the barreling car almost running over it. Primo crept closer, curiosity fueling him, as his gaze trailed along the shadowy mass in the street.
Filthy bare feet.
Ripped, bloody clothing.
Black-and-blue skin.
Before the car had even vanished, recognition struck Primo.
Dante.
Scorching, dry air blew through the open windows, rustling the crinkled map on Genna's lap. She clutched both sides of it, trying to keep it in place, as she tucked her foot beneath her, relaxing on the long, dirty bench of the old blue Chevy truck. The engine roared, the truck shuddering whenever Matty pressed harder on the gas pedal.
Genna let out a deep breath, blowing some tendrils of dark hair that fell from her sloppy bun into her flushed face. "It's hot as balls, Matty."
He let out a laugh, the sound barely registering above the rumble of the engine. "Hot as balls?"
"Yes. Balls."
"Well, you know, balls aren’t actually that hot."
Genna turned her focus from the outdated map to Matty. He glistened with sweat, beads of it running down his tanned face. Long gone were the sweaters and button-downs, abandoned for a plain white undershirt. The temperature outside had to be well above a hundred that late summer day. August. "What?"
"They aren't that hot," he said again, casting her a sideways look. "They're a few degrees cooler than the rest of the body, anyway. That's why they hang down like they do and why they move, you know… they're self-regulating."
Was he seriously talking to her about the intricacies of testicles?
The fucking swinging testes?
"Ugh, thanks for the science lesson." Genna grimaced at the mental images. Functional? Absolutely. But they were far from attractive. "Doesn't negate the fact that I feel like a sweaty ball sac over here."
"Well, that's what happens when you head south," he said. "It gets hotter."
Genna was certain there was a sexual innuendo in there somewhere, but she was too frustrated to play along.
She felt anything but sexy at that moment.
"No, it's what happens when you steal a truck made in the 1840's," she countered. "Jesus Christ, was air conditioning even invented back then? No wonder Cleopatra hired people to fan her."
Matty laughed again, this time louder, more genuine. "Genna, there's so much wrong with what you just said that I don't even know where to start."
She rolled her eyes, turning back to the map. "You're frying my brain in this furnace-on-wheels."
Matty let go of the steering wheel with his right hand and reached over, brushing his knuckles along her warm cheek. As annoyed as she was, as hot as she was, his light touch still managed to make her shiver. "We'll stop soon and get a room for the night."
"You promise?"
"Yes."
"Somewhere with air conditioning?"
"Are there places without it?"
Genna glanced out the window, seeing nothing but endless wilderness as they weaved through the dense mountains of Virginia. She felt like she had slipped into an alternate universe where civilization no longer existed. Genna was a city girl, through and through, and this? Well, this was a nightmare. "Considering the fact that it feels like we're filming Wrong Turn 6 right now? I'm gonna have to say yes."
They drove for a little over an hour longer, until they reached the North Carolina border, and found a small motel just outside of the city of Greensboro. Genna stepped into the small room and threw herself down on the bed. Lying back, she spread her arms out and kicked her shoes off as Matty tinkered with the air conditioner and cranked it the whole way up.
Cold air blasted out of it as it rattled as loud as the damn truck, cooling Genna's sticky skin. From the corner of her eye, she watched Matty pull off his shirt and toss it to the floor before unbuttoning his jeans. "I'm taking a shower if you want to join me."
"No, it's okay," she muttered, fighting back the voice in the back of her mind chastising her. What the fuck is wrong with you? Look at him! Go forth, and get soapy wet with that motherfucker! "I'm just gonna lay here and cool off and you know… probably never move again."
Matty finished stripping, leaving a trail of clothes leading to the bathroom. Moments later, the soothing sound of rushing water met Genna's ears, nearly lulling her to sleep. No rest for the wicked. Sighing, she pushed herself up and rubbed her tired eyes.
It hadn't even been a full day yet. The small alarm clock on the nightstand beside the bed read a quarter till two in the afternoon. Almost