Page 8 of Road Trip with Her Bodyguard (Love Along Route 14 #9)
DANE
I ’ve spent the night in Basic Plaines before, but last night was anything but basic.
Feeling so close to Jorie was… Staring out at the endless highway stretching in front of us, I can’t even think how to put it into words. She’s like the first breath of fresh air after being underwater for years. The light I didn’t know I needed.
I glance over to see her gazing out the window, completely at peace.
She trusts me. That’s a gift I’ll cherish forever. Still, at some point we’ll have to return to the real world. She’ll want to go to school to pursue her dreams. I’ll have to go back to work. Gerald will expect his daughter to come home and have nothing to do with a guy like me.
I disguise my exasperated sigh by stretching my shoulders and shifting in my seat a little. When I was younger and Dad reminisced about “the good old days”, there would be warmth in his eyes when he mentioned Gerald. Now, there’s a hardness in his expression whenever his old friend comes up.
I definitely know that Jorie’s dad will not approve of me. At the same time, I suspect my own father may not be too keen on her, simply because she comes from a man who lives and breathes technology these days.
By early afternoon, we’ve had an incredible brunch, an amazing lunch, and are genuinely behaving like a couple on vacation.
When we stop to get gas, I pick up another cheap prepaid phone. “Would you mind driving for an hour? I need to get some food delivered.”
“Sure.”
Jorie is a great driver. By the time we get to the next rest stop, she’s helped me select groceries for a week’s worth of meals. “Are we going to pick it up somewhere?” she asks.
“No. I don’t want you to be seen in Rustic Junction at all. Everything’s being delivered.”
“Won’t wild animals get into it if it’s left sitting on your doorstep?”
I reach out to run my fingers through the back of her hair. “The grocery store manager has the code for the gate and knows where the front door key is hidden. They’ll put the meat and ice cream in the freezer.”
“Wow, you’ve thought of everything.” Jorie pulls smoothly off the highway toward a rest stop.
“That’s me. And now it’s time to check in with your father, from a gas station that gives no indication which direction we’re going.”
Jorie turns to me, puzzled. “Hang on. You never told me how you got to Nashville so fast. You couldn’t have driven.”
“No. I flew, then used the money Gerald paid me to buy this car from a secondhand lot.”
A truck backfires and I automatically spin before I realize what the sound is, my back toward the noise as I crouch with Jorie in my arms.
“Sorry.” I straighten up, smoothing her hair. “That happens a lot out here.”
“The sound of gunfire?” Her bottom lip wobbles, and her delicate face is pale.
“That was a truck. Lots of old farm pickups way past their prime.”
She nods, still looking unsure as she leans against me.
“Let me text your father and see if we can get any information.”
Hey, this is D. Having a great time out on the road. Everything is good from our end. How about yours?
I pump the gas, then move the car before we go into the station to grab some snacks and sodas. By the time we return, the texts are flooding in.
Gerald: Where the hell are you? Where’s my daughter?
Gerald: This was NOT the plan. She was supposed to fly to Georgia.
Gerald: Her mother wants to talk to her right this second.
Gerald: How am I supposed to keep tabs on you when you don’t do as you’re fucking told?
Jorie leans in to read with me, then sighs. “Yeah, he hates it when people don’t obey his instructions to the letter.”
I caress her back gently. “I’m sorry. That must have been hard to deal with growing up.”
She shrugs. “Pfft, we mostly ignored each other. He was never around anyway. He’s only started paying attention to me now that I’m old enough to come out to events with them.” She grins, making a gagging noise. “I feel he’s showing me off and trying to introduce me to guys he’d like me to date.”
My spine stiffens. “Have you ever been interested in any of them?”
“Nope.” There’s a dreamy glow in her eyes. “I guess I never knew what I was looking for…until recently.”
It hits me again like another ton of bricks: her family is going to go ballistic when they discover we’re together. Her father in particular is going to view it as me taking advantage of the situation.
“Jorie, maybe we should talk about…”
The phone pings yet again.
Gerald: I demand you respond to me right now. Tell me she’s all right, and precisely where you are.
She is safe and happy. I’m not going to make any detailed comments through a device that could possibly be traced. You’re tech savvy enough that you should appreciate that. Unless of course you are less concerned about keeping her safe than you say?
Holding out the phone, I wait until Jorie reads the message and nods her approval before I hit send.
Gerald: You ignorant piece of shit. Get her to Georgia immediately. I will take over personally.
If anyone has been tracking your phone, they will know where you are and where you want her to go.
I’m sticking to your original instructions to keep her safe, and that means I am staying off the radar, and away from you.
This phone will be dropped into a garbage can in 10 seconds.
We will contact you again tomorrow with an update.
Once again, I wait for Jorie’s approval before hitting send.
Instead of actually ditching the phone, I snap out the SIM card and put it in the signal blocking box in the trunk with our other phones.
I want to see how he responds, but that will be at the next rest stop, away from Jorie. If her father is devolving into a complete asshole, I don’t know how much of that she should see.
I need Jorie to stay calm and enjoy our trip. Especially when I’m about to take her to my own private paradise.