I don’t know if he realizes how much his words affect me, but just the fact that he’s giving me a choice is a big deal to me.
“Ranch... if that’s okay.”
Brett
“Sounds good,” I tell her.
She gets into the truck, and even though I want to reach for her and help her in – I don’t. She’s small and has to pull herself up, but I just wait until she does and then I shut the door.
I jog around to the driver’s side and get in. “You good?” I ask her because I don’t want a repeat of her trying to get out of a moving vehicle.
She nods, and I put it into drive and take off. It’s in my nature to mind my own business, but today I want to know it all. There’s obviously something or someone that she’s running from. But I can’t ask her about it. I have a feeling that she’s on edge right now, and what if she doesn’t wait until I stop the next time she decides she wants out of my truck?
Neither one of us speaks.
I feel a little guilty. I lied to her. I am attracted to her, but there’s no way I’ll ever do anything about it. I’ve learned my lesson on that front.
We get to the ranch, and when we pull in, she sits up in her seat, peering out the window. It’s dark except for the floodlight that comes on, lighting up the small house and barn.
“I warned you that it’s not much to look at,” I remind her.
She swallows, and I grab her bag and meet her at the front of the truck. She’s looking all around, her eyes wide as she follows me.
Walking in, I see the odd pieces of furniture that don’t match and the drab walls that need paint, and I wince looking at it. I clear my throat. “That’s the doors to the bedrooms. Yours is on the left. Here’s the bathroom.” I point to the door between the two bedrooms and then around us. “Kitchen and living room.... I know it’s small, but like I said...”
She interrupts. “You warned me.”
I nod and walk toward the bedroom she’s going to be staying in. I flip on the light and jiggle on the door that we just walked through. Then I walk to the connecting bathroom door and point out the lock. “See, two locks. I won’t bother you.”
“I’m not your type,” she says softly. The way she says it, I wonder if that comment bothered her, but already I know it’s probably just my mind playing tricks on me.
I clear my throat again. “Yeah, uh, you need anything? I usually go to bed early, but if you need anything tomorrow, you can come to the barn. Usually one of us is close by. Until you’re more familiar with the place, I’d rather you stick close to the house or the barn.”
She looks defiant and upset that I’m trying to give her rules. I hold my hands up. “I’m not trying to keep you chained up. I just want to give you a tour before you go exploring, that’s all. You can come and go as you please.”
“Where are your neighbors?” she asks.
Of all the questions I thought she’d ask, I didn’t expect that one. She definitely isn’t from a ranch family. “I don’t have neighbors. Well, Mr. and Mrs. Jamison live around a quarter mile down the road. They’re the closest neighbors.”
“So technically, nobody even needs to know I’m here, then, do they?”
4
Heather
As soon as I say it, I realize I’m giving up more information than I should be. I know he’s already suspicious of me. He looks at me curiously. “So about that, what are you running from?”
“I’m not running from anything.”
He tilts his head to the side. “Okay – who are you running from then?”
I stutter for just a second. “I’m not running from anyone.” I can barely meet his eyes.
I never was a good liar. It could have something to do with the fact that I was beat a time or two for it.
He takes a step toward me, and I freeze. “Look, I’m not trying to get into your business. I just need to know if trouble is going to show up.”
I look at him worriedly. I tried to cover my tracks, but who knows? I only had enough money to get two hours away on a bus. It’s probably less in a car. But surely, the cops won’t find me. I paid for the ticket with cash. “I don’t think…”
He shakes his head and comes another step toward me. “You don’t think the problem will find you.”
I almost argue with him and say no, but instead I shrug my shoulders. “I don’t know.”
He laughs. He may be handsome, but he sure is irritating with his snarky, know-it-all smiles. “It’s going to catch up with you. You think you can run, but whatever or whoever is going to catch up with you. It would be a lot easier for the both of us if you just tell me what it is.”
I know he’s right. But I don’t know what I should tell him – or if anything. I jut my chin out. “I can just leave, and you won’t have to worry about it.”
He stares back at me, and when he can see that I’m serious he backs off. “I understand you don’t trust me. You just met me, I get it. We can talk about it later. Just know that I got you.”
When he says ‘I got you’ I can feel it all the way to my toes, but I can’t let him see how it makes me feel. I’m tougher than that. “What do you mean I got you?”
“I mean, if someone or something
