Rules Of The Game: Book 1

6; Handsome Mechanic On Duty

𝙾𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝟹𝚛𝚍, 𝚂𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚊𝚢
Miles POV

I'm not afraid to be honest: this might have been a dumb idea.

My car collides with another pothole that I can't avoid, and I wince. Yeah, this was stupid.

It's not like I keep my impoverished lifestyle hidden away from the public eye, but the thing is, I know for a fact that Parker doesn't come from a poor family. At least, those brand-new Nikes he rocks and that shiny Audi he drives are my first clue.

Or maybe it feels stupid because this is one of the first times in four years that I've invited a boy over to my house with no intention of stepping out of line.

By stepping out of line, I mean stepping out of my pants and into my new flings instead.

Not that I'm shooting that idea down, either. The only issue is that Parker made his preferences very clear last night at that football field when he macked on that blonde chick. If I had to guess, I'm nowhere near his radar.

Humming along to the radio, I focus on the lyrics instead of my sad sex life. I flick my blinker on and rotate my palm on the gear shifter, down-shifting as my Mustang rolls into the turn lane.

That same shiny gray paint flashes in my rearview mirror as Parker follows close behind me. Maybe if his windows weren't tinted to 5%, I would be able to see his reaction to my neighborhood.

Look, this area is better than Mexico on the south side of Heroica Nogales or living in a box on the side of the street. Although compared to where Parker probably comes from, these sun-faded and weather-worn houses must look like gardening sheds to him.

Not that he will be complaining. I am changing his oil for free.

I down-shift again and pull my car smoothly up alongside the curb. As I unbuckle, I snatch my keys from the ignition and glance at my moms' van in the driveway.

I was crossing my fingers for most of the drive over here that she would be at work already. I guess the universe doesn't always pull through.

I send up a quick prayer that she won't intervene before jumping out of my car. Parker slowly pulls up next to my car, and I hold up a finger, mouthing at him, One second.

His shadow nods behind the windshield. I pocket my keys and jog up the driveway to the garage door, punching in the key code on the pad.

"C'mon now," I mumble as I hold my thumb on the enter button. A second passes before the garage door starts to slide open. Each wheel screeches like a demon escaping hell, but I don't hear the sound over the blood rushing in my ears.

It's a miracle that I organized the garage yesterday; I find my wheel chocks with no issues.

Grabbing the chocks and an oil pan, I hurry back to the driveway. I toss the chocks down and wave my hand at Parker. That Audi engine purrs as he rolls up onto the driveway.

I motion for Parker to roll his window down as he gets closer. "Pull up here." I point at the blocks I brought out. He inches forward, and I kick the chock closest to me to align with the wheel. Slowly, his tires climb up. "Keep coming, keep coming... Good!" I hold out a fist for him to stop.