But he did exactly that. Granted, I’d been going to Afterglow with him for over a year, met other littles, and everyone knew about it, but that didn’t mean he should talk about it without asking me first. But it was my excuse to run away from the bigger problem.
The sign for Naples was up ahead, and I needed to decide where I was going. I could either continue north and go back to Tampa tonight, which would take about another three hours, or I could get off and get a hotel for the night. It was getting late, and I didn’t want to risk falling asleep behind the wheel, so I turned the blinker on and got off at the proper exit.
There was a Holiday Inn Express right off the interstate, so I headed that way and pulled into the parking lot. I took a deep breath. What was I doing?
Warner would probably be worried about me. I’d know for sure if I read his texts, but I didn’t, even though he sent a gazillion of them. Along with voicemail I didn’t listen to. Not to mention, this could break us up. Was that what I wanted? I thought about it and decided that it wasn’t. But I also didn’t want to go back to the campground and have to deal with making decisions that I wasn’t ready to make. Apparently, I wasn’t very good at confrontations either.
Warner wanted us to live together. To get married and have kids. Did I even want any of that?
I wasn’t sure. I did know that I wasn’t driving anywhere else tonight. Locking the car with a beep of the key fob, I headed in to get a room for the night. I could think about shit there.
Thankfully, they had a room, and it didn’t take long to get all signed in. Once inside, I had nothing to do. There was no settling in, no luggage, since I’d left my stuff behind. I hadn’t thought things through at all. I simply grabbed the car keys and went.
My thoughts were catching up to me now, and I didn’t want them to, making my DoorDash order for vodka and cranberry juice a no-brainer. That would get me through the night. I could drive home with a hangover. No problem.
Chapter ten
Warner – Scooby-Doo Where Are You
There were no messages or calls from Cody, and I didn’t know what to do. Everyone was getting breakfast, but I couldn’t eat. Instead, I found Quinn and Royce. “Hey. Any word?”
Royce shook his head. “No, sorry. I’m really getting worried.”
“I’m already beyond worried.” I sat next to Quinn at the breakfast table. Everyone was heading out for Key West within an hour or so. There was another campground there where we’d stay a few days and also be able to watch the parade. On top of my worry, I was sad that he might miss it. He’d been looking forward to having fun. There had to be something we could do to find him. “Can you track your car, like with GPS or something?”
“Not without it being reported stolen, and I don’t think I want to do that. At least not yet. I don’t know what’s going on with him, but I don’t want to get him in trouble and make it worse. I honestly thought he was just going to drive around some to clear his thoughts. You know? Like an hour.”
Joey walked up, dropped his plate on the table, and then sat down hard. He’d been crying all morning. Vince rubbed his back a minute before sitting next to him. “He’s not going to be in trouble, Joey.”
“I know, but I’m sooo worry.” He rubbed his eyes with a fist. “And I miss my friend.” The two of them had grown closer. Joey had other friends, but Cody was the closest to him who was also a little.
“I don’t know what to do.” I hated admitting that, but it was beyond true. I wanted to give Vince my car and let them go on to the next campsite and maybe hire a car to take me home. I didn’t want Cody to miss out on the rest of the trip, either.
“How are you getting to the camp, Royce?” Joey asked. “Since Cody has your car.”
“With Quinn.” He jutted his thumb out toward his partner who sat next to him. “We brought both cars because I was letting someone borrow mine. They were supposed to meet us in Key West.” He shrugged. “I guess he’s not going to anymore, but at least we aren’t stranded.”
“I’m sorry this has been an inconvenience. If I—”
“Hey. Don’t, Warner. Whatever is going on will work out. Okay? We don’t know if he’s in trouble or anything. All we know is he took off in the car.”
I wanted to go after him, hunt him down. Spank his bratty ass and also hold him as tight as I could. I put my head on the table. “We better get the site packed.” I would keep on track and hope Cody came back. I honestly didn’t know what else to do.
Chapter eleven
Cody – Breakeven
When I woke, I was hungry and slightly hungover. I went out to the Waffle House; there was always one along the big exits off the highway. I sat at the bar and ordered fried eggs, toast, and hashbrowns.
I’d turned my phone off before I started drinking, thankfully, since I didn’t want to run the battery out. I didn’t turn it on again this morning for a completely different reason, though. I didn’t want to see what Daddy had texted me. Or how many times.
The coffee was hot, even with four creamers dumped into it, but it was so good and went a long way toward making me feel better. I sipped it quietly, simply trying to enjoy that one thing and not think about the rest of it.
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched the guy sitting next to me drown his waffles in syrup. “What a morning, huh?”
“You could say that.”
“I’m from Arkansas, here on vacation with family, but I needed to get away from them for a few minutes.” He cut into his waffle then shoved a big bite into his mouth.
