Mid Life Love (Mid Life Love #1)(21)

“Thank you for the ride, Mr. Statham.” She cleared her throat twenty minutes into the ride.

“Thank you for accepting it. Am I de-invited to your birthday party now?”

“No.” She looked out her window. “You can still come if you want.”

I was coming regardless...

“Good. How was your day at work?”

“Wonderful. As it always is, Mr. Statham.”

I turned off at the next exit. “Please call me Jonathan.”

“I prefer Mr. Statham. It helps me keep in mind why I will never go out with you.”

I laughed. “I love a woman with a sense of humor.”

I pulled into the towing lot and parked right outside the holding office. Claire hastily unbuckled her seat-belt, but I reached over and put my hand over hers.

“Wait here. I’ll have them pull it out front for you. It’s the least I can do.”

I walked inside the small building and the receptionist blushed. “How can I help you today, sir?”

“I’m here to retrieve a car that was towed about a half hour ago from Jennifer Drive. It’s a light gray—”

“Audi Q7?” She pulled a folder from the shelf above her desk. “My records say it was parked in a zone without a proper parking pass. Statham Industries must be an awful place to work, huh? We tow at least ten cars a day from there.”

“Yes, it’s a horrible place. How much to get the car out?”

“Three hundred and fifty dollars.”

That’s ridiculous...Do my employees really have to pay that much every time?

I handed her my credit card and she had me fill out a few pages of paperwork.

“I’ll have it brought out in a second.” She disappeared.

When I walked back outside, Claire was leaning against the hood of my car with her arms folded above her head. Images of her lying like that in my bed, on my shower bench, and on my yacht quickly flashed through my mind.

The things I would do to her...

“How much do I owe you?” She sat up, frowning.

“Nothing, except our date that we’ll be discussing at your birthday party.”

“I don’t think so. I’m fine with you coming to my birthday party, but after what happened today, I’m not going out with you.” She suppressed a smile. “I mean it.”

“We’ll discuss it on Friday.”

Out the corner of my eye, I saw her car rolling through the lot. As it moved closer, I heard a strange popping sound and then I saw the problem: Both of her back tires were shredded; they looked like rubber shingles.

“Are you kidding me?” She rushed over as a scruffy guy stepped out of her car. “Why do my tires look like that? They were perfectly fine thirty minutes ago!”

He shrugged and tossed her the keys. “I just pull the cars around. I don’t ask questions ma’am.”

“How am I supposed to get home in this?” She was fuming now, and I could tell she was trying her best not to slap him. “Why would you deliberately slash my tires? Towing the car wasn’t enough?”

“Well ma’am, we do sell tires here if you’re interested. We currently have a free installation promotion if you buy—”

“Shut the f**k up.” She shook her head. “And get away from me. Right now.”

He backed away from her with his hands raised in defeat. He pulled a “tire sale” flyer from his pocket and slipped it to me before disappearing.

“I’m sorry about your car—again.” I waited for her to look at me. “I didn’t know that they—”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll just remember not to park my car in the ‘nine to five only’ zone from now on. Are you going to prevent me from calling a cab this time too?”

“Why don’t you drive my car home? I’ll have yours taken to a body shop and have it back at corporate for you tomorrow.”

“What?” She looked confused. “You’re offering to let me drive your—” She looked over at my car and shrugged. “What type of car is that?”

I smiled. “It’s a Bugatti.”

“Right. And you’re taking my car to a body shop? What’s the catch? You think doing that will make me go out with you?”

“No catch. I think you’ve suffered enough disappointment for one day. That’s all.”

She studied me for a minute, looking into my eyes as if she were contemplating my offer. “I don’t want to feel like I owe you anything because of this...I’ll just call one of my friends to come get me. I’m sure—”

“There’s no catch, Claire. I’m just trying to be nice to you. Can you let me be nice to you?”

She still looked unsure, but she nodded.

“Good. Park it in lot eight tomorrow morning and leave the keys inside. I’ll park yours in lot nine and leave your keys with security.”

She grabbed a few things from her car and handed me the keys. “You sure you’re okay with letting me drive your car? Wouldn’t it be easier for you to drive me home?”

“As much as I would like to take you home, Claire...” I smiled. “I’m sure you probably think that would be inappropriate.”

She blushed. “You’re exactly right.” She slipped inside the driver’s seat, locking her eyes on mine for a few seconds before finally driving off.