Terri Osburn - Up to the Challenge

He turned onto the road leading to their destination and dropped the truck into four-wheel drive. They bounced from side to side and he reached out to brace Sid so she wouldn’t land on the floorboards.

“If you hurt this truck I will kick your ass,” she declared, with complete conviction in her voice. He laughed and focused on avoiding the potholes ahead.

When they reached the building, Lucas cut the engine and leaned forward to see the sign hanging on the brick wall. Just as he’d ordered. Lot would get an extra fifty dollars this week.

“Finally,” Sid said, reaching for the bandanna covering her eyes. “Get this thing off.”

“Not yet,” he argued, halting her movements. “Let me get you out first.”

“Are you kidding me?” Sid tried to smack the dash and missed, but Lucas caught her before her nose took the hit.

“Just scoot over here. There you go.” With little effort, he lifted her to the ground, turned her to face the building, then stood behind her. “You ready?”

“This better be good,” she grumbled. But when he remained silent, she surrendered. “Yes. I’m ready. I’m beyond ready.”

“Good.” With a sweep of his hand, Lucas removed the bandanna, and waited. For what he wasn’t sure. Sid wasn’t the squealing and happy dancing type, but this was a pretty big surprise.

Silence reigned. No squealing. No dancing. He leaned around to see her face. No smiling.

“What the fuck did you do?” she asked, her eyes locked on the sign that read Navarro Boat Repair & Restoration. “You need to get that down. Now.”

Not the reaction he expected. “What are you talking about? That’s only a temporary sign. We’ll get a more permanent one when the renovations are done.”

“We won’t do shit. Get the fucking thing down.” Sid turned with her hand out. “Give me the keys so I can back the truck up and tear the thing down myself.”

“But why?” he asked, refusing to hand over the keys. “I don’t understand. Why are you so mad?”

“Because it’s not mine!” she screamed. “This doesn’t belong to me. Someone else bought it. It’s not for sale anymore. The boat business isn’t going to happen.”

“Wait.” How could she know? Everything had been done in secret. “You know that someone bought this garage?”

“Yes, damn it. Will told me yesterday. Some fancy ass from out of town bought it, and he’ll probably tear it down for all I know.” She stomped over to the truck. “I can’t be here. I need to get out of here.”

“Hold on,” he said, spinning her around. “You knew that someone else was trying to buy your dream, and you didn’t tell me?”

“What difference does it make? I set out to buy it and I failed. Telling you wasn’t going to change that.”

“But you could have counteroffered. I could have helped you come up with the money to buy it.”

“No way. I’d never do that.” She swiped away a tear. “It’s over. The garage belongs to someone else now. Just please let me go home.”

His heart nearly broke watching her stand strong and proud, knowing she must have been dying on the inside since getting the news. With a gentle hand, he nudged her chin up until their eyes met, wiping away another wayward tear with his thumb.

“This garage doesn’t belong to someone else, Sid. It belongs to you. I bought it for you.”

They stared at each other as the words sunk in, a myriad of emotions running through him. Then Sid snapped.

Shoving against his chest, she screamed, “Why would you do that? Why would you take this away from me?” Sid had never been stabbed, but the feeling of a knife slicing through her heart made her long for the real thing. At least she could heal from a knife wound.

“I didn’t take anything away from you,” he argued, reaching for her but she batted his hands away. “It’s yours. I’m giving it to you.”

“I don’t want it! Not like this.” The tears flowed freely now, more from anger than the loss she’d felt moments before. “What part of doing this on my own did you not understand? I was close. I’d have had the money by Labor Day. Just a few more weeks.”

Lucas kept crowding her, trying to force her to let him in. “I didn’t buy it outright. There are still payments to be made. I only provided the down payment. This way you can use your money for the renovations. And you can make the payments on the remaining mortgage.”

“Only the down payment?” she asked, remembering what Will had told her. “You paid half. Is this my consolation prize? Is this what I earned in the last couple weeks?”

Lucas jerked as if she’d slapped him. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“I think it’s pretty clear.” She laughed, a hollow, empty sound. “I gave you me and you give me a garage. Something to remember you by after you’re gone.”

“That’s crossing a line and insulting to both of us. What we have is more than that.”

“Really? What do we have, Lucas? A casual fling, right? That’s all this is supposed to be.” Sid opened the truck door. “It’s clear that’s all this is because if you knew me at all, cared about me at all, you wouldn’t have done this.”

She climbed in and waited. He still held the keys so she couldn’t drive off without him. Which she sorely wanted to do. After what could have been a minute or an hour, Lucas climbed into the passenger seat and set the keys on the bench between them.

Sid drove back to her place, numb and empty. He could have the damn garage. She’d let it rot before taking his charity. When they reached her driveway, she kept the motor running.

“Get your stuff and lock the door behind you.”

Lucas didn’t move to get out. “Can we talk about this?”

Sid shook her head, too drained to say anything more. Unable to look at the man beside her. The man she loved, even now.

With a sigh, he finally opened the door. From the ground, he said, “I never meant to hurt you,” and closed the door.

The sobbing started again. She threw the truck in reverse, spewing gravel against her garage door as she backed out. Sid wasn’t sure where she was going. She just knew she had to go.

Lucas did as Sid asked. Packed his things. Gave Drillbit a pat good-bye. Locked the door behind him. Then he sat in his car in her driveway, unable to turn the key.

She’ll come back, he thought. She’d realize he only wanted to make her happy. To give her what she wanted most. If he could do that for her, why wouldn’t he?

But Sid didn’t come back, and eventually he had to admit the truth. He’d fucked up. He didn’t know exactly how, but that’s what he’d done. Even after he started the car, Lucas remained there in the driveway, staring at the little beach cottage he’d begun to call home. Not a permanent home, since the cottage was on Anchor, and Anchor wasn’t his home.

But the cottage meant Sid and Sid felt like home.

With little thought to what he was doing, Lucas drove the short distance to his parents’ house, checking his watch after pulling into the drive. He’d need to be at the restaurant in less than two hours. Would Sid come to work? Would she talk to him? Would she listen to him?

What would he say if she did? He couldn’t pretend nothing had happened, and he knew Sid would never put on an act. She was incapable of being disingenuous. One of the many things he loved about her.

Well, shit.

Lucas pressed back against the headrest. Maybe this was for the best. Leaving would be easier this way. For both of them. If anything, Sid would be relieved to see him gone. She could be rid of him. Maybe she’d turn to Manny as an alternative. The thought made him want to rip the steering wheel off and throw it out the window.

“Hey there,” came a voice from outside, startling him out of his misery. Lucas looked up to see his dad hovering on the porch. “You going to stay out there all day?”

Just what he needed. Captain Cranky-pants. Grabbing his duffel bag from the passenger seat, he stepped out. “I’m coming in, if that’s all right?”

Tom stared, face pinched. “What kind of a question is that?”

He just could not catch a break this morning. Embracing his right to remain silent, Lucas climbed the stairs and followed his father into the house. “Got any coffee?” he asked, dropping his bag beside the doorway to the living room.

“Help yourself,” his dad said, taking a seat at the table. “Rough morning?”

“You could say that.” Lucas searched for the sugar, but it wasn’t in the usual place.

“She’s hidden everything I’m not supposed to have,” Tom explained. “There’s a bunch of those yellow packets in the top drawer.”

Lucas needed the swift kick of bitterness anyway. “I’ll pass, thanks.” Bringing his mug to the table, he pulled out a chair. “Where’s Mom?”

“Ladies Auxiliary meeting.”

“Oh.” Lucas sipped the coffee. Definitely bitter. “Went to the bank yesterday. Money is ready for transfer as soon as the papers are signed, but I want to run them by another lawyer first.”

Tom huffed. “Aren’t you a lawyer?”

“Last I checked,” he said. “But you deserve to have an unbiased legal review. Someone looking out for your interests.”

Tom huffed again. “That’s a load of crap. Bring me the damn papers and I’ll sign them.”

Lucas considered arguing, explaining the risks and intricacies of the situation, but his dad was right. Believing he’d ever not protect his parents’ best interests was a load of crap.

“They’re in my car. I’ll bring them in tonight.”

“Tonight? So that and the bag mean you’re back, huh? Want to talk about it?”

The last thing Lucas wanted to do was discuss his relationship.