Read Online Holding Out for a Fairy Tale by A.J. Thomas - Free Book Online
Authors: A.J. Thomas
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around Elliot’s laptop hoping to find a power cord he could use to charge his phone. When that turned up nothing, he tried turning on the laptop itself, desperate for something to keep his mind busy. He hit the space bar, then held down the power button for a few seconds. Nothing happened. Ray sat down in front of the computer at the breakfast bar, content that he’d found something to keep himself busy.
Chapter 4
E LLIOT WOKE up to a smoky, chemical smell that left him panicking and wondering why the hell his smoke detectors weren’t blaring. He leapt out of bed, nearly fell flat on his face as a wave of dizziness swept over him, and stumbled out of his room to find whatever was on fire. He stopped cold as he entered his kitchen and saw a mess of electronics spread across his counter. From end to end, the counter was covered with small circuit boards, oddly shaped pieces of plastic with wires attached to them, and metallic rectangles covered with stickers and warning labels. At the end of the counter, hunched over a small green circuit board, was Ray Delgado. He was holding a small silver coil of solder in one hand, and a smoking soldering iron in the other. He touched the circuit board and a puff of acidic smoke drifted up.
Elliot tried to make sense of what he was seeing, including what was left of his dismantled laptop at the far end of the counter.
“Good morning, sunshine.” Ray grinned up at him. “I made oatmeal, but it’s probably cold by now.”
“Oatmeal?” Elliot glanced at the stove and saw that the man had, in fact, made him breakfast. “I have oatmeal? What is that smell?”
“Resin.” Ray bent down over the circuit board again. “It’s in the solder, it helps stabilize the alloy, keeps it solid at room temperature, and then it burns away once the solder melts. Sorry, I know it stinks. I’m almost done.”
“Do I want to know what you’re doing?”
Ray kept his eyes on the circuit board and touched the coil of solder to it quickly. Another puff of smoke rose. “I am replacing two blown capacitors.” Ray didn’t take his attention away from the circuit board.
“Is that what was wrong with it?” Elliot asked. That laptop had been sitting on the counter for nearly a month, waiting until Elliot remembered to take it down to one of the electronics waste collection drives that different stores around town offered occasionally. Since it had been out of warranty when it died, he’d just replaced it with a new one—albeit, one he’d been leaving at the office most days.
“Yes. I’m replacing them with higher-rated ones, so they shouldn’t blow out again. The rest of it…. When it comes to electronics, you get what you pay for.”
Elliot shrugged. “Or you get something that’s cheap enough to replace when it breaks. Do you carry random electronic bits with you?”
Ray waved the soldering iron. “There’s a hardware store down by the freeway ramp. They opened at seven. It’s next to a grocery store you should totally visit more often. I grabbed you oatmeal and turkey and stuff.”
Elliot took in the mess on the counter again, wondering how long it had taken Ray to disassemble, diagnose, and fix the computer. The repair guy Elliot had consulted said it would need a new circuit board and take a week to repair. Ray was still dressed in the same slacks he’d worn the day before, but he had stripped down to a plain white undershirt that clung to every inch of his darkly tanned skin. Even though Elliot wouldn’t admit it out loud, the man was definitely worth drooling over. But his normally handsome face was marred by dark circles beneath his bloodshot eyes. He’d obviously slept on Elliot’s couch, and slept so poorly he looked hung over. “How long have you been awake?”
“Too damn long.”
Elliot watched him set the soldering iron down, and then he grabbed a tiny set of wire cutters and clipped the thin pieces of metal he’d just attached to the circuit board.
Chapter 4
E LLIOT WOKE up to a smoky, chemical smell that left him panicking and wondering why the hell his smoke detectors weren’t blaring. He leapt out of bed, nearly fell flat on his face as a wave of dizziness swept over him, and stumbled out of his room to find whatever was on fire. He stopped cold as he entered his kitchen and saw a mess of electronics spread across his counter. From end to end, the counter was covered with small circuit boards, oddly shaped pieces of plastic with wires attached to them, and metallic rectangles covered with stickers and warning labels. At the end of the counter, hunched over a small green circuit board, was Ray Delgado. He was holding a small silver coil of solder in one hand, and a smoking soldering iron in the other. He touched the circuit board and a puff of acidic smoke drifted up.
Elliot tried to make sense of what he was seeing, including what was left of his dismantled laptop at the far end of the counter.
“Good morning, sunshine.” Ray grinned up at him. “I made oatmeal, but it’s probably cold by now.”
“Oatmeal?” Elliot glanced at the stove and saw that the man had, in fact, made him breakfast. “I have oatmeal? What is that smell?”
“Resin.” Ray bent down over the circuit board again. “It’s in the solder, it helps stabilize the alloy, keeps it solid at room temperature, and then it burns away once the solder melts. Sorry, I know it stinks. I’m almost done.”
“Do I want to know what you’re doing?”
Ray kept his eyes on the circuit board and touched the coil of solder to it quickly. Another puff of smoke rose. “I am replacing two blown capacitors.” Ray didn’t take his attention away from the circuit board.
“Is that what was wrong with it?” Elliot asked. That laptop had been sitting on the counter for nearly a month, waiting until Elliot remembered to take it down to one of the electronics waste collection drives that different stores around town offered occasionally. Since it had been out of warranty when it died, he’d just replaced it with a new one—albeit, one he’d been leaving at the office most days.
“Yes. I’m replacing them with higher-rated ones, so they shouldn’t blow out again. The rest of it…. When it comes to electronics, you get what you pay for.”
Elliot shrugged. “Or you get something that’s cheap enough to replace when it breaks. Do you carry random electronic bits with you?”
Ray waved the soldering iron. “There’s a hardware store down by the freeway ramp. They opened at seven. It’s next to a grocery store you should totally visit more often. I grabbed you oatmeal and turkey and stuff.”
Elliot took in the mess on the counter again, wondering how long it had taken Ray to disassemble, diagnose, and fix the computer. The repair guy Elliot had consulted said it would need a new circuit board and take a week to repair. Ray was still dressed in the same slacks he’d worn the day before, but he had stripped down to a plain white undershirt that clung to every inch of his darkly tanned skin. Even though Elliot wouldn’t admit it out loud, the man was definitely worth drooling over. But his normally handsome face was marred by dark circles beneath his bloodshot eyes. He’d obviously slept on Elliot’s couch, and slept so poorly he looked hung over. “How long have you been awake?”
“Too damn long.”
Elliot watched him set the soldering iron down, and then he grabbed a tiny set of wire cutters and clipped the thin pieces of metal he’d just attached to the circuit board.
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