Ashton wakes a few times, but he always drifts back to sleep and leaves me to do my thing with just my quiet music and his soft snores for company. The only time he so much as looks at me is when I pull into a gas station to refill the car.
By the time he fully wakes and puts his chair back upright, the sun is beginning to rise on the horizon.
“Shit, did I really sleep that long?” he asks, staring at the clock.
“Yup.”
“Huh.”
“Why’s that so weird?” I ask, glancing over at him and wishing I hadn’t. He looks all sleepy and sexy with soft eyes and messy hair.
“I’ve just barely slept since... it’s just weird that the first time I do is while traveling.”
“You’re probably just exhausted.”
“You hungry?”
“Uh...” In all honesty, I’m not. That pizza last night was freaking huge. But I could really do with getting out and stretching my legs, so I find myself agreeing. “Sure. I’ll stop at the next place we find.”
It turns out that we’re in the middle of nowhere and that the next place isn’t for another three hours, and by then, I’m starving.
“There,” Ashton points out. The urgency in his voice makes me chuckle. “What? I really need a pee.”
“You could have said, I’d have pulled over.”
He looks at me and I have no choice but to turn to him.
“You’d do that for me?” he asks teasingly.
“Yeah, if it meant you didn’t piss yourself and I had to spend the next few hours surrounded by the smell of it.”
“Nice.” He laughs.
“What, it’s true.”
“Sure, come on.”
Ashton makes a beeline for the bathroom as I find us a table and order coffee. Now I’ve stepped out of the car, exhaustion is hitting me hard.
“Thanks,” he mutters, dropping down across from me and pulling the mug toward him.
A weird tension settles over us as we sit there in silence both sipping our too hot coffees.
“So...” I say, needing to break it. “What did you want to do today?” I ask with a laugh.
He looks up at me from over the rim of his mug and my breath catches. He really shouldn’t be quite so beautiful, it’s disarming. Especially when I’m sure I look like a hot mess.
“I was thinking about going for a drive.”
“Oh yeah? Going anywhere nice?” I regret the question the second it falls from my lips.
“No.” His eyes hold mine, and I can’t help the feeling that he’s warning me of something. My stomach clenches and I have to fight to swallow the lump that crawls up my throat.
“I-I’m just going to go and freshen up. If the waitress comes back, just order me pancakes and bacon, yeah.” I slide from the booth. “Oh, and another coffee.”
He nods once and after grabbing my purse and the bag I brought in with me, I practically run for the bathroom.
I’d picked up the necessities in the store yesterday, so I make quick work of freshening up and changing my panties before attempting to do something with my hair. I debate putting some makeup on to hide my tired eyes, but in the end, I figure that there’s no point. We’re just getting back in the car, and I don’t really give a crap if Ash thinks I look a mess.
He’s still quiet and tense when I get back to the table, although that doesn’t stop him running his eyes down the length of me as I approach. I hate that tingles erupt wherever his eyes touch, but it seems I have little control over it.
“You look tired,” he says as I drop down, banishing the heat that had started to fill my veins under his stare.
“Thanks,” I mutter. “Probably something to do with driving all night while you snored beside me.”
“I don’t snore.”
“Right. Whatever. I assume you’re taking over after this.”
“Yep. The back seat is all yours.”
“Great.”
Things don’t get much better as we eat. I’d hoped he might be in a better mood after almost a full night’s sleep, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.
“Where are you going?” he barks at me the second we emerge from the diner, and I bolt in the opposite direction of the car.
“The store. You want anything?”
“Fuck’s sake,” he mutters, turning around to follow me.
“It wasn’t an invite. I could have got anything you wanted while you sulked.”
“I’m not sulking.”
“Oh really. You could have fooled me.” I roll my eyes at him and head inside.
Thankfully, they have exactly what I wanted. A pillow and blanket. There’s no way I can sleep again while surrounded by him. It just can’t happen.
“Comfortable?” Ash asks, watching me in the rearview mirror as I get settled in my new bed.
“Yep, and bonus, it doesn’t smell like boy.”
He shakes his head at me and looks back to the road.
“Sleep tight, little one.”
14
Ashton
Seeing her wrapped up in a blanket instead of my hoodie really shouldn’t matter to me, but as I force my eyes away from her, I can’t deny that it pisses me off.
I blame the fact I’ve been stuck inside this confined space with her for the past twenty-four hours. Her constant presence is doing stupid shit to my brain. Although, I can’t deny that using my imagination for all the things I want to do to her in here is a hell of a lot better than thinking about my reality and what I’ve got to face when we finally roll into Seattle.
Reaching down, I rearrange myself, before trying to drag my head out of the gutter and focus on what I should be doing.
My foot presses a little harder on the gas and the car shoots forward. My heart picks up pace as adrenaline surges through me. Ruby must have spent all night driving like Miss Daisy because the arrival time on our GPS that I was trying to beat has gone backward and like fuck do I want this journey to take any longer than it has to.
I pull out into the fast lane and push it harder, seeing what the engine can really do.
Hopefully, by the time she wakes, I’ll have knocked a few hours off our arrival time.
I might not want to be in Seattle, or anywhere near my old life. But the thought of no longer being confined to a car makes it seem a little bit more appealing.
The miles and hours tick by, but eventually, I need to pull over to take a piss. I bring the car to a stop on the side of the road. I was hoping to make it to the next gas station but after the three cans of energy drink I’ve had, I know I’m not going to make it.
The gravel crunches under the tires and I jump out the second the car comes to a stop.
I do what I need to do around the side of the car before opening the back to find something to eat.
“Feel better now?” Ruby asks in an amused voice. Her sleepy eyes stare up at me and I rummage through the bag closest to me.
“Much. Where are the chips?”
She shrugs, still half asleep. “Try this one.” She pokes a finger out from under the blanket and points to a bag in the footwell by her head.
“Fine.” Pressing my knee beside her leg, I lean in and reach over. My hand touches the bag, but my eyes find hers as I stretch over her, and I freeze.