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He smacked my shoulder and smiled at me.
She stared at Myles for a second before she grinned at him. “If you come to New Gothenburg, I can find you a job. I work in accounting. My name is.... Oh, well, you probably just heard.”
“Charity,” Myles said, waggling his eyebrows. “I’m a good listener.”
“Yes.” She shrugged and puffed out a long breath, as if maybe he’d flustered her.
“I want to go there. That’s where you’re headed, right, Jonas?” he asked, glancing at me.
With a sigh, I forced a smile. “It’s my hometown. I can’t imagine living anywhere else.”
Myles leaned harder against my shoulder, clearly seeking comfort.
Charity drummed on the top of the seat in front of us. “We’ll make sure you’re all okay. This was a bunch of shit.” She scowled around the bus and the hoop through her left nostril glittered. “Sapphira, our president, hates things like this. I do, too. She’s a good person.” Charity bit her lip, then leaned closer to us. “Her son died when he was small, and she won’t hesitate to send someone six feet under who hurts their kids. Where are your parents?” She rested her chin on the seat and stared at Myles.
“Uh, that’s okay,” he said with a nervous chuckle. “I would rather just not talk to them ever again. That was already my plan.”
Charity nodded before sitting back and tugging something out of her pocket. She handed a pink business card to Myles. “Keep that. Each of the Harlots decided we’re going to pick someone to help out once they get to New Gothenburg. You’re my pick of the litter.” She wrinkled her nose at him as she smiled. “We’ll get you more info tomorrow when everyone breaks apart to travel. We’ll have vans going to New Gothenburg because this bus belongs to the Desert Bones MC, and they’ll be heading back to Las Vegas.”
Myles smiled at her and nodded, and she moved on to sit with a woman who’d been rescued from the camp. Charity grinned at her, and I assumed Charity was asking her where she thought she would like to go as well.
Myles nudged me with his elbow, and I glanced into his face. His bottom lip jutted in my direction. “Will you be okay with your boyfriend?”
Smiling, I turned to stare out the window. “I’ll be happier with him than I’ve ever been in my entire life.”
“That’s good,” Myles said softly, his tone a little wistful.
It took forever to travel to the next pit stop on our journey. Nerves hit me as we passed a sign for a place called Bluebell State Campgrounds. Just seeing the yellow words on the brown sign twisted my stomach into knots, and I didn’t think I would ever look at the wordcampthe same way again. As the bus came to a stop in front of a cheerfully lit small log building, Charity stood up.
Her face flushed in a way it hadn’t when we were talking to her, and with the way she ducked her head, I thought maybe she wasn’t very good at being the center of attention. She fiddled with her glasses, then squared her shoulders.
“Everyone, pick a friend. Please make sure it’s someone you’re comfortable bunking with. We’re going to have two people per cabin. There are beds in there, but it’s just one big room. The bathrooms are in that building,” she said, pointing at the one nearby with all the lights glowing. Bugs gathered around the bright bulbs in a swarm.
“What do you think?” Myles asked, glancing at me. He tilted his head.
The bus door opened with a squeak, and Ethan hopped up the steps, looking directly at me. My stomach unclenched and my body tingled as I smiled at him.
“Sorry. I’m spoken for,” I said.
Myles chuckled and stood up so I could squeeze out of the seat. I made my way up the aisle and into Ethan’s arms, and he gave me a big hug. I wanted more. I didn’t know if he would ever be able to hold me tight enough after a week in that hellish nightmare.
“Are you okay?” Ethan pressed a kiss to my temple.
“Mm-hmm.”
He leaned back to look at me, and I shrugged. His blond hair was a little dirty from who knew what, but I didn’t care as I ran my fingers through it. I wasn’t anywhere close to fine, but I wasn’t stuck in that camp anymore, so I couldn’t complain much.
We were too big to walk off the bus in each other’s arms without tripping and dying, so he let me go and turned around to get off the bus. I followed after him, and the second my feet touched the ground, he grabbed my hand. I was confused when he started tugging me toward the building to our right.
“What are we doing?”
“You’re covered in soot,” he said, tone surprisingly gentle. He ran his thumb across my cheek. “And dirt, and.... Well, you definitely need a shower.” He led me to the door on the left that was marked with a small sign that said Cowboys. On the other side of the building there was a sign that said Cowgirls. I felt bad because one of the people who’d stepped off the bus stood frowning between the different doors.
“Just pick the one you want,” a big man with a Texan accent yelled at them. I turned to get a better look at the guy, and he had wide shoulders and black hair.
With a laugh, they nodded and went to the right. I watched as the door swung shut behind them, and then Ethan tugged me inside the bathroom nearest us.
The white tile and overhead lighting made everything bright enough to hurt my eyes and leave me blinking. We passed sinks and urinals and stalls, and we kept going. In the next room there were showers on both sides with flimsy white curtains, and three of the showers on the left were already running. The sound of splashing water echoed—a noise sent directly from heaven.
