Ryan had dropped everything and driven two hours to get to me. And somehow, he managed to find me somewhere in Connecticut.
His hand was gentle as he smoothed it down my arm. “Let me do this for you.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to.”
“Not as an apology for that bit about being lame for buying vibrators and seltzers that you tucked into your speech at Rom-Con?”
Ryan chuckled as he pumped up the jack. “I’m not sorry for that.”
“Of course you’re not.”
“I’m sorry that I made you feel bad,” he grunted as he worked the old tire off.
I opened the trunk and spare tire well so I could store it in there for now.
“I was teasing you, and I took it too far. Personally, I’m a big fan of vibes. They feel great for men too.”
“This is not the conversation I expected to have on the side of the road,” I grumbled.
Ryan laughed. “But I’m not sorry I said it. I got your attention, didn’t I? I wanted to ask you out when we were in line at the pharmacy, but you left before I finished checking out.”
He had wanted to ask me out before all of this? Something unfamiliar bloomed inside of me, breaking through the frost.
I watched as he put those muscles to good use, getting the new tire situated. “I have questions.”
“Shoot.”
“How’d you know what kind of tire I would need?”
“Lucky guess,” he admitted. “I hoped it would fit, but if it didn’t, I was still coming out here to sit with you so you didn’thave to be alone while you waited for roadside assistance. You never know who will stop and pretend to help just because they see an easy victim for a robbery or some shit.”
That blooming warmth began to flower.
“How’d you find me?”
“You strike me as a GPS girl, so I found the address of Whitney’s pie shop and put it in. I figured I’d drive up on the suggested route and keep an eye on the side of the road for any disabled cars. I looped around and stopped three times before I found you.”
Roots began to grow as I watched him tighten the bolts.
“I’m gonna follow you back, just in case something happens,” Ryan said as he lowered the jack and packed his things back in his car. “Take your time getting back on the highway. Wait for a big break in traffic so I can pull out behind you.”
I imagined Shep saying the exact same thing to Lisa.
Shep . . .
I pulled out my phone and sent him a quick text with a photo attached: one of the ones we took from the festival. He must have been timed out on the road or at a truck stop because he replied faster than ever.
Shep
Happy looks good on you, Autumn. But if he changes that smile on your face, I’ll kill him and go from state to state, sprinkling body parts.
“Do you need to make any stops on the way back to the city?” Ryan asked as he swung his keys from his finger.
I canceled the roadside assistance request, pocketed my phone, and shook my head. "No, I have enough gas to get all the way back.”
“All right. Drive safe. Call me if something feels off.”
