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“Is that like…a different class of hotels?”
The only response I got was a bark of laughter from Fox.
“I’ll find something for you,” Brock continued. “Either way, it’ll be safer until we can figure out who’s really after you.”
“About that,” I said, shifting in my seat. “How do you really know someone’s after me? Just because someone broke onto the property doesn’t mean there’s a threat.”
“I need you to trust me on this. I know what I’m talking about.”
“You keep saying stuff like that to me, but none of that is reassuring!” I said, starting to freak out. “I mean, what about my father? What if he calls the police? Shouldn’t I let him know I’m okay?”
“No, the last person we want involved is your father.”
“But why? He would never hurt me!”
“Wren, he was involved in the stalker plot. That could have gone horribly wrong.”
“But it didn’t!”
He sat back, frustrated with me, which I didn’t think he had any right to. I was the one who had been kidnapped in a minivan!
“Look, let’s just get some food and then we’ll find someplace to lay low for a while,” Brock said calmly.
“Yes, because food will make everything better,” I snapped.
“It actually does,” Fox spoke up. I noticed he did that a lot. Just put in his two cents when it wasn’t wanted. “I have a great recipe for pasta carbonara. Great stuff. I find that when I’m feeling blue, a little bacon goes a long way. Although, in most recipes, they use very little bacon. I like to think of mine as bacon with a side of pasta.”
I stared at his goofy face in the mirror until he finally understood that I wasn’t thrilled by his story.
“Tough crowd.”
“Just pull over somewhere,” Brock snapped.
Sighing, I sat back in my seat and ignored the way Brock put his hand over mine, running his thumb across the back of my hand in a soothing gesture. If he was trying to appease me, he was doing a good job. And I couldn’t handle that right now. I needed some distance from him so I could think this through and remember why going on the run with him was a bad idea before I ended up in his bed again.
We pulled into a parking lot that was practically empty. Dust kicked up all around us as we rolled to a stop, and when it cleared, I saw the rusty sign in front of us. Leaning forward for a better look, I grimaced at the name on the front of the building.
“Rusty’s Crab Shack.” Turning to Brock, I shook my head. “Are you kidding me? There is no way that crab out here is fresh.”
“So, don’t eat it,” he said, taking my wrists and sliding a knife between them. My breath hitched as the cool metal slid across my skin. Not out of fear, but something entirely different. My eyes made contact with Brock’s in the next instant. His heated gaze held the promise of things I’d only ever dreamed about.The plastic strip tore in two and my hands were free. Taking a deep breath, I rubbed where it had pressed against my skin. Then Brock’s hands were on my wrists, massaging them as he stared at the reddened skin with a frown.
“I have some lotion somewhere…”
Clearing my throat, I did my best to remember who I was. “Let’s just get some food and get out of here. The last thing I need is to catch some disease from this disgusting place.”
Brock heaved a sigh, sliding the side door open. “You know, not everything is as bad as you think.”
“I would love to hear how you explain that this rusted restaurant isn’t really that bad.”
I stepped out, nearly falling as my legs buckled. Brock caught me, holding me to his chest as I regained sensation in my legs. Pushing away from him, I straightened my nightie as best I could. “Where are we, anyway?”
“Can’t tell you that,” he said, pulling off his jacket and swinging it around my shoulders. I slipped my arms into the sleeves, pulling the front closed. I may have taken a moment to inhale his scent, but luckily, he didn’t catch me.
“Why can’t you tell me?” I asked, rushing to catch up. I winced as gravel bit into my feet. “You know, you could have at least grabbed a few items for me. A few personal effects would have gone a long way to help my demeanor.”
Fox snorted. “Somehow, I doubt that.”
“There was no time.” Brock pulled the door open and finally looked at me again. The heat in his gaze only grew in intensity as he stared at my bare legs. “Then again, I should have made time.”
