Trial By Fire - Bouncing Back, Book 1

Twenty-Three

Bending down to pick up the brake cable for the car he was working on, Memphis cursed as his phone went off. Putting the phone back on the table and pushing the button on his Bluetooth, he said, "Hey, Boss. How’s Italy?"

Phoenix chuckled on the other line, "It’s good fun so far. How is Kenni doing?"

"I sent her shopping with Skylar today, but she’s doing much better than she was three weeks ago,” Memphis muttered. "As for me, I'm trying to fix the brakes on Betty."

Laughing, Phoenix asked, "I thought your dad gave up on that ’66 Vette?"

"Dad, yes. Me, not so much. Dad told me if I can get it running, I can have it," Memphis laughed.

"Yeah, meanwhile, my Dad wants Kenni on lockdown." Phoenix said.

"Lockdown? You know, that doesn't sound like a bad idea," he looked up to see his fiancée standing in the doorway. "Cal is putting you on lock."

She nodded, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. "I'm okay with that. He’s worried, so I can’t blame him. Memphis, can we talk?"

Frowning, he told Nix he would call him back and dusted off his clothes. Sitting on one of the folding chairs, he pulled her into his lap. "What's wrong?"

"I feel like I'm lost," she replied. "I'm so used to being right in the middle of everything, and now that's been put on hold. It’s like I’m not needed anymore."

He laughed huskily. Brushing her hair from her face, he pressed his lips to her temple. "You shouldn’t think like that, Ken. I need you, and so does our child. The whole team needs your level of badassery. It’s just that you’re not up to par right now. Rest and relaxation is what you need.”

As if his soft, understanding tone helped, she smiled. Jerking her head toward the car, she said, "What have you guys tried?"

He rattled off the work he and his father had done to the car. "And we still can't get Betty started."

Kennedy snorted a laugh as Memphis ran his fingers through her fiery red locks, "Who named the car Betty?"

"Dad," Memphis laughed. "Would you believe that he loved the song Black Betty so much it's what he named his first car?"

"I like listening to his vinyl’s," she whispered. "Dude's got one hell of a collection. On top of that, he and my dad would have bonded over his ACDC and CCR collection."

Laughing, Memphis got to his feet. Taking her hand, he led her over to the car. He shook his head, "Why don't you give me a hand in narrowing down what's wrong with her?"

"You want me to help work on the car?"

He shrugged, "Why not? We're supposed to be equals, aren't we?"

Taking a deep breath, Kennedy thought over what he'd said. Standing beside Memphis, she tied her locks back from her face with the elastic she kept on her wrist. "What’s the engine size?"

"She’s a V-8 with 460 horsepower, and a 4-speed manual transmission." He smirked when she frowned at him in confusion. "I've been helping dad with it since I was old enough to hold a wrench. Nix knew, but I didn’t want the others to know."

Nodding, she said, "What about the plugs, cylinders, and coils? And how does Nix know about it?"

"All new," he looked sheepish for a moment before answering her last question. “When I was working on it one day, the prick let himself into the house to come ask me something. He hasn’t left me alone about it since.”

"Sounds like something Boo would do. Have you done the headers?"

Memphis nodded, "So, is this your secret passion? Working on cars?"

"It’s a guy’s world, so I'm told. I mean, anyone can fix a flat, but can they help change the entire front end on a 1960 Maserati Mistral Spyder?" Kennedy chuckled.

"Sounds like I missed the fun. When did that happen?" Memphis said.

Shaking her head, she answered, "Back when we went to Columbia for the first time. s**t went down, so Xander took me into the garage to have a chat, and I ended up helping him fix the Maserati’s front end."

Rubbing her back, Memphis whispered, "Why don’t you apply for a mechanic’s course at the community college? You got the brain-power, so go get the skill."

"It won't be easy being a female in a male-dominated trade," she muttered.

Shaking with laughter, Memphis kissed her neck, "Kenni, I'm damn certain you could kick their asses so bad they'll wish they never met you. Besides, your Scorpions have a few garages already set up, so it would be easy to turn one into a legit business for yourself."

Turning in his arms, she tried to hide the fact that she was stunned at his encouragement. "You know, most guys wouldn't be so accommodating."

"I'm not most guys," he whispered. "So, do you see anything me and dad missed?"

"Seriously, I think your dad has a point. You'd make a damn good lawyer, Memphis," she replied. "What about the wiring harness?"

"I think that's the only thing we haven't touched," he confided. Reaching over, he pulled a rag off the wall to wipe his hands.

Grinning, Kennedy sat back down as she enjoyed the fact that he seemed to like having her in the garage with him. As a child, she would often spend time in her father’s garage watching him work. It had sparked her interest in cars then. Now, as she watched Memphis work from the stool she was sitting on, she felt a little closer to the man who’d stolen her heart.

He plugged in the tester and waited for the data to stabilize. Glancing at the girl he’d fallen for years before, he couldn’t help but smile, excited for the unborn child they had created. "It won't hurt you to get close, Kenni. Come over here."

She slid off the stool and walked over to him. As his arm slipped around her waist, the door to the house opened, and Thomas walked into the garage. "What are you two up to now?"

"Working on this beautiful car," Kennedy called back.

Memphis grinned at his father, giving the tool in his hand a small shake. "Dad, Kenni figured out what's wrong with Betty. We’re going to have to order a wire harness kit for her."

“Replacing the entire harness would cancel out any other hidden wiring issues as well,” Kennedy muttered with a small yawn.

Joining them under the hood, Thomas glanced at the girl by his son's side. "You put any thought into college courses you’d like to take yet, Kenni?"

"Mechanics," Memphis answered not seeing the dark look flash in his father’s eyes.

Frowning at his son, Thomas let the interruption slide. There was no reason for dictation, but he also knew Kennedy wasn’t a girl anyone could walk over. She didn’t even blink when Memphis answered for her.

Thomas took a breath before speaking again. "I was thinking of getting some of those fake flowers for your room. Gonna need to know what colour and kind you want, though."

Opening his mouth again, the teen looked down at the girl in his arms. "Black roses, wasn't it?"

Kennedy smiled, "Awe, you remembered my favourite flower!”

“I do pay attention when you speak,” Memphis shot back with a laugh.

Turning her bright blues to the expectant face of her future father-in-law, Kennedy smirked. “Don’t get mad at him, Thomas. Honestly, you should be proud. Not many guys can remember an anniversary date, let alone what their significant others’ favourite things are. Besides, mechanics is something that interests me."

Thomas inclined his head in understanding, "Well, if that's something you want to try, I agree. You should go for it. How was your shopping trip today?"

"I wanted to strangle everyone in sight. I absolutely hate shopping with Sky because she takes forever to settle on a few strips of fabric," she growled out.

An annoyed look crossed her features, "I had a woman tell me I should stay inside my own race when she overheard us talking about the wedding. Yes, before you ask, she was white, entitled, and had that whole ‘I-wanna-speak-to-the-manager’ look.”

Thomas winced, “Bet that went over well.”

Kennedy shrugged as if she could care less what other people thought of her. “The nicest person I met today was this little old Black woman when we were in line getting food. She told us she’d come to visit her son, and she looked tired, so I let her go ahead of me and covered her meal. I was stunned at the amount of people that turned on me for it."

His jaw clenching, Thomas fought the wave of hate that built up inside him. "I'm sorry, Kennedy. You shouldn't have to go through that."

"No one should," she replied firmly. "It's freaking annoying that there’s so much hate in the world. I don't give a hoot that you and Memphis are black. You bleed red just like I do, so the rest of the f*****g world can suck a dick."

Memphis burst out laughing, "Those pregnancy hormones, huh?"

"Non, mon amant, I'm just fed up with entitled people thinking others are beneath them if they have a different background, skin colour or education. Your behaviour and words define who you are as a person. That’s how I was taught by my parents before they passed, and that’s what I will continue to believe. Besides, haven’t you seen the diverse members wearing my colours?" Kennedy lamented.

Thomas reached over, lifting the girl into his arms as she passed out. "Damn. Looks like she over did it today."

Nodding, Memphis followed his father inside their two-story house.