Woman alone on dark road. » But then a guy got out and he looked normal enough, maybe mid30s, nice face, and he was walking over with his hands visible like he was trying not to scare her.
Ma’am, you okay? Car trouble? His voice was kind, a little rough around the edges, and Sophia felt herself relax just slightly. Yes, it just died. What do you worried? No way, says 2 hours.
The guy nodded. Mind if I take a look? I’m a mechanic. might be able to help. Sophia blinked because what were the odds? And watched him pop her hood and lean in with a little flashlight from his keychain.
And within about 30 seconds, he’d figured out what was wrong. « Your alternator shot, but I can patch it enough to get you where you’re going. Where you headed? » « Ever Cafe on Maple Street, » Sophia said, checking her watch.
« 710 now. So much for making a good first impression. » The mechanic straightened up and laughed, and it was such a genuine sound, it caught her off guard. No kidding. That’s where I’m going, too.
Small world. Sophia felt something flutter in her chest, but ignored it because this was just a nice stranger helping her out, nothing more. And she definitely wasn’t noticing that he had really nice hands or that his smile made his whole face light up.
He worked on her car while snow kept falling, and she watched him. and they talked about nothing important, just easy conversation that felt weirdly natural for two complete strangers on the side of the road.
He mentioned he had a daughter. She mentioned she ran a company. Neither of them traded names because it didn’t seem important in the moment. 15 minutes later, her car was running and he was refusing payment and saying Merry Christmas like people actually did that anymore.
And Sophia found herself wishing the car had taken just a little bit longer to fix. She followed his tail lights to the cafe and pulled into the parking lot right behind him and they both got out at the same time and he held the door open for her like an actual gentleman.
The cafe was warm and decorated for Christmas with lights and garland and a little tree in the corner and the owner Harper came over with menus. Jake Morrison. The mechanic raised his hand.
