Escaping Parker - F.T. Zele Page 0,16

what they are looking at, wondering if some celebrity has entered the hotel. Two police officers are standing at the front desk, holding up a piece of paper.

Rig spins me around and blocks me from view. “Keep your eyes down and breathe. I have to get you out of here. They are coming this way.” His jaw tightens as the wheels turn in his head.

I brush my fingers over my wig, hoping it’s enough.

“Happy Anniversary, babe!” he says loudly.

Suddenly his lips are on mine, kissing me. I know in my head this is all an act, a distraction to throw off the police, but I can’t help the goose bumps crawling all over my body. His lips are soft and warm. My cheeks start to heat, and I know I am blushing. We continue to play this game, and I kind of like how his lips feel on mine. He breaks the kiss, and I keep my eyes closed for a bit longer to hold on to the feeling.

“I’m sorry I had to do that, there wasn’t another choice. Are you ok?” He searches my face. The smug smile that creeps up on his face shows me he has noticed the red of my cheeks.

So I do what I have to do, and push him back away from me. “I’m fine. Don’t let that happen again.” I play it off, not sure how convincing I’m being.

“We have to get out of here. Let’s go.” He looks around, taking me by the hand and guiding me out of the hotel. We run in and out of the rows of cars before we reach ours.

“This is why we have safe houses, which is where we’re going next,” Rig says as we pull out of the parking lot. “We have to keep you out of public places for a while.”

“So you think if we let things die down for a bit, they’ll forget about me and I can try to live again?” Will starting over ever be in my future?

“I wouldn’t be thinking that far ahead. You need to worry about what’s going on now, not later. That’s only a distraction from the present.”

“I know, I’m just grasping at anything right now. Trying to think positive.” I crawl between the seats and try and get comfortable in the backseat.

“Sorry I had to do that in there. They were getting close to us, and I had to throw them off. It won’t happen again,” he promises, watching me in the rearview mirror.

I can’t tell him I don’t care—that it was the first time in years I have felt desired, even if it was all for show. I don’t say a word. I let it go, not wanting to draw attention to how lonely I’ve been for a long time.

I let out a dramatic sigh as I stare out the window, watching the city around us disappear. Once again . . . destination unknown.

The awkward silence drives me insane. “Can we listen to some music?”

“Um, yeah. Let me see what I can find on the radio; do you have any preferences?”

“Nope, anything with a beat will do.”

My muscles unwind as he tunes through different stations, waiting for the music to play. He finds some classic rock, his fingers tapping on the steering wheel, keeping with the beat. I like that we have a common taste in music.

I get lost listening to the music, letting the things I can’t control leave my mind and drift off to sleep.

I wake up during the drive, wondering how much longer we have. I resist the urge to ask Rig, and I stare out the window. Our headlights illuminate the traffic signs as we whiz by, but none give me any indication where we are.

We take several turns and have been on this dirt road for the past half hour. So I can’t help but get excited when I see a small, weathered house we are closing the distance on. The tires crunch on the gravel driveway as we pull up. The siding appears to be rotting away and nothing looks like it’s been kept up. I suddenly get nervous that this will be where we’re staying indefinitely.

“Is this it?” I ask, eying the place.

“This is where we’ll be for a little while, until things die down and it’s safe for you to be out. Hope you aren’t opposed to some hard work.” Rig gives me sly smile.

“Work? I wasn’t under the impression I would be doing any work, maybe