Page 88 of Love at First Sighting
“No, fuckyou,” he yells back.
I reach inside my bag and grasp my Well water bottle. When I hurled it at the craft the night this all began, it took it down immediately. I hope it has the same impact on people’s faces. Massive Piss Man tries to turn me around, so I pivot and smash the blue bottle into the side of his head.
Blood spurts on the ground and he clutches his nose.
“Dammit—” he begins, but I whack him again. This time, he drops to his knees. I might hear the crack of aluminum against bone in my nightmares, but right now, it feels like a dream.
“Stop following me, asshole!”
I break into a full sprint, but he’s gotten back to his feet and is barreling toward me as I dive into the car. I think smart and reach for the tiny sample-size hand sanitizer spritzer I have in my cupholder. When he’s close enough, I unleash hell and 92 percent isopropyl alcohol on this motherfucker.
With him down, I turn the car on, and my car Bluetooth syncs up. The last thing I was listening to was my “Queen Carly Rae” playlist, and “Call Me Maybe” blasts through the speakers. My pursuer is up again, rushing toward his Crown Vic, and I figure the best chance I have at getting rid of him is a real, authentic LA car chase. I can do this. Despite Carteralways gripping the safety handle in my car, I’m a good driver and have a sponsorship history with SafeWheel auto insurance to prove it.
“Let’s do this, Carly Rae,” I say to myself as I peel out of my parking spot. Massive Piss Man’s car screeches behind me as we pull onto Ventura. Rain pelts the roof of the car as I manage to avoid three lights in a row and begin driving toward the PIS offices. If that’s where Carter is, and he’s coming for me, I hope he can intercept me at some point.
Los Angeles is full of car chases, despite also being full of endless traffic. I hit said traffic as “Run Away with Me” plays on my speakers. I am clearly running nowhere, Carly.
My phone rings again, and I put Carter on speakerphone.
“Hi! I’m doing a car chase,” I tell him.
“You’re doing awhat?” he sputters out. “Jesus, El, send me your location.”
I do as he asks and let him track me. “Okay, that’s where I’m at. The big guy—”
“Brad. That’s Brad.”
Brad! Who Carter hates and says clips his nails at his desk! It all makes so much sense. “Of fucking course it’s Brad.”
“El, I’m going to come find you. Where are you headed?”
“Toward the office.”
“Okay,” he pants. Panic is rife in all his words. “I’m coming. Don’t worry.”
Carter doesn’t drive in the rain. Carter doesn’t drive recklessly. Yet he’s not hesitating to race to me.
“I’m not worried. I know you’re on your way. I’ll be okay, too.”
There’s a moment of silence, punctuated with Carter sucking in a small breath. “El, I…”
Traffic clears up and I know what he’s about to say. But I don’t want to do this here. Not now.
“Don’t make this a goodbye. We’re going to be fine and I’ll see you soon.”
Before he can argue, I hang up and rev my engine. I weave through cars, nearly skidding on puddles, but Brad follows me into whatever danger I lead him toward. I pull off the freeway and onto side streets. Brad flashes his high beams at me, making it impossible to seeanything, especially in the rain.I crank the aptly named “Drive.”
Brad speeds so close he could give my car a smog check. A car pulls in front of me and I slam on my brakes. Fuck. Brad’s bumper collides with mine and I jolt forward but keep driving. As I gain speed again after the light, another car revs its engine and gains on us. Then it does something I don’t expect.
It sideswipes Brad’s car.
When it speeds forward and pulls up alongside me, I recognize the square black shape of Carter’s Plymouth.
I can only imagine how panicked he is, trying to drive safely because it’s so ingrained in him, but as he rolls down the window, there’s no fear in his eyes, just determination. I roll mine down, too.
“We gotta get rid of him,” Carter shouts over the roar of engines and rain.
“Agreed!” I look down at the several Hydro Flasks on the floor of my car. “I have an idea.”
