Kiss Me in Carolina (Hunt Family Book 2)

by Brooke St. James

  "Thank you," I said, smiling as I sat down. "Are you sure they know?" I pointed at the clothing store, and he looked that way with a grin.

  "Of course they know. They're probably watching you through the windows right now." He waved in their direction as he closed the door for me.

  He turned on the radio, and we drove in silence for two or three minutes before I asked, "Can you tell me where we're going?"

  "And ruin the surprise?" he asked, turning the radio down just slightly. We drove for a few more minutes before I asked him his name. He said it was Mike, and I told him how Logan's last driver had been called Mike, too. He asked if they looked alike, and I told him they did a little. We had a good laugh about that, saying it would be funny if all the drivers in the world were named Mike.

  We drove out of town. We'd been on a deserted two-lane road for a while when Mike rolled the windows down. It was a nice afternoon, but he was going fast, and the wind caused my long hair to fly all around my face. I was working on holding it back and was about to ask him if he could roll the windows up a little bit when he reached over and snatched my purse out of my lap. Before I knew what had happened, he tossed it out of his window.

  "Did you just—" I asked as my head whipped around to look out of the back window of the car. I watched the aftermath of a car in the other lane hitting some object. It swerved and hit the breaks but didn't stop completely before taking off again. Apparently, the person decided whatever they had hit wasn't significant enough to warrant stopping. It was hard to see anything now, but I knew I had just watched the contents of my purse get hit by a car and fly all over the road.

  "What in the world are you doing?" I asked, gawking at Mike, the driver.

  He adjusted the rearview mirror and took a long look at whatever was behind us.

  "What are you doing?" I asked again.

  He didn't answer. At first, since I was prone to give people the benefit of the doubt, I thought the whole purse-throwing thing had been an accident, but it was just starting to sink in that I might be in real trouble.

  "Where are you taking me?" I asked, looking at the door handle while calculating whether or not I could survive if I jumped out. I looked at him, wondering what would happen if I just jumped on top of him while he was driving.

  "I'm dropping you off right up here," he said, as if sensing my panic.

  "Why?"

  He didn't answer me.

  "What's going on?" I asked.

  Mike drove without speaking for another minute before doing a reckless U-turn and skidding to a stop on the side of the road. The car was now headed back the way we came and I stared at the empty road wondering what sort of trouble I was in.

  "Get out, and lay down with your nose to the ground!" he yelled. His tone was impassive, but I was so scared by the driving, that I wouldn't even think about challenging him, even if he would have asked politely.

  It was a narrow street with shallow ditches on each side. I slowly got out and squatted down a few feet from the car.

  "Nose to the ground and count to ten!" he yelled. I did as he said, laying belly-down in the grassy ditch.

  The instant my nose was to the ground, I heard his tires squeal and felt pieces of debris hit my head and back as he sped off.

  I actually counted to ten. The me in a movie would have done something really brave like stand up instantly and chase him down, or at least look up and get his license plate number. But the real me, the scared to death me, counted to ten using the word 'Mississippi' between each number to make sure I wasn’t going too fast.

  I got to my feet feeling like I was in a dream. I numbly dusted the dirt, sand, and grass off of the front of my chest and legs before focusing on the deserted road ahead of me.

  It seemed to go on a thousand miles, and a sick wave of dread flooded my body as I stared at it. I had no phone, no wallet, and no way to know where I was going. I didn't even know the direction of the house. I knew it was on N. Ocean Blvd, but I had no clue about the address. Even if I made it to a phone, I had no one's phone number.

  I stood there for several long seconds before making myself take the first step. My only other option was to stand in one place and look shocked, which I obviously wasn't going to do.

  I knew we had made several turns after he picked me up, but I hadn't been paying attention to where we were going. I thought we'd been on this road for at least a few minutes before he stopped, so I figured I needed to continue on it for a few miles.

  I would have done some sort of math equation to try to figure out the distance since my last turn, but honestly, I had no idea when that was. I hadn't thought anything was wrong until Mike rolled the windows down and tossed my purse out, so I hadn't thought to pay attention to any of that.

  I walked a mile or two before I found pieces of my purse. I searched the area for at least twenty minutes. I found my wallet and a few other random things like lip-gloss, but couldn't come up with my phone or the purse itself.

  Again, I started walking.

  I tried to be positive at first, but I got more and more desperate as minutes stretched to hours. The sun was close to setting when I came to the first promising-looking intersection. I didn't see a sign, but judging from the way the sun was going down, I had a good feeling about taking a left.

  Several cars passed me while I was on my journey. One man pulled over and asked if I needed a ride, but I was understandably reluctant and refused even though I desperately wanted to take him up on it.

  I thought about a ton of different things as I walked. In my mind, it was obvious that London was the one who had done this. I didn't want to believe it, because the idea of having someone out to get me was terrifying, but I knew deep down it was her doing.

  I hated conflict—I did my best to avoid it completely if I could. I wondered as I walked if a life with Logan meant I'd be faced with things like this. I knew paparazzi were a bit of an issue, but I honestly never even considered weird things like this happening. I couldn't believe I had been taken out to the country and dropped off like an unwanted dog.

  Who does something like that?

  I had to wonder if I was doing the right thing by falling for Logan in the first place. I wasn't looking forward to a life where things like this would happen to me, but then again, I wasn't looking forward to a life without Logan, either. These were the types of thoughts that captured my mind as I walked—I love him, I love him not, type thoughts.

  It was nearly dark when I came upon an old country store. The lights were on, but there wasn't a single car in the parking lot. The door dinged when I opened it, and a woman with yellow-y blonde hair came out of the back.

  "Hi," she said. She stood behind the register, and instantly began picking at her fingernails like she intended on doing that while I got what I needed.

  I stood right in front of her, but couldn't quite find my voice. My throat and mouth were extremely dry. "I was wondering if you know how far it'll take me to walk to the ocean from here," I said finally, after having to cough.

  She gave me a skeptical glare, and I smiled at her as best as I could.

  "I'm not hurt or anything, but I'm sort of lost without a ride, and I need to make it back to the beach."

  She continued to look at me curiously, which made me nervous. "Do you need me to call the police or something?" she asked.

  "No," I said, by instinct (though in hindsight, I probably should have let her). "I'm staying with a family on North Ocean, and I need to get back there, that's all."

  I couldn't bring myself to explain that someone had just dropped me off in the middle of nowhere. It still didn't seem real.

  "North Ocean's pretty long," she said. "So it depends on which end of it you're talking about."

  I sighed, helplessly. "I don't remember the address."

  She was in the middle of giving me fairly understandable walking directions when a police car pulled into the parking lot. For reasons I don't even understand myself, I felt the urge to run.


  "Maybe he can help you," she said as an officer walked in.

  I stood really still, looking at him out of the corner of my eye.

  "You're not lost are you?" I heard him ask.

  I turned slightly to make sure he was talking to me. He was definitely looking at me.

  "I'm looking for a young lady who fits your description."

  I smiled stiffly. "Depends on who's looking," I said. I knew even as I said it that it was a stupid thing to say, but I was still a little gun shy after the whole Mike the driver, thing.

  "I'm looking for someone who belongs to the Hunt family," he said.

  "Me!" I said. The word left my lips so quickly that both the officer and the cashier flinched. I raised my hand as I said it, which caused the officer to put a hand on his firearm. I saw him do it and instantly lowered my hand holding my palms up.

  "Me," I said, careful to be less excitable this time. "I belong to the Hunts."

  "Is your name Rachel Stephens?"

  "Yes sir," I said.

  I felt palpable relief like a cool breeze going through my veins. I was absolutely overjoyed that someone was looking for me—the Hunts were looking for me.

  Chapter 16

  The officer introduced himself as Tom Conway and said he'd give me a ride back to the Hunt's place. He didn't ask any questions in front of the clerk. He just thanked her and wished her a good evening, and the two of us walked outside into the warm night air.

  The whole time we walked, I planned what I was going to say to him. I could not, for my mother's sake, blame London in any way for this. I knew that would result in my mom losing one of her biggest supporters. And what if it wasn't even London in the first place? My stomach turned at the thought of more than one person being out to get me.

  "Your family was worried about you," Officer Conway said as we approached his car.

  I smiled shyly, telling myself to err on the side of being quiet.

  "They were worried there might have been some foul play," he said. "Mind telling me how you ended up on this end of town?"

  I gave him a somewhat reluctant expression for a second before changing it to a smile. "I, uh, I don't really know," I said. "I got a ride from someone thinking he was taking me one place, and the next thing I knew, he's dropping me off in the middle of nowhere."

  It was the truth, mostly. I just didn't want to get into the whole "pressing charges" thing—especially when I didn't know for sure what had happened.

  The officer started to open the car door, but didn't hold it wide enough for me to sit down. "Did you know this person?" he asked, a curious expression crossing his face for the first time.

  "No sir."

  "But you still got in the car with him?" He was starting to seem a little suspicious, which made me feel anxious.

  I took a deep breath, reminding myself that I wasn't a criminal. "I thought he was one of my friend's drivers. He's in movies, and it's common for him to hire drivers. I just rode with one of them the other day in L.A. Anyway, I thought the guy was someone Logan hired, so I got in the car with him."

  "And he let you?"

  I nodded.

  He gave me a skeptical smirk.

  "I don't know what happened," I said with a sigh. "Maybe he thought I was somebody else."

  "Why didn't you call your friend when you got stranded?"

  "Because I didn't have my phone," I said. I picked up my wallet and waved it as if that was proof that I wasn't carrying a phone.

  He opened the passenger's door, and I sat on the slick, leather seat. There were so many buttons and lights that I felt like I was in a spaceship. I had no idea how he kept them all straight. There were at least four different types of screens, all displaying various things, including one that was the size of a small flat-screen television and was attached to multiple cameras.

  I watched him go across one of the screens as he walked around the front of the car to get into the driver's seat. I took a few deep, calming breaths, and prayed that I'd be able to say the right things. I quit my methodical breathing once I remembered that there were probably cameras recording everything in the car as well. I just sat still and stared out of the front window with what I hoped was a natural half-smile.

  Officer Conway got on his phone as soon as he sat down in the car. "Tell Chief Briggs I got his friend's girl," he said with a smile.

  I heard some exclamation on the other end, but I couldn’t make it out.

  "I'm sitting here looking at her."

  A pause.

  "Out at Lou's store."

  Another pause.

  "She said she got a ride from the wrong person and ended up stranded. I'm bringing her back to the Chief's friend's house over there on Ocean."

  He smiled during the silence.

  "You better tell him who found her."

  Another smile.

  "You're welcome."

  He hung up the phone, and put his car into reverse before backing out of the parking lot.

  "Someone I know must know the Chief," I said, because I was too nervous to keep quiet like I should have done.

  "Diane Hunt," Tom said. "He knew her husband, I believe."

  I told myself to be quiet after that, but it was no use. Tom Conway started asking questions and did not stop until we reached Dee-dee's beach house. I answered them as honestly as I could without accusing London Ryder of anything. I gave an account of the car and driver, but I never even mentioned her name.

  I had mixed feelings as we pulled up to the beach house. Part of me was happy and relieved to be back, but there was definitely an underlying feeling of shame and embarrassment that it happened in the first place. I didn't know what to expect or how they would react to me disappearing for several hours.

  Everyone was out on the front porch when we pulled into the driveway. It was obvious that they had been notified that we were on our way, because they were all out there waiting for us. Everyone else stayed on the porch, but Logan jogged down the stairs as soon as he saw us.

  Boy, was he a sight for sore eyes. I had never seen someone so handsome in my whole life. I forgot all about being embarrassed for a few seconds as I watched him fly down the stairs two by two and cross the driveway, headed for the car.

  He didn't stand there and wait for me to get out like I thought he'd do. The car was barely stopped when Logan grabbed the door handle and jiggled it. "It's locked from the outside!" Officer Briggs yelled when he saw what Logan was doing. He reached over and pushed a button to unlock it, and Logan pulled at the handle again, this time, succeeding in opening the door.

  I barely had my seatbelt off when Logan began pulling me out of my seat. I let out a little squeal at the feeling of being hoisted up so quickly. One second, I was in the police car, and the next, I was wrapped in his arms. I was so relieved; I wanted to cry. My eyes stung with pain of unshed tears, and I blinked hard in an effort to hold them back.

  Logan sighed, and his chest rose and fell.

  "I can't believe I had to find your girl for you!" Tom Conway called to Logan from the other side of the car. "I thought you were some big time FBI agent."

  Logan's chest shook with laughter. "The FBI was about to get called in, don't worry," he said.

  "No need for all that," Tom said, confidently. "MBPD's got it under control."

  "What happened?" Logan asked, pulling back to look down at me.

  "She won't say much about it," Tom said, overhearing Logan's question. "She says she got a ride with someone she thought was your driver and he dropped her off outside of town."

  Logan pulled back even further and stared down at me with a confused expression. Some of the family had come off the porch, and were standing closer in an attempt to hear the conversation. I felt exhausted and embarrassed, and I rested my face on Logan's chest.

  "I'll tell you about it later," I said where only he could hear.

  "I tried to get her to press charges or at least file a report, but she wouldn't," Tom said.

/>   Logan rubbed his hands up and down my upper arms, and onto my shoulders and back. It felt so good that I let out a long sigh. "Why didn't you call?" he whispered.

  "I didn't have my phone. I'll tell you everything later."

  The officer was star struck by Logan, and ceased asking me questions I didn't want to answer. I had just walked for several miles, and was in a delirious state that had me in a daze. The encounter in the driveway went quickly, and before I knew it, we were headed back inside.

  "I think I'll take a shower," I said, looking at Logan as we went in.

  He hadn't taken his arm from around me since I'd been back, and I was ever so grateful that he kept it there. The whole family was doing their best to give me space, but I could tell they were curious and had been worried about me.

  "I think it was a misunderstanding," I announced before heading up the stairs to take a shower. Logan was standing right beside me and I glanced at him before looking at everyone else with a smile that I hoped didn't seem sad or forced. "Someone tried to give me a ride back to California, and I stopped him before we could get there."

  "Someone tried to give you a ride to California?" Diane asked as if that made no sense at all.

  Ryan cracked up laughing at the thought, and I laughed, knowing it was no use to beat around the bush with this group. "I think maybe someone got their feelings hurt that Logan brought a friend with him and tried to make me leave for a while." I hadn't intended to point any fingers, but the words came out of my mouth before I could stop it.

  "Are you talking about London?" Logan asked, pulling back to stare at me.

  I shrugged. I looked at him as I spoke, but I knew everyone was listening. You could've heard a pin drop in the room. "It's the only thing I could think of," I said. "I went for a cup of coffee, and a guy approached me saying you'd sent him. He was driving a black car like the one you sent to pick me up the other day, so I thought he was telling the truth. I got in with him and he drove me way out to the country and dropped me off."