Page 11 of Speeding Hearts

We drove separatelyto the motel, Dean frowning when he got out of his truck at the lot. “I don’t love the idea of you staying here.”

“It’s not so bad,” I said, leading him up the outdoor stairway to the second floor. The paint on the stairs was badly chipped, the iron railing wobbly under my hand. Someone’s TV blared through a door as we walked down the long balcony to my room. I was second to the end, which was a blessing—away from the noise of the lobby, and with a view to the patch of trees between here and the stretch of highway leading into Oak Bend.

“Have you been into town yet?” Dean asked as I fumbled for my keys.

“Not as long as you don’t count the big box store out by the interstate.”

“That isnotOak Bend. This isn’t either. This place was an airport hotel back in my parent’s day. Utilitarian, cheap. Clean. Some out-of-town person bought it awhile back, I think with the idea that they’d remodel or maybe flip it when the airport expanded.”

“So what happened?”

“A chain hotel opened up on the other side of the airfield. Clean and modern. It made this place pretty obsolete pretty fast. How long have you paid up here anyway?”

We stepped into the dim light of my room. “The end of the month. But I have it reserved through to September.” I could tell Dean was gearing up to tell me there were a million other nice places I could stay, but I held my hand up. “Let’s talk about it after I get cleaned up?” I said. “You can show me the other places that were all booked up when I called for a last-minute, long-term booking.”

Dean looked at me kind of sheepishly. “I’m sorry. I know you probably did your research. Still—”

I shook my head. “I’m fine, Dean. You sit down and watch some HGTV or whatever it is that tickles your fancy, and I’ll be right back. I grabbed a change of clothes from the dresser and headed to the bathroom, pausing before I stepped inside. “Do you need to get back home soon? For your dad?”

“All good,” he said. “I already checked in on him tonight and made sure he was fed and had what he needed for bed. The night is ours.”

I rolled my eyes but couldn’t help the smile that spread across my face, filling me with a warmth I hadn’t felt since… since the last time I’d been around Dean.

Then I told myself to knock it off.

I hadn’t come to Oak Bend to hook up with Dean. He was my friend, and just because I’d missed him terribly over the last couple of weeks, it didn’t mean there was anything more there than that.

As I stripped down and stepped into the shower, I thought about how even the few minutes we’d spent together already reminded me of how huge our friendship was to me.

I had other friends at home, sure. Friends I’d grown up with, who knew me inside and out. But Dean was different. With Dean I always felt… safe, or something. Like I could relax. He was the only friend who never drilled me on my nonexistent love life. Who didn’t make me feel like I needed to make excuses for my life and the way I chose to live it.

I sudsed up my hair. The soft feeling of the bubbles under my fingers and aromatic scent of the shampoo was calming—smoothing over whatever last bit of nerves I had going on from Dean’s presence.

Dean was here to take care of his dad. He’d told me there was a job at a racetrack here only because I’d hounded him once he told me his uncle ran one. I’d promised myself I wouldn’t cling onto him when I got here, no matter how I felt about him. We’d set the course of our relationship to friendship early on. It worked. We worked. And I wasn’t going to screw up what we had by even thinking about what else there could be.

* * *

“Okay,so a tour is probably better done during the day,” he said as he pulled up to the parking lot off the town square in downtown Oak Bend.

“No way,” I said, my eyes wide. It was sunset, and the sky was lit up in puffy pink clouds, the last of the blue overhead setting a stunning backdrop for the handful of older buildings lining the town’s South Main Street. “I feel sorry for whoever did stay for only a night at the airport motel way back when. They’d never know how pretty this place was.Younever told me!”

“I guess I always thought Barkley Falls was just as nice,” he said. He was talking about the town I lived in back home, in the southern end of Jewel Lakes County. As we approached the square, I couldn’t help but agree. I marveled at similarities. The two towns were a lot alike, though there was no plaza at home like there was here. Just like home, older buildings lined the downtown core, with cute glass-front shops and a handful of restaurants that had put tables outside on the sidewalk for al fresco dining.

“I can see why you felt at home there,” I said. “How about your lake situation?” Jewel Lakes, as its name indicated, was known for being dotted with gorgeous, pristine lakes and lakefront living.

“Oh, we got lakes,” Dean said. “When you’re not busy racing cars, I could take you to see a few.”

The reminder that Colin had made it clear I wouldn’t be racing cars anytime soon killed whatever buzz fomented at the suggestion of us going swimming together.

“Your uncle doesn’t exactly seem as enthused about me driving as I’d hoped he might be,” I said, sighing.

I explained what had happened, and Dean let out a breath. “I’m sorry, he’s not exactly warm and fuzzy. But I’m sure he’ll change his mind. In fact, I’ll ask him to change his mind.”

“No,” I said, louder than I meant to. But I didn’t want Dean to feel like he needed to hold my hand the whole time I was here. I looked up at him. “Thank you, but no, I’ll be okay. I’m sure I can charm him sooner or later. He knows that’s why I came, anyway.”

Dean studied me for a moment as we walked along the sidewalk. “You sure?”

“Definitely.”

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