Welcome to Valley View (Valley View Book 1)

Chapter 11

DAY BEFORE THANKSGIVING

"JIMMY!" I yelled for Jimmy as I walked through the entrance of the auto shop stomping my feet to remove the snow from my boots. I did a good shake before I came in, but as I took my winter coat off I felt more of the snow flurried drop off and onto the concrete floor.

It had been snowing for almost three straight days now, just thankful that it was a light snowfall and nothing like blizzard conditions. There was still enough for a decent amount of coverage on the streets and sidewalks and the plows had to drive through town every couple hours to make sure the roads were safe to drive on. Even with my hands in gloves, they were still frozen as I pulled off the gloves and blew into my hands.

"Jimmy, where are you?" Still unable to find him I searched around the shop. We were going to meet at the diner for lunch, but they let us go from work early, so I figured I could surprise him here instead. The shop seems empty though, at least all of the bays.

I start to walk towards the office in the back and notice that the door is slightly open. I can hear the bass in his voice speaking, but I cannot make out what is being said. As I go to knock on the door, I hear him slam the receiver down and let out a loud yell. I slowly open the door to see him facing the back wall with his face cradled in his hands.

"Jimmy, babe?"

Jimmy spins his chair around and looks at me and then grabs his phone off his desk and flips it over. "Shit, we were supposed to meet for lunch. What time is it? Are you here early? I lost track of time, baby, I'm so sorry."

"You're not late. They decided to close the preschool early because of the snow. We only have two kiddos still there so they got picked up early. Thought I'd meet you here instead of at the diner."

I made my way over to the desk and leaned against his desk. Jimmy's arm reached around my waist and he rested his head against my hip.

"What's wrong, Cowboy?"

"Nothing that you need to worry about, City Girl. Just one of those calls, you know?"

I move behind him and start to rub his shoulders, but Jimmy grabs both my hands and guides me back in front of him to stand between his legs. He looks up at me and I notice the dark circles under his eyes, something was clearly storming in those eyes of his.

"I may not understand it, but clearly something is bothering you. If you talked about it, maybe it would make things better?"

"I don't think that's going to work, sweetheart. It is just garage stuff. I'm having some problems with my not-so-silent business partner."

"A business partner? Is everything going to be okay?"

"Don't worry about a thing, Tiff. He'll see things my way eventually."

He rubs his hands over my thighs and then my forearms. He takes my hands and kisses them both.

"You're cold."

"It's freezing outside. If you haven't noticed, winters in North Dakota kind of suck."

He chuckles and stands up, pulling me into his arms. "I know we were planning on going to the diner, but I have some leftover chili from Mama's dinner on Sunday. Do you want to come upstairs and have a bowl?"

"I'd really like that."

He moves his hand to the back of my neck and pulls me in for a kiss. "Have I told you today how beautiful you are?"

"You have. Are you sure everything is okay?"

"Can't a guy just tell his girlfriend she's beautiful?"