eating and sleeping and drinking water and all that shit.”
“Where are you guys?”
I shrug. It’s not like he can see me, but it’s all the energy I can muster. “Somewhere with lots of trees.”
“Bubbles…”
“If I go missing, it was Jamie who murdered me, and he buried my body somewhere in these woods.”
“It’s fuckin’ tempting,” Jamie grumbles.
He’s still mad about my rejection last night. Really mad.
“I could hit up a farming store in one of these towns we pass, get a shovel, get rid of your whining ass once and for all.”
I turn in time to catch sight of his grinding jaw.
“My life would be easier,” he continues. “And I’d have the closure I came looking for.”
“So pull over, Secretary. Let me out.”
“Do not pull over,” Will growls. “Let her out, and I’ll come at you with the shovel, Kincaid.”
“Mind your business, Will!” I let my legs drop from the seat to the car floor, and spin toward the dash, the direction of his voice. “Mind your own business! He doesn’t want me, you don’t want me. Sounds like a good time for me to get out and start walking. I might find me a truck driver who wants an ol’ lady.”
“Those are bikers, dummy,” Will huffs. “No truck drivers, no bike gangs. Just stay in the fuckin’ car with Kincaid, and get your ass where you’re supposed to be going.”
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, Will, but I’m not a child anymore. I don’t have to do shit just because you said so.”
“And I don’t know if you’ve noticed, Quinn, but you’re gonna do as you’re damn well told, even when you’re forty. Sit your ass down, stay in that car, stop pissing off the driver. And when this is all done, maybe I’ll get to see you again.”
“Wait. What?” My heart pounds a heavy beat in my chest. “Maybe? Maybe you’ll get to see me?” Panicked, I look to Jamie. “What do you mean maybe?”
“Someone is looking to put me down, Bubbles. They want me locked away. If they can’t get that, then the next logical step is to take me out.”
“What? So why are you still there?” I burst out. “Dammit, Will. Why didn’t you come with us?”
Like it’s the most natural move in the world, Jamie turns his hand, and takes mine so we’re not just cuffed together, but our fingers intertwine. From imprisonment to a hug, he drives one-handed and holds my hand to bring me comfort.
“I can’t come with you, Bubbles, because then nothing changes. I’m still a wanted felon, but it’s worse now, because Nate’s remains have been found. We’d still be in hiding, we’d still be wanted, and we would still be forced to use fake names and shit.”
I imagine him now, sitting in a recliner, and rubbing a hand over his face in frustration.
“We can’t go on like that, so it’s time for this to come to a head. We find out the who and the why, then we take care of it. When it’s done, we’ll both be free, and then I can come back and get you.”
I hate that tears well in my eyes. They blur my vision, and make my eyes itchy. I hate that I sit in this fancy car in the middle of nowhere with a man I love with my whole fucking heart, and Will is somewhere else, effectively homeless, and all alone.
“What did we do so wrong to deserve this?” I whisper. “Why was karma already mad at us even before I was born?”
Will sighs and does the face rubbing thing again. I can hear his palm brushing over the stubble of his jaw.
“I don’t know, Bubbles. I don’t know why the universe wants to hurt us. But I swear I’m trying to cushion the blow. You were wrong the other day when you said that I would go into hiding once I got you away from the danger.” He sighs again. “You’re gone now, Bubbles, and you’re safe with Kincaid, but I’m not disappearing. I’m gonna call you every single day to check in.”
“I’m so mad at you,” I whimper. “I’ve never been so mad in my life.”
“I know,” he admits quietly. “But sometimes, I have to be the parent instead of the friend. I have to do what is right for you, rather than what you want. It’s the way it has to be.”
“I’m so mad,” I repeat. “But I love you. So it’s really important to me that you stay safe and