"Sorry ma'am but your vehicle did not pass emissions." the worker said dismissively.
And there it was she thought, the icing on the shit cake that is my day. "No way!" she protested.
The worker didn't care though. "I recommend AMS Car Shop down the street. Have them take a look at it."
"Thanks." she mumbled as she grabbed the paper and drove out of the testing bay.
"Fuck!" Naomi yelled as she drove erratically down the street. Why the hell was today trying to kill me? she thought to herself. Like being late to work and getting yelled at by patients wasn't enough, there just had to be car problems on top of it.
Working as a nurse in the ER was the best job in the world but it could also be the worst. Certainly there were more good days than bad but today was definitely bad.
After a terrible day at work she had raced home, thrown on a sundress (much better than her scrubs) and raced to the emissions center. Her car registration expired at midnight, so she was racing against the clock.
Driving into the auto shop parking lot, she made the terrible mistake of wondering if things could get any worse.
One pull of the front door and she realized that things could definitely get worse.
"Seriously?!" She exploded out loud at the realization that the door was locked and the shop was closed.
It was too much for her. She dropped her purse, sat down and let the tears come. The anxiety of the day mixed with the frustrations were a concoction too strong for her. The rage melted into sadness.
"Ma'am?" A deep voice permeated through the sound of her pity party.
Looking up she saw a mechanic staring at her with concern. Falling deep into his eyes, she was almost too shocked to be embarrassed.
"Are you ok?" He asked with a concerned voice "I was just getting into my truck when I saw you walking up to the door. I'm sorry but we're closed."
As reality came back to her, the embarrassment seeped in. Realizing that she was in her little dress, with disheveled blonde hair and flip flops just falling apart in front of this hot ass man.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry. It's been a shitty day. My car failed emissions up the street so I was just hoping to bring it here to get it fixed tonight." She wiped her tears and stood up trying to gather what dignity she had left.
"We'll open tomorrow at 8am. My name is Brad." He extended his rough, dirty hand to her.
"Naomi." She placed her petite hand into his firm grip. Trying to stay unflustered she asked, "Is there another shop around here? I really need to get this fixed tonight. My registration expires at midnight and tomorrow morning is my only opportunity to take it back through emissions."
Fuck she thought, I'm rambling. Stay cool Naomi.
"Most of the shops close at the same time... I would take a look at it for you but the shop is locked up with my tools. The only spare tools I have are at home." His voice trailed off as if considering something. His eyes trailed down her body without apology. She felt her heart skip a beat. "If you want to follow me home and be my assistant, I can take a look at it." he said with a flirty smile.
She bit her lip, looking into his eyes. They were almost demanding her to take him up on his offer. Normally she would laugh off such a suggestion. Any clearly thinking adult woman would know that you don't follow a strange man back to his house. That is what Lifetime Movies are made of. Yet something about his muscular build, those green eyes and his messy brown hair, just made common sense seem to evaporate. The sexual tension was suddenly palpable.
"That would be great. If you're sure... I don't want to mess up your night." She almost whispered.
"It will only make my night better trust me." He said flashing a satisfied smile "Just follow my truck. It's just up the street". As they both walked back to their cars she kept trying to assure herself that what she was doing was totally rational... even though she knew it wasn't...
15 minutes later Naomi was pulling up to the house belonging to her hero. He parked his truck on the street and hopped out.
"Right in here!" he motioned to his garage opening up.
"Last chance to back out now" Naomi thought to herself as common sense tried to make a comeback. She took a deep breath, looked towards the masculine mechanic, her heart skipped a beat and common sense was suddenly lost again.
Naomi parked the car in the garage and giggled at how obvious it was that the garage belonged to a mechanic's. Car parts, tools and grease littered the garage. It was a two car garage but with everything in it and her car, it left little room for the two to move around in. He had a work light on which illuminated the place. Posters of mostly naked women posing with hot rods lined the walls.
"Whew! Damn this heat. Would you like a cold beer?" Brad asked.
"Sure. That would be awesome. Thanks."
Moments later he returned with two ice cold beers and a smile that could melt the strongest woman.
"I'm dying here." Brad said as he wiped his sweaty forehead. As he walked to a corner of the garage, he began unbuttoning his shirt. Naomi had to remind herself to breath as he pulled his shirt off and tossed it on a table. He started a large fan and pushed the garage door button on the wall causing it to close. "That will help it cool down in here." he explained. But Naomi didn't hear him. She was too busy staring at his gorgeous body. How could someone look so tasty? She thought. When she noticed him staring back at her she quickly said a prayer that she hadn't just said her thoughts out loud.
She smiled nervously and he chuckled.
"Did you hear me?" he asked looking amused.
"I'm sorry, what?" she asked scolding herself for being stupid.
