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“Just hurry up.” She gave herself a little shake as she disconnected the call, dropped the phone into the cup holder, and crossed her arms over her chest. “She said Clay loaned out the gas can and they’re asking around to see who has one in their truck.”
“I have one in my truck. Two, actually.”
She perked up. “Well, let’s get one.”
Tim made a sardonic clucking sound with his tongue. “That’d be a smart thing to do if there was gas in either of them. I meant to refill them and take them down to the wharf earlier today, but I got held up.”
“Damn it.”
“What’s the hurry? Have somewhere else you’re supposed to be tonight?”
“Well, I’ve got some calls to make to make sure Monday’s work goes to schedule. Also, I just don’t like sitting around waiting for acts of kindness from others. I’m used to doing things for myself.”
“I know the feeling.”
“Yeah?” She drummed her fingertips against the sides of her arms and looked at him out of the corners of her eyes.
“What’s with the incredulity?”
“Privilege is a funny sort of thing. It sometimes makes people blind to how good they have it.”
“And you think I’ve had it so well, is what you’re saying.”
“You’re wearing an eighty-dollar shirt and shoes that cost upwards of a hundred bucks. I work in construction, so I know guys who dress well and have rough hands like yours.” She canted her head toward the steering wheel. “Calloused and with a bit of dirt under their nails they’ll never be able to get out. You may be used to working for your money, but now I bet you’ve got people working foryou.”
Obviously, Tim wasn’t the only observant one in the car.
“That kind of goes with the territory when you get to be a certain age. Unless you’re standing absolutely still in your career, there are going to be people under you.”
She’d pegged him, though.
He did have people working for him, but that didn’t mean he didn’t get up every morning and do some heavy lifting, too. No boat left his factory with the Dowd name on it if Tim didn’t personally inspect every cog and seam on it. He had too much at stake to fuck up after so many years of blood, sweat, and tears.
She rested her elbow on the dashboard and leaned the side of her head against her fist, staring at him. “I bet you’re used to having people under you.”
“In some ways more than other ones, lately.”
Judging by the way her lips parted, he would have guessed her jaw was going to drop again, but she seemed to catch herself and closed her mouth without a word.
“I told you that the people here tend to beveryhonest,” he said. “We’re going to try to make you comfortable, so you’ll let your guard down a little. That way we can find out what you like, what you want. People will tell you why they’re here and what they’re looking for, and you’ll hold it in confidence because you’ll want them to do the same thing for you.”
“And what is it that you’re looking for, Tim?”
“Right now, all I’m looking for is your name. You still haven’t told it to me.”
“If you know everyone here, you’ll probably find out soon enough. Names aren’t secrets.”
“So why are you keeping it from me? The only explanation I can think of is it’s the one way you can keep control of the situation. You’ve got the upper hand right now because I’m begging you for it, and it’s such a small thing.”
“Beggingme?”
“Mm-hmm. Dying to know it, so tomorrow I know what to call you in my mind when I think about how I got absolutely nowhere with you.”
Hell, Heidi probably would have better luck.
“There are probably a dozen women in there you could go get somewhere with,” the lady said.
“Mm-hmm.” He knew them all andhadgone somewhere with a few. If he’d had any desire to repeat the liaisons, he would have picked up a phone and called them. They weren’t what he wanted, though, because he hadn’t wanted anything at all.
