Page 40 of Ride Hard
Sloane
That night,Chaser stopped at a little motel outside some nondescript town on the ass cheek of MiddleAmerica.
Since he wouldn’t let me drive, we were forced to camp out so he could get a little shut-eye.
Fossicking through my duffel, I took out some clean clothes and set them aside for the morning. Making a pile, I arranged everything else while Chaser banged about the room behindme.
When my hand knocked against the heavy books I’d brought along for the ride, Ipaused.
I’d already forgotten about my Poli Sci textbook and the week of lectures I’d missed while we were on our cross-country road trip from hell. Still, I carried my work with me on the off chance I would be able to catch up at some point. I knew a part of me was still holding onto the life I wanted to have even though it’d been snatched out of mygrasp.
This was one of those crossroads moments, wasn’t it? I was perched on a fence that was wobbling underneath my ass, forcing me to choose. If I didn’t, it was threatening to toss me wherever itpleased.
Glancing at Chaser, I could still feel his lips on mine. His touch had forced a lot of things on me—desire was one of them but the other… I couldn’t quite articulate what it felt like. It was kind of like a video game where the main character leveled up and was able to face tougherenemies.
Chaser had somehow forced me to see my situation in a different light. He’d given up something when he kissed me by the side of the road. I wasn’t sure what it was yet, but it was something he valued. The way he’d closed down once we’d gotten back into the car was a glaringindicator.
Watching as he unfolded a map and laid it on the table, I raised myeyebrows.
“Wow, I haven’t seen a map like that in forever,” I said, speaking for the first time since our conversation on theroadside.
Chaser grunted and leaned over the table, studying the lines. All those roads dotted America? Considering how devoid of life it was outside, it boggled my mind how surrounded by people we really were. Even if it felt like we were in the wilderness, civilization was never faraway.
Standing next to him, I tried to find where we were on the map, but I soon gaveup.
“We’re so far off track I’m not sure where we are anymore. Are we in Missouri?” Iasked.
“We’re stuck,” Chaser replied. “There’s only one way fromhere.”
“Then we go thatway.”
“The likelihood oftrouble—”
“Is a risk we need to take.” I nodded at the map. “Where arewe?”
“Here.” He jabbed his finger at a point in the middle of nothing. It fit the scene outside, but he could’ve pointed anywhere and I would’ve believedhim.
“So we either go back the way we came or goforward.”
“They’ll be expectingit.”
“They’ll be expecting both courses of action,” I shot back. “So we just have to deal with it. Be smart. Keep our heads down until we can shakethem.”
“We go forward,” he said after a moment of deliberation. “Nonstop.”
“If that’s the way we have to go, then so beit.”
He grunted and sat on the edge of thebed.
Standing over him, I went for the higher ground tactic. I wasn’t sure if it would override his alpha asshole aura, but it was worth ashot.
“You know, it would be much easier for me if I knew who we were dealing with,” Ideclared.
He stared at me, sayingnothing.
“I told you I was ready to drop the ‘too stupid to live’ act,” I said giving him a pointed look. “Give me something to arm myselfwith.”
“What’s thecatch?”
