Page 13 of Runaway Road (Runaway 1)

“Boston.”

I whistled. “That’s a long trip.”

And a dangerous one for a woman on her own. I didn’t like to think about what might have happened had she gotten a flat somewhere other than outside Summers, West Virginia.

“I’m in no hurry.” She sighed, toying with the strap on her purse.

I sat a little straighter, pretending to glance at the car in the rearview, instead checking my face. My hair was a goddamn mess. I ran a hand through it twice, taming down the dark blond sticking up on top.

Shit. When was the last time I’d cared about my hair?

“Where are you taking my car?” she asked.

“To my garage. I’ll take a closer look at it tomorrow, but when I loaded it up, I saw some damage to the wheel. The side panel’s pretty banged up too.”

“Damn it,” she grumbled, dropping her head into her hand. “I can’t believe I did this.”

“Accidents happen.” They were never expected and never convenient.

“This one shouldn’t have,” she muttered. “I don’t suppose you do any custom car work? I had the entire thing restored and need to get it fixed.”

“I’ve done some.” More than some, but I wasn’t going to promise I could fix her Cadillac until I got a better look at the damage. “Like I said, let’s see what we’re dealing with tomorrow.”

“Okay.” She leaned against the door, her frame slumped. She looked like she was about five minutes from falling asleep.

“Where you staying?”

“Sally mentioned something about a motel.”

“I’ll drop you there, then take your car to the shop.”

She hummed her agreement as we reached the edge of town. I slowed as the highway turned into Main Street, then veered off to park in front of the Summers Motel.

There were fifteen rooms in total, all situated in a horseshoe around an office in the center. Guests mostly parked in the loop, but the tow truck was too large for the space so I stopped us along the sidewalk.

As expected, Sally’s truck, dented and dinged, was parked beside the office. Inside, she was laughing with her twin sister, Meggie. The two were eating something, probably a dessert of sorts. Sally was always experimenting with cookies and cakes. Those two would load themselves up on sugar for a few hours and chase it down with a gallon of coffee.

No surprise that Sally was rarely seen in town before noon. Meggie owned the motel and had worked the night shift for as long as I could remember. She said it was so her employees could have the normal hours. My theory was that she and Sally were born night owls.

“Here we are.”

Londyn looked over, giving me a hint of a smile. “Thank you. I’ll come by the garage tomorrow.”

“No rush. It’ll take me some time to figure out what we’re dealing with here. I can call you if you’d like. Tell you when to come down.”

“Okay—no, wait,” she grumbled. “I don’t have a phone.”

“You don’t have a phone?”

“No.”

My jaw dropped. “You’re driving across the country without a phone? Ma’am, I know I just met you. But it’s—”

“Not safe. I’m aware.”

I opened my mouth, a lecture ready, but stopped myself. For now, she’d be at the motel and I could reach her here. Besides, she wasn’t my concern. This woman was a stranger. She’d be out of Summers the minute her car was ready. So why did the idea of her traveling alone leave me with such an unsettled feeling in my gut?

“I’ll call the motel in the morning. The garage is about three blocks away. You feel like taking a walk before I call, come on down.”