Free All of It by Kim Holden Page A

cetera.”
    “You may have a point; instant gratification is an ugly business.”
    His tone serious now. “In which much of our world, or at least this country, overindulges. Greed is open for business … and business is booming.”
    “Says the young man driving the Porsche,” I say under my breath, but he hears me and shrugs. “Surely you see the irony in it?”
    He sighs. “It’s one of the reasons I’m so anxious to get the bug finished. Believe it or not, I favor inconspicuousity.”
    I raise my eyebrows. “You don’t say?”
    He shakes his head in mock dejection. “That’s not a word, is it?”
    “Nope. But maybe it should be. It sounded very convincing.”
    He smiles as though he’s been comforted, as though maybe we’ve just touched upon something very real. “You, Mr. Glenn, are a paradox.”
    “Was that a compliment? My, but you’re in generous form today.”
    Against my will, I blush crimson. “Shut up, or I may be forced to take it back.”
    He smiles. “Fair enough, I graciously accept that I am indeed a paradox, in the most uncomplimentary way of course.” The smile fades. “Really, Ronnie, it boils down to preconceived notions. People tend to have them about people who drive cars like this. They’re very quick to judge—good or bad. You understand?”
    Unfortunately I do, having been guilty of it myself within the last five minutes, however fleeting it may have been. I like to think of myself as open-minded, but occasionally I can be very judgmental. It’s a flaw of mine. I suddenly feel sorry for him and ashamed of myself. “That’s why you always ride to school with your brother?” I ask quietly.
    “Yes. I’d prefer people to get to know
me
before they decide if they like me or not. The car I drive, or the house I live in—money in general—shouldn’t have any bearing on it, you know? I’m a very good judge of character and can tell almost instantly if someone is worth investing myself in, but a little insurance doesn’t hurt.” He’s staring out the windshield at the traffic light waiting for it to turn green.
    “So, why do you drive it?” I ask hesitantly.
    “It belonged to my dad.”
    “Oh, did he get a new car or something? This is quite a hand-me-down.”
    We pull into the parts store lot and park before he answers. He looks at me and his eyes are suddenly tired. “My dad died last year.”
    My hand involuntarily flies to my mouth. “Oh my God, Dimitri.” That is the last thing I expected him to say. I had no idea.
    He takes my hand gently from my mouth and holds it in both of his. “It’s okay, you didn’t know. My mom drove it until we moved here this summer, but Sebastian and I thought she would be better off this winter in a four-wheel drive. We talked her into a massive SUV.” A small smile flashes across his face as he thinks about it. “The thing is a tank, so at least we won’t have to worry about her on the road, though I fear for everyone else in her path.”
    “That’s really sweet of you and your brother to worry about her like that.”
    His smile grows. “You don’t know Sunny. You’ll understand what I mean when you get to know her. She takes a little looking after. Anyway, none of us had the heart to get rid of his car, so I ended up with it.” He pauses and a devilish grin emerges. “It’s fast as hell though and fun to drive. In fact, I just decided that you’re driving us home.”
    My stomach flip-flops. “No, no, no … I am
not
driving this car.”
    The devilish grin is still there. “We’ll see.” He’s out of the car before I can counter.
    After I find the oil and pay for it Dimitri takes the bag in one hand and tosses me the keys with the other. “I said no, Dimitri. Are you nuts?”
    “Maybe. I really don’t want to make a scene, Ronnie. And don’t underestimate me, I’ll do it.” His mocking smile turns into a flirtatious smirk. “Besides, I bet you’d look damn sexy driving it. Humor me.” He winks and runs