It's About Time (Blossom Peak #4)(21)

Steven grumbles under his breath. “It’s probably a good thing I can’t go with you because if I saw that motherfucker in person, I would definitely break his fucking nose.”

Adoration swells in my chest. “And I love you for that, but hitting him won’t do a damn thing. He’s more of an emotional damage sort of asshole.”

“You can’t let him get to you, Dilynne,” Laney interjects. “You’ve worked so hard for this.”

“I know, and the Porsche will be ready and will make jaws drop, I’m sure of it. But…” I sigh heavily. “I don’t know. Showing up alone just makes me feel more vulnerable. I can already hear the shit he’s going to say, alluding to the fact that everything I know is because of him…”

“ And anyone who knows you and has seen you at work knows that’s a lie,” Steven replies.

“Exactly,” Laney agrees.

“You know how it is though, Laney. Unfortunately, this industry is predominantly men, and a single woman breaking through the glass ceiling doesn’t exactly sit well with them.”

“You just threaten their manhood, babe,” Steven adds. “Most of them are probably attracted to you too, which makes their internal struggle even harder. That’s why they can’t handle you. You restore cars better than them and you make their dicks hard.”

Laney laughs. “Thank you so much for that revelation.”

“That’s what I’m here for, right?” Steven tips his drink toward her.

“Ugh, I just hate how much this asshole still affects me. I mean, we broke up five years ago, but…”

Even though I’ve been helping Elliot through his breakup over the past year, I’m not too proud to say there are still moments that bring me back to a dark place when it comes to Vinnie, and Motorlux is one of them.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you as your assistant?” Laney offers. “I know you already told me no, but…”

“And I stand by that. Your priority right now is growing my niece or nephew. If Steven wasn’t going on a trip with his family, he’d be my first pick anyway.”

Laney found out she was pregnant right after her wedding to Fletcher a few weeks ago. It was around the same time that her brother’s girlfriend, Vienna, found out she’s got a bun in the oven as well.

If I’m not careful, the water around here might contaminate me with a baby too. That is, only if my IUD fails, which I know is unlikely, thank God.

But I’m not na?ve to how much energy it takes to grow a human, and the last thing I want my best friend to worry about right now is my mental stability with my ex. She did enough of that back when we broke up, and I’ll never be able to repay her fully.

Laney scoffs. “Wow. Okay, glad to know your honesty filter is coming back.”

I sigh heavily. “I’ll figure it out.”

Steven leans closer to me. “Glad to know I’m your first pick, though. Makes me feel secure in our relationship.”

“Trust me, Steven. Our relationship is one of the only ones I feel solid about, so that says a lot.”

He blows me a kiss and then retreats to the front office, leaving me and Laney alone. Laney nudges my shoulder with hers. “You know, the fact that Vinnie can’t keep your name out of his mouth has much more to do with him than it does you, right?”

“Oh, trust me. I tell myself that every time he threatens to disturb my peace. But this is different. I won’t be able to escape him for five days. His face will be on fucking promotional flyers and boards everywhere I turn. And his little brown noser of a girlfriend will be following him around the entire time.” I pinch the bridge of my nose. “It’s so sad because she really doesn’t possess any self-respect, Laney. The funny thing is, she’s actually pretty knowledgeable about cars. She and I had a conversation at a show a few years ago—before I knew she was his girlfriend, that is. I was impressed by how much she knows about cars, stuff that some of the men out there don’t know. But sadly, she doesn’t have the courage to try to make a name for herself, so she just latches onto the hot guy who’s having his moment and answers to his beck and call.”

“Then feel sorry for her, not jealous.”

I t hrow my head back in laughter. “Oh trust me, I’m not jealous at all. Vinnie is gonna chew her up and spit her out just the way he did me.”

“That’s her decision, though, Dilynne. You don’t have to save her from that.”

I meet Laney’s eyes. “But shouldn’t I? Shouldn’t I warn her about what he’s going to do to her?”

Laney squeezes her arm around my shoulders. “The way you want to protect people is one of the things that I love most about you, Dilynne Marie Clark. But some people aren’t going to want your help, remember?”

I narrow my eyes at her. “Is that supposed to be in reference to someone in particular?”

Laney releases me and then shrugs. “I think you know the answer to that question. And even when you tried to warn Elliot before he got engaged to Tori, he still wouldn’t listen. So I think what you should take from that is even if you were to warn this girl, she’s going to do what she wants to do anyway.”

Elliot Thorne—pain in my ass, one of my brother’s best friends, and yet another poor, unfortunate soul who trusted the wrong person and got his heart broken in the process.