“You do realize that means you’re stuck waiting around until that little issue of my failed memory is solved, don’t you?”
Ryan hit her with that devastatingly sexy grin, the one that had the ability to shoot something hot and liquidy into her lower belly. “Oh, I’ve got time. In fact, I have no plans to be anywhere else but right here next to you until that memory of yours returns.”
Tess ducked her head, knowing she didn’t want him to see the sudden surge of gratitude that rushed through her. His willingness to verbally commit to staying with her throughout this ordeal meant more to her than even she realized. But she knew she didn’t want to scare him off or make him think she’d become a quivering ball of pathetic appreciation.
After all, he’d already set the boundaries of their relationship once. He’d warned her that there could never be anything personal between them. She had to respect that.
He touched her shoulder as if checking to see whether she was ready to move. She nodded and slipped her hands in his, pulling herself up. They made their way across the yard, and the late-model Town Car’s engine was purring in less than thirty seconds.
Somewhere inside the house, a little dog yipped, but no faces appeared at the tall windows. Ryan backed the car out of the driveway and then took off. They avoided the interstate and traveled the back roads, heading northeast. Neither of them was sure where in the East they wanted to go, but they knew they wanted to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the Bloom Research Center.
They kept moving through the night and well into the next day. Ryan insisted on driving, telling her that she needed to sleep off the effects of the drugs. Although Tess didn’t argue, as she knew her body was crying for rest, she found sleep impossible. She had reached the point of running on pure adrenaline.
Several times, she tried closing her eyes and resting her head against the back of the seat. Nothing. She tried curling her legs up onto the seat and wedging a shoulder into the corner with her head against the window. Still nothing. Her brain refused to let her sleep.
Wild thoughts filled her brain, racing across her consciousness at breakneck speeds. Every car that roared up behind them on the lonely country roads brought Tess’s heart into the back of her throat. She knew that any one of them could be Flynn and his men.
She knew Flynn would never give up. He’d follow her until she was recaptured and returned to the center. He needed her. For whatever reason, he couldn’t let her walk away.
But the thing that made her knees weak with fear and her heart shudder with dread was the knowledge that if Ryan was caught, his fate would be different than hers. He wouldn’t be returned to the center. Flynn would silence him. Permanently.
Chapter Eleven
Tess lifted her head and stretched. The map sitting in her lap slid off and curled down around her feet. She left it there, no longer even having the energy to lean down and pick it up.
It was dark outside and the clock on the dash blinked 10:00 p.m. A light drizzle started, hitting the windshield and sliding down the gritty glass in gray streaks. Ryan reached down and turned on the wipers. The blade on the driver’s side limped across the glass, barely cleaning it.
“Guess that’s a signal we need to find somewhere to hole up for a while,” he said. “We need a few hours’ sleep anyway and it’ll give us a chance to figure out what we’re going to do next.”
“I had the same thought,” Tess said. She was worried about the fatigue that weighed on Ryan’s shoulders. He hadn’t complained once, but she knew he must be exhausted. She might not be able to sleep, but she was pretty sure he would collapse as soon as his head hit a pillow.
The small town they were driving through had the usual recognizable motel chains, but Ryan bypassed them all, heading into the seedier section of town. Tess didn’t argue. She knew without asking that he was looking for a place that was a little less high profile. A bit less touristy.
Finally he hit the turn signal and turned into the parking lot of a run-down motel. As he pulled into a parking slot in front of the office, he glanced at her. “Out of the way enough for you?”
“Perfect,” Tess said, climbing out and surveying the pothole-riddled parking lot. She nodded at the tiny sub shop across the street. “We even have gourmet dining within walking distance of our front door.”
Ryan laughed and walked over to the door to the motel office. He held it open for her. Tess stepped inside and took in the rather startling ugliness of the place. Dust-coated blinds shaded two grimy windows facing the parking lot, and a threadbare rug, with more than a few suspicious-looking stains, covered the worn floorboards.
A lamp sat perched on a high counter, its bulb casting a dim yellowish light through the room. Tess figured that the weak lighting was a blessing. From the looks of things, she was fairly positive that she didn’t want to see any more of the place than was absolutely necessary.
A buzzing neon sign blinked on and off in the window, announcing to the cars passing outside that there were vacancies. No big surprise there. From the looks of things, the Center City Motel wasn’t exactly the kind of place that attracted weary travelers. Which in Tess’s mind was a good thing. It made the place ideal for a few hours of much-needed rest.
In a small sitting area off to the side, a middle-aged woman, in a short leather skirt and tank top stretched over two abnormally large and perky breasts, sat filing her nails. She glanced up at the two of them, her gaze bored. She snapped her gum and nodded a silent hello.
“We’d like a room,” Ryan said.
She grinned, red-glossed lips widening over tobacco-stained teeth, and pointed at the desk with her nail file. “Just hit the bell there and Tony will be along to get you one.”
She went back to filing her nails.
Ryan hit the bell twice.
“Hold your damn horses,” a man yelled, his voice filtering through the door directly behind the desk. “I’ll be out in a freakin’ minute.”
Tess propped an elbow up on the counter and rested her chin on the heel of her hand. Every muscle in her body cried out in protest. The drugs still in her system were affecting her ability to think and see straight. If she didn’t close her eyes and shut off her brain for at least a few hours, she knew she’d be flat on her face in a matter of minutes.
A quick glance in Ryan’s direction told her that he wasn’t in much better shape. His hair was rumpled and hung down over his forehead, trailing in his blue eyes. His usually clean-shaven face was heavily shadowed, giving him a dark, edgy look. Tess hid a smile. The two of them probably looked as though they belonged in the place.
The sound of water rushing through pipes sounded and the door behind the desk swung open. A rail-thin man stepped out, tucking the shirttails of a dingy cotton shirt into his polyester pants. He yanked them up so high they came halfway up his chest.
“Gets so a person can’t even take care of business without someone ringing the damn bell.” He shuffled over to the desk in a pair of matted-lamb’s-wool slippers that had seen better days. He eyed the two of them from behind thick lenses. “How long do you want the room for?”
“One night,” Ryan said.
“The whole night?” the clerk asked.
Ryan nodded.
The clerk glanced over at the woman seated in the corner. “Looks like we’ve got ourselves a couple of marathoners, Stacy.”
The woman laughed and pointed her nail file in Tess’s direction. “Well, if he tires you out, honey, you be sure to give me a yell.” Her gaze traveled up and down Ryan’s muscular frame with frank appreciation. “You got yourself a prime specimen of man there and I’d be more than happy to finish things up for you.”
“Gee, I’ll definitely keep that offer in mind,” Tess said dryly.
Once the registration card was filled out, Ryan reached into his pocket and pulled out the cash to pay. Tess’s suggestion that they hock his ring and Rolex at a pawn shop earlier in the day had been a smart one. It gave them enough money to function without having to use his credit cards.
