12. Chapter 10

I head out of school and over to Bill's to pick up my car. It's a beautiful autumn day and the leaves are falling to the ground in vibrant hues of red, yellow, and orange. I smile to myself and take a deep breath. I love this time of year.

The sense of peace I have knowing I won't be stranded on the side of the road somewhere is wonderful. The amount it's costing for this peace is another form of stress that I somehow just can't seem to balance out yet.

The wind blows and I lift up my head toward the sky, eyes closed, and take a deep breath. I feel the cool breeze caress my skin. When I open my eyes I see Bill's shop just ahead of me.

"Hey Bill," I smile at him. "How are you?"

"I'm doing pretty well, Brie. Beautiful day out today, huh?"

"Yes. My absolute favorite time of year." He nods and returns my smile.

"I prefer spring, as it tends to get warmer rather than colder, but I agree it is pretty. Let's talk business now, shall we?"

"That would be wonderful. So how is my beautiful blue baby?"

"Getting up there in years, but still a solid car."

"That's what I keep telling everyone!"

"However—" he starts, and I frown at the warning tone. "It's getting to the point where the upkeep of your blue baby may be more expensive than getting a new one."

"Which is another thing everyone keeps telling me," I chuckle. "Let's deal with one problem at a time if you don't mind."

"You got it," he says cheerfully. "It's people like you who keep me in business and I'll never tell you to get a new car more than once."

A full laugh escapes and I point at him. "Now that"s what I'm going to start telling everyone from now on. I keep Bill in business."

"And I appreciate it." He smiles back at me. "Let's take a look under the hood."

I walk over to him and take a look at the engine with him. I have a general idea of what everything is but I am by no means an expert. Uncle Rich made sure that I know the basics. If my battery dies I know how to use jumper cables. Flat tire? I can change it. Oil? I can do that too but it's pretty messy. Wiper fluid, I'm good.

Anything else? I let the experts handle it.

Bill is pointing and talking showing me where the work was done, but to be honest I've tuned him out. As long as it's fixed, and I don't need to worry, then I'm good.

"Thanks, Bill. I am so relieved to have this all done, and I'm grateful that you were able to fit me in so quickly."

He waves his hand at me like it's no big deal.

"I can't have you stuck somewhere out of town, can I?" Then he puts his hand next to his mouth and leans in like he's telling me a big secret. "This doesn't take all that long to fix really. The part is the most expensive part."

I smile at him. "Regardless, I appreciate you." I reach into my purse and pull out my wallet. "How much do I owe you?"

"Not a thing, it's already been taken care of."

My eyebrows dip together and I tilt my head. "But I didn't pay you yet."

"Nope. But someone else did." He slyly smiles at me as he wipes the grease from the engine off his hands.

"Seriously, Bill. How much do I owe you?" I push.

"Nothing." He smiles, closes the hood, and hands me my keys. "You're free to drive away."

I purse my lips, tilt my head, and narrow my eyes at him. "Who paid?"

"Just someone." He smirks.

"Just someone?" I repeat.

"Yup." He chuckles and starts to walk away from me.

"Are you not going to tell me?" I yell after him.

"Nope. Have a good day, Brie. See you around." I hear his laugh as he walks into his shop and closes the door.

I walk to my car and put my hand on the handle and freeze. Josh. It was Josh. I find myself annoyed and grateful at the same time.

Josh is many things, and that includes considerate and generous. He's always gone out of his way to help people. It's one of those things that I admire about him. If you happen to be someone he cares about he takes you under his wing and protects you. Just like a mama bird.

It can still be annoying at times, but in moments like this, it's a gift. What's that saying, ‘never look a gift horse in the mouth'? Not sure that really applies here, but I'm not going to be stubborn about this. Josh paying helps me out more than I care to admit. Next time I see him I'm just going to say thank you.

I get in my car, start the engine and smile at the purr it makes. I pull away from Bill's and head over to my aunt and uncle's for our weekly dinner. Friday night is meatloaf and mashed potatoes, my favorite meal of the week.

Don't mock it until you've tried it. Aunt Marie's meatloaf is seriously the best thing I've ever eaten. Total comfort food that makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.

Suddenly, my conversation with Josh at the park yesterday pops into my head. The thought of dating Josh makes my heart skip a few beats and my stomach flutter. What would it be like to hold his hand, to have his arm around my shoulder, or to kiss his lips?

Brianne! What on earth is going on with these thoughts? First off, this would be fake dating! And fake dating doesn't include those things. Does it?

I shrug. I've never fake dated anyone so I don't really know what it entails. No one I've known has fake dated someone so I haven't seen it in real life. I've heard of it in novels but never really thought twice about it because it sounds silly. I mean really. Why fake date someone?

I see Josh get out of his car just as I pull up to my aunt and uncle's house. He looks at me and gives me one of my favorite Josh Owen's smiles. The one where his eyes are bright and warm but every tooth isn't fully showing. Every time I see this smile I feel like the Wicked Witch of the West as she gets hit by water. But in a good way.

My door opens and it snaps me back to reality.

"Hey." His gruff voice washes over me like a warm shower.

I hear a slight hesitation in his voice. Is he nervous? I wonder as I get out of the car.

"Thank you, for getting my door and for paying Bill."

"Pfft." He waves me off like it's nothing. I turn, touch his arm and stop him on the sidewalk.

"It's not nothing. Seriously Josh, thank you." His eyes light up and he gives me a small grin. In that moment I know. I'm going to help him. I'm going to fake date Josh Owens.

"Okay," I say and his eyebrows dip as he tilts his head. "I'll do it."

His brows furrow even more before they shoot up and a huge smile creeps across his face. "You'll do it?"

"I'll do it," I squeal as he picks me up and twirls me around. "Put me down, put me down. Your shoulder!"

His smile is still spread across his face as he gently places me back on the ground but I notice a slight wince.

"You need to be careful. I don't want to help you only to have you hurt your shoulder more."

"Okay, Mom. I'll be careful." The smirk on his face makes my knees turn to jelly. "We have to talk about details. Are you around tomorrow morning to meet up?"

"Aren't you traveling to Baltimore tomorrow?" I ask, confused.

"Yes, but we aren't leaving until tomorrow night."

"Oh. Sure then."

"I'll text you in the morning and we'll iron out the details."

"Sounds good. Tell your parents I said ‘hi'," I say as I start to head up the walkway to my aunt and uncle's.

"Do the same with your aunt and uncle." I wave to him over my shoulder.

I look over at him and see a grin from ear to ear on his face as he bounces up the steps to his parent's. The smile that I've been trying to reign in breaks free and stretches across my face.

I am going to be dating Josh Owens.

I shake my head and let out a small chuckle and then I hear a tiny voice correct me.

You are going to be fake dating Josh Owens.

I laugh at my silly self and open the door, just as the smell of meatloaf hits me. My stomach growls, and I focus on the next adventure in front of me.

Dinner.