always the beautiful ones,â he muttered, and he and his uncle grinned at each other.
After Randall explained the issue he was having, the two men spent the next several minutes peering into the guts of the engine and trying to diagnose the problem. Randall, whoâd been rebuilding engines since his early teens, had taught Warrick everything he knew. Warrick had spent many summer afternoons under the hoods of cars his uncle repaired for friends and colleagues, jobs Randall did on the side to supplement his income. It was under his uncleâs tutelage that Warrick had discovered an affinityâand an innate talentâfor taking things apart and rebuilding them, which eventually had led him to a career in engineering.
âRun into any of your old high school buddies since youâve been back in town?â Randall asked conversationally.
Warrick shook his head, absorbed in an inspection of the cylinder, an original part in surprisingly good condition. âNot yet. No, wait. What am I saying? I had dinner with Deniece Labelle last night.â
Randall arched a brow. âOh, is that right? Howâs she doing? She writes for the Chronicle, right?â
âNo, one of the other papers. The Ledger. And sheâs doing great.â
Randall nodded. âHow was dinner?â
âGood, good.â What happened afterward was even better, Warrick silently mused. Of course, it would have been that much better if he hadnât been thinking about Rainaâ Raina! âpractically the entire time. There had to be a special place in hell reserved for a guy who fantasized about one womanâa woman he didnât even likeâwhile making love to another.
Warrick frowned darkly at the thought.
Randall shot him a warning look. âNow, donât you go breaking that young ladyâs heart again, War. You know her parents still blame you for their daughter not being married by now.â
Startled, Warrick stared at his uncle. âWhose parents?â
âDenieceâs.â Randall frowned at him. âWho did you think I was talking about?â
âDeniece. Of course.â His gaze slid away. âHow do you know her parents blame me for Deniece being single?â
âWell, donât forget her father was the police chief before he retired. I still see him around from time to time, and he always asks me how youâre doing and makes some joke about how you broke his daughterâs heart after high school, how she wonât settle down with any man sheâs dated over the years because she keeps comparing them to you and finding them lacking.â
Warrick grimaced, even as Denieceâs wistful words echoed in his mind. Youâre the only man who ever really took the time to get to know me. The real me.
Randall continued, âYou know Iâd be the last one to lecture you about your love life, considering I couldnât make my own marriage work. But when it comes to women, I like to think Iâve learned a thing or two along the way. Youâre a good-looking, intelligent, highly successful young man. As I told you when your business started taking off, all kinds of womenâblack, white, yellow and greenâare going to be throwing themselves at you like nothing youâve ever seen before. And I was right. Now, no one can blame you for having some fun. You work hard, you deserve to play hard. Hell, even I was impressed when you started dating that pretty actress with the longname, the one who was in that movie a couple years ago with Forest Whitaker. What was her name again?â Randall looked askance at his nephew.
Warrick actually drew a blank.
His uncle laughed, wagging his head reproachfully. âYou just proved my point, son. Messing around with those Hollywood types is one thing, but when you start messing around in your own backyard, you open yourself up to a world of trouble. Youâve known Deniece since you were sixteen, and you
Rebecca Hamilton, Conner Kressley