Page 54 of Along for the Ride

“Did her mom know about this?”

The bathroom door opens, and we stop speaking. I’ll deal with the mom if Gentry and the thief are too weak to do what needs to be done. Even if she’s an innocent bystander in all this, it doesn’t matter to me.

As Leana dresses in front of us, I’m tempted to see if she and Gentry want to go for round two. But I’ll save it. If my little thief takes a life in front of me, it’ll be worth the wait.

“Grab your things and get ready to hit the road,” Gentry says as he heads toward the bathroom. He stops in front of her and kisses her before he disappears behind the door.

Wearing nothing more than her shirt and a thin pair of panties, she stares at the door. I’m a bit jealous of the relationship between those two. He softens for her, and she melts like ice cream on a hot day. A girl like her will never like someone like me the same way. I’m unapologetically myself and I won’t change for a woman, even one as perfect as her. But I’ll makechanges.

I walk over to her, cornering her against the dresser. Her breath hitches as mine washes over her, and she gasps as I drop my hand between her legs, sinking beneath the waistband of her panties. My eyes catch on the closed bathroom door. She’s lucky I don’t need much time to make her gush for me. A soft moan leaves her lips as I palm her and push my fingers inside her. I place my hand on her throat, and it bobs beneath my palm as she fights louder moans.

“Come for me,” I whisper. “Before Gentry comes back, I want you to come on my fucking fingers.”

“I can’t,” she pants, and I kiss her, drinking the sounds sliding from her mouth to mine. When her pussy clenches around me and her stomach draws in, I rip my fingers from her and a warm gush rains down on my palm.

“Fuck, that’s a dirty little thief. You’ll have to sit in that now.”

The toilet flushes, and I pull my hand from her and sink my fingers into her mouth. She closes her lips around them.

“Show me what you taste like,” I say, spreading my lips for her. She stands taller, prouder, and spits come-coated saliva into my mouth.

She steps into her pants, not bothering to clean herself up. I glance at the clock. It took three minutes to make her come. Maybe I don’t have anything to be jealous about.

ChapterTwenty-Three

Leana

We say goodbye to the hotel, and I’m sad to watch it disappear in the rearview mirror. It’s the nicest place I’ve ever stayed. As we pass through Nevada, I’m grateful Gentry doesn’t press me for more information on my stepfather. The piece of shit definitely deserves whatever hellscape those psychos can conjure for him, but it’s not something I’m ready to confront. I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready.

We reach the state border by early afternoon. After stopping long enough to piss and grab a few snacks from a gas station, we take a turn toward familiar town names. I try to swallow my fear that they’ve discovered my old address, telling myself their next target just happens to live near my mother’s house. I don’t bring it up, though. If my suspicion is incorrect, they’ll know we’re close and will likely force the information out of me. If I’m right...Well, it won’t fucking matter.

I can’t stop them.

I pass the time with small talk. Or try to. They’re focused on getting ready for the job they have to do and don’t have much to offer in the way of conversation. I eventually give up and stare out the window. My stomach rolls at the sight of every familiar landmark.

An hour later, they turn into the neighborhood where I grew up, and I can no longer pretend I don’t know where we’re going.

“You lied to me,” I say from the back seat.

Karson turns to face me, his finger wagging in the air. “No, no. We didn’t lie. We said we had a few more hits, and this is one of them.”

Gentry turns onto my old street. I can see the house from here, and I don’t recognize the car in the driveway. “Just stop! That’s not even his car. I don’t see my mother’s car, either, so they probably moved. Let’s just—”

“Let’s just wait and see,” Gentry says. His eyes meet mine in the rearview mirror, and my lips snap shut. I recognize the dark cast they’ve taken on. It’s the same look I saw when he was carving words into that man.

We pull into the driveway, and my skin is ice. My mouth is a desert. My heart is a bass drum. The engine cuts off, and I can hardly hear the silence over the sound of blood rushing through my ears. I’ve boarded a train that’s barreling toward a dark chasm, but there’s nothing I can do to stop its forward momentum. I’m a passenger, taken against my will once more.

“Let’s go, thief,” Karson says. “We’re home.”

I shake my head, sending strands of blonde hair across my face. “No. If you guys feel the need to kill someone, go for it. I don’t want any part of this. I’ll wait in the car.”

Gentry’s head snaps in my direction. “Nowyou want to wait in the car? Of all the times, you choose now to be a good girl and stay put?”

“That’s fine,” Karson says. “If she doesn’t want to make sure we’re killing the right person, we’ll just slaughter everyone in the house without verifying their identity first. This house is at the end of the street, and there’s no one close enough to hear the screams. I have no problem with any of this.” He reaches for the door handle.

“Wait!” I shout. When he puts it like that, I don’t really have a choice. He’s not bluffing. “If we knock on the door and it’s not my stepfather, do you promise you’ll let the people inside live?”

Karson looks away and sighs. “Yes, but only because this isn’t an official hit. I’ve never willingly left a hit alive, and I don’t plan to start today. But if your evil stepmonster opens that door, don’t even think about pleading for his mercy. Got it?”

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