Page 27 of The Way Back Home
And maybe, just maybe, a tiny voice in the back of his head said,you like playing the hero.
Of course, all that rationalizing didn’t mean squat if her easy agreement was a smoke screen to attempt to slip away again.
“Anything else, folks?” the server asked, breaking into his thoughts.
Noah looked questioningly at Teagan, who shook her head. Her skin was pale, and the shadows under her eyes were prominent under the bright lights. Pain was etched into the tightness of her features, despite her assurances.
“Just the check when you get a chance,” he told the server.
Teagan closed her eyes and tilted her head, stretching her neck. “How much longer is the drive to your parents’ place?”
“Another nine hours, give or take. More than that if we stop. You can sleep on the way.”
“What about you?”
“Since I’ll be driving, it’s better that I don’t.”
“Smart-ass,” she murmured, but there was no bite to it. “Have you slept at all since”—she dropped her voice—“you found me?”
Between watching over her and keeping an eye out for the sheriff, he’d managed an hour, maybe two. “I’m fine. Let’s go.”
The stubborn female sat back and attempted to cross her arms, then set her hands on the table instead when her ribs and shoulders protested. “You need rest.”
“Are you offering to drive?” Not that he’d allow it. She looked like she was going to pass out at any moment.
A red flush made its way from her neck up to her cheekbones. “No. I … can’t.”
He raised his eyebrows.
She looked away, as if embarrassed. “I never learned, okay?”
He wanted to know more about that—because who didn’t drive these days? Her thinned lips and closed expression told him it wasn’t the best time to ask for details. “Okay.”
She bit her lip. “There’s a motel here. You could get a room and sleep for a few hours.”
“You want us to get a room?”
That lovely rose hue in her too-pale skin deepened. “I wantyouto get a room.”
“What about you?”
“I can crash in the truck.”
He sat back, offended. “Do you seriously think I’m the kind of man who’ll take a soft bed while an injured woman in my care sleeps in my truck?”
Her answer was an exhale and a quietly muttered, “It was worth a shot.”
He thought about suggesting that she get a room, too, but quickly nixed the idea. Chances were, she was watching her cash, and her pride wouldn’t allow her to let him pay.
“What if I got a room with two beds?” he tried. “Win-win. We both get rest, and I don’t endanger us by falling asleep at the wheel.”
The more he thought about the idea, the more he liked it. Was he worried about falling asleep? No. He rarely got more than a few hours on a good night anyway. But he wasn’t in a hurry to get to his parents’, even with Teagan as a distraction. And she’d rest far more comfortably in a bed than in his truck.
Teagan lifted her chin and glared at him. “You’re stubborn.”
“Pot, meet kettle,” he shot back.
Just that quickly, the wind left her sails. He could see her weighing his words, considering the pros and cons, but really, it simply came down to pride or reason.
