They pulled off the road at a truck stop and went in to use the bathroom. Dad bought hot dogs and microwaved them, bought Timmy a Pepsi and himself a cup of coffee, and they got back on the road. The cheese on the hotdog tasted like orange rubber, but at least it filled him up.
“Why don’t you get some sleep?” Dad said.
“Okay.” He wanted to call Mom. He knew she would be worried when he didn’t come home, but when he’d tried to call her before, Dad had taken his phone away and hadn’t given it back.
Timmy closed his eyes and settled back in the seat, but his heart was thumping too hard for him to fall asleep.
It looked like he was going to Mexico.
He wondered how long it would take them to get there.
His eyes stung. He wondered if he would ever get home again.
CHAPTER SIX
LISSA WAS NAPPING, the Mustang’s powerful engine lulling her into a restless sleep. As she awoke, yawned, and stretched, she caught a highway sign illuminated by the headlights. They were south of Austin, almost to San Antonio.
“I’ll drive for a while,” she said, adjusting the seat belt as she sat up straighter. “Give you a chance to catch a little sleep.”
Colt’s jaw hardened. “Dammit, we can’t go much farther. Not without more intel. Once we get to San Antonio, there are a dozen different ways to get to Mexico.”
Lissa raked her fingers through her sleep-mussed blond hair. “The truth is we don’t even know for sure he’s heading for Mexico. He could be holed up somewhere in Texas. There’s even a chance he’s planning to take Timmy back home.”
Colt seemed to mull that over. “I don’t think so. Spearman’s been out of jail for two years. He’s had plenty of time to see his kids, but he never showed up. Why now? Something’s changed. My gut says a guy who goes to this much trouble isn’t planning a friendly little visit with his son. He wants the boy with him. He figures it’s time for him to step in and raise him.”
Lissa ignored a shiver she attributed to the air-conditioning. “That could explain why he didn’t go after Megan. She’s a girl. He has no idea how to bring up a daughter, but Tim is a boy, his heir.”
He nodded. “Someone to pass on his legacy. That’s what he said.”
“Yes, but what legacy? That’s the question.”
They passed another road sign and Colt’s palm slammed down on the steering wheel. “Dammit! We can’t just keep driving. We need to pull off, find a place to rest until we hear from the cops or your friend Tabby.”
Colt was right. Lissa didn’t want to stop, but driving through the night with no idea of Spearman’s destination was just flat-out stupid. “There’s a little town up ahead. There’ll be some motels along the interstate.”
“Okay, I’ll watch for something.”
They pulled onto an off-ramp two miles farther down the highway. Signs boasted of a café and two cheap motels. Colt pulled into the parking lot of a Mesquite Travel Lodge and stopped in front of the office.
It was after 1:00 a.m. They’d been on the road nearly five hours. There was a note on the door, illuminated by the Mustang’s headlights. Office closed till 8:00 a.m... Fill out the form and take a key out of the box. Pay before you leave in the morning.
She snorted. “I wonder how many people spend the night and don’t pay the bill.”
The corner of Colt’s hard mouth edged up. “Sounds like the lady is a cynic.”
Lissa managed a tired smile. “Too many years on the job, I guess.”
“Yeah,” he said, turning serious. “I know what you mean.” He got out of the car, walked over, and opened the wooden box, then reached in and pulled out a form and a single key.
Lissa rolled down the window, felt the rush of hot air against her cheeks.
“Only one left,” he said, holding up the key. “You want me to keep driving, find another place to stay?”
She had seen that look on his face before, though he’d mostly managed to hide it. It was hot and hungry, disturbing in its intensity. It made her feel things, want things she hadn’t had in far too long.
Her pulse quickened. She wanted exactly what his look said he wanted. It wasn’t her style to sleep with a man she barely knew, but driving farther wasn’t a good idea.
“We can share the room,” she said. “If Julie trusts you, I guess I do, too.”
“Julie was Liam’s wife. She’s a friend, nothing more. I want a lot more than friendship from you.”
There it was, right out in the open. He wanted her. Colt waited for her answer, his hard, hot look never wavering. She took her time. Did she have the nerve to take what she wanted? She could still change her mind.
“You need sleep and so do I. Take the room.”
He pocketed the key while she filled out the form. The motel rooms were all in a row, twelve single-story units facing the parking lot. Colt parked the Mustang in front of number ten, and Lissa climbed out of the car into the moist summer night air.
The room was cleaner than she expected. The mattress sagged a little but the spread was freshly laundered, the dark brown carpets recently vacuumed. There was only one bed, but it was a king.
Just looking at it sent her mind into a hot, dark place filled with longing. She glanced at Colt, saw him watching her with that single blue eye, saw the heat he didn’t bother to hide. She noticed the way his black T-shirt clung to a chest taut with muscle, the way his jeans cupped a round behind and stretched over long, powerful legs.
His face was the image of hard male dominance, the kind of man who took what he wanted. The kind tough enough to handle the fierce need burning inside her.
She hadn’t been with
