When Sabrina got home, she was tired. She did her routine inspection of her apartment the way Trevor instilled in her. Trevor was a police officer for many years. He was in a car chase, and his police cruiser crashed, sending him to the hospital in critical condition. He spent months in the hospital, and when he recovered, he resigned.
She made sure the alarm was engaged. Although she was on the third floor where it would be impossible for anyone to enter in through her windows, she still checked. Satisfied that all was okay, Sabrina began to undress as she walked back to the bathroom. Then she noticed something out of the ordinary. On her dresser was the namesake keychain her son had given her from his trip to Jamaica. She was puzzled. Why was it there?
She kept her keepsakes in the second drawer of her jewelry box on the dresser. But, why would it be out here? Probably from her looking for her earing that morning. She shrugged off an intrusive thought, and placed the keychain back in the bottom drawer, unhooked her hoop earrings, placed them in the top drawer, and continued to the bathroom. In bed, she snuggled under her blankets as her body gave in to the comfort, and she drifted off to sleep.
Sabrina woke up to a text message from Carlos at 9:07, reminding her to bring the car in. She texted back that she would be there by ten. She called Jada to see how things went and to tell her about the fender bender. After a brief conversation with Jada, Sabrina got up, took a shower, and got some coffee to drink.
Outside now, Sabrina took another look at the damage to the car. It was a small dent that she could have lived with if it didn’t get fixed. But she went anyway. With the assistant of GPS, Sabrina drove up to the mechanic shop. She called Carlos to let him know that she was outside. Carlos materialized from a side door with smiling, and Sabrina’s eyes popped wide open.
He had on short-sleeved work overalls and black boots. His tanned skin radiated from the morning’s sun as the rays hit the angle of his face, and his exposed muscular arms that were constricted by the uniform material. Sabrina was surprised by his appearance. When they met last night, she was in a state of being distracted, and she never noticed his masculine beauty. Carlos walked over to her window as if he was gliding on a conveyor belt.
“Buenos Dias, señorita,” he greeted her.
“Good morning, Carlos. Please call me Sabrina.” She turned off the car’s engine, opened the door, and got out.
“I am going to drive the car into the garage. It will be back to its original condition by two o’clock,” he said and extended his hand to Sabrina, and she handed him the key.
“If you don’t mind, I can wait,” Sabrina said.
“Ah,” he halted. “That is not necessary; you can return at two o,clock,” he responded.
“It is okay. I have nothing else to do, and you said that it wouldn’t take long,” Sabrina insisted. She intended to get to know Carlos some more.
“Alright then, you can wait in the office. Come this way.”
She followed behind, admiring his broad shoulders and his butt as they walked through the side door. The room was well lit. There were four chairs along the wall facing a television screen on the wall. There were all sorts of car parts displayed on shelves and hanging on hooks. He turned on the television.
“Thank you for letting me stay,” she smiled at him.
“No es problema, señorita. I will be right back. I will drive your car in.” He smiled back at her and exited through a door behind the counter.
His smile sent shivers through her body. She hadn’t felt that way in a long time. She remembered this feeling back in the days when Trevor and her got married. She was letting her thoughts lingered on the possibility. There was something about Carlos that she loved. A screeching sound of chains rubbing on metal echoed throughout the office space, and in a few minutes, it sounded again. Sabrina sat there and waited but he didn’t return. To pass the time, Sabrina called her daughter. They talked for a while until Jada’s call beeped in. So, Sabrina terminated the call with her daughter and spoke with Jada, who decided to pick her up for lunch.
Jada was at the address in no time. Sabrina knocked on the door to let Carlos know that she was leaving. He did not respond to the knock, so she opened the door and peeked in and what she saw shocked her.
… to be continued. Ok, I said it!