Page 9 of Inked Devotion

“Hey there,” Brenna said as she looked behind me. “Oh, you were at the café. Was it good?”

“Uh yeah, sure,” I said, not answering. “Hey, I have a question.”

She blinked up at me. “What is it?”

“Do you think you have room for one more on that trip of yours?”

She blinked, staring at me. “You want to come with me on a road trip to my family reunion?” Confusion filled her tone.

“When you put it like that, it sounds idiotic, but I need a moment to think. I don’t have to go to the family reunion, but getting out? That sounds good.”

“Is something wrong?”

I shook my head. “Nothing’s wrong, but I need to just be. I don’t know. I can usually just be when you’re around.”

Her lips softened into a smile, and I wondered exactly why I had just said that. It was the truth, but it hadn’t occurred to me until the words were already out of my mouth.

“I needed time to think too, so that’s why I was doing the road trip.”

“Shit, then forget I said anything.”

“No, I can think with you around too. So sure. Why the hell not. It’s already going to be weird on a road trip by myself. I might as well bring you along and confuse everybody.”

I snorted. “I’m already really fucking confused on my own.”

“That sounds about right. But okay. I leave the day after tomorrow. You sure you can do this?”

I nodded. “Yes, I have time. And I was already thinking about taking some time for myself. Hell, a road trip sounds just about perfect.”

“I have no idea why I’m doing this, but yes. Come on down.”

“I have no idea why I asked, but thank you.”

I couldn’t talk to the Montgomerys. I couldn’t talk to anybody, except apparently, maybe Brenna. I would have to think about what that meant later, because first I had some packing to do.

Chapter 3

Brenna

Iwasn’t quite sure what had happened, but my lone road trip for me to sarcastically find myself on my way to my family in Virginia had turned into a road trip with my friend, the twin brother of the man that everybody thought I was in love with.

“No, my life hadn’t gone insane at all.”

I cringed, but I told myself that this was fine. Benjamin and I were friends. Just like I was friends with Lee and Annabelle and everybody else in our circle. This wasn’t anything new to us and didn’t need to be weird. Only, why did it feel weird?

It didn’t help that we’d be alone in a car for a couple of days. And a night. In a hotel room. That we weren’t going to be sharing, of course, but still, it was going to be interesting. I hadn’t planned on this turn of events, but he had looked so lost and confused, and that wasn’t Benjamin’s usual MO. Benjamin was the steady one. The one who always knew what he wanted and went about doing it, even if he was completely quiet along the way. But here he was, looking like he had lost something or needed to work things out. Since I knew he never took time off, this had to be important. The idea that Benjamin needed time to think meant he truly needed it. He didn’t take time for himself like that, he always took care of other people, and maybe he did himself as well, but not in any way I had seen, because he was just that self-confident, self-assured.

Now he was going on a road trip with me.

Annabelle stood in front of me, her hand on her belly, and I tried not to focus all of my attention on the motion. Not that I wasn’t ecstatic that one of my best friends was having a baby. I couldn’t be more pleased. I wanted to get down on my knees, kiss that belly, hug her, and tell her that I’m so excited for her, but I refrained. I didn’t need her to give me a weird look. I knew that one day soon, I would be pregnant, gosh darn it. I wouldn’t get those odd looks anymore. At least, that’s what I hoped.

“So, he is just going with you. Out of the blue. Really?”

I sighed as I looked over the last of my provisions. Snack foods for the road, and while Benjamin had texted saying he would bring some too, I wanted to make sure that I had things that he liked as well. I knew him, after all, so this wouldn’t be weird.

I kept having to tell myself that. “Yes, and because I don’t mind and I have a big enough SUV to fit us both, I figured why not.”

“He didn’t tell you why, only that he wanted to go. With you. That’s not strange to you?”

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