“Good morning,” said Alex as Ashley came down the stairs. It was a little past nine on Saturday and she was still tired. Ashley wished she could sleep longer, but her dreams were still bothering her. It didn’t help that when she woke up, she was in a different house than she was used to. She had to sit in bed every night and will herself back to sleep after her nightmares.

Alex on the other hand seemed to sleep perfectly and very little. He usually went to bed around midnight and was up by dawn the next day. The man didn’t seem to know how to relax. There were always half a dozen projects on his mind. Alex needed a hobby.

“Morning.”

“I was wondering if you wanted to go out for breakfast this morning. I can show you around the town more.”

“I’ll go get ready,” she yawned in response.

“I’ve been ready since six,” Alex said smugly.

“And you’re insane for it,” said Ashley as she headed back up the stairs. “What’s the plan?”

“First I know this great place for breakfast called Sandy’s only about five minutes away. Afterwards I thought we’d get you a phone so I don’t have to keep wondering where you’ve gone to. Then we need to get you some clothes.”

“Clothes shopping? Why?”

“A winter in California is nothing like a winter out here. Here we get snow and ice and I doubt you’ve got much that can handle that.” Ashley nodded and shivered. She didn’t mind the cold, but she was never very good at staying warm. She had a feeling she was going to hate the winter.

Sandy’s turned out to be quite the breakfast spot. It was made for the workers in town who needed a big meal. While this suited Alex perfectly, Ashley felt a bit overwhelmed. The waitress returned with a gigantic stack of thick pancakes, bacon, sausage, eggs, and hash browns. Ashley didn’t even finish half the meal and she was already beginning to feel sick. Alex on the other hand consumed his and a part of hers. He even had the rest boxed up so he could have “second breakfast” later. When they were done with breakfast they climbed back into his truck and started away.

“So we’re going to get me a phone?”

“We will in a bit. First, I have a surprise for you.”

“A surprise? What surprise?” Alex’s grin went from ear to ear.

“You’ll see.”

“What?” she asked intrigued. He reached inside his jacket pocket and produced a pair of keys and tossed them into her lap. “A car? You bought me a car?”

“Consider it a make up for all the birthdays I’ve missed.”

“Ummm…wow. Thank you.” She tried to sound more excited, but it was a no go. Her dad eyed her suspiciously.

“What’s the matter? Most kids your age would be thrilled to have a car.”

“No I am. It’s just…”

“Just what?”

“I’ve never driven a car before.”

“Really? I started driving when I was fourteen.”

“Did you grow up in the middle of Sacramento? If we go anywhere it’s by walking or by bus.”

“True, I didn’t think of that. Well then I guess I’m going to have to teach you.”

“Is that where we’re going? To get my car?”

“To look at it. I bought it off a friend and had it thrown into a shop to make sure it doesn’t give you any problems. Also needs a new paint job so I thought I’d let you choose the color.”

“Okay,” she said, becoming more enthusiastic. She’d never had a choice in something so big before. As they drove further into town he pointed out more things to her.

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“There’s your school you’ll be in for your senior year. There’s the town hall where we go for meetings, plays, or any events the town has. There’s the church, but I don’t go there, do you?” She shook her head. “Good, I was afraid I was about to have to change my bad habits.” Ashley smiled a little as her dad let out a small laugh.

“Where do you work?”

“My office is about two blocks past where we’re going. We can go there if you’d like.”

“Sure.”

“We’ll see how interested you are once you see your car.”

There was a bump and he pulled into a small parking lot. There was a gas station, a cheap fast food place, a few smaller shops that didn’t even look open, and a larger building with Morgan’s Body Shop on the side. There was an office door and two garage doors. One of the doors had a metal covering keeping it shut, but the other was wide open. Her dad led the way, surprising her by walking straight through the open garage door. He banged his hand against the metal door.

“Anybody home?” he called out.

“Just a minute,” said a boy’s voice off to the right. Ashley took a step in and looked for him but he was nowhere to be found. She took in the shop and was quietly surprised. It was pretty big. There were four cars lined up on the right side, each five feet apart from each other to give plenty of room. The left side was filled with tools and other things with a fifth car raised up. The boy appeared from the side of one of the closer cars. He was wearing a blue jump suit that was covered in grease and oil stains. The odd part was the boy looked younger than Ashley. He was about her height but a lot stockier with short black hair and dark brown eyes. He looked at them both disdainfully as he wiped his hands on his clothes.

“Can I help you?” he asked, annoyed. Ashley already didn’t think much of him.

“Is Morgan here?” asked her dad.

“Yes he is!” boomed a deep voice. They all turned to see a large man come out of the office area. As he came closer Ashley realized he wasn’t large, he was huge. He was only a couple inches taller than Alex but he had to be twice as thick. He had brown hair, brown eyes, and a short brown beard. He held out a giant hand to her dad. “Welcome back Alex.”

“Hello Morgan. Allow me to introduce my daughter, Ashley.”

“Hello,” said Ashley.

“Well hello there. Where are my manners? My name is Morgan Lexington and this is my boy Kevin.” Kevin barely nodded before he went back to his work. Ashley thought for a moment that she’d heard that last name before. “This is my shop, family owned and operated. I suppose you’re interested in your jeep?”

“Jeep?” she asked confused.

“Yup.” He waved for them to follow as he started to walk down the shop. “Good vehicle for these parts. Stronger tires, four-wheel drive, and holds out well against the snow and cold.”

In the corner of the shop she saw her car to be. It was an older jeep and didn’t look like much. Whoever owned it previously must’ve taken it off-roading every day for the past five years. It was painted a light brown and covered in dents. There was no glass in any of the windows but those looked like they’d been taken out professionally. The tires looked brand new. As she looked down, she couldn’t help but notice there were a pair of legs sticking out from underneath her jeep. Morgan tapped the side so it made a nice thump.

“How’s she look Nathaniel?” Ashley’s heart skipped a beat. There was no way.

“Better,” said a strong but muffled voice. “Honestly the whole undercarriage is gross. Before a rinse I couldn’t even tell what was supposed to be here.”

“Well the owner is right here and I’m sure she’d love to hear all about it.” Morgan looked to her and her heart stopped again. Why was he having him talk to her? She could only wait as he slid out on a dolly and looked up at her.

It was definitely him. The boy from the pond and Liz’s yearbook. He was wearing the same jumpsuit as the others, but he had it stripped down to his waist. He was wearing a white, stained tank top and his hair was laid back and messy. He wiped his hands on a towel before sitting up and holding out a hand.

“My name is Nathaniel. Nice to meet you.” She took his hand and shook it.

“Ashley,” she said embarrassed.

“I feel as if I’ve met you before.”

He smiled a little and she knew he recognized her. She wanted to die on the spot but kept herself in check. She hadn’t told anyone but Liz about seeing him. And with her dad right there she didn’t want it to be public information.

“This is my eldest son Nathaniel,” said Morgan. Now she had two reasons why she didn’t want it public. “You’ll be in the same year I believe.”

“A senior?” asked Nathaniel. She looked back down at him and nodded. “Then I’ll be seeing you in August.”

Ashley tried not to stare but couldn’t help but look into his eyes. It was the only part of him she’d hadn’t been able to see from the pond. They were beautiful. They were the most brilliant blue eyes she’d ever seen. They were so intense she swore they were made of ice. They might possibly be the most intoxicating thing she’d ever seen.

“You okay?” His words made her look away. She cleared her throat a little and looked to the jeep.

“So this is going to be mine?” she asked, trying to distract herself.

“It will be,” said Morgan. “Once we’ve fixed her up and made her just like new. Don’t want to send you out with a broken vehicle now do we?”

“No we don’t,” said her dad. “I let Ashley know she could pick the color for the new paint job. Is it too early to have her choose?”

“Not at all. Come this way and I’ll show you what we can do.” Morgan and her dad walked away from her. As she turned to follow, Nathaniel started to lay back down.

“It was nice meeting you.”

“It was nice meeting you too.”

“Maybe we could hang out sometime, go for a hike.” He smiled at her and slid back under the jeep. The obvious reference to seeing him in the pond made her go red. She walked after her dad and Morgan, glad nobody was looking at her now.