Page 23 of No Save Point

10

Carter

The walk back to the car is deceptively simple. Haven is beside me, her arms tucked into her hoodie, her fingers curled into the cuffs like she’s trying to keep the night’s chill from sneaking in. She’s quiet but not tense, relaxed but still watching me, tracking my movements like she’s trying to figure something out.

I should take her back to the Airbnb. That’s the smart move, the safe move.

When we reach the car and I open the door for her, I hear myself ask, “You wanna head back now, or you up for more?”

She tilts her head, considering. Then, just to mess with me, just to see how I react, she smiles and says, “What, you don’t want to show me your house?”

Fuck. I pause, my body going completely still. She doesn’t know what she’s actually asking. She doesn’t know that if I take her back to my place, she won’t just be walking into my world, she’ll be walking into Tate’s too.

I force a breath, force my shoulders to stay loose, keep my expression easy, like that didn’t just send a spike of cold adrenaline down my spine. I have two choices. Option one, I take her back to the Airbnb. Keep it simple, keep it normal, keep Tate out of the picture.

Option two, I bring her home. Pretend nothing is wrong, hope to god Tate is gone or asleep or suddenly decided to develop basic human decency.

The second option? A risk, a big one. If he’s there and awake, if he decides this is the moment he wants to insert himself into this situation, everything I’ve built with her, everything I’ve been trying to keep separate, collapses.

I grip the edge of the car door, rolling the thought around in my head, weighing my next move. Then I glance at Haven, and she’s watching me again, brown eyes sharp and waiting.

I force a laugh, shaking my head like she didn’t just unknowingly back me into a fucking corner. “Trust me, sweetheart, you’re not missing much.”

Haven raises an eyebrow, her smile deepening like she knows she’s gotten under my skin. “That bad, huh? What, you hiding some embarrassing childhood bedroom situation? A twin-sized race car bed?”

I huff out a laugh, pulling open the driver’s side door. “Yeah, something like that.”

I don’t wait for her response, I slide into the car, grip the wheel, and exhale slowly as she settles in beside me.

She doesn’t press. She doesn’t push me for an answer, but she’s still waiting.

Now it’s obvious I don’t want to take her back to my place. I have a feeling if I don’t give her a reason why, she’s going to start coming up with her own. I also know better than to let a woman do that.

I rub a hand over my jaw, forcing my voice back to neutral. “You wanna head back? Or do you feel like a drive?”

Haven watches me for a second longer before she shrugs. “A drive sounds nice.”

Relief uncoils in my chest. Good, that buys me time. That keeps her away from Tate.

I start the car, shifting into gear, pulling away from the diner. The streetlights blur past us, stretching shadows across the empty roads, the town winding down for the night, the world narrowing down to just us in the quiet of the car. I can feel her looking at me, waiting for me to say something, waiting for me to fill the silence with whatever it is she thinks I’m holding back.

She’s not wrong, there’s a lot I’m holding back.

The fact that my brother, who she already can’t fucking stand, is the same guy she’s spent the last six months bickering with online. The fact that I didn’t tell her before she got here, that I’m still not telling her.

The worst part, she trusts me. She’s sitting in my car, completely relaxed, no hesitation in her voice when she agreed to keep driving. Like she doesn’t have a single doubt about who I am or what I’m not telling her.

I grip the wheel tighter, my jaw clenching. I should tell her. I should tell her now, but I don’t. Instead, I dart my gaze toward her, forcing my smile back into place. As long as I keep her moving, keep her distracted, keep Tate out of the picture a little longer. I can pretend this isn’t already spiraling.

The road stretches dark and quiet ahead of us, the only sound the low hum of the radio and the occasional tap of Haven’s fingers against her knee, keeping rhythm with the music.

I don’t know where I’m driving. I just know I need to keep moving. Keep her away from Tate, keep the lie from unraveling.

Haven shifts beside me, pulling one leg up onto the seat, her face catching the glow of the dashboard lights. She looks… content. Like she belongs here, and I can’t afford to think about that right now.

I grip the wheel tighter, forcing my thoughts onto literally anything else, when my phone buzzes in the center console.

The name flashes across the screen. Tate, my stomach instantly drops. Fuck.

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