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“What’s going on, Sawyer?” she asks quietly. Taking her helmet from her, I place it on the ground next to mine. “Why did we have to run out of the restaurant? And where are we?” She finally looks up and glances around the rest stop.
“I’m sorry I scared you. I didn’t have time to explain, I needed to get you out of there.”
“But why?” She looks confused, and I don’t blame her. I don’t want to tell her what I know. It’s going to tip her over the edge.
I sigh as I lead her to a grassed area. “There’s been a sighting of Bryant.” Her eyes widen, and I can see the terror in them. “It’s not been confirmed yet,” I rush out, seeing she’s about to lose it.
“But… but…” Her eyes flick around every inch of the rest stop, and I take her hand.
“He’s not here, Hallie.” I sit and tug gently on her arm until she sits next to me.
“Where, then? The Island?” she asks, putting two and two together. I nod. “Did he follow us?”
“I don’t know yet. I’m waiting for Logan to get back to me once they’ve checked the CCTV.”
“What if he followed us here?”
“We weren’t followed, I made sure.”
“If he followed us from Savannah…” she trails off and bursts into tears. “He’s going to find me,” she says through her sobs. Before I can think about what I’m doing, I pull her onto my lap and wrap my arms around her. Her legs straddle mine, and I hold her against me while she cries. Despite my head screaming that I’m crossing a line, my need to comfort her is stronger, and I have to hold her.
“He’s not going to find you. I won’t let that happen,” I whisper in her ear, my fingers stroking her hair. My stomach twists as I hold her trembling body. I hate seeing her cry. Goddammit! I’ve seen her cry too often.
After a few minutes, her sobs subside, and she slowly lifts her head from my shoulder. Her face is flushed, and her eyes are red and puffy. She’s still the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. I drop my hand from her hair and gently swipe my thumb under her eye, wiping the last of her tears away.
“Are you okay?” I question gently when her eyes meet mine. She nods and bites down on her bottom lip. My eyes gravitate to her mouth. “Don’t,” I whisper, easing her lip free of her teeth with my thumb. Her breathing accelerates when I brush my thumb across her bottom lip.
Whatever this is between us, I think she feels it too.
I’m not about to take advantage though, especially when she’s so vulnerable. I shouldn’t even be touching her. The more time I spend with her, the harder I’m finding it to remain professional.
“We should go,” I say. As much as I like her in my arms, I need to get her somewhere she’ll be safe. We can’t go back to Savannah, and we can’t risk going back to my place, either. Instead, we’re heading somewhere not even Logan knows about.
“Home?” Hallie asks, and I shake my head.
“We’ve got to assume for now the sighting was Bryant, and that possibly he followed us from your apartment. We can’t go back there.”
“But we went to your apartment as well this morning.”
“We can’t risk going there either.”
“What?” she whispers, her face falling as the realization of what this means hits her.
My hands rest on her waist, and I squeeze gently. “Hey, this is going to be okay. I have a place we can go. My parents own a cabin a couple of hours from here. It’s remote. No one will know we’re there.”
“A couple of hours? On the back of the bike?” She shakes her head. “No. I can’t do that.” Her face is filled with panic as she pushes against my chest and stands.
Jumping up, I reach for her. “Hallie.” I take her arm, but she brushes me off. She’s beginning to panic, and I need to calm her down before we get back on my bike. My parents’ cabin is our only option right now. I just need to convince her.
“This isn’t forever. Maybe a night or two until we know what’s happening. It’s our best option…” I pause. “Hallie, it’s ouronlyoption.” She’s pacing up and down in front of me, her hands wringing together. Standing in front of her, I force her to stop. “This is going to be okay,” I repeat, hoping I’m right.
She takes a deep breath and finally looks up at me. “There’s no way we can go home?”
“Not right now.”
“What about clothes and all the other stuff we need? This is all I have.” She gestures to the jean shorts and tank she’s wearing.
“The cabin is well-stocked, and I think my sister may have left some clothes there. If not, I’ll have something you can wear.” I reach down and take her hand. “We’ll make it work. Okay?” She still looks uncertain, but I’m relieved when she nods her head.
