by MJ Fredrick
She wrapped her arms around her knees. The room was cold, though she could hear the radiator pumping out heat. She wished she had the courage to tell Cam to come back to bed so she could curl into his warmth. She could only imagine the look he’d give her.
He focused on his phone call. “Yeah, all right, check into that, okay? We’ll call later.” He flipped the phone closed and turned toward her in the dim light.
“Who was it?”
“Brian.”
“He called to check on his car?”
“No.”
The tightness in his voice made her suspicious. A shiver that had nothing to do with the chill in the air ran through her. “Cam? What’s going on?”
“Remember how I asked Brian to check on your house to make sure Jerry hadn’t done something stupid?”
A lump rose in her throat. “Yeah?”
“Well, he just got over there this morning, and it looks like Jerry’s done something stupid.”
She sat forward, wanting to hear and not wanting to know at the same time. But she had to ask. “What?”
Cam’s lips were tight and he acted as if he didn’t want to meet her gaze. “He broke in, and looks like he trashed the place pretty good.”
Helpless anger ran through her body, making her feel almost weightless for a moment before reality crashed down, pinning her where she sat.
“Brian’s there with the cops. He’s given them Jerry’s information, but Jerry did a pretty thorough job.”
“Like what?” she asked through numb lips.
Cam stood and parted the curtains a bit so she could see him, could see the snow that was falling gently now, picturesque, so at odds with the words coming out of Cam’s mouth.
“Broken windows…slashed couches…mattress…trashed computer, refrigerator, washer and dryer. He slashed gouges in the floor and drywall too.”
Her heart felt hollow with despair. Everything that would cost a ton of money to fix.
“Brian’s staying there until a carpenter can come and board up the windows. We might be able to get you on a plane back in Billings.”
She shook her head. This was her problem, not Cam’s. She wasn’t going to let him back away from his goal now. “That would be backtracking.”
He stared. “What?”
“We’ve already come through Billings. We lost, what, eight hours yesterday? We can’t afford to go back. You have twenty-four hours until your interview and we have six hundred miles to go.”
“Are you kidding? You think I’m going to drag you to Seattle when your house has been vandalized?”
“What am I going to do today that I can’t do tomorrow?” She tucked her hair behind her ear. “If Brian is making sure it’s secure, that’s all I’d be able to do. I wouldn’t be able to stay there, and the longer I’m gone the better the chance the cops have of arresting his ass before I get back.” She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and found them shaking. She lowered her head and closed her eyes for a minute to gather herself. “God, I hate being stupid. I hate being blind.”
“Will, we need to go back. You can stay with me until the house is livable.”
“No.” She lifted her head to meet his gaze stubbornly. “We’re going to Seattle. I’ll fly home from there tomorrow.” She pushed to her feet. “Right now we need to get the snow chains on the tires and get to Helena for my money.”
“Will.” He followed her as she headed for the bathroom and grabbed her arm. “This is serious.”
She pulled free, unable to bear his touch right now. “I know that. Of course I know that. He destroyed my house because he’s crazy and I was too distracted to notice. I thought I was ready for a happily ever after and I gave him that idea and then I panicked because he wasn’t who I wanted and now he’s trashed my house and I’m going to be out thousands of dollars because I always realize what I want too late.”
“What do you want?” Cam demanded, frustration clear in his voice.
She bit her tongue so she wouldn’t say, “You.” Not now, not here, not with her emotions so tangled. “A shower. I want a shower, okay, and then I want to get to Helena and get my money and get you to Seattle so you can follow your dream. Then I want to get home and castrate that son of a bitch.”
“Okay, then.” He took a step back and a smile quirked his lips. “I’ll get breakfast.”
If Willow thought the shower had covered up the fact that she’d been crying, she was mistaken, but Cam knew her moods well enough not to call her on it. Her eyes were red-rimmed, and while she tried to hide her sniffles, or pass them off as being from the cold, he knew better.
“You have insurance, right?” he asked as he got the tire chains out of the box in the Chevelle’s trunk.
“Of course.”
“It will pay for most of the damage.”
“After I pay for it first,” she grumbled. “It’s not even that. He just seemed so normal. Turns out he’s as bad as Tucker.”
“You didn’t put up with him as long.”
“But this is going to take a long time to get over.”
“Maybe not as long as you think.” He stretched the chains behind the car, lined up with the wheels. “You want to back it up?” He dangled the keys.
She snatched them from his hand. “Aren’t you afraid I’ll run over you?”
“Nah, I’ve got the idea that your anger is pretty focused right now.”
She laughed and slipped into the driver’s seat.
They made a good team, getting the chains on the back tires, then the front. Cam went to finalize the bill, wincing when the phone call was added, while Willow loaded the car. Today was going to be a long day, driving through the mountains, across the Continental Divide, but as he slid behind the wheel, it felt good to get on the road. Willow leaned over and turned on the radio, then tuned his iPod to an album with a good beat. She settled back and closed her eyes as the music washed over her.
He knew she was feeling better when she started singing along, and he joined in.
Their good humor lasted until she tried to use her credit card for lunch and it was declined.
A blush climbed up her throat as she leaned forward and urged the waitress to try the card again. Same result. Cam paid while Willow took the card and her cell phone to a corner by the entrance of the diner to call the credit card company.
“Yes, my card was just declined, and I know I have room on it,” he heard her say as he approached, tucking the receipt into his wallet. She recited the number and her address. Her face reddened as she listened, and he steered her out of the diner before she exploded where everyone could hear.
“I did not cancel this card. Can you tell me when it was canceled?” She had to give her Social Security number before the person on the other end would tell her. Willow lifted stormy eyes to Cam. “This morning? Yes, I think I understand what happened. Look, I’m traveling and this is the only card I have. Is there any way to uncancel it? Of course not. No, don’t send me a new card. I’m clearly having some security issues. Thanks.” She hung up and swore a string of words he’d never heard her say before. He guided her toward the car as customers entering the diner turned to stare.
“That insecure son of a bitch. I cannot believe he would do something like this. You know if he canceled this card he had to have gone through my bank paperwork, and don’t you dare say you warned me to lock that stuff up, Cameron Trask. Do you think he got into my bank account? I have no way of knowing until they open tomorrow. How ironic that he can get into my bank and I can’t.”
Cam kept his mouth shut and opened the car door. “Can we check your account online?”
“Yes!” She lifted her gaze, bright with fury and the promise of retribution. He felt a fleeting moment of pity for the bastard. “Yes, we can.”
Willow thought she couldn’t feel lower until she sat in the passenger seat with her laptop and opened up the bank’s Web site, signed in and, after holding her breath for a moment, saw what she feared ha
d come to pass. Her account was empty, but instead of the zero balance she had expected, negative numbers—in a deep red, in case she might miss it—glared at her.
“How did he do that?” Cam demanded.
She shook her head, feeling as empty as her bank balance, too empty to speak coherently. “I have no idea. He must have found my bank card, and my password. Cam, I had thousands of dollars in savings.”
He drew in a breath through his teeth. “Is there an emergency number there where you can contact the bank?”
She clicked on the contact button, scanned. “Only for lost and stolen credit cards.”
“Give it a try. He can’t get away with this.”
She dialed, then waited. Her battery was in serious need of charging. Why hadn’t she thought to do that last night? He had a charger for his iPod—maybe he had one for the phone. She’d ask as soon as she finished this call. A real person came on the line after several precious minutes of communicating by touch-tone.
“My account has been hacked,” she told the girl.
“Not your card?”
“No, the account itself. My balance is gone and I have no idea where.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am. I’m only authorized to help you with a lost or stolen credit card.”
“What am I supposed to do? I have no money. I’m out of town.” She dragged her hand through her curls, tugging until it hurt. She wouldn’t look at Cam or let him see the tears in hers.
“No one will be available until Monday morning. I’m sorry. I wish I could help.” The girl disconnected, leaving Willow to stare at her phone with the flatlining battery.
“Nothing to do until tomorrow.” She did meet Cam’s eyes then. “Wow, what a loser, huh? I come with you to help and cause you more trouble.”
His hand hovered over hers a minute before he patted it awkwardly. “Hey, I’m just glad you didn’t go back home. It’s a good thing you weren’t there when he came over.”
She straightened. “He wouldn’t have hurt me. He’s not violent.”
Cam’s lips twisted. “Will, he trashed your house.”
“Because he thinks I chose you over him.” And hadn’t she?
“Don’t delude yourself.”
She could tell he wanted to say more but stopped himself. So she finished for him. “Right. Because that’s what got me in this situation to begin with. Can I borrow your phone to call my mom? I want to see what’s going on with the money. Though how I’m going to pay her back after this, I don’t know.”
“The bank will straighten it out.”
“He sure knew how to hurt me where I live,” she murmured. Ironic, wasn’t it? Jerry knew her much better than she knew him.
Helena was only a couple hours down the road. Though her mother hadn’t called her back, Willow was able to locate the Western Union office at one of the local grocery stores and retrieve the money. Relief washed through her as she counted the bills, which felt like a million bucks in her hands, and tucked them into her purse. Nothing like cash for security. She grinned at Cam and they returned to the car. Things were definitely looking up.
She had to know it couldn’t last.
They’d just crossed the Continental Divide into Idaho when the Chevelle started hacking.
Cam tightened his grip on the steering wheel and resisted the desire to bang his head against the dash. He pulled over at the first empty lot—one of many on a Sunday afternoon—and sighed before he turned off the ignition and pushed open the door. He popped the hood. “Wait here.”
“You might need help.”
“I’ll let you know.” He pulled on his gloves and climbed out. He heaved open the hood and stared at the steam pouring out from the split hose leading to the radiator. Or from the radiator. Hard to see with all the steam. Crap. He closed the hood and stomped back to the car. He dropped into the driver’s seat, closed the door and leaned his head back, aware of Willow watching him expectantly.
“What are the odds of a car overheating in a snowstorm?”
“Seriously?”
“Blew a hose.”
She shifted sideways. “So?”
“I’m going to wait until it cools and see if I can tape it.”
“Will that work?”
“It might hold until we get to a town that has a mechanic on duty.”
“Do you want to call Brian?”
“Hell, no.” He closed his eyes and rubbed the knuckle of his thumb between them. “What else can go wrong?”
“A hose—at least that’s not expensive.”
“Right. But this car is thirty years old. You think finding a part is going to be easy, on a Sunday? I wish we hadn’t gotten so far and spent so much money.”
“We’re going to make it to Seattle, Cam.”
He turned to her. “How? No way can we get there now, even if we find a mechanic who’s open and has the part we need.”
“We can drive all night. I can take a turn.”
“Give it up, Will.” He dragged a hand through his hair.
“No! No, this is what you’ve wanted to do since you were in high school. If I have to carry you on my back, you’re going to get there, all right?”
He snorted.
“Is there anyone you can call today to schedule the interview later in the day?”
He shook his head.
“Okay, so we have four hundred miles and eighteen hours.”
“And a busted hose. Don’t forget that.”
“We’ll get you there,” she said, ignoring him.
“So why is it so important to you that I get there?”
“Because I have the job I love, and you helped me get it.”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Yes, you did. You found the advertisement and you helped me with my résumé, and when I said I thought I’d throw up because I was so nervous, you were there after the interview to take me to lunch. And then you took me to dinner to celebrate when I got it.”
He’d forgotten all that. It had been before Laura, and Willow had been dating someone else then.
“So now it’s my turn to help you,” she said.
“That’s not the same thing as driving cross-country. And as far as helping me, Will, you sat with me when Laura was in the hospital.” Every day, sometimes all night, if Laura was in a bad way. They wouldn’t talk, most of the time, but she’d been there when his family couldn’t be. Or sometimes when they were. “I can never repay you for that.”
She shook her head. “That wasn’t something that needs repayment. That was something I needed to do. The only thing I could do for you.”
He nodded, a lump forming in his throat. He didn’t want to go into that. “You know if I get this job, I’m moving out of state.”
She tucked a curl behind her ear and pulled her leg up on the seat, curving her hands around her shin. “I’ve been thinking about that, and we don’t see each other very much now anyway. It won’t be that different.”
But it would. Even if he didn’t look at their relationship romantically, everything would be different. They would be in different time zones so couldn’t watch shows “together” while on the phone or IM. They’d have different weather. And he’d never look out the window to see her pulling up with a box of doughnuts and a DVD.
He should thank God for all the signs He was sending. To move to Seattle would sacrifice too much. Maybe it would be a blessing in disguise if he didn’t get the job.
He climbed out of the car and went to the trunk for duct tape.
The tape only got them a couple of miles down the road, and most of that was coasting. Willow dialed AAA on Cam’s phone while Cam retrieved the blanket from the car’s trunk.
“Who knows how long it will take them to get here.” He spread the blanket over her lap.
She wrinkled her nose. “It smells like trunk, all oily and closed up.”
“It’s clean. I checked.” He closed the door and started to pull off his gloves, then thought better of it.
> Because she was Willow, she inspected the blanket anyway before settling it over her lap. “We should play a game, to pass the time.”
Cam looked out over the view of ranch land on either side of them and the mountains ahead. They were lucky the hose gave out when it did—he’d hate to be stuck up there. “Like what? I spy?”
“Truth or dare?”
“And what? I dare you to go out in the snow, then you dare me to go out in the snow?”
“I was thinking more like, kiss a cow or whatever, but I see your point. There are limitations.” She chewed her bottom lip. “You don’t happen to have a deck of cards?”
“No.”
She looked down the deserted stretch of highway. “And the license plate game is out…”
“I’d say.” God, he wanted to kiss that bottom lip, then the top one, then take her whole mouth. He wondered if she would buy the excuse that he was just warming them up. No, she knew him too well. “How about a music quiz?”
She frowned. “We can’t run the car.”
“We’ll use my iPod and the earbuds.” He pulled the device and the earbuds out of the console. He plugged them in the iPod and handed her an earpiece, then put the other in his own ear, wincing when the cold plastic touched skin. “I’ll put it on shuffle and we’ll see who can get the song first.” The bonus was that the earbuds didn’t allow too much distance between them. He swiped his thumb over the wheel. “Ready? Go.”
He thought, briefly, about letting her win since he’d loaded the music, but this was Willow, and his competitive streak kicked in. He got the first three songs before she cocked an eyebrow at him, her eyes sparkling with challenge.
She moved a closer to him as the next song started. While he stared at her pink mouth, she guessed the next song. She shifted so her shin rested against his knee. And she named the next tune. Then the next, as every breath filled him with the scent of her. His hands shook with the need to touch her, to pull her close, to kiss her, to taste her. She got another song right.
“You’re not even trying,” she chided, placing her hand over his.
Maybe he was wrong, maybe she didn’t know what she was doing. Her fingers trailed down the back of his hand…and she correctly identified another song.