Page 86 of Run Away With Me

‘No,’ she said, her eyes sad and desperate. ‘To blackmailme.’

I reached out for her hand and squeezed it. ‘You’re safe now.’

‘I don’t remember much else, Jessie. Just the drugs, and Ashley saying I would be valuable to them.’

I didn’t want to push her. She’d only been with Chris and Ashley for a little more than a day. I had a feeling the last traces of drugs were still working their way out of her system, too.

‘How’s your head now?’ I asked.

‘Okay. I’m just really hungry.’

‘There’s Pop-Tarts in the bag,’ I said quickly. ‘And the woman on reception last night said there’s a diner next door, so we can go get something decent to eat in a minute, once I’ve had a quick shower.’

‘That sounds good.’

I didn’t want to leave Brooke alone for too long, so I tried to scrub myself down as quickly as possible. She seemed to be coping incredibly well, even considering her breakdown last night, which was probably the best thing to have happened. I knew from personal experience that holding on to those messy feelings wasn’t helpful in the long run.

‘Hey,’ Brooke said when I stepped out of the bathroom, dressed in underwear and jeans, but without a shirt because I’d forgotten to take one in with me. Her eyes lingered on my belly button, and I wanted to curl up like a bug under her close inspection. ‘Does that hurt?’

‘Not really,’ I said, trying not to scramble for a T-shirt. ‘It’s starting to scab over.’

She gave a little shudder. ‘That’s so gross.’

I went to my bag and quickly found a shirt. Since Brooke had kissed me, our whole relationship had changed, and for some reason being undressed around her now was so much scarier than it had been before. Maybe it was because I knew she was looking at me the same way I looked at her.

‘Will you braid my hair for me?’ I said impulsively. I wanted it off my face in this heat, and styling it up in braids would be quicker than blow-drying it.

‘Sure. Sit down.’

Brooke nudged me into the desk chair and finished roughly towel-drying my hair. On the desk was a small white card, the size of a postcard, with useful phone numbers printed on it: the front desk, the takeout number for the diner, the activities line where you could book horseback riding or hire bikes. It finished with a reminder:Check-out is at noon!That meant we had time to get breakfast.

I closed my eyes as Brooke efficiently folded my hair back into two short braids that tucked behind my ears and left little tufts bouncing off my shoulders.

‘You look super cute.’

I snorted with laughter. ‘Thanks.’

She smiled at me in the mirror over the desk, then leaned down to press a kiss to the crown of my head. I closed my eyes and let myself soak in her newfound affection. Responding with a kiss of my own still felt like it could be seen as taking advantage, but my self-control was on the verge of evaporating at any moment.

‘Come on,’ I murmured. ‘I need to feed you.’

Brooke walked outside onto the wide wooden porch and stretched up her arms. I locked the door behind us and took a deep breath of crisp morning air.

‘This place is totally your shit,’ Brooke said.

I laughed. ‘Yeah. It is.’

‘Is it bad that I don’t remember getting here?’

‘No.’ I reached out to take her hand, but Brooke was the one to thread our fingers together. ‘I think we need to go this way.’

She didn’t let go of my hand as we walked back around to the front lobby building, passing a handful of other people all dressed like they were ready to go hiking. The trees offered dappled shade under a perfect blue sky, and I wanted to stay here forever, live here forever, and not see a dirty roadside gas station motel ever again.

I hadn’t noticed the diner when we drove in last night, but this morning it stood out like a neon beacon among the trees.

‘Wow,’ Brooke said.

‘I love it.’

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