Page 13 of Reckless

“And shotgun deals with it?”

“It’s road trip law. But I’ll make an exception.” I nod to where my phone is in the holder beneath the console. “Knock yourself out.”

As he reaches for it, I panic. What am I thinking? There’s a lot of his music in my playlists.

I focus on the road, ignoring the slight laugh as he scrolls through the options, concentrating extra hard on the road. I expect one of his songs to come on, to make me blush even more, but it doesn’t.

He picks ‘Alive’ by The Hunna. I wouldn’t have thought this was the kind of music he is into. Who am I to assume what his taste is? Mine is pretty eclectic too.

Maybe I lied about how long it would take to reach the rest stop, and the fact I need to go slow.

I’ve enjoyed having him here, despite the initial concern. He’s intrigued me from the moment he walked into my little clearing.

I can't help but feel a little sad. Once we get to that rest stop, Jude Smallwood will walk right back out of my life.

Chapter 4

Watching her drive this beast is all kinds of sexy. I’m happy she didn’t change before we set off, because admiring her legs has become my favorite thing to do. I don’t want to look like a fucking creeper. She is doing me a favor, after all.

I’m disappointed at the thought of separating from her.

Krista is gorgeous, she’s funny and I love how independent and free-spirited she is. Hell, she is sitting beside me in her pajamas, hiking boots and not a lick of make-up. I don’t think I’ve come across a woman who cares so little about impressing me in… Well, ever.

I’m staring again. Fortunately, she’s focused on the road. It’s hard to articulate how she intrigues me, she’s mesmerizing and it’s dumbfounding because I don’t react to women like this.

Reluctantly, I drag my eyes away from the beautiful woman beside me. I can’t figure out if I'm happy or not about heading after Cody. This has been an unusual but welcomed reprieve.

I heard what the fucker said while he was on the phone, and I was in the RV. I’ve been gone overnight and they’re holding off on calling the cops.

The cops won’t do anything right now anyway, but that’s irrelevant. The only reason Cody is holding off is because the record label doesn’t want this kind of publicity.

Krista’s lie tickled me, even if it made me seem gross.

I’m wasting what little time I have left with Krista, worrying about Cody and the label. I shift back in the seat so it swivels to face her. She glances at me with a small smile.

“What are your plans after South Dakota?”

She sighs, but not as if she’s irritated. “My final destination is Chicago. I’m going to a book signing there.”

“Cool, like in a bookstore?”

“No, it’s much bigger than me. There are over a hundred authors scheduled to be there. It’s a weekend event.”

“Impressive.”

“It’s always fun. And I get to stay in a hotel with a bathtub. And I meet a lot of amazing people. Catch up with friends.”

I smirk at the bathtub comment. “When is that?”

“A few more weeks.”

“So you’ll be on the road that whole time?”

“Winding my way to the windy city,” she chuckles at her own joke, and it makes me grin back at her.

“Didn’t you say you’re from Chicago?”

“I did,” she slows to take a tight corner.

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