son goodbye and went out to find his way in the world. He was determined to be better at fatherhood than he had been at marriage, and so far he was batting a thousand. Alongside having a career that he was proud of, making a nice salary and owning a nice home in a small Texas town, being a father was right there at the top of his greatest-achievements list.
Grief, fear and failure had robbed him of ever finding love again. However, after exchanging information with the beautiful stranger who had run into his cement truck, he had to admit, she was attractive. He remembered how she kept going on and on about having to report the accident to her insurance company and the risk of higher premiums—or worse, cancellation. He thought maybe he could fix things for her. That was what he was—a fixer. Always fixing others’ problems. Yet his problems had gone unsolved.
He kicked his boots off at the door and opened each piece of mail that he’d gathered from the box. He plopped down on the sofa in his family room, rested his head against the back of it. Working long hours usually left him exhausted. He grabbed the remote control and tuned the television to ESPN, caught the commentary before the playoff game was to begin. Watching sports after a hard day’s work was usually the highlight of his day. Except for today. The highlight today had been the beautiful stranger who had rammed her car into his cement truck. He hadn’t been able to get her out of his head since the moment he’d laid eyes on her.
He made his way into the kitchen and checked the chicken that he’d placed in the slow cooker that morning before work. He tasted a piece and closed his eyes. It was perfectly seasoned and tender. Over the years, he’d become a great cook. Bachelorhood had taught him self-sufficiency and he’d mastered it. He grabbed a bottle of beer from the refrigerator and made his way into the bathroom for a long, hot shower.
He dried his hair and then wrapped the towel around his waist. He put on a pair of basketball shorts and pulled an old Mizzou T-shirt over his head. He wasn’t startled when he heard the doorbell ring. It wasn’t unusual for his best friend, Melvin, to show up unannounced, and especially on the night of a playoff game. Before Lane could answer the door, Melvin was already inside.
“It’s game time!” Melvin yelled, a baseball cap turned backward on his head and a Cavaliers jersey barely covering his belly.
“You smelled the food cooking,” said Lane.
“Now that you mention it—” Melvin raised his eyebrows “—what are we eating?”
“We aren’t eating anything,” said Lane with a grin.
Melvin usually made himself right at home. And today was no different as he reached into the refrigerator and grabbed himself a beer. “Last beer, bro,” said Melvin, raising it into the air.
“Well, maybe you should run on down to the store and grab us another six-pack.”
“At halftime, bro,” Melvin promised as he plopped down in the chair in front of the television.
Lane knew that he wouldn’t be making the beer run. He never did. “I’m holding you to it.”
“Halftime. I promise,” said Melvin. “How long before dinner?”
Lane laughed at his best friend, who had been his college roommate and his teammate on the football field. Melvin knew him better than anyone—had been with him through all of the highs and lows of his life: his marriage to Helena, his divorce from Helena, the death of his brother. He’d been his rock, and often his sounding board. Melvin was family. They’d grown up in Saint Louis together. And after Lane had moved to Texas and gotten settled, Melvin soon followed. Slept on his couch for a few months until he’d finally landed a job and his own place.
Lane described his day to Melvin—told him about the woman crashing into his cement truck. “She was concerned about filing a claim with her insurance,” said Lane.
“Was it a bad dent?”
“Not too bad. Nothing you can’t handle.”
In addition to owning his own accounting firm, Melvin also tinkered with old cars. He owned a body shop in South Dallas where he transformed old cars into new ones. He also worked with insurance companies to repair damaged cars.
“Have her bring it over to the shop, and I’ll knock it out for her.”
“Really?”
“Of course,” said Melvin. “Why are you so concerned about it, anyway?”
“She was a nice lady. Just trying to help her out.”
“Mmm-hmm. I see,” said Melvin. “She cute?”
“She’s not bad on the eyes.”
Melvin had been slouching in the chair. He sat straight up. “You like her.”
It was a statement, not a question.
“I don’t even know her, bro. I’m just trying to help her out.”
“Right,” said Melvin as he made his way to the kitchen to fix himself a plate. “You can do something for me, too.”
“What?”
“Tyler needs a job,” said Melvin. “You know my nephew Tyler. He’s moving in with me for a few months. Needs a new start. Getting into all kinds of trouble in Saint Louis. His daddy thinks he’ll do much better here in Texas. Maybe you can get him on down there at the plant.”
“Does he have any experience?”
“Fast food. But he’s smart. He’ll catch on fast.”
“I don’t know, man,” said Lane. He’d been burned too many times before trying to help people out. Situations like this ruined relationships. “Youngsters aren’t dependable.”
“He’ll be dependable. I’ll make sure of it.”
Lane shook his head. He didn’t like the idea of putting his job on the line for people, but he knew Tyler. And he knew how it was growing up in Saint Louis and running with the wrong crowd. “Have him come down and see me on Monday. I’ll see what I can do.”
“He’ll do good, man. I promise.”
“He’d better.”
Lane disappeared into his bedroom for privacy, shut the door. Pulled the folded piece of paper from the pocket of his work pants, unfolded it and searched for Whitney’s phone number. She answered on the second ring.
“Hello.”
“Hey,” he said nervously. “It’s Lane Martin. You know, from the accident today.”
“Oh, hello.”
“I’m sorry to call so late. But...” he paused “...I just wanted to tell you, I have a friend who owes me a favor and can knock that dent right out of your bumper. You can take your car over there tomorrow. That way you won’t have to report it to your insurance company.”
“Really?” she asked. “Why would you do that?”
“Because I’m a nice guy,” he said with a smile in his voice. “And my best friend owns a body shop.”
