Free Fear : A Bad Boy Mafia Pregnancy Romance Novel by Rose Cody Page A

gruff voice calling to her.
     
      She turns her head, watching the mechanic walk toward her in a dark blue overall as he wipes the back grease on his hand onto a stained cloth.
     
    “That’s me.” She says to him, standing up to meet the man halfway.
     
    “So, about your car.” He says, smacking his gum.
     
      She lifts her shoulders, holding her breath as she nervously waits for the diagnosis.
     
    “It’s done for.” The mechanic says, shaking his head. “The transmission is shot and I’m going to have to order another one.”
     
    “Well, gosh.” She says, her heart sinking. “How much is that going to cost me?”
     
    “I can’t even think about ordering it until we’re paid for the tow and diagnostics… Got a boss breathing down my neck you know…” He starts. “But all together with parts and labor… I’d probably call it a good forty-five hundred.”
     
    “Forty-five hundred?” She asks, he color draining from her face. “As in four thousand and five hundred dollars?”
     
      She watches in disbelief as the mechanic nods his head.
     
    “It costs what it costs.” He says. “I could probably work out a discount on labor, but the part is an expensive part…”
     
    “I could go out and buy a car for the price you want to fix that old piece of shit!” She says. “And if I could afford that, I would have already done that!”
     
    “Look, lady, I get it.” He starts sympathetically. “If you want, I can tow it back to your house, but that’s also gunna cost you.”
     
    “How much?” She asks, walking back to her purse before picking it up and opening it.
     
      She pulls out her wallet, pushing on the folded leather to unclick the magnetic clasp.
     
    “Well, the tow here, the diagnostics and then the tow back…” He starts puffing his cheeks as he does his quick math. “I can do it at five hundred.”
     
    “Five hundred dollars?” She asks, fumbling through her wallet. “I only have forty dollars cash and then maybe two hundred in my bank account…”
     
      The mechanic shrugs his shoulders.
     
    “Look, I understand…” He starts. “I can keep the car until you can pay…”
     
    “If you keep the car, I lose my job!” She says, feeling her eyes well with tears as the lump in her throat grows.
     
    “I’ll take care of it.” She hears as she feels a warm hand rest on her shoulder.
     
      She turns to the man she was once sitting beside, a tear falling down her cheek as she lifts her hand to wipe it away.
     
    “No, I can’t.” She says, shaking her head. “I don’t even know you, don’t be ridiculous.”
     
    “Don’t worry, it’s fine.” He says, walking back over to his seat to pick up his black wool coat.
     
      He turns back toward Olivia, smiling softly at her before walking back over to them.
     
    “Let’s get this paid for.” He says to the mechanic as he gently folds his coat over his arm.
     
    “Right away, Mr. Condello.” The mechanic says, motioning towards the secretary to get the transaction started.
     
    “Olivia, right?” He asks her, watching her nod her head. “I’ll get it taken care of.”
     
    “Thank you!” She says, at a loss for words. “Thank you so much! Really, I have no idea what to say…”
     
    “Don’t even worry about it.” He says, pointing out the window at a car the mechanic’s assistant is parking in front of the shop. “That’s my car. If you want to wait by it, I can give you a ride home.”
     
    “Thank you. Thank you.” She says to him as she walks toward the door. “You really have no idea how much you’re helping me out.”
     
    She stands beside the passenger door of the black BMW, holding her purse close to her stomach as she watches the stranger pay for her repair work. Her gaze turns from the mechanic shop windows to the black tinted windows of his car. Squinting, she makes out the shape of a pair of tan leather seats.
     
    “Where can I take you.” She hears, jumping as