“Wonder Woman fan?” I asked, nodding toward her shirt.
She nodded. “Since I was a kid. I know most girls like Wonder Woman, but I’ve learned all there is to know. I’ve gotten my hands on every comic I could. This is a vintage T-shirt that I won after a vicious online bidding war.” She pulled down her shirt to show me the entire design, stretching it over her full breasts. “Ask me anything.”
Who knew a Wonder Woman T-shirt would win the new starring role in my future fantasies?
“I believe you.” I held my hands up in surrender while I bit back a smile. “I’m sure the other bidders didn’t stand a chance.”
“Nope.” She popped her lips on the p, narrowing her pretty eyes at me. “Do you read any comics?”
“Yes, a ton. Since I was a kid. I’m a Batman guy, too, but I like some of the non-mainstream stuff.”
My weekly comic book trip was the one luxury I allowed myself since I’d gotten out, and at times, my only sanity. Even when I was away, when I wasn’t reading the old comics from the library, I was sketching my heart out.
“Like indie comics?” she gasped, her eyes wide. God, this girl was killing me. “We definitely need to chat. Spawn and so many others are amazing. My stepdad and I used to troll comic book stores in Manhattan to search for good ones.”
“I’d like that.” A smile curved my lips when our eyes met again, and red stained her cheeks once more. Would a friendship be so bad? That wasn’t against the rules … maybe. I had an odd but burning need to get to know her better, but friendship was all I could give her as I didn’t have anything to offer anyone. Maybe that would change someday, but that was a limitation I couldn’t ignore or avoid anytime soon.
The bell chimed over the front door followed by heavy footsteps.
“Here you go, Baby Falco.” A bald older man with a Falco’s Custom Bikes polo placed a tall coffee cup on Victoria’s desk.
Baby Falco? Was she related to Josh? He had unusual green eyes too, but hers distracted me long enough to forget.
“Thanks, Lou. I’ve been dying for a pumpkin spice latte since I came in!” She grabbed the cup and brought it to her lips.
“You’re lucky you’re the boss’s daughter. I can’t stand that hipster coffee place. Or the smell of that stuff.” His face crumpled in an exaggerated wince.
And cue the proverbial record scratch.
There could be nothing between me and Victoria, not even a comic discussion. Josh was a good guy who was giving me a chance, and I knew better than to sniff around his beautiful and probably amazing daughter.
I almost felt relieved. Things had been going too well to be real. Now, I had the perfect job with a side of daily torture. In my head, that evened things out.
“Well, I can’t stand the sludge you guys call coffee here.” She scowled at Lou before nodding toward me with her chin. “This is Anthony, our new mechanic. I’m getting all his paperwork together for the main office.”
“Hey, nice to meet you, Anthony!”
I stood to take his extended hand. “Nice to meet you too, Lou.” I managed a sincere smile.
“I’m the garage manager. We’ll talk about your schedule when you start. Glad to have you here.” Lou grinned before heading toward the back.
“Here you go.” Victoria handed me a folder. “I highlighted all the places for you to sign, should only take you a few minutes, but let me know if you have any questions.” She rose from her seat, and I lost myself in her beaming smile for the last time. “Excuse me one second, grabbing a cookie from my stash in the break room. Can I get you anything?”
“No, thanks. I’ll fill this out and be on my way.” I took the folder and grabbed a pen, turning my attention toward the forms and away from her fading smile in my periphery.
“Oh, well let me know if you have any trouble.” She turned to leave, and I allowed myself one quick glance in her direction.
I may have been out of jail, but I had no idea when I’d really be free.
2
Victoria
I sighed into my phone. “You’re supposed to be on a date, why do you need me to come?
The shake of my father’s shoulders as he sifted through the file cabinet next to my desk meant he’d heard enough of my conversation with my friend, Marley, to be amused.
“Why did you agree to go in the first place if you didn’t want to?”
“Class was ending, and Will said maybe we should meet up sometime. I said sure, and he suggested tonight. I was too put on the spot to think of a coherent way to say no. If it’s awful, I need an easy out. We can, like, work out a sign.”
I slapped my hand against my forehead as I groaned. Only Marley would make hanging out with a guy on a Friday night a project.
“How about I call you a half hour in? That’s enough to know if it’s going well or not. If you end up having a good time, I don’t want to be stuck out alone like a sad, discarded third wheel.”
“I’d never discard you! Bring that hot new mechanic you mentioned.” Her voice dipped, and I could imagine the waggle of her eyebrows.
“The one who I told you won’t speak to me? Right. Go have fun. Talk to you at 8:30.”
I ended the call, shaking my head before I went back to the numbers on my computer screen.
“You can cut out early today if you want to, Sweets. It’s Friday, shouldn’t you be on your way to some frat party or something?”
I laughed at my father’s comment.
He was over six feet with tattoos over most of his large body, but he was a softie when it came to his wife and kids. I secretly loved that even though I was nineteen, Dad still called me Sweets. I didn’t even mind Lou calling me Baby Falco since he was like an uncle to me.
I minded that once Anthony realized I was Josh Falco’s daughter, the brief but awesome connection with him that I hadn’t imagined simply stopped. He nodded a hello to me when he came in, and while he was animated in conversation with the guys in the garage, he hadn’t really spoken to me in the two weeks since he’d started working here.
Why was I so hurt over it? It’s not like I hadn’t ever been blown off by a guy before. But even though our conversation had been brief, I could tell that Anthony was different. He was gorgeous with his soulful brown eyes and the tease of a tattoo creeping up the olive skin on his neck. More than that, there was something about him. Despite his broad shoulders and over six feet of height, he had this vulnerability and sincerity that had drawn me in even before he’d introduced himself.
The guys I’d dated, and most of my friends, never got my comic obsession. Some thought it was cute, but I held back how much of it was a part of who I was. No one my age really understood that side of me. I loved talking to Anthony about it until he stopped making eye contact with me.
“It’s not a big deal. No frat parties tonight.” I stifled a smile as my eyes met his. Dad and I had the same weird Hulk-green colored eyes, although mine were a shade lighter. Dad had told me that’s how he knew I was his. Most kids meet their father when they’re babies, but I met mine when I was eight years old. He swooped in like a superhero and was the dad I’d always dreamed of and more.