A big, burly trucker talking on the phone nodded politely to her as she stepped past him to get a bottle of water from a cooler set into the wall. From the conversation she could overhear, the trucker spoke to a youngster, likely a grandchild. “Be good for your mama, and give your grammy a big hug and kiss from me.” He paused, then grinned. “I love you, too, Mia. Night, sweetheart.”
Lainey glanced over and saw the guy who was intent on ruining her night standing in the doorway of the convenience store that led to the rest of the truck stop.
She took a step closer to the trucker, hoping he was a family man and not a serial killer searching for his next victim. “Sir, I apologize for interrupting your evening, but there is a guy over there who has left me a little hesitant to walk across the parking lot alone. Would you mind if I walked with you when you leave?”
The trucker looked from her to the man loitering in the doorway. “That dude?” he asked, jutting his chin toward the man.
“Yes. He tried to push his way into my shower, then when I tried to leave, he was waiting at the exit door.”
The trucker scowled and muttered something Lainey couldn’t hear. “Do you need to call the police?”
“I would if he’d actually done something more than try to intimidate me,” Lainey said, knowing the police wouldn’t be able to do much, and by the time they arrived, the guy would likely be long gone. “I wouldn’t have bothered you, but I’d feel better if I didn’t have to try to make a dash across the parking lot in my slippers.”
The trucker glanced down at the plush white bunny slippers she wore and grinned. “You’ll have to tell me where you got those. My daughter loves bunnies, so does my grandbaby.”
“I’ll happily give you that information. You can order them online.”
“Great. Before I escort you outside, let’s report this jerk to the manager on duty.” The trucker took a photo of the guy and headed to the counter.
Lainey should have thought to do that herself, but the creep had unsettled her so much that she felt like her thoughts had scattered in a dozen directions.
After she quietly spoke to the manager on duty and pointed out the man who was now standing in the middle of the convenience store doorway, the young manager thanked her for the information, but didn’t look like he intended to do anything about it.
The trucker cupped Lainey’s elbow, acted like he hadn’t seen the guy blocking the doorway, and headed toward the exit from the convenience store that came out by the gas pumps. “Where are you parked?”
“Under the light in the parking area on the far end of the gas pumps by the exit sign,” Lainey said, motioning to a small SUV parked on the opposite side of the parking lot near the entrance sign. She’d seen two college-age boys get out of it earlier. Theyboth looked big enough to take on the creepy guy if he bothered them.
“Got it,” the trucker said, looking down at Lainey. “Mind taking a little walk?”
“Lead the way,” Lainey said, covertly glancing behind her. The guy who’d unsettled her stood half a dozen yards away, looking at the SUV that belonged to the college boys.
The trucker led her around the side of the building and over to where several trucks were parked for the night. He guided her past the first four trucks and stepped between the fifth and the sixth, where they couldn’t be seen by anyone watching from the truck stop.
Praying she hadn’t made a mistake in placing her trust in this stranger, she walked between the two trucks and read the name on the door of the truck behind him. “Are you Reuben?” she asked.
He nodded. “Yep. Bought my own truck about twenty years ago. I hate being gone from my wife and family, but it’s a good way to make an honest living.”
“It is,” Lainey agreed, then held her hand out to him. “I’m Lainey, by the way.”
“Good to meet you, Lainey.” He shook her hand, then took his phone from his pocket and leaned against the side of the truck. “How about you show me those slippers?”
Lainey helped him find them at an online store, then watched as he ordered three pairs so his wife, daughter, and granddaughter would have matching bunnies.
“Where are you from, Lainey?” he asked, crossing his arms over his ample chest after he’d tucked his phone back into his pocket.
“Here and there. My father was in corporate sales. We moved a lot when I was a kid. We lived in New York, Chicago, DC, Seattle, Portland, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. I had acorporate job in L.A. for years until I couldn’t stand it anymore, so now I travel the country taking photographs.”
“Yeah? That sounds cool. What type of photos?” Reuben asked, sounding genuinely interested.
Lainey pulled her phone out of the pocket of the cardigan she wore and showed him some of the recent faces she’d captured.
Reuben whistled softly as he scrolled through the images. “You are talented, Miss Lainey. Do you publish them, or sell them to the media, or how does it work?”
She grinned and pulled up the online store where he’d purchased the bunny slippers, found her books, and showed them to him.
“Well, how about that! I’m standing with aNew York Timesbestselling author. Congratulations on your success.”
Lainey smiled. “Thank you. I love it, so it doesn’t really seem like work.”
