sparkling water... Any of those catch your fancy?”
“If she has a Perrier, I’ll take one.” He’d followed her enough to know Perrier was her favorite drink. A new surge of self-esteem washed through him. This is how those frickin’ video companies should treat him. They should offer him beverages when he pitched his games. They should make him feel comfortable and worthy.
“Sure, she’s got plenty.” Carrie Ann snagged his drink and passed it to him, then got one for herself.
“Great.” Allen twisted open the bottle and chugged a few swallows. Carrie Ann watched him as she did the same. “So, I want to know why Julie hasn’t ever mentioned you.” He grinned and got exactly what he wanted when she smiled at him.
* * *
Julie looked out the diner window at the green fields on the outskirts of the third rest stop on their way to Denver. The sun didn’t come close to the California heat she was used to, but it seemed clearer out here without the smog to diffuse it. She welcomed the warmth of the restaurant after the cool air-conditioned BMW. She sipped her iced tea and scratched the itch above her ear under another god-awful wig. Ditching the old brown one, she’d gone bold with red. She wished she hadn’t mentioned her collection. Troy had made her pack all four of them.
The restaurant buzzed at a third its capacity. Red-and-white checkered table cloths covered the tables while battered red leather chairs dotted empty spaces. Weary travelers—truckers, families and businessmen—took a break from the road with hot meals and cool drinks.
Across from her, Troy rubbed the back of his neck. He looked tired. They’d been on the road the better part of ten hours. Hell, she was tired and she hadn’t been doing anything but researching and reading scripts in the backseat.
“Why don’t we find a hotel so you can sack out?” she suggested as she set her glass down and reached for her dinner. She’d thrown her healthy eating out the window for the house special: a barbeque burger that hadn’t disappointed.
He checked his watch. “It’s still early. We can make it to Denver and call it a night there.” He cut into the mammoth steak on his plate.
“Then how about I take a turn at the wheel?” It was the least she could do and her pain meds had worn off. Her leg could handle an hour in the driver’s seat.
“Maybe tomorrow. I’m okay.”
Two men came from the short hallway that led to the restrooms on their right. Troy had made sure to seat her with her back facing the restaurant, but this one spot left her vulnerable to anyone coming from the bathrooms. Sure enough, one of them slowed down and took a good long look at her as he walked by.
After so many years of experiencing that sensation of eyes on her, Julie tilted her head and took a bite of her burger, giving the guy a good angle of the back of her head. Tangy barbeque sauce exploded on her tongue but she barely tasted it. She waited until they passed before continuing her questions. Troy still hadn’t told her something fairly important in all of this. She swallowed her bite and wiped her mouth. “Where are we going anyway? You owe me that much.”
He didn’t immediately reply, and she wasn’t sure if it was because he had food in his mouth or he didn’t want to tell her. “It’s my uncle’s place,” he finally said, keeping an eye over her shoulder. She didn’t dare turn around to see who he was watching. “I used to go there in the summertime. It’s not fancy, but it’s remote.”
She considered that. If her presence meant the people around her were in trouble, then didn’t this put Troy’s family in danger? “Does your uncle know we’re coming?”
Troy shook his head, then sipped his iced tea. “Nope. I doubt we’ll run into him. He only uses it a few times a year.”
“When was the last time you were there?” She liked getting information out of him. Maybe his guard came down because of his exhaustion, but Julie didn’t care. She liked that she had him talking.
“Too many years ago to count.”
“I can count pretty high,” she informed him. She popped a French fry. “Humor me.”
He looked at her, then cut another bite of steak. “I left when I was nine.”
How did he even know the place existed anymore? “Nine? You know, it’s possible he’s not there.