Ellie’s lips curved slowly, that quiet smile pulling at the corners.
“I’m going to need a bag,” she said. “We can swing by my apartment, grab a few things… and then let’s get the hell out of here.”
20
ELLIE
Iheld my hand out the window, fingers slicing through the warm summer wind as Logan’s truck cruised down the interstate. We were already two hours into our trip, the sun was high and golden, casting long rays across the highway.
A flicker of guilt tugged at me. Was I wrong for doing this? For leaving town when things got hard?
Part of me whispered that I was running again—avoiding the aftermath of my decisions. Maybe I was a quitter. Maybe nothing would ever change because I always chose to bolt when the ground shook beneath me.
But then there was the other part. The louder part, the one I was trying desperately to listen to, which was the part that knew I needed this. Not just to get away, but to give myself space. To breathe. To heal. Taking a break to gather your thoughts when your emotions felt like a live wire was okay.
The radio played softly, a lazy country tune humming beneath the roar of the tires on the asphalt. It was little more than background noise, a soundtrack to the chaos in my mind.
This time, I reminded myself, it’s not like before.
I wasn’t running away alone.
Logan sat beside me, one hand on the wheel, sunglasses hiding his eyes, but his presence spoke volumes. Grounded. Quiet. Unshakable. I wasn’t escaping, I was trying to find grace, and he was right there with me.
When I told my family I was leaving, I’d hoped having Logan by my side would soften the blow. I doubted it would make much difference, but we at least had a believable story: Logan wanted to visit his mom’s shows, and I just happened to tag along.
That’s what we told everyone.
Boone, of course, had questions because the ranch didn’t run itself. My brother had always been the type to roll with things despite the unknown, so the lack of answers we provided didn’t shake him much. He was understanding and flexible which made this trip feel a little easier.
Sandy and Penny had offered to cover my shifts at the flower shop. Even Theo was willing to learn considering she had the extra time since she was still between jobs, easing back into work since having Frankie. Last I heard, she’d accepted a photography position in Montana starting in a few months, and she was eager to get into the rhythm of things again.
I was lucky, so damn lucky, to have people in my life willing to step in, no questions asked.
Even luckier that I had Logan.
“Hear me out,” I said, shifting my attention back to him.
His left hand rested lazily on the steering wheel, fingers drumming to the beat of the music, while the other hung over the center console—close enough to touch. He wore his signature cowboy hat, the one that was so him it may as well have come with his name stitched into the band. It was dusty, weathered, clearly worn in from years of sun and sweat and use.
The ends of his blond hair curled slightly where they brushed the brim. My eyes followed the soft movement, then drifteddown to the ink etched along his bicep, just visible beneath the edge of his faded black T-shirt.
“Oh, I’m listening,” he said, flashing a lazy grin as he peeked at me over the rim of his square-framed Ray-Bans.
“There’s an amusement park about an hour and a half from here,” I said. “I swear it won’t take us much off course.” I paused and then muttered, “Well… not too much.”
While Logan packed up and got us on the road, I’d started planning a few pit stops. This trip wasn’t just a straight shot to the beach. It was a chance to breathe, to be somewhere else, to exist without expectation. We had time, and we were going to use it.
That’s what I loved about driving instead of flying. The second you pulled out of town, your vacation begun. There was something thrilling in that. Airplanes were for people in a hurry—people desperate to get somewhere. But right now, I needed everything to slow down.
Logan reached for his phone, pulling it from the dash mount and handing it to me.
“Put it in the maps,” he said, offering it without hesitation.
I took it, and for a moment, I hesitated. It felt strangely intimate, holding his unlocked phone, having access to something private and sacred.
“That’s it?” I laughed, thumbing in the address. “No questions?”
He shook his head.
