“What is it?” he asked, voice low as if he didn’t want to know the answer.
I didn’t like causing him stress. I didn’t know him, and he was helping me out because his boss, in a sense, had asked him to. I was more of a job than anything. And I was okay with that. That said, he shouldn’t have been put in this position. He shouldn’t be mixed up in this shit. If we were caught… well, I didn’t want to think about what it could mean for him.
“I should just turn myself in,” I said, thinking it was the only way to save everyone. Austin. Reed. And anyone else that had been twisted up in this. I had no idea who they were trying to take down with me. If working twenty years in the FBI had taught me anything, it was that there were people who would go to great lengths and beyond to keep their power and hide their secrets.
I felt his hand around my arm, holding me in place as my feet threatened to move me away from our little hiding place. Normally, I would have put him in his place because he had no right to touch me, but there was something about the way his grip was firm yet his fingers weren’t digging into me that had me keeping my mouth shut.
“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that, Agent Priestley.” The harsh authority of his voice caused a shiver to run down my spine. I locked my body down to stop it from showing.
I tilted my chin, meeting his dark gaze out of the corner of my eye. His spine was straight. His face was hard. His stare was… almost blank, but I could see the ticking bulge of his clenching jaw giving away his feelings. His frustration. His… certainty that he wasn’t going to let me do such a stupid thing.
“Call me Ford,” I told him as I forced my body to relax in hopes of silently getting him to understand that I wasn’t going to go out there.
“I can’t do that,” he replied. The blank expression slipped off his face, only to be covered up with an easy smile that didn’t feel wholeheartedly real.
There was somethingoffabout Austin. Something I didn’t exactly fear, but was cautious of. Something I wanted to figure out. That shouldn’t have been the reason I gave in to him. It shouldn’t have been the motivation behind staying and letting him help me.
“Fine,” I said with a sigh. “I’ll wait here. I promise I won’t move.”
His hand released me, and he took a step back. Strange as it was, losing his touch left me feeling cold, and I found myself wishing for it back. Then I wondered what the hell was wrong with me.
“Good.” He smiled cheekily, like he’d won and he was relishing in it. He stepped around me, leaving the bags of remaining clothing on the ground. “If you hear anyone coming, jump in the dumpster.”
“No,” I said with a sharp shake of my head. “I have no issue with crawling in there if it’s for the job. I don’t mind getting dirty to get what I need, but I refuse to be one of those people who gets pulled out of the dumpster and tackled to the ground with stains and dirty condoms all over them. If I get caught, I will at least do it with the last shred of dignity I have intact.”
Austin snorted and shook his head.
“Fine. Hang tight. I’ll try to get back before they find you,” he said and then smiled wide.
“Please do,” I shot back as he rounded the corner and out of my sight.
7
Austin
Agent Priestley didn’t seem impressed by the vehicle I’d found and brought back.
He hadn’t had a chance to assess it when I’d picked him up since it was more of a roll-by-and-yell-at-him-to-hop-in type of situation, but now that we were flying down a back highway, the adrenaline had worn off enough for him to take in our surroundings.
Surroundings which consisted of a cab full of… well, red, white, and blue. As in, someone who took American pride to the top level and didn’t dare to hide it.
Oddly, I felt at home in this mid-nineties pickup truck with its angry bald eagle decal across the back window and the set of silver nuts hanging off the hitch in the back that put mine to shame— yeah, I noticed those before anything else. Or rather, it reminded me of home. As in, where I grew up. You’d see this shit everywhere you turned. Along with that sweet, sweet flag with the huge lone star.
I wasn’t just named after a city in Texas, I was born and bred in that shit. Hated it too, even more once I got out of there.
“This is…” he said, voice trailing off as if he were in awe and didn’t know how to explain it. If awe meant he was horrified, that was.
I nodded as I turned up the radio, which happened to be playing country music. Now, listen, I grew up with this shit. I’dsing my little heart out along with some guy who was severely down on his luck or some woman seeking revenge for being scorned. That shit was great. But now, it just reminded me of… well, growing up. I’d done my best to avoid all things Florida Georgia Line, Tim McGraw, and Carrie Underwood for the last ten years.
“Amazing?” I shot him a smirk so he would know I wasn’t being serious, but the way he got that constipated crease in the middle of his brow made me think he was taking me seriously.
“I was going to say terrifying,” he said, shrinking into the camo print covered seat.
“You should have seen the big ole Confederate flag hanging off the back when I picked it up.” Yeah, I ripped that bitch down real quickly.
“Thank God I missed that,” he muttered under his breath. “Given that you work for Reed… I figured riding around in something like this might bother you. It sure as hell makesmefeel uncomfortable.”
Confused, I turned my head and studied him with a raised brow.
