Burnout (Jack 'Em Up Book 0) Read Free Page B

do.”

    Later, after they finally rolled their lazy asses out of bed, Micah and Jesse ambled in, their sleepy faces snapping to in surprise when they spotted Delilah sanding away on the replacement quarter panel.
    “Dude,” Micah whispered under his breath, “what’s she doing here?”
    I glanced at her and stifled a smile. She was totally cute. Yanking Micah and Jesse aside, I mumbled, “Shut it. She’s helping.”
    Jesse’s eyes darted back and forth as she noticed them and stopped sanding. He offered her a little wave and she tentatively smiled back. “Hey,” she said, obviously not sure about their presence. Over the past few hours, we’d formed a tentative peace, even managing to laugh together a couple times. But even I knew our easiness could be popped like a soap bubble with these two goons.
    Micah strolled over and smiled widely at her. “’Sup, Delilah?”
    “Not much.” Her shoulders visibly relaxed. “Just trying to help fix the damage I did.” Her big blue eyes skated over Micah’s shoulder and met my gaze, and I was sure we were both remembering our stupid little jokes from earlier about her driving ability. Or lack thereof.
    “Blake, man . . . are you crazy?” Jesse’s urgent tone yanked me back to reality.
    My stomach plummeted. I knew what he meant . . . and he was absolutely right. There was no need to remind me of my place in the social order of Baybridge. And it was way below Miss Delilah Jackson.
    Trouble was, my heart was not listening one bit, as it beat feverishly in her presence as if I had a shot in Hell with her.
    Micah made his way back to us, his eyes wide. Almost impressed. “She’s cute. Not a snob at all,” he murmured.
    My brows thundered down. No, she wasn’t anything like we’d assumed. At least, not that I could see yet.
    “He still shouldn’t get mixed up with her,” Jesse said. “With her daddy, the Sheriff, it’s got trouble written all over it.”
    Yeah. It did. I just couldn’t say so. Not when she stared at me with eyes that reflected back the hopelessness I saw in the mirror every day.

    I finally got rid of Micah and Jesse with promises of pizza later, and faced Delilah from the bay door, the sunshine warm on my back. The place smelled of oil and degreaser and sweat, but somehow she’d already infused the stagnant air with her fruity scent. Berries, I thought—like one of my mom’s long forgotten black raspberry pies.
    “They don’t like me, do they?” she said, frozen on her stool, sandpaper limp in her hand.
    “It’s not that.”
    She tilted her head. “Then what is it? Because it was obvious something was off the minute they got here.”
    I shoved my hands into my pockets and randomly searched the parking lot. Anything but look at her and admit the truth. I ignored her when I heard her rise from her seat and approach. Swallowing hard, I kept my gaze pinned on the empty spot where Micah’s car had been.
    Her warmth bathed my side as she stood next to me, staring out to the lot as well.
    She was just here to be nice. Repaying a debt. It had nothing to do with me. But I was an idiot who didn’t want to believe that. Still, I couldn’t erase a lifetime of knowing . . . I was a low-bred punk from the wrong side of the tracks who had nothing good to offer her. Nothing good to offer anyone.
    But I couldn’t help myself. Not as I peered into those big eyes with every ounce of her innocence shining back at me. “You wanna go out sometime?”
    Her mouth sagged a tad. “Uh . . . what?”
    A mirthless laugh escaped me. “Nothing. It was dumb.”
    She blinked, not taking her gaze from me. “No. It wasn’t dumb. Just unexpected. I mean—”
    “You mean why on earth would Blake Travers, the worthless punk with no future, dare to ask you out?” I spit out before I could stop myself.
    Pain raced across her face. “You’re not a worthless punk.”
    “You don’t even know me.”
    “No, I don’t. But it doesn’t take a genius to see you’ve