I frowned. This total stranger wanted me to stay the night with him? That usually meant only one thing, from my experience. Truth was, though, I couldn’t act like I wasn’t interested in exactly that. Every second I was around this man I felt my pulse quickening, my body reacting. I was dripping wet already, and I had no idea exactly why.
He was frustrating, and an asshole, and a total stranger. It was probably a bad idea, following him home.
“I don’t have much choice in this, I guess,” I said.
“You do. You really want to go, I’ll drop you wherever you want to be. But I promise, you’ll be safer with me.”
I stared at him. I didn’t understand why he was doing this or who he really was. He’d seemed to take control of that situation so easily, like he’d done that sort of thing a million times before. He didn’t look like a cop or something like that, but he clearly wasn’t a mafia guy himself.
It made no sense why he’d reach out and put himself in the middle of this, but I knew I needed help, especially now. At least just for the night.
“Okay,” I said.
He nodded. “All right then.”
We drove in silence then and Travis switched on the radio. I leaned deeper into my seat, looking out the window, watching the trees flash by.
Knoxville was a beautiful town. Set deep in the southern part of Georgia, it had some of the prettiest landscapes around. But it was also such a deadly place, as I was finding out for myself. I never thought they’d come after me like that, to be completely honest. I figured they might come after my family, but I prayed that my father and them could figure something out.
This was different, though. They’d tried to rape me in broad daylight right outside a crowded bar. They had way more power in Knoxville than I could have ever dreamed.
Escaping was a damn fantasy. I couldn’t believe how dumb I was getting myself into this mess. If Travis hadn’t helped, something horrible would have happened to me.
I took a deep breath. I couldn’t think about that.
I was probably safe, at least for the time being. I didn’t know how much I trusted Travis, but I couldn’t really see any other options for me. I needed to get out of town, but I didn’t think I’d get very far.
For now, just for now, I was going to follow this handsome, asshole stranger back to his hotel. But that was all. It wasn’t going any further than that. I’d stay there and wait until this all blew over.
That was right. I’d wait and this would all blow over.
I just had to hope I could keep my hands to myself once he got me alone in a room.
4
Travis
I was staying in a shit motel at the edge of town, the sort of place where a man could still be anonymous. I paid in cash and paid double, just in case. Probably wouldn’t do much if the mafia came looking for us, but it might make the front desk guy hesitate for a second at least.
I pulled the car into the parking lot and killed the engine, glancing over at Hartley. “Here we are,” I said.
“Nice place.”
“I like it. Has charm.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Is that a hooker?”
I followed her gaze and spotted a women dressed in a tube top. She was clearly fucked up on meth and was absolutely a prostitute.
“That is in fact a lady of the night,” I said, grinning.
“Charming,” she said. “Like the rest of this town.”
I laughed and climbed out of the car. She followed me.
“Shouldn’t talk shit about Knoxville,” I said. “This is my home.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Really?”
“Really. I know you can’t tell, but my family had deep roots in this place.”
“What happened?”
“Oh, you know,” I said, shrugging. “Drugs, violence, and crime. The usual sort of shit that tears apart any family.”
I began to walk toward my room, but I could sense her hesitation. She lingered near the car, frowning at me.
“Come on,” I said. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Just one night,” she said. “One night only. Okay? And then we part ways forever.”
“Whatever you want, princess,” I said, laughing. “One night is all I’ll need anyway.”
She shook her head. “None of that. This is strictly business between us.”
“I’m always all business. Come on.”
I headed toward my room and she followed. We passed the methed-out hooker and I gave the poor woman a smile. She was too busy smoking her cigarette to notice, though. Hartley, to her credit, just ignored the woman. I was guessing Hartley had never seen the darkest parts of the human world, but if she had spent any serious time in Knoxville, she’d definitely seen a few things.