AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’m not going to run from a woman half my size,” I say. “I’ll talk to Darcy again tomorrow. Once she’s had time to cool down—”
“What part of ‘let my sister handle you’ are you missing here?” Binx screeches. “You have to get out of Dodge, bro. At least for a little while. Long enough for Daria to realize you aren’t worth going to prison over.”
“I think she’s right,” Tessa says from the doorway on the other side of the kitchen, making both Binx and I jump out of our skin, proving emotions are running ridiculously high. “You didn’t see her, Wes. I’ve read about people having ‘murder in their eyes’ before, but I’ve never seen it myself until tonight. Daria is legitimately unhinged. And yes, we could call the police for help, but the police aren’t going to take action until she does something sufficiently threatening to warrant their intervention. And by then—”
“By then it’ll be too late,” Binx cuts in.
I want to argue, but I’ve been up close and personal with too many unhinged people. I know from experience with my clients that restraining orders often don’t work and the police aren’t equipped to enforce them when dangerous people step over the line.
I also know Daria’s history. Darcy confided in me early on that she’s afraid to let her sister live alone. Daria’s been violent since they were kids. Darcy’s pulled her back from the edge of a big mistake more times than she can count. Without her sister’s intervention, Daria would likely already be behind bars.
And now Darcy’s decided to throw up her hands and let her attack dog off the leash…
“Maybe we should get out of town for a few days,” I say.
Binx exhales a relieved rush of breath. “Thank God. Yes. Make it a week. I’ll bust my ass while you’re gone to calm things down. I have some friends of friends who run with Daria’s crowd. With enough time and a delicate touch, hopefully I can negotiate a cease-fire.”
“Sounds good, thank you,” Tessa says. “I can go stay with family in Minneapolis for a while. My aunt hates ferrets and isn’t overly fond of me, either, but—”
“No, you aren’t going anywhere alone,” I say. “Especially not anywhere Daria might be able to find you. We should stick together. Watch each other’s backs.”
Tessa pulls in a breath but pauses, her brow furrowing.
“He’s right,” Binx says. “I know you guys aren’t getting along right now, but there’s safety in numbers.”
“I know,” Tessa says. “I was going to say that there’s no way Daria would go to the trouble of tracking down my relatives, but she did catch you in your lie about October in less than ten minutes.”
“She’s diabolical,” Binx agrees, brightening as she adds, “But there’s a silver lining here, you know. You both love camping and being in the great outdoors. You should road trip to a national park or something. I bet Matty would loan you his camper. He owes you one for all the times you loaned him your horses before you sold them.” She lifts her phone into the air. “Should I call him? I’m sure he’s asleep, but you know Matty, he can be awake and problem-solving in a hot second if someone’s in trouble.”
I glance Tessa’s way, arching a brow. “Any interest in Arches National Park? I hear the weather’s perfect in April. I can sleep in a tent and give you the camper bed. You don’t even have to talk to me if you don’t want to.”
Tessa glances down as Freya appears at her feet, winding her way through her ankles.
“And Freya’s invited, too,” I add. “Of course.”
Freya emits a sharp cluck that gives strong “damn straight, I’m invited” vibes. Tessa smiles, but by the time she lifts her gaze to mine, the grin is gone. “Okay. Arches it is. But once this is over, we do our best to avoid each other in the future. Clearly, this…whatever it is, is cursed. It’s best if we pretend we never met.”
“All right,” I say, but I’m not capable of that level of pretend.
I am capable of taking good advice when it’s offered, however.
Binx knows Tessa well and if she thinks groveling will work, well…I have a week to see if she’s right.
One week to convince the woman of my dreams that we can put the ugliness of the past behind us and find something beautiful together.
And I intend to make the most of it.
Chapter 10
TESSA
By the time Binx fetches the camper from Matty, and Wes and I finish gathering his camping supplies from the garage and swing by my place to grab clothes and Freya’s things, the horizon is smudged a rosy gray.
It’s still mostly dark…but light enough to see the giant brown smear on my door all the way from the street.
“Stay in the camper,” Wes says, putting a hand on mine when I reach for my seatbelt.
And yes, the brush of his fingers across my skin is enough to make my entire body tingle—even after a night like this one, even when I’m so tired I can barely see straight. Which means this road trip is an even worse idea than I thought it was when we concocted this hair-brained scheme.
