Sibling Rivalry

Chapter Five-1

Chapter Five

THE WEEKEND SCREECHED to a halt and Aimee dreaded it. At least, she was able to go into work late, and hopefully, she’d be getting her car fixed. That’s it, Aimee girl, keep looking for that silver lining. She was tired of sputtering around town, balancing the gas and brake pedals just to keep herself moving. She feared being stranded on the side of some highway being honked at by those who didn’t want to stop to help her out, unless of course, she was willing to help them out in the backseat in exchange. She just wanted to get from point A to point B without the hassle. It wasn’t really too much to ask, was it? Apparently, the Universe thought so.

If she hated Mondays, Karla hated them more. It probably didn’t help that she usually stayed out drinking all night and was hung over come morning. Aimee already pounded on her sister’s door three times, reminding her that she was taking Aimee to get the car inspected. Karla just grunted at her through the door.

Aimee showered, dressed for her day—beige slacks and a dark brown blouse that hung loose on her frame—fixed herself some coffee and an everything bagel with a fried egg. She was ready to go while Karla was just coming out of her room, her dark hair pulled back into a ponytail, leaving her shoulders exposed, and by her outfit, Karla wanted to be exposed. She was wearing a short skirt that barely covered the cups of her ass and a low-cut tank top that Aimee knew if her sister bent over would leave a gaping hole revealing most of the swell of her breasts. Aimee just sighed as Karla scooped up her keys and led the way out the door, not even offering her a “Good morning.” Nothing Aimee said the other night had reached Karla’s brain, obviously. She was dressed for business where Aimee was dressed for work.

Greenway’s Auto Repair was located off Hillshire in the industrial section of town. There were two other mechanic shops, a screen repair shop, and some miscellaneous businesses that Aimee ignored as she sputtered past, just hoping to make it to the end of the road. Hillshire ended in a cul-de-sac, and traffic was sporadic going in and out so early in the morning. Aimee was glad for that since her car stalled twice just turning onto the road.

The bay doors were open, and an older man leaned against the main door, smoking a cigarette. Whether he worked there or was waiting to talk to Mitch, Aimee couldn’t tell. Her Honda rattled to a stop just as she turned into the parking lot, and the older man’s eyebrows rose in surprise, but he didn’t move to see if she needed help.

Looking in her rear-view mirror, Aimee saw Karla pull in behind her, her sister’s Dodge running smoothly. Aimee growled as she opened her door. She knew how Karla maintained her vehicle. It was the same way she received everything else in life. With a grope and a wink, she had an oil change and a tune up.

Stepping out into the morning sun, Aimee looked up at the man leaning against the wall. “Excuse me. I was told to talk to Mitch Greenway about my car.”

The older man ran his hand through his shaggy gray hair while knocking on the door beside him with his other. A second later, a man with dark shaggy hair much in need of a comb came out of the office, a coffee mug with steam seeping out of the top, in his right hand. He took a look at Karla and waved as if saying hello to a friend, a smile stretching his dark cheeks. Aimee glanced back and forth between the two, confusion creasing her eyebrows. They know each other?

“Good to see you again,” Mitch said, as he reached them. Then he turned to Aimee and said, “You must be Aimee, the one who is having car problems.”

Aimee took his offered hand and shook it, glad he didn’t make a comment about how much they looked alike. “I’m sorry, but you two know each other?”

“Not really. We met last night at...” He turned to Karla as if asking for clarification. “…Sand Dune?”

Karla tried her best to look innocent as she swayed back and forth and just gave a quick nod. Aimee stared at her, not believing a word of it. Mitch was oblivious to what was going on between the sisters.

“Shall we pop the hood and take a peek.” He set his coffee cup on a car that was parked beside them.

Karla grinned, her eyebrows bouncing up and down. “Sounds like fun.”

Aimee rolled her eyes as she walked around, reached into her car, and popped the hood. She could feel the heat of her anger reddening her cheeks as her temper coursed through her. She wanted to kill her sister. She should have known Karla ignored her and was up to her old tricks. It was ridiculous. And irritating.

As she walked back around to the front of the car, Mitch was already bent over the front grill, leaning in to take a look. Karla leaned over the side of the car, her tank top open and her breasts obvious for Mitch’s gaze. Aimee glanced up at the old man who wasn’t even hiding the fact he ogled her sister’s ass as it peeked out from under her skirt. Karla obviously didn’t care. Her eyes were solely focused on Mitch as he tinkered with what was under Aimee’s hood, probably wishing he was under her sister’s hood, instead. She glared at Karla, but she was being purposefully ignored.

“Can you start it up for me, please?” Mitch asked as he glanced up at her, his dark eyes smiling. If she wasn’t so pissed at her sister, she’d be breathless at the strength of his jawline, the dazzle of his smile. Instead, her anger blinded her to all the qualities that made her passion pool between her legs.

“Sure thing.” Take Karla. She’s already started up, engine purring, ready to have her pedal pushed to the floorboard. She growled as she slid behind the steering wheel and turned the key. The car died and she started it again, keeping her foot on the accelerator to keep it running. It was easy to do this time. She just pretended the accelerator was her sister’s neck.

“Okay, thanks. You can turn it off now.”

When she joined them back at the front of the car, Karla was leaning back on the side panel, her hands behind her, which forced her breasts out and exposed quite a bit of leg, the skirt hem at the edge of her s*x. With just a little lift of her arms, her secrets would be exposed. She glanced at Aimee and bounced her eyebrows up and down. Mitch smiled at Karla, and Aimee would swear she saw him give a shake of his head as he chuckled. He turned his attention to Aimee, however. “I’ll need to run some tests, but I think it’ll be an easy fix. Probably your fuel filter. I’ll hook it up to my machine, and then call you and let you know what I find. We can decide then what we need to do to get it fixed. If you’ll just leave me your phone number…”

Karla frowned a bit, standing up in her slight frustration. “You have my number. Won’t that work?”

“It is if you’re the one I need to talk to about fixing the car.” He smiled at Karla. “I can always use yours to finish our conversation from last night.”

Karla grinned, dropping back into character. “Even better.”

“I would like an estimate when you figure out what’s wrong before you do any work.” It was time for Aimee to take back control of this transaction. Of course, if he was pure male, her sister’s time would win over Aimee’s cash.

Mitch turned back to Aimee, his smile bright and promising. “By all means. It shouldn’t be bad, though.” That’s what I’m both afraid of and hoping.

Aimee wrote her cell phone number down on a piece of paper and handed it to Mitch. “Thank you. I appreciate you taking a peek.”

“Anytime. It’s what I do here.” He gave her a wink, before turning back to Karla. “And I’ll call you later.” He smiled at both of them and then turned and walked back into his office. The old man just stood there and smiled. Or rather leered.

Aimee growled again and stomped her way over to where Karla’s car was parked. Karla smiled as if nothing in the world went wrong. She even put a wiggle in her step, as if she knew Mitch was still watching. He was male, after all. He probably was. As soon as the car was unlocked, Aimee slid into her seat and stared out the window. She wanted to scream at her sister, but held it in, her anger making a knot in the pit of her stomach. This whole thing was a fiasco and Karla would hold it over her head for weeks to come. She was doing Aimee a favor, Karla would say, and then try to make Aimee all thankful and use her for some other scheme. It was an old story, one Karla acted out since high school, and it boiled Aimee’s blood.

“I take it I’m dropping you off at work?” Karla backed out of the parking lot and started down the road.

“Please,” she said in a clipped tone.

“What’s wrong with you?”

Aimee spun in her seat, the seatbelt burning her neck. “Are you serious? What’s wrong with me? What the hell is wrong with you? I told you I was going to do this the right way. I don’t need you sleeping with my mechanic.”

“Who said I slept with him? Besides, he wasn’t your mechanic, yet.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you met him?”

Karla shrugged. “You were all talkative about your date with Mr. Mom. Sue me. It didn’t come up.”

Aimee spun back around. “Just get me to work.”

“Sure thing. But I didn’t sleep with him.”

Yet, Aimee added.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

She watched as Karla drove off—in her perfectly running Dodge Caliber. Taking a deep breath, she tried to exhale the anger that continued to boil inside of her on the ride over. She didn’t need to face her day pissed off at her sister. That would only transfer to the people who came through the doors of Benson and Taylor Law Firm, where she worked as a receptionist. Those clients were already uptight when they arrived, they didn’t need her adding to their mood. Turning toward the back door, she took another breath. It was going to be hard after dealing with her sister’s antics all morning.

Once inside, she went to the coffee pot and poured a cup to keep her company. An elderly couple already sat in the lobby of the office, the woman twirling a handkerchief in her hands while her husband scribbled away on a notepad he held on his lap. Aimee smiled and said good morning as she walked around the tall receptionist’s desk, sitting her mug down next to the desk calendar that covered the top of the desk while she pushed the power button on her computer. “Has someone already helped you?” She gave the elderly couple her most disarming smile as she stood behind her desk. Part of her work area was like a wall, hiding what she was working on from those waiting in the lobby. They could see her from the neck up, but not what she was doing.

“I took care of it,” Ginny Taylor said, as she walked down some long stairs that led to the offices on the second floor. “The Carters are here to update their will.” She glanced to the couple sitting in the waiting room. “I’ll be right with you, Mr. And Mrs. Carter.” She leaned onto the desk and smiled down at Aimee. “How did it go with the car this morning?”

Aimee sat down and pulled her coffee mug to her. “It’s being tested. The mechanic thinks he knows what’s wrong with it. Fuel filter or something like that. He’s supposed to call me later.”

Ginny c****d her head to the side and stared at her. “That’s good news, so why do you seem tense this morning. Did something happen?”

Aimee let out the breath she was holding to keep her nerves in check. “Karla happened.”

“Ah.” Ginny tucked a loose strand of her dark hair behind her ear. Patting the top of Aimee’s desk, she said, “We’ll talk later.” She turned to the elderly couple and motioned them to a conference room at the other end of the reception area. “If you’ll follow me, we’ll get things started.”

Aimee watched them walk away, the man’s hand in the small of his wife’s back, tender as he helped guide her after Ginny. The woman still looked nervous, but Aimee knew talking about your own death was not an easy thing for most people, especially when it was probably close at hand. She remembered her parents coming in right after the doctors diagnosed her father with lung cancer. Ginny graciously helped them set up their will, so Betty Harper would not have to worry about anything once her husband passed. Marty Harper was stoic the whole time, even knowing they were discussing his funeral arrangements. He caressed her mother’s hand, squeezing it constantly as Ginny went through the details. “We all die sometime,” he said. “At least I get to know when and prepare.”