The Perfect Cover (The Perfect Stranger #2) - Charlotte Byrd Page 0,3
fine,” he says with a tone of defeat.
Does he know what I’m thinking of doing? How could he not?
I’m tempted to bring up the letter, but again, I hesitate.
Instead, I wait for him to stop me from going, but he doesn’t.
He acts like he trusts me even though he probably shouldn’t.
At Trader Joe’s, I get a cart full of food. It’s cheaper and will last a lot longer than roadside diner food, but it’s not just the money that I’m worried about. I come here to get away from him. I come here to try to make up my mind about what to do.
Tyler tried to leave me and then changed his mind.
Now it’s my turn to decide if I should go home.
While standing in line, I get a call from work. It’s Trisha. Her voice is peppy and sweet as always. I have worked for her for almost a year and while she doesn’t know all the details about my anxieties and fears, she knows that I’m not exactly all there. She also knows that I don’t take spontaneous road trips.
“Hey there,” I say, forcing a smile on my face.
“How are you?”
“Yeah, I’m good,” I mumble. “I just needed to get some time off.”
I’m not sure if I come off believable, but I hope so.
“Yes, I know. Normally, it’s no problem at all, but with Lindsey’s due date coming up and with all the uncertainty about her maternity leave, I just wish that you could have chosen a better time for this.”
Trisha stops short of calling me an asshole, a name that I rightly deserve. Of course, I already know all of this and I wish this could’ve happened any time but now.
“I know that this is a really big inconvenience, but I’ve just had some stuff come up and I needed a break, okay? I’ll be back in ten days.”
This is the plan so far. My trip should last a week. In that time, Tyler and I will drive out west and then I’ll come back. But now…
“I know but we really need your help-” Trisha starts to say, but I cut her off and promise to call back later.
The checkout clerk scans all of my chips and snacks as well as vegan cheeses and a quart of dairy-free ice cream. We don’t have a fridge in the car, but it probably won’t last me through the evening.
I drive back to the motel room and open the door using my key card.
“You’re back?” Tyler asks, sitting up in the bed, looking astonished.
I nod, wincing under the weight of the groceries.
“I was certain that I would never see you again,” he says, helping me with the bags.
“Well, I was certain that I would never see you again at the gas station, so imagine my surprise.”
The silly smile vanishes from his face. He stares at me without breaking eye contact.
“Oh, you didn’t know about that? You didn’t think that I read your letter?”
He darts his eyes away, but only for a moment.
“You tried to take the letter away from me while I was sleeping.” I continue my assault.
“What were you doing?” I ask. “It better be the truth. If you tell me one more bullshit lie, then I’m fucking out of here.”
Isabelle
When we talk…
Tyler closes his eyes and licks his lips. He opens his mouth like he’s about to say something, but then inhales a little breath and stops himself. I hope he knows that I’m serious. I hope he knows that if he doesn’t tell me the truth, then I won’t continue on this journey with him for another mile.
“Is this why you went to the store?” he asks, even though he knows the answer.
“I had to think. I read the letter and I know what it says. You were going to leave me.”
“I know, I was, but since you read the letter you know the truth. Everything in the letter is the truth.”
“What was I supposed to do? After you left me at the gas station?”
He licks his lips again and looks down at the floor.
“Did you not finish reading it?”
“Of course I did,” I say, nodding vigorously. “You left me $1,000. You told me to take an Uber to the nearest car rental place. On paper, it was all going to work out perfectly, wasn’t it?”
“Why wouldn’t it work out that way?”
“The world doesn’t work like that. It’s not just about the logistics of the whole thing, there are other things at play.
“I was alone. Yes, I