Hitched (Promise Harbor Wedding) - By Erin Nicholas Page 0,42
week,” he said, leaning back.
“Anchorage?” She read the flyer he held up. “The Solstice Festival?”
“Longest day of the year. Great excuse for a party.”
Hmm. Well, it wasn’t TV and pot roast. “Drinking and dancing?” she asked, reaching for the brochure that clearly depicted people drinking and dancing.
He held it up out of her reach. “No drinking for you.”
She grimaced. “Not a bad rule. Unfortunately. But dancing?”
“If you’re good.”
Before she could come up with a sexy quip about how good she could be, Lydia said, “No fun for you until you go see Eddie. I’ve made excuses for you for two days.”
Allie leaned around Gavin to look at Lydia. Geez, the chick could be soundless when she wanted to be. She could easily sneak up and scare the crap out of someone—or set up a booby trap. Allie made a mental note to carefully survey her environment.
“Okay,” Gavin agreed. “You’re right.”
“Eddie?” Allie asked.
“He wouldn’t go while you were sleeping,” Lydia said with an exaggerated eye roll.
“Eddie lives about forty miles out. I didn’t want to be that far away while you were sick,” Gavin explained, “but I do need to check on her.” He paused and tipped his head to look at Allie. “Want to come?”
“Yes,” she answered without hesitation. She didn’t care who Eddie was or where she lived or what was wrong with her. She wanted to get out of the house, period.
“Okay, let’s go. We’ll talk about Anchorage on the way.”
Things were looking up. This was way better than Scrabble.
But as soon as Gavin helped her up into the high passenger seat of his F350 and shut the door, she realized she’d made a tactical error. She was now a captive audience. It was a forty-mile drive. That would take a while. There were no distractions, nowhere to go. That meant the potential for a lot of talking.
She groaned.
Things were looking up. Gavin resisted humming as he got behind the wheel and started the truck, but just barely.
Taking Allie with him to check up on Eddie and her pups was perfect. They could be together; she wouldn’t be fighting with Lydia, drinking tequila or mountain climbing; and, best of all, she’d be a captive audience for a talk.
And Allie was going to see some of his real life—his grown-up, responsible, serious life.
He grinned and pulled the truck out onto the road before she could realize the same thing and jump out.
Besides, he’d be forgiven as soon as she met the dogs. Allie was as much an animal lover as he was. He couldn’t wait to tell her more about the polar bears, too. In fact, that was the main reason Anchorage had appeal for him. The Solstice Festival was a typical celebration—food, drink, music, staying up all night—literally. They had nineteen hours of daylight this time of year. Not that it actually got dark at all. And it was the first official day of summer. But it was a great reason to take Allie to the zoo and introduce her to his girls.
Neither of them said a word for the first few miles. Allie kept her head turned, watching out the window. Finally she gasped and turned to look at him. “I’m in Alaska.”
He looked at her with a combination of amusement and concern. “Yes, you are.”
She covered her face with her hands and rested her head back against the seat. “Omigod.”
He reached over and put his hand on her knee. “You okay?”
“No.” Her answer was muffled by her hands.
“No?”
Her hands came down. “I might be on the verge of hyperventilating.”
“You’ve been in Alaska for almost three days now.”
“But I’ve been ignoring it. Every time I start to think about it, I make myself stop. And if I’m with you it doesn’t seem to matter. But now…” she swept her hand toward the windshield, “I’m right out in the middle of it. I can’t ignore it now. It’s everywhere.”
He squeezed her knee. “You’re okay. I’m here. This is all good.”
She started shaking her head. “No. It’s not good. What about my family, what about my dad? And all those people. What about Josh?”
Dammit.
Gavin swerved to the side of the road, throwing the truck into park. He turned to her and pulled her across the seat and into his lap. “Breathe,” he commanded, rubbing his hand up and down her back.
She covered her face again and he tugged her hands down to her lap.