be delivered were late and that had set the tone for the rest of the morning. He’d rushed in, missing valuable time he could have spent chatting with Janae and getting to know her, just for the parts to not even show up. When Vini came in around ten, she let him know about the delay and even offered to stay late and wait for them. That was the only saving grace, considering he’d told Janae they’d look at paint swatches that evening. He knew she went to bed somewhat early during the week and he didn’t want to throw off her schedule.

“Fuck,” he bit out as he wiped his hand on a rag and tried not to let the mess of the morning ruin his good mood.

Besides that hiccup, the day was going pretty well. Most of the vehicles were there for oil changes and general maintenance. It would be travel season soon, with many people coming and going out of town to visit family or spend time with friends. Aiden knew a couple households owned cabins up in north Georgia that they stayed at. One of the people in town even offered him a place, and if not for how long that commute would be, he would have gladly taken it. The mountains had always been his favorite vacation spot, easily beating out spending time at the coast.

“What’s your malfunction?” Vini asked as she walked over, food containers in hand. “You look like someone pissed in your coffee.”

Aiden wrinkled his nose in obvious disgust. “Random, Vin.”

She shrugged. “I’m just saying. You look angry for no reason. What gives?”

So many things. Instead of saying that, he shook his head. “Nothing. Just a little stressed out. That’s all.”

Vini stared at him for a moment before nodding. “Alright. Let’s go. We’re getting lunch out today.”

“What if someone comes by?” he asked. She grabbed his wrist and pulled him toward the garage door. “We have cars to work on.”

“If someone comes by, they’ll look at their watch and realize it’s lunchtime,” she replied like it was obvious. “And it’s not like the cars are going to get up and walk away. This isn’t a kid’s movie.”

Aiden put up some resistance as he calculated the money in his bank account. “Vini, I’ve been eating out too much as it is.”

She paused and gave him a look. “Aiden Theodo—”

He put his hands up in surrender. “There’s no need for all that. I’m coming.” She narrowed her eyes at him as he dutifully got in her truck with no further complaints. He didn’t speak again until they were sitting in a booth in Thomas’s diner.

“You know you don’t have to buy me lunch,” he said after placing his order and waving his thanks to Thomas.

Vini raised an eyebrow at him. “Accept the food and shut up.”

Aiden held up a hand before leaning back against the seat. Across from him, Vini did the same. He was glad they’d gotten the seat they did. Lunchtime was always busy at the diner, with people stopping in and out. In this booth, Aiden could look out the side windows and watch as the town moved at its normal unhurried pace.

Pickup trucks rolled down the street, some with their windows down to enjoy the weather. People walked on the sidewalks, including a group of high school kids. He smiled as he watched them jostle one another, no doubt loud beyond the thick pane of glass. Inside, the diner smelled of strong coffee and sizzling grease, along with sweeter notes from the desserts that were made in-house. It was all comforting and familiar now in a way that screamed of home to him.

When the food came, they ate in relative silence for a few minutes, save for the soft murmur of voices and the scraping of chairs. The day was warmer than it had been and it was even more so inside. Aiden was glad he’d thought to wear short sleeves. Even though he was pretty sure they’d get an actual winter blowing in this year, it seemed the Georgia weather was determined to yank everyone around for a few more weeks.

“So, how are things going with Janae?” Vini asked. When Aiden gave her a look, she shrugged. “What? It’s just an innocent question. I’m just making sure things are going well and I didn’t make a mistake opening my mouth about you doing work for her.”

Aiden eyed her, suspicious of her motives. But when she continued to eat, he decided to give her curiosity the benefit of the doubt.

“It’s going fine,” he said carefully. “I finished the kitchen renovation, though most of the labor was done before I started. Look, I have pictures.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and slid it over to Vini.

“I’m sure it looks amazing,” she said as she picked up the phone. Her eyebrows rose as she clicked through the images. “Oh, wow. So, I didn’t give you enough credit clearly. This kitchen looks nice as hell.”

Aiden didn’t bother to hide his satisfied grin as she slid the phone back to him and he looked over his own work. The kitchen hardly looked real. Even on his smudged and cracked phone screen, it looked like something out of a magazine. The yellow cabinets practically glowed thanks to the morning light in the frame, and the way the countertops sparkled was like something out of this world. The cream walls might have looked boring if not for the art Janae had hung—abstract paintings that she’d made all on her own.

He was pretty damn happy with everything. He liked knowing that his hands had contributed toward something good. It wasn’t often that happened.

“Doesn’t it though? It turned out even better than we planned.” He looked down at the sunlit images on his phone. “In the morning, it’s such a cheerful space and the layout really is perfect for dinners. We decided to tackle the main bathroom to fix a leak so we can use it and then the secondary bathroom after that. Janae hasn’t picked out a vanity yet for the extra bathroom, but I told her we could go this weekend to Atlanta and take a look at some features in . . .” Aiden trailed off when he realized Vini was giving him a knowing look.

When she saw he wasn’t continuing, she smiled. “What?”

“What do you mean what?” he asked. “You’re the one giving me a weird look. Spill it.”

“Nothing.”