In any event, if Dianna had entrusted the life of her little girl to Cameron, then he couldn’t be that bad.
Right?
But if Audrey even sensed a flicker of something not right with the guy, she’d whisk Piper away so fast, his head would spin. She’d fight for custody of the little girl herself.
“Why don’t you read one of your books to Jellybean?” Audrey suggested. “We’ll be there in a minute.”
Silence filled the car, followed by a muffled, “’Kay.”
The light turned green at the same time that her phone vibrated in the cup holder. Probably Evan, Audrey’s boyfriend of three months, who hadn’t been comfortable with her driving. She blindly reached for the phone just as she heard a loud pop and the car jerked wildly to the left, almost veering into oncoming traffic.
From the backseat, Piper yelped, and Audrey barely stifled a curse as she gripped both hands around the steering wheel. She knew a popped tire when she heard one and cursed her shitty luck after already having been on the road for half a day.
“Audrey?” Piper called out with fear lacing her voice.
“It’s okay, honey,” Audrey soothed, while trying to keep herself calm. She jerked the car into the next lane, ignoring honks and other drivers whipping around her. The shredded tire, which sounded like it was in the back, thudded around the rim and bobbed the car all over the place. She managed to pull the SUV over while narrowly missing a handful of bikers. The thing jerked to a stop, then rested crookedly, hanging halfway in the bike lane and half into traffic, where impatient drivers were forced to maneuver around her.
With a sigh she tossed the gear in park and leaned back on the headrest.
“What happened to the car?” Piper asked from her car seat. “Is it broken?”
Audrey blew out a breath and opened her eyes. “Audrey really wishes she could curse right now,” she whispered to herself. Then she pasted a smile on her face, for Piper’s benefit, and turned to face the girl. “The car’s not broken. I just need to take a look at the tire.”
Piper blinked and hugged Jellybean closer. Her chubby cheeks were red, and her once neat ponytails were loose, allowing the girl’s blond curls to stick to her cheeks.
“It sounds like the car broke,” Piper said again.
“It’s not broken.” She reached back and rested a comforting hand on the child’s knee. “But I need you to stay in your seat while I get out and look at the tire. Okay?” When Piper nodded, Audrey grabbed a book from the seat and dropped it in Piper’s lap. “Here, read this to Jellybean. I think she’s bored too.”
Piper picked Jellybean up and bounced the stuffed toy on her knee. “Jellybean was asleep, but the broken car woke her up. She was dreaming about jelly beans.”
Of course she was. Jelly beans were Piper’s favorite thing in the whole world, aside from her stuffed cat.
Audrey got out of the car and ignored the glares from other drivers. Like it was her fault her damn tire blew and forced her off the road. Thank goodness her father, a dentist, had shown her countless times how to change a flat tire. He’d said he never wanted his little girl to be unprepared should she ever find herself in a situation such as this.
Audrey yanked open the back hatch to start removing suitcases to get to the spare tire and her other tools, mentally cursing all the way.
Piper stuck her head over the backseat. “Are you gonna fix the car?”
Audrey grinned and ignored the bead of sweat rolling down the middle of her back, even though the temperature was in the sixties. “You bet, sweetie.”
Piper bounced in the seat. “I’m hungry.”
Of course she was. Next thing, she’d have to go to the bathroom.
Audrey set the jack on the ground and dug around for a snack. She handed the girl a plastic bag of Goldfish crackers and a Fruit Roll-Up.
“Stay in your seat, please,” she reminded the six-year-old. Piper, God love her, had the attention span of a puppy.
Audrey had just set the jack and wrench on the ground in front of the flat when a deep rumbling behind the trailer caught her attention. A shiny yellow Camaro slowed to a stop; then the rumbling quieted and the driver exited the car.
Great. Probably some guy who thought she didn’t know shit about changing tires. Just because she was just shy of a hundred twenty and average height didn’t mean she didn’t know how to handle things herself. Men always underestimated her.
“Need a hand with that?”
The voice was deep and low and tickled long-forgotten places. Places Evan had yet to discover. Strange. This guy pulls over to offer help, mutters five words, and all of a sudden sparks were igniting all over the place, like she was some nun who’d never heard a sexy voice before.
Audrey jabbed the wrench on the first lug nut and twisted. The thing didn’t budge. “I’ve got it,” she responded with a glance at his brand-new AND1s.
The stance of his feet widened. “Looks like you’re struggling.”
She spared him a glance…way the hell up because, damn, he was tall. But she couldn’t get a good look at his face because the bright afternoon sun shone just over his shoulder and blinded her. Her only impression was long legs and wide shoulders. Oh, and don’t forget that voice.
