Page 45 of This Is Love
With an uncharacteristic curl of my lip, I give him a harsh, cold stare, then walk over, throwing the back door of his SUV open and climbing in. “I need just a sec to find out where my friends are. They’ve been in an accident. I need to get to them.” And I might sound like I’m pissed—and I am—but I’m also all jacked up on the inside and trying hard to focus instead of letting myself go to the very dark place my mind is beginning to slip to.
The guy throws me a perturbed glance, but nods. “Yeah. Fine. Canceling this ride so we can start a fresh one. I need a new address, though.”
“Okay, do that,” I grit out, then turning back to the phone, I ask, “Where are you, baby, do you know?” Sweat pops out on my back as memories of my mother fielding a call similar to this from my dad threatens to take me under. Vomit surges up into my throat, but I swallow it down. That call was the last time wespoke to him. And if I’d known then that it would be, I might have handled things differently.
On the other end of the phone, Rya answers, her voice shaky, “I-I don’t know. Jaxon, where are we?”
“Put it on speaker, Rya.” Relief bursts from me as I hear Jaxon’s voice for the first time. He seems steady enough. “Hey, Logan, we’re okay. We’re on Highway 33 headed toward Big Judd’s Burgers. Maybe two miles from the ball field. Somewhere in that stretch between the diner and campus. I’ve already called for a damn tow truck. Tire’s blown, and I ran over something when we went off the road. There’s a fluid leak that’s making me too nervous to let Rya stay in the car—or even let it run—so we’re standing a good distance away, slowly fucking freezing to death. Come as fast as you can.”
I glance up to see the driver nod that he understands the gravity of the situation, his fingers flying as he plugs in the restaurant as our destination.
Every minute that ticks by is enough to push me closer and closer to the edge. My dad was able to call my mother after the accident that took him from us. We thought he was fine… and he fuckingdiedfrom the injuries he sustained. How the fuck do I know they’re okay? I clutch at my chest as my breathing becomes erratic, my mind veering off into darkness because I don’t have eyes on these two people who mean so fucking much to me. I don’t know what I’d do if anything happened to them.
The SUV is moving at a good clip, but the voice inside my skull screams to drive faster. I lean forward, head in my hands as I force myself to swallow. To breathe. To fucking get a hold of myself.
“Is that them?”
My head snaps up, eyes focusing in the direction the guy up front is pointing. “Yes. I’ll pay you extra if you’ll wait at leastuntil I know what’s going on and whether we all need a ride somewhere.”
The guy narrows his eyes on me in the rear view, but he nods. “Deal.” With that, he pulls off the road as far as he can get. I’ve got the door open and am out of the car before he can say another word.
22
JAXON
My eyes connectwith Logan’s across the short distance as he bursts from the back of an SUV and takes off running toward us. Something’s not right. His expression is positively unhinged. “Well, fuck. What the hell?” I grit out under my breath.
Beside me, Rya whispers, “Oh, no,” before letting go of me to run toward Logan. He catches her when she flings herself at him, long limbs winding around his body. I can’t tell if he’s speaking to her or not because his face is burrowed deep into the crook of her neck. The way they cling together has me questioning what I’ve missed. I told him we were cold. That I was nervous about the car. That we were fine.
I frown, feeling like I should pat myself down and make sure I’m whole. Striding briskly over to join them, I catch a fragment of what Rya murmurs. Something about not meaning to put him through that. The frown on my face tugs further into a scowl. I don’t like being out of the loop. Exhaling hard, I lay a careful hand on Logan’s upper back at the same time I put an arm around Rya, gripping her waist and squeezing.
Fuck me. My stepbrother’s blue eyes hold unshed tears. I’ve never seen him fucking cry before, so it feels odd. Significant.And I know I should say something, but it escapes me for several seconds exactly what that might be. Finally, I settle on, “We’re okay. My car’s not, but we’re good, man. Promise.”
He swallows hard, shaking his head, his gaze skirting toward my sedan, which had come to a stop some twenty yards off the side of the road.
“We went over that rough terrain right there. That stump might’ve ripped up something on the undercarriage.” I shrug, tipping my head to the side as I study him.
Logan wets his lips as Rya drops her legs back to the ground and pats his chest as she eases from his hold. His voice comes out a croak, eyes first focusing on Rya, then on me. “You’re sure.” Not a question. More of a clipped statement. He exhales hard as he rakes his hand through his hair. “What the hell even happened?” His eyes are still way too wild. I’m missing something. I’m convinced of that now.
My brows dart together at his accusatory tone, but I let it slide for the moment. “I told you. The tire blew.”
He exhales, stalking toward the car, throwing over his shoulder, “You could at least check your tires before you take the damn car anywhere.”
Okay, hold it. I shoot Rya a grimace, irritation beginning to overtake me—I can physically feel myself about to fly off the handle. Because the last thing dickweed is going to accuse me of is not knowing how to perform standard vehicle maintenance.
“Jaxon, wait,” Rya whispers, but I’m too worked up.
I shake my head before shouting over to him. “I fucking did. Just the other day. I topped off the tires with air because we had that weird warm spell, and then the temp dropped again and they all seemed low. Not one of them specifically, though. Not like there was a leak or anything. Believe it or not, I know enough to pay attention to that sort of shit.” Coming to a stopnext to him, I find him breathing hard, his face pale. A moment later, he’s bent over, clutching at his thighs just above the knees.
“I don’t know how it happened. But we’re fine.” I crouch down beside him as Rya joins me. “The fuck is going on with you?” I whisper roughly.
“Jaxon, give him a second.” Rya’s pleading voice definitely catches my attention. My brows tug together as I swing around to look at her. Where Logan is pale, Rya is practically green. I still have no idea what’s going on, but the tow truck pulls up a minute later, and I force it out of my mind while I talk to the guy about where to take the car.
I cringe. “Some place that won’t charge me an arm and a leg, preferably.”
“I can do that. I’ll take it to the garage about five miles up the road. They do reliable work. Do me a favor and wait until I have her on the truck, then we can meet there. They’re about to close for the night, but they have an overnight key drop if we need to use it.”
Turning on my heel, I join Logan and Rya. “He’s gonna tow it to a place just down the road.”
