The car’s horn honked loudly, startling them both, and they flinched out of the moment. She brought her hand to her mouth, looking down at her other hand that had inadvertently honked the horn. Appearing embarrassed but at the same time smiling, she turned to Orlando. “Oops. I’ve never been very good behind the wheel,” she explained. “I don’t think I’m that bad, but my sister never lets me drive when we go anywhere together.” She giggled now. “She calls me Mrs. Magoo and can’t believe I passed my driver’s test.”
Orlando chuckled, remembering the times she’d knocked over his trashcans, backing out of his driveway and the time she’d parked on his flower bed and didn’t even notice. Orlando had thought those were just flukes. Now he had to wonder if that accident she’d been in had anything to do with her being under the influence or if she was just that bad a driver. She did say she was just above the legal limit and had passed the sobriety test.
Danica’s attention went back to the car’s interior. Even Orlando hadn’t had a chance to check the car out in detail since it’d just gotten in. He explained what everything was for as he himself took everything in. It was in awesome condition already but did need some work. “The walnut wood trim wasn’t added until nineteen forty-seven. It’s one of the main things we’ll be adding to it all around the inside. That and adding newer shinier knobs and such.” He reached out to touch one of the knobs on the dash just as she reached out too, and their hands grazed. Once again Orlando turned to her, their faces close enough to kiss, and he was going for it this time. She even licked her lips as her eyes dropped to his.
“Hey, I was supposed to be the first one to sit in this bad boy,” Nine said, walking up from behind the car with Byron. Motherfucker!
Orlando let his head fall back against the head rest as Nine reached the passenger’s side and Dani opened the door. “Nah, you’re good.” Nine smiled. “I’m just messing with you.”
“I should probably get back to relieve Alonso anyway,” Dani said, starting out of the car.
“I’ll walk back with you,” Orlando said, not wanting her back in that lobby alone with the guy. “I need to get something from there.” He turned to Nine as he opened his door too. “Looks good, man. This one’s gonna be tight.”
“I already ordered some of the parts,” Nine said, jumping in the passenger’s side as Byron jumped in the driver’s side as soon as Dani got out.
Orlando told them he’d be back and headed to the lobby with Dani. Not wanting the walk back to get awkward, he pointed more stuff out about the shop. It was probably for the best that he didn’t get the chance to do what he wanted to so badly. He had to keep reminding himself that, if he went there, there’d be no turning back, even if it was just a kiss. If he hadn’t even kissed her yet and he was already seeing red anytime there were guys sniffing around her, he could only imagine how much worse he’d be once he’d had a taste of that mouth. She might balk at any demands he knew he’d start making if he gave into the temptation of kissing her. He just had to calm his damn heart and stay focused on what really mattered: his son not his own lustful temptations. Fuck my life.
Chapter 19
Danica
More than once throughout the day, Danica caught herself prancing around and humming: mostly Cri Cri songs and usually with Oreo in her arms as her partner. It was hard to believe she’d gone from being so miserable for months to now having what felt like the perfect life. She still couldn’t get over how her boss was an absolute dream to be around. Even if some of their moments had gotten dangerously intense, Danica still had things under control. She’d since gone out and searched the Cri Cri songs on YouTube after Orlando initially reminded her of them and had been playing them for Oreo during the day every time she watched him. It was the oddest thing now to relate these songs to Orlando. But if it hadn’t been for him, she probably would’ve forgotten all about them.
During her now routine daily stroll to the park that day with Oreo, she’d had time to think, since the baby was good and distracted with all the dogs at the park. They were having some kind of dog vaccination day or something, and lots of people attended with their dogs. While they distracted her from her thoughts, she’d inevitably zone out, thinking about all those intense moments with Orlando again. For as dreamy as Orlando was in every way, she couldn’t help feeling excited at the possibility that he might actually be attracted to her. Never in her wildest dreams had she considered anything happening between her and Oreo’s father a possibility. But she had to remind herself how critical it was that she not get carried away with this crush she’d developed on him almost since that first day.
When he’d walked back into the shop from the moving truck outside that first day, her jaw had nearly dropped. Seeing him in that tank top had been beyond breathtaking. She’d even dreamed of him in his signature beanie since then more than once. But hearing him speak of his boy the way he had that day with such genuine urgency, not only had her heart pounding with joy and relief, but admittedly also generated an instant infatuation, one she’d considered harmless at the time. She’d just been so happy about his taking on fatherhood so willingly. With each passing day around him, his being so incredibly sweet and then keeping her secret about her past, she felt this bond with him now. He’d even shared his heartbreaking story about his brother with her and then later admitted only a handful of people knew about it. She’d been adamant all this time that she wouldn’t let her crush on the guy mess things up for her. And she still was, but it kept getting harder and harder, and now she was beginning to feel lovesick.
With Felicia out of the picture now and Orlando all but assuring her that he was done with her, Danica had to continue to remind herself that doing anything with him was still a risk. If things went sour, she could lose this job. Lifting Oreo out of his stroller, she hugged him tightly with a grunt and kissed his little cheeks. God, she couldn’t take the chance. She just couldn’t, no matter how tempting it’d be to give into anything Orlando might actually put out there. She was also determined to get her life together, the sooner the better, especially if things changed between them. Knowing how he felt about the person who’d cheated him out of those first months with his baby, she had all the more reason to hold off on spilling it about that. She’d since decided, maybe if their bond got even tighter, he might be more apt to forgive her. Hearing the ways the guys talked down at the shop helped her not get any crazy ideas about giving into just a fling. Just as Orlando said Byron had decided to go back to just having his fun with girls but not getting into anything serious with any of them, all the guys down at the shop seemed to think the same way. With the exception of his married partners, most of the other guys who worked there openly joked about getting laid and bagging a different chick every weekend. Now Orlando had pretty much told Danica it’s what he did too. That he’d even been upfront with Felicia when he’d first started seeing her. So maybe he stared at Danica a little too long sometimes. Maybe he was thinking naughty things when he smiled at her the way he did that left her breathless. He’d all but spelled it out for her already. He was all for a good time as long as she didn’t start getting clingy. Felicia was a perfect example of what would happen if she did.