#MidWeekTease with Lottie and a man who understands cars.

Hi again. As I'm rereading, adding and deleting to #LottiesStory, this week's #MidWeekTease comes from there.

(unedited)

As she got into her car and turned the ignition it made a death rattle, wheezed and went silent.

Thank goodness for the car assistance people.

The friendly guy who appeared a couple of hours after she’d rung the help line had apologised for the delay, told her to call him Mike, and accepted a cup of coffee with pleasure. He explained there had been a lot of cars in need of help on the motorway. ‘Too hot for them,’ he said cheerfully. ‘Their owners forgot they needed extra water and so on in this weather. So they suffered.’ His phraseology tickled Lottie as she imagined the actual cars ringing up and asking for someone to come and speak to them as a or b wasn’t happy, and the people they let sit in them were useless.

‘What’s it like living in one of these chalet places then?’ Mike asked as he drained his coffee mug? ‘Any room to swing a cat?’

 ‘Pets aren’t allowed,’ Lottie said with a chuckle. ‘I wonder if that’s why?’

 He guffawed. ‘Compact eh?

‘Oh yes, you can say that again. But at least when I move into the one I’ve bought it will be mine all mine. This is temporary until they’ve got my finished. Which is a bit bigger and probably you could swing a kitten in it. Here’s you’d be pressed to swing a mouse. Which is an awful analogy. Let’s stick with labour saving and compact.’

‘Fair enough. We’ve got a bloody great barn of a house and only me and the missus now. Rattle around like two peas in a pod and need an intercom to talk to each other. It’s got to go, but Tracey, the missus loves it. Ah well, maybe we should split it up eh? Right this won’t pay for a new roof. Better get a move on before I’m shouted to go somewhere else.’ He disappeared behind the bonnet, hummed and harred and reappeared like a genie out of a bottle. ‘Need to go under,’ he explained as he stretched out on the ground and wriggled so only his steel capped boots were on show.

‘As I thought. Have to go to the garage. Starting motor caput and you could do with getting new brake pads. You’ve got the cover from my company to take it to where you want it to go. Give me a sec to ring through for a tow truck. Where to?’

 ‘Ah, right. ‘Lottie’s heart sank. Carless in Sea Spray. It sounded like the title of a book or film. Whatever it wasn’t much help to her. All her not yet earned cash was about to go down the drain. Or down the starting motor and brake pad route. ‘She thought rapidly. ‘Oh, Preston’s across the river. That’s where I got it from. Er should I ring them?’

‘I’ll do it. Just so happens Tommy Preston is my cousin. I’ll smooth the way. All up to date on services eh?’

Thank goodness for small town relations. She’d always hated the thought that everyone knew everyone else and therefore nothing was private. Now it seemed it was a bonus.

Catch all the other #MidWeekTease posts here

Keep on reading,

love Katy xx