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Bryce had found the spare tire in the trunk and put the lug wrench on a nut without too much difficulty. “I saw this in a movie,” he said happily, giving the wrench a hard turn. It sprang off and hit him in the arm. “Oops. Hang on, let me try that again.”
“Tell him how glad you are that you got this flat in front of his house. He’s a regular white knight,” Colleen muttered into the phone.
“It’s so lucky I got this flat in front of your house,” Paulie said. “You’re a prince, Bryce.”
“No prob, dude!” Bryce answered. He seemed to get the lug nuts loosened, but the jack was more perplexing. Paulie waited, cracking her knuckles. Bryce fumbled. Turned the jack on its side to see if it would work better that way, which, shockingly, it didn’t. “You know what?” he said. “My cousin’s here. I bet he could do this in ten seconds.”
“Maybe less,” Lucas murmured.
“No, don’t let him leave,” Colleen hissed into the phone. “Improvise.”
“Wait, wait,” Paulie said. “Uh...um...here. I’ll lift the front bumper, and you change the tire, okay? Count of three.”
And sure enough, she hefted the front end of her car.
“She’s magnificent,” Lucas said.
“Shush,” Colleen muttered. “And she is.”
“I meant it.”
“Wow!” Bryce exclaimed. “You’re superstrong. What’s your workout?”
“Marine Boot Camp 360,” Paulie grunted.
“No kidding! Me, too!” Bryce exclaimed. “How much can you bench-press?”
“Pull the tire off, for God’s sake,” Paulie said. “I’m gonna pop a hernia.”
“It’s like watching a porno,” Lucas murmured.
Colleen snorted and hit Mute again on the phone, as her protégé apparently couldn’t take orders while lifting a small vehicle. “So why’d you get a divorce?” she asked after a minute.
“Maybe I never got over you.”
“Ooh. Good line. I’m serious. Why’d you leave that sweet deal of yours?”
“I thought we were having dinner sometime. I’d rather not discuss my marriage in the bushes.” That being said, he could see down her shirt. Push-up bra, thank you, Lord. She’d never been shy about showcasing her assets, and times like this, he was grateful.
She seemed to read his mind, because she glanced back at him. Busted. He grinned.
So did she, completely confident.
It suddenly occurred to Lucas that he was single, and Colleen was single, and he’d be in town for—
No. He wasn’t here for a relationship, and certainly not one that would doubtlessly be as tangled and intense as his and Colleen’s had been ten years ago. She wasn’t the fling type.
At least, she hadn’t been. She’d been in it with her whole heart, and it came back to him like a tidal wave, what it had been like to be loved by Colleen O’Rourke.
“Stop looking at me like that,” she whispered, then cleared her throat. “The whole Heathcliff thing doesn’t work anymore.”
“You seeing anyone?” he asked.
“Oh, shut up.”
Bryce dropped the tire, laughing. It seemed like Paulie’s arms were shaking.
“She’s gonna drop that on his head any minute now,” Lucas observed.
