His fingers clench the steering wheel, and he looks out his side window. He has been acting so weird today.
“I would rather wait.”
I sigh. “Just get us a seat. It takes less than five minutes to walk from here.”
When he doesn’t immediately respond, I start to wonder what is going on in his head. He’s never been like this before, and I can’t get why he’s acting like this now.
“Okay.”
I slip out of the truck, trying to ignore his behavior. I think we’re just off. Usually we can talk for hours, but since we started having issues with the show and, well, his arrogance, it’s been rough going, especially without Syd around. She could act like a buffer between us.
It isn’t that busy and I can see my car is sitting outside still. I walk into the office and see Josh talking with Mitch. I frown as I walk forward, catching a few words that tell me Mitch found something wrong with one of the cars. I didn’t notice any police cars in the bays, but that doesn’t mean anything.
Then, Mitch stops talking in the middle of a sentence and looks at me. Josh turns around, worry etching his face.
“Something wrong?”
“Yeah, we have to talk about your car,” Josh says.
“What?”
The men share a look and I don’t like that at all. It’s one of those things that they use in movies to telegraph something bad. When they turn back to face me again, my stomach clenches. This is definitely something bad.
“We think that someone tampered with it,” Josh comments.
“Tampered?” I shake my head because my brain isn’t comprehending what he means.
“Yeah. The puncture to it wasn’t by accident, it’s too big,” Josh says as he glances at Mitch.
“Those tires are new, right?”
“Yeah, but I’m always around construction sites and there are nails laying around all the time.”
Mitch shakes his head. “The damage done to your tire isn’t from something small. Someone wanted you to have a flat tire.”
Something cold congeals in my stomach, and I have to swallow the urge to freak out. Like FREAK ALL THE WAY OUT. I don’t like the way they are both acting.
“Josh, just spit it out.”
He sighs. “Do you think there is anyone who would want to hurt you?”
I blink. “Well, no not really. Why?”
“It might be nothing. It might be some random asshole decided to screw with a random car in the parking lot.”
I nod. “Okay.”
“I’m gonna talk to Wyatt and then Mystical Pizza across the street. I think they both have cameras. If anything, we can prove it was just random.”
But even as he says it, I get a really bad feeling down in my gut.
“Hey, don’t worry. I bet it’s nothing, like I said. Just, check back in with me later.”
“Also, I’m gonna have to order your tire. Do you need a loaner?” Mitch asks.
I shake my head. “Travis can drop me back off at home. I’m actually on my way to the diner to meet him, so I’ll get out of your hair.”
Both men nod and Josh even offers me a reassuring smile. It doesn’t reassure me though. As I walk to the diner, I think over last night, trying to think if there was anything that happened that was out of the ordinary. I want to push the thoughts away, thinking about anyone who might have it in for me. But the truth is, since our little town has gotten more and more popular as a tourist destination, this kind of crap has been happening more and more.
With a sigh, I push away my worries for now because I have a big, stupid cohost to deal with. Right now, that’s all the trouble I can handle.
Chapter Ten
Travis
As I wait for Nancy, I go over everything that kept me up all last night. Syd had told me to think about my behavior and when I did, it shamed me. I mean, I knew I was being an ass, but it was like I couldn’t stop myself. But even that’s a lie, because my sister taught me better than that.
See, I got so wrapped up in myself, the way the show made me a star, that I forgot all about my relationship with Nancy. We had come together to do this show, old friends who loved to flip houses, and we became instant hits. It wasn’t hard to understand why people were drawn to our show. We have fun and people enjoy our humor.
I guess that should be had fun. The last few months have been bad. And as I thought about it, I realized that if my sister worked with someone who behaved like I did, I would want her to quit.
When did I become that asshole?
I think about the fights, about the way I talked down to her and the way I sided with Garrett, our producer, every time he suggested something stupid. I have spent so many years trying to put space between us that I lost control this year. That’s on me. We’ve always argued but this season, well, I’m lucky Nancy has agreed to talk to me at all.
By the time I start my second cup of coffee, my nerves are starting to get to me. I roll my shoulders trying to work out the kinks in my back. That glorified cot I slept on last night was not kind to my back.
My hands are sweaty, and it has nothing to do with the heat. I haven’t been this nervous in a long time. Even thinking about what I could lose thanks to my stupidity has my palms sweating. Truth is, I would hate for the show to go under. People would lose their jobs, people who depend on me. Losing my friendship with Nancy…a hundred times worse. In the end, I’m not sure Syd wouldn’t pick her best friend over me, seeing how this is all my fault. My infatuation with Nancy is the reason I’ve been a total ass. I need to get that in check before we start filming again. If we start filming again.
Evil Sis: You will not fuck this up.
Me: I love you too.
Evil Sis: Suck it.
Evil Sis: But seriously.
Me: I am going to try my damnedest.
Evil Sis: Atta boy. What are you doing?
Me: Having sex.
Evil sis: *JimCarrey Gross Gif*
Evil sis: Also, it must not be that good if you’re texting with me. Unless that’s what you need, and now I grossed myself out.
I sigh. I love Syd but she is always like this. Threatens me. Grosses me out. Embarrasses me.
Me: I’m at Munchies waiting on Nancy. We’re having breakfast.
The bell tinkles and I look up. The moment my gaze lands on Nancy, my entire body sizzles. Since the moment I knew what went on between men and women, I’ve been infatuated with my sister’s best friend. It’s hard not to be. She has one of those personalities that call to me. Funny as hell, but sassy as fuck. She has her dark brown hair up in a messy bun that makes me yearn to slip my fingers through it to dislodge it. I love when she wears her hair down, letting all her silky curls drip over her shoulders.
She pushes her sunglasses up on top of her head and looks around searching for me. Anticipation thrums in my blood, heating me, and I wait. The moment our gazes connect, my cock twitches. She makes her way over to me, her eyes never moving from mine. It’s oddly arousing, but I’ve realized that with Nancy, anything she does is arousing. Even when she throws things at me and calls me a dumbass, it turns me on.
Without a word, she slips into the booth. Sheryl, the waitress who has been paying way too much attention to me, comes over.