My neck is stiff and stuck in its bent position, my back aches and my legs need more room. Regardless, I sit up and squint at the bright light pointed right at me. I push thebutton to turn on the car, the engine alone probably waking up the entire neighborhood, so I can lower the window.
“Hello,” I rasp.
“You’re trespassing, sir. I’m going to have to arrest you.”
I clear my throat. “I?—”
“I just wanted to scare him, Raymond,” Lana chuckles from somewhere behind the flashlight.
“Sheriff Jeffords?”
“I would say good to see you, son,” Raymond says. “But you look like shit.”
Lana snickers loudly, doing nothing to hide her enjoyment.
“Charming as ever, Raymond,” I groan.
The flashlight clicks off and I’m met with the sheriff's bright, white smile. He stands and turns to Lana as my eyes adjust to the night. “You torturing him by having him sleep out here?”
She shrugs, half smiling. “Something like that.”
“Want me to arrest him?”
Lana smiles, biting her lip, and steals a glance at me. Basking in my suffering and groveling, no doubt. “No, he’s harmless.”
“Alright then, Lana,” Raymond laughs huskily. “I’ll see you tomorrow for my morning coffee.”
She smiles at him, a real one, and waves. “See you in the morning!”
He drives off and I get out of my car, slamming my door. I push my fingers through my hair and scratch my head with a groan, finally stretching my legs. “Was that necessary?”
The smile drops and she crosses her arms. “Yes.”
“Lana.”
“Why are you still sleeping in my driveway, Christian?”
“Honest answer?”
“Preferably.”
“Okay,” I sigh. “Marilyn kicked me out of the B&B.”
“Good for her.”
“And this is the only way I can be close to you without being far, I guess.”
“It’s trespassing.”
I shrug. “Maybe.”
“Christian, you?—”
“Lana, I just…want you,” I breathe, pained. “Okay? If this is as close as you let me be to you all year, I’ll take it, but I’m not leaving.”
“You say that now,” she mumbles.
I sigh. “Lana.”
