Free Mz Mechanic by Ambrielle Kirk

impatience.
    “It’s the truth.”
    It wasn’t that Jimmy wasn’t attractive. He was a good guy. Made his weekly rounds. Never even once failed to delivery on time. He did his job, plain and simple. They had casual conversation, but that was the extent to which their relationship ever got.
    He deserved some nice woman who was not a busy career-oriented woman to go home to. Not only was he good-looking with sandy brown hair, blue eyes, and muscles that indicated he stayed in the gym, he also had a good head on his shoulder.
    The fact of the matter was, Jimmy wasn’t her type, and she could never make him happy with her workaholic ways. He seemed to need to much attention.
    “Alright. I’m not going to pressure you,” he said.
    That’s what she liked about Jimmy. He never pursued her relentlessly.
    “How about a hug?” he asked, holding out his arms.
    She stepped into them, and returned his embrace. “Don’t quit on me either, just because I’m gone.”
    “You’ve got my word.” Jimmy pulled back, and looked down at his watch. “Gotta go.” He picked up an empty box, and paused near the door. “I’ve been meaning to ask, when I can come work for your new company.”
    “Oh, yeah.” She’d mentioned to him that he could have a position a while back. “We’re in the process of creating a logistics position. I’ll send David your information and have him contact you.”
    “I look forward to it.” Jimmy smiled. “See ya, Alex.”
    She waved goodbye.
    Looking down at her clipboard, she signed her name on the packing slip. She was content before…when there was no man in her life. When there was no man to worry about breaking her heart.
    ***
    When Alexia arrived home that evening, she wasn’t surprised to find a package in her rental box. She’d been getting deliveries for the past several weeks for the new company. There was no return label on the box, and when she opened it, there was a letter and book inside.
    She skimmed the cover of the book, which featured a title of a picture of a pie chart graphic. “Investing on the right track.” Shawn’s name, followed by his certified financial planner designation was listed under the title.
    He’d written a book? She had no idea. She picked up the card and slid her finger under the flap to open it. There was a handwritten note inside.
    “Thank you for the clock,” it read. “It’s a nice addition to my office décor….” It went on to say that he’d been having a hard time to reach her and he also apologized for being such a jerk. “I haven’t shared this with you yet, but my first book has finally hit the shelves. What do you think…?”
    Alexia couldn’t help but smiling. He’d accomplished so much. As much as she was hurt by the words she overheard in his office the other day, she was still very proud of him. She leaned back in the chair, book in hand, and opened it to the first page. Moments later, she’d become so engrossed in his biography and what led him on his career path, that she’d forgotten about dinner.
    She forced herself to put the book down. Just as she got up, she spotted something among the tissue paper in the box. Lifting the tissue paper from the box, she discovered that it was a calculator.
    Her breath caught in her throat in surprise. This couldn’t be. It couldn’t be her calculating from over a decade ago. There was no way.
    She turned the calculator over in her hand, and her heart clenched when she saw the familiar engraving on the back. It was her name carved out on the back. This was hers. The same one that her father bought her at the start of the high school year. How had he found this?
    Shawn had tied a note to the calculator with a string. Thank you for letting me borrow this, the note read.
    Sitting down on the chair, she swallowed. She wanted to pick up her cell. There was nothing else in the world, she wanted right now than to hear Shawn’s voice. The anticipation would be gone tomorrow. What she