She looked
in the direction of the alley and back at Nathan and knew she had a better chance with the latter.
She let him help her into the passenger seat and
waited inside as he walked around and took his seat behind the wheel.
The truck smelled like leather and that new car smell. Dwight’s precious Datsun always smelled like mildew and
dirty gym socks.
“Do you know that guy?”
Nathan asked as he turned the key in the ignition.
“No.” S
arah shivered. Not because she was cold, but because that had been a mighty close call. If Nathan hadn’t driven up… Well, she didn’t want to think about what would have happened if Nathan didn’t intervene. She had the Mace but what if she missed the guy’s face or the nozzle malfunctioned. There was no way she could have possibly outmaneuvered or outrun him.
Nathan fisted his hands at his sides and
fought the urge to turn around, find the guy that had scurried into the alley like a cockroach and face plant him into the sidewalk. It had taken all he had not to step down out of his truck and ram the guy’s face into the bumper. Instead, he remembered the calming techniques he’d relied on for the past two years. He breathed deep, counted to ten and forced his muscles to relax. “He didn’t hurt you, did he?” Nathan put his hand on her shoulder and she automatically flinched.
“No,” she answered.
He pulled his hand away and resting it back on the steering wheel.
“Sorry,” she said about the flinch. When anyone touched her, it just came automatically.
She didn’t mind when Nathan touched her. In fact, she rather liked it. His hands were always gentle and warm.
“
So, where’s home, Sarah?”
The
unusual way he phrased the question made her stop and think. Where was home? It certainly wasn’t in Los Angeles with Dwight and Red Valley was too new to her to call home. Who would want to call a seedy motel on the bad side of town home anyway?
For some reason, she found herself telling
him the name of the street one street over from the Half Moon Motel. As much as she liked Nathan, trust was a tough thing to learn overnight and she didn’t really want anyone knowing her address. For more reasons than one.
“
Are you sure you’re okay?” Nathan glared at the rearview mirror wondering who they were leaving to stare at the taillights.
“I’m okay,” she
answered on a ragged sigh. A plethora of emotions swirled through her nervous system. The fear the junkie on the sidewalk had caused, relief at Nathan’s intervention and all those fluttery feeling she’d been experiencing ever since she’d first laid eyes on the tall goalie with the gray eyes.
S
arah was quickly reminded of how she got into this predicament in the first place. Walking on air because of her moment on the balcony with Nathan. Silently, she vowed not to let her guard down again and was thankful she’d given Nathan a phony address.
“Are you on the run from the law or something?”
he asked lightly.
S
arah tensed and panic gripped her. No one could know what or who she was running away from. Especially Nathan. “No. Why?”
He chuckled and she realized he’d been joking.
There he was trying to lighten up the moment again and she was freaking out.
“You just seem a little jumpy
,” he explained.
“Yeah, I guess I
was just surprised to see you.”
Nathan had
driven a few blocks before Sarah realized her fingers were still curled around the can of Mace. She pulled her hand from her purse and folded her hands in her lap.
As she tried to calm herself down, she focused on
Nathan’s hands. They were nice. He had long fingers and they gently rested on the steering wheel. Dwight always gripped his meaty hands around the steering wheel like he was trying to squeeze the life out of it. He enjoyed squeezing the life out of everything he got those hands on.
“Sarah?” Nathan’s voice
pulled her from the past and she tore her eyes from Nathan’s hands and up to his face. His profile actually. His eyes were focused on the road.
“Sorry,” she said. “Did you say something?”
“I asked if you wanted to stop and get something to eat.”
“Oh. If you could
just take me home that would be great.”
“Sure,” he replied with a shrug.
“So, did you have fun at the party?” The question seemed hollow to his own ears but he had to make some kind of conversation to shake off the tension inside the truck.
“
I did. It was…nice.”
“
You left before I had a chance to say goodbye.” The only reason Nathan had gone to the party in the first place was to see her there.
“It’s not really my scene
,” she admitted.
“Me neither
,” he said, sounding relived that they shared the feeling. “I like peace and quiet.” He hadn’t been able to find neither peace nor quiet in the last two years, especially in his own head but that was an entirely different story.
“Me too,” she agreed.
Nathan glanced over and was glad to see she had started to relax. “The food was good,” he said. “Except for those weird cupcakes. I think someone went a little heavy on the salt.”
Sarah couldn’t help but giggle out loud. “They were terrible, weren’t they?”
“Yeah, I had to chug down an entire glass of water after just one bite.”
“They were Abigail’s,” she told him through a fit of giggles. “She bakes stuff for the salon all the time.”
Nathan made a face that sent her laughing so hard her cheeks hurt.
“She means well
,” Sarah said in Abigail’s defense. “She tries so hard but no one has the heart to tell her.”
“Well, someone should because that’s just
wrong
to put something like that out disguised as a cupcake.”
“I know. Everything she makes
looks
good and then you take a bite and it’s like,
surprise
!”
He shuddered at her accurate description.
“How can someone mess up making cupcakes?”
“I don’t know. Even if you followed a recipe step by step you couldn’t screw it up
that
much. Honestly, I think she switched her salt and sugar at home. It’s the only explanation.”
Nathan pulled the truck up to the apartments she’d given him the address to and parked.
He turned sideways in his seat. “Are you sure you don’t want to go get some Denny’s or something? I could go for something sweet after all that salt.”
“Thanks, but it’s getting late and I’m tired.”
Even before the party, she’d worked a full shift. Plus she’d already walked the gauntlet and survived. She didn’t want to press her luck. “Maybe someday.”
“
At least let me walk you to your door to make sure you get in safe.”
“No, that’s okay. I’ll be fine
,” she reassured him and reached for the door handle. She wasn’t about to let anyone catch her off guard again. Besides, she didn’t want to get caught in a lie. Her door was actually one street over.
Nathan
didn’t want the night to end just yet so he quickly wracked his brain for something else to say. “So, I’m thinking about making an appointment. With you…for my hair,” he clarified when she stared at him blankly. It was the only thing he could think of to spend more time with her.
“Oh,
sure. That would be great.” The thought of cutting Nathan’s hair did funny things to her stomach.
“I could use a trim. TJ keeps calling me “mutt” whenever I see him.”
She smiled but in no way could she see the connection between the man in front of her and a mongrel. Nathan’s hair looked far from shaggy to her but she wasn’t about to argue at the opportunity to see him again. “Why does TJ call you Con?” she asked, turning in her seat to face him.
He shrugged and looked down at his hands.
“It’s just a nickname because my last name is Connors.”
“Oh.
So that’s why he calls you Con Man?”
He cocked his head to one side and looked at her.
“You’re very observant.”
She felt herself blush and hoped he didn’t notice in the darkness of the truck cab.
“Not really.” Just when it came to him.
“The guys started calling me The Con Man because
they say I “rob” guys of their goals when I stop the puck.”
She smiled and tried to imagine him playing hockey.
If he put half the effort into it that he did everything else he must be pretty brilliant at it.
“Peach mentioned you’re new in town
,” he said, hoping he wasn’t being too nosey for her comfort.
“Yes. I’m making a fresh start.” The more she said it, the more it became a reality and not some dream she would wake up from to find Dwight
glowering over her.
Nathan and Sarah sat and talked for so long that Sarah completely lost track of time. The creep on the street was forgotten and all she could think about was how Nathan’s eyes shone in the dim light of the truck cab. He told her about the upcoming hockey season and she told him about working at the salon. The more they talked, the more Sarah discovered how much they had in common.
Best of all,
Nathan was surprisingly easy to talk to. He didn’t criticize or pick apart what she said or insult her in any way. He looked like he was genuinely listening to her and cared about what she had to say.
“I should go in
,” Sarah finally said through a yawn. “It’s been a long day.”
“All right.
At least let me walk you to your door.”
“No, that’s okay.” Before he could open his door, she had grabbed her
purse and was on the sidewalk.
Nathan didn’t feel right about dropping her off on the curb at night in this kind of neighborhood but he’d never seen her so adamant about something. Usually, she was
soft-spoken, but not tonight. “Okay, well goodnight.”
“Goodnight!” she called over her shoulder.
Pepper spray in hand, Sarah hurried through the alley that ran the length of the street. At the Half Moon Motel, she ran up the steps and let herself into her room. With the door securely locked behind her, she leaned up against it and sighed. Her heart was pounding from the sprint upstairs and maybe, just maybe, because she’d just come from a wonderful evening with Nathan. Their time on the balcony had been enough to send her heart racing and then he’d gone and given her a ride home! She felt bad about having to lie to him about where she lived but it was necessary.
She let her purse drop
to the floor and slid down to sit next to it. She dug her phone out and found Miri’s numbered programmed inside.
Miri
answered on the second ring.
“I’m not calling too late am I?”
Sarah asked still a little out of breath from the stairs.
“No, of course not.
It’s Friday night and I’m out kicking up my heels,” Miri replied.
“You are?” Sarah asked out of curiosity. She couldn’t quite imagine Miri out on the town painting it red.
“No,” Miri sighed heavily. “I’m on the couch watching M*A*S*H reruns. You know, Alan Alda was actually kind of hot back then.”
Sarah laughed
and was instantly reminded of how she’d laughed with Nathan. When was the last time she laughed with someone?
“So, what are
you
up to tonight?” Miri asked her. “I told you
my
pathetic story.”
“Actually
, I just came from a party.”
“
The girl’s in town for only a few days and she’s already out partying!” Miri cheered.
“The girls at the salon sort of threw me a welcome party
,” Sarah explained.
“Oh, that’s right. Peach told me about that. I didn’t realize it was tonight. So, how was it? And why are you home so early?”
“It was fun but I got tired and had to call it a night.”
“This is so good for you, Sarah. I bet you
met a lot of new people.”
“Yes
, I did. I think Destiny introduced me to everyone and their brother in Red Valley.” She opened her mouth to add something about Nathan but decided against it. Things were so new between them that she didn’t want to jinx it. Besides, it probably wasn’t that big of a deal anyway. “Thank you for making all of this possible for me, Miri,” she said instead.
“Sarah, you’ve thanked me a hundred times already.”
“I know. I’m just really happy here. And it’s all because of you.”
“Stop, you’re going to make me cry! I’m glad you like it
, sweetie. I knew you’d be just fine in Red Valley.”
“
Well, I’d better let you get back to your TV program.”