LOVE BEYOND WEALTH

the time on her phone, trying to come up with another plausible excuse. It was the third time this week. First,

tter. It wasn't about the car-it had never been about the car. It was about him. There was something about Alex Reed that kept pulling her back. Someth

chimed as Ellie pushed it open, and the familiar scent of motor oil and metal filled the air. She found Alex leaning over a car, his sleeves rolled up, hands workin

know, just to be safe." Alex raised an eyebrow, clearly not convinced. "A strange sound, huh?" She shrugged, feeling a bit sheepish under his scrutiny. "Better to be safe than sorry, right?" He chuckled softly, shaking his head. "You sure it's the car that n

uses, Ellie. If you want to come by, just... come by."His words took her by surprise, and for a moment, all she could do was stare at him. There it was, laid out in the open. No more pretending, no more

something inviting-that made her heart flutter. "Yeah? Well, I guess that's a good enough reason." They stood in silence for a moment, the tension between them shifting into something more comforta

tanding exactly what she meant. "It's not fancy, but it gets the job done.""It's not just that," Ellie continued, searching for the right words. "I mean, the p

peed." Ellie frowned slightly. "Why would you think that?" He shrugged, his eyes dropping to the floor. "Because you're not like me, Ellie. You come from a world that's light years

e those differences, Ellie felt a connection with Alex that transcended the usual barriers."I'm not like that," she said, her voice steady. "I'm not here

e said softly. "I just want you to know that I'm not going anywhere." The vulnerability in her voice caught Alex off guard. He wasn't used to people-especially someone like Ellie-bein

d at her, really looked at her, and saw someone who was tryi

ou're sticking around, I guess I should get used to seeing you here." Ellie grinned, her tension easing. "I think that's a safe bet

lex made her laugh with stories of the oddball customers he dealt with. They talked about eve

d become about finding a place where she felt understood, where she could be herself without pretense.And as Alex watched Ellie laugh at one of his jokes, he felt his own walls coming dow

he edge of something new, something neither of them fully understood yet. But for the first time in a long while, he wasn