Free His Uptown Girl by Gail Sattler Page A

which was burnt.
    â€œSo you and Tyler weren’t having a good time at the banquet?” he muttered as he yanked out the old piece.
    Georgette leaned to the side to check the alignment on the rest. “Tyler was doing fine, but he likes those kind of things. After a while I couldn’t take it anymore.”
    â€œWas Tyler okay with you leaving the banquet?”
    Georgette eased up on her motions, thinking of Tyler’s comments.
    He hadn’t been pleased, but she’d reminded him that she had fulfilled her obligations for the night, and she’d been a part of the appropriate conversations. Tyler begrudgingly conceded and took her home. Fortunately her father wasn’t home yet, and Josephine was too busy vacuuming to notice her. She’d quickly grabbed her duffel and hurried out to her car, which she’d left parked on the street, and had driven away before anyone noticed that she’d been home at all.
    During the drive to Bob’s shop, she’d experienced a feeling of freedom such as she’d never felt before. The only thing that could have made it better was if she had been riding on a big, noisy motorcycle, the wind blowing through her hair. Still, despite her silly fantasy, she was free, at least for the balance of the evening.
    â€œTyler wasn’t happy, but I didn’t care. I did what I had to do.”
    Bob laid his wrench down on the bench. “Pardon me?”
    â€œI only went with Tyler because I owed him a favor.” The trouble was, what Tyler called a favor was better known as blackmail. Tyler had her trapped, and they both knew it.
    Bob’s brow knotted. “I don’t understand. When Itake a date somewhere, it’s somewhere we both want to go. I wouldn’t enjoy myself if I knew my date didn’t want to be there.”
    While Georgette couldn’t divulge the details of her personal life, she needed Bob to think she had better sense than to go out with the likes of Tyler. She took a deep breath.
    â€œI’m not actually dating him. He just needs to have someone with him when he goes to certain functions, and he’s calling in a favor to have me go with him.” Every minute she spent with Tyler made her pray even more that she could find a painless way to tell her father the nature of the job she went to every day.
    â€œOh…” Bob’s voice trailed off. He quickly picked up the torque wrench and began tightening one of the belts on the transmission. He didn’t look at her as he spoke. “I probably shouldn’t stick my nose where it doesn’t belong, but it sounds like you only went under protest. Please take care of yourself—you wouldn’t want to end up compromising your faith.”
    Georgette stiffened. So far, Tyler hadn’t asked her to do anything that wasn’t proper, but she really didn’t know how far he would push things. She knew she shouldn’t have been trying to cover up her new life, but she was trapped by circumstances beyond her control.
    She smiled weakly at Bob. “It’s okay. I’m fine.”
    â€œGood. Let’s get this back where it belongs, and we’ll be done”
    Bob resealed the casing, and together, they carried it back to the car and fastened it in place. He started the engine, and they watched to make sure there were no leaks.
    While they waited, Bob pulled the rag out of his pocket, and wiped his hands. “I think everything’s finished.” He pushed at his sleeve and checked his watch. “We made good time, between the two of us. I know it’s not exactly early, but can I take you out for coffee or something? Especially if you won’t accept any pay for doing this.”
    Georgette felt a tremor of excitement. “Not tonight. I really should go home. It’s getting late.” Her father knew what time the banquet ended, and he would be expecting her back. “But if you’ll take a rain check, I