Page 83 of Cupcake of the Month
Maybe the rest of this conversation should happen when Josh picked him up. “I’ll be there in about an hour, buddy.”
“Whatever. Bye.”
An announcement of a bus leaving sang in Josh’s ear while he waited, his body heavy.
“Mr. Revere?” Beau said.
“I’m heading out now.”
“That’s fine, sir, just fine. We’ll be waiting.”
Shit. Josh stuffed his phone in his pocket as Wendy came bustling into the kitchen, Jordan right behind her. Like she had her friend’s back. One day he’d like someone in his corner. Just once, someone on his side.
“I have to go,” Josh said to Wendy. “Family emergency.”
“Of course you have to go,” Wendy said. “We’ll be fine here.”
“Is everything okay?” Jordan asked. “Can we help?”
“No. I need to get to Macon. There’s squash in the food processor, but I’ve done nothing else for Anthon. I was going to make a souffle. The recipe card is on the counter.” He grabbed his cursed backpack and paused. “Thank you.”
Josh raced to his car. What was in Jacksonville? Nothing came to mind other than the naval base, beaches, and the airport.
Of those three, the airport seemed the most likely culprit.
He slammed the car door closed behind him, turned the key in the ignition and waited for the engine to turn over.
And waited.
The mechanic had warned him the fix was temporary, that he needed new parts, but Josh hadn’t thought temporary meant three hours. He tried again. This time the engine caught, and then died. When he tried a third time, the car didn’t make any noise at all.
“Fuck.” He slammed his palm against the steering wheel, his body buzzing as the adrenaline urged him to do something. Anything.
He took a deep breath and attacked his immediate problem. Barb could come get him, but it would take at least half an hour. And that’s only if she wasn’t busy. Maybe he could get a jump from Wendy. Or Rob. But that hadn’t helped yesterday. Nothing extraordinary had happened in the last twenty-four hours to make his car work today.
Of course nothing extraordinary had happened. Because this was his life, where nothing extraordinary was the norm.
A car started somewhere close, mocking his predicament. Wendy’s car pulled alongside his, Jordan at the wheel.
“Get in,” she said through the open window. “I can drop you off in Macon on my way to Atlanta.”
Son of a bitch. Being trapped in a small space with Jordan Shoenover within reach but completely unreachable was far down on his list of ideal solutions. At the moment, however, there was no other choice.
He snagged his backpack and got into the passenger seat and buckled up as they headed down the three-quarter mile drive. Words stuck in his throat, but he forced them out. “Thank you.”
Jordan kept her attention on the road. “It’s not really that far out of the way.”
“Yeah.” He settled in to the seat, his thumb tapping his phone. “Didn’t you have to pack your stuff or something?”
She indicated the back seat with a wave of her hand,showing Josh her suitcase and a laptop bag. “Wendy and Rob were going to drive to Atlanta in a couple of days to get her car back, but you can go the whole way with me and take it back if you want. If not, I’ll be stranding you in Macon. I have to catch my flight. Besides.” She shot him a sidelong glance, but he kept his view straight ahead. “Spending time in a car with someone who wishes he never had to see me again will make my court appearance as easy as cupcake.”
“Glad I could be of service.” Josh closed his eyes and leaned back against the seat, trying to distance himself from Jordan’s scent. No use. It wrapped itself around him, sinking into his brain and his blood.
He took a deep breath and gave up fighting. They rode in silence, Jordan completely focused on the road.
Josh’s mind kept returning to his Marian and Clint as the only explanation, the only reason for Zach to bolt. But Josh had been so careful, hiding the mail key, checking Zach’s email account, keeping investigators informed of anything new, watching for tails anytime he drove home.
Apparently not careful enough.
