“The dishes….”
“Leave ’em. I’ll do them up later.”
Or I will. I’m not about to make a mess in his kitchen and leave it for him to clean up. My mom taught me better than that.
The drive to Waco takes a little over an hour. Almost the entire drive is interstate, so it’s an easy drive. Before we reach Waco, Alec stops for gas at a place called Buc-ee’s. They call them convenience stores, but they’re much more than that because they’re huge. If this place were in Chicago, it’d probably take up an entire city block. Inside, they’ve got everything from clothes to car parts to knickknacks and kitchenware to any kind of food you could imagine. It’s there I pick up a few souvenirs for my dad and Kimmy. I’m tempted to get something for Bobby, but then he’ll know I was in Texas, and I’d prefer to keep that to myself for now. Dad promised he’d make something up if Bobby shows up at the house this weekend and asks where I am.
Back in the truck, I hold up my bag of trinkets. “That place is amazing.”
Alec isn’t smiling. “I hate Buc-ee’s. It’s ridiculous.”
All right.
Setting the bag down at my feet, I buckle myself in and stare straight ahead, because apparently Grumpy is back.
The flea market is everything I’ve dreamt about and more. It’s got to take up acres and acres of land with venders selling everything from furniture to giant cinnamon rolls. I’m tempted to buy one for Alec, but he’s been mostly silent since we arrived a little over an hour ago. I’m sure he’s exhausted from working all night, so I’ll cut him a little slack.
Because I know I should hurry, I walk quickly down each row, only stopping if something catches my eye. When I spot a stall filled with dog collars and harnesses, I spend extra time there, that is until Alec sighs loudly. After that, I’m ready to go. I don’t want to keep him from getting the sleep he needs. I also don’t want his fatigue and bad mood to ruin this experience, and if I keep walking around here, that’s what’s going to happen.
“I’m ready to go,” I say suddenly.
“You are?”
“Yep.” I walk ahead of him in the direction I think we parked. I remember a huge tree as we entered the market. When I spot that, I increase the speed of my steps.
“Matilda?”
I don’t bother turning. “What?”
“You’ve only seen an eighth of this place.”
“It’s okay.”
“You didn’t buy anything.”
“Nothing here I want.”
Except him, but I keep that to myself. I’m starting to think that’s the smartest move I’ll ever make. At the truck, I wait for him to unlock the doors. When I hear it unlatch, I wrench open the door and climb inside. I’m not sure why I’m angry, but I am, and I need to cut that out. While I don’t know Alec well, I know enough that he’s a moody son of a bitch, and if he’s running on no sleep, well, that’s gonna exacerbate him.
“Matilda,” he says, climbing in on his side, “are you sure?” He sounds sincere, so I look over at him and smile.
“Yep.”
“Do you want to go anywhere else? See more of Waco?”
I kind of wanted to go to that store owned by that couple on the home and garden channel, but that’s out of the question now. I shake my head. “I’m good.”
Once we’re back at his place, I urge him to take a nap. “I’ll just hang out here and read or something.”
“You sure?”
“Positive. You need to sleep.” And I need time to process.
“I could use some sleep.”
“I know,” I say that with a smile and a wink. I don’t want him to think I’m not appreciative of all his efforts. I am.
He does as I suggest and heads back to his bedroom. I do what I said and pull out my e-reader and open the romance I started on the plane. This one is about a wounded soldier and his nurse. It’s good and probably way too sexy for me to read right now because, even though Alec is a cranky ass, I still want him. I want him bad.
