Page 59 of Surge

I clenched my teeth and resisted the urge to shove him out of the way. His shoulders were so wide, he practically blocked the entire sidewalk. There was no getting around him.

"I don't want or need a ride. I have two perfectly good feet." I tried walking around him, but he moved to stop me. "Seriously?"

I bit down on my lip to stop myself from having a meltdown. He reached forward and put his hand on the side of my arm. "Come on."

He wasn't going to give up, and I did not want him to haul me over his shoulder like a caveman. I let him guide me to the passenger door. He opened it, and I dropped into the bucket seat with a huff. I'd let him give me a ride, but that didn't mean I had to be pleasant.

He jogged around the front of the car and smiled at me as he got behind the wheel. "See, that wasn't so bad now, was it?"

"Just go." I buckled my seatbelt and crossed my arms.

We were both silent, the music coming from the speakers the only thing keeping it from being too awkward. I saw him out of the corner of my eye stealing glances at me, but I kept my eyes on the road or the side mirror.

The car passed my exit and I sat forward a little. "That was my exit." I was fairly certain he knew where I lived.

"I know. We're going to dinner." He started tapping on the steering wheel to the music. "Jax said you hadn't eaten."

That fucker.

"I don't want to eat dinner with you. You'll probably somehow poison my drink when I get up to wash my hands."

I sat back in my seat again, thinking about what my options were. I had a few hundred dollars left that I could use to call a cab, or I could call Ivy. Aiden wasn't an option since Blake would see him.

"Too bad. We're having dinner and you're going to answer some questions."

"Why the hell would I-"

The chirp of a siren came from behind us and I looked in the side mirror to see a highway patrol car with its lights flashing.

"Fuck." Blake's hands tightened on the steering wheel and he flipped his blinker on and slowed as he pulled to the shoulder.

"You weren't speeding, were you?"

His jaw was set tight and worry was written across his face as he glanced over at me and put the car in park before turning it off.

"No." He grabbed his phone from the cupholder and pushed a few buttons before putting it back. "Just... don't say anything about me making you come with me. Please."

I didn't respond, and he rolled his window down half of the way, turned on the interior light, and put his hands back on the top of the steering wheel. His eyes were locked on his side mirror as the officer approached.

Blake’s breathing was labored as the officer came to a stop outside the window and shined his flashlight down on him. His hand was on his holster.

I'd never been in a car that had been pulled over before, but I didn't think having his hand on his weapon was routine procedure for a traffic stop.

"Do you know why I pulled you over, boy?"

"No, sir." I couldn't see his face, but his voice was serious and trembled slightly. "Sir, I wanted to inform you that once my car was in park and turned off, I turned on my video recorder on my phone."

The officer made a noise of annoyance. "This is a traffic stop, boy, not a shakedown. Unless you're hiding something?"

"I don't mean to offend you by filming. It's in my cupholder and won't interfere with you doing your job."

I sat up a little straighter in my seat. It sounded so rehearsed and my chest burned with the sudden realization that this was reality for Blake. I would have never even thought to record an interaction with the police.

"One of your taillights is out." The officer looked over at me. "Where are you two headed this evening?"

Blake's jaw ticked. "Just headed to grab a bite to eat. Just got done at Salinity Cove High with our extracurriculars."

"Young lady?" His eyes were locked on me and I met his questioning eyes. "Where are you headed to eat?"

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