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In the next moment, the car started. “Ah ha!” he exclaimed in triumph. “See? A little patience goes a long way.”

“No one should have to be as patient with their cars as you are with this one.”

“I can be patient with an ever-reliable vehicle,” he returned.

Over the next hour, after a quick bite to eat, the two of them continued through unrelenting rain. Darkness fell, and still, the windshield wipers thwapped back and forth, back and forth.

They drove along a quiet street, turning slowly with the curves that followed stone walls and crooked trees that were only visible in flashes.

Winnie peered out into the darkness, and a nugget of worry hunkered down in her belly.

“Is Minnie safe in this kind of weather?” she asked.

This was too similar to how she’d spun out on the road to Foxwood.

“Far, far more than your little green sports car,” Matthew assured her.

Winnie nodded, still trying to calm her rattled nerves.

“Are you worried?” Matthew asked after she fell silent.

“Slightly. Are you not?”

“Not with Minnie.”

The car rattled in response. Matthew looked down in confusion. “What is it now?” he muttered to himself, his brow furrowed.

Winnie stared. Had the sound been different than any other that day? It must have been. Matthew looked genuinely troubled.

After another sputter, a loud pang! and cling! sounded near the bottom of the car. Winnie gasped. Matthew merely frowned. “Come on,” he said louder.

But the car had had it. Little by little, it slowed until finally coming to a stop, and Matthew pulled off to the side of the road just in time.

Winnie was about to make some sarcastic comment about the car’s reliability, but the sight of the frown marring Matthew’s forehead made her hesitate.

After a minute of silence, however, she couldn’t help herself any longer. “Is she officially…kaput?” she asked as gently as possible—and with only the slightest hint of irony.

His frown stayed the same. “I’m sure she’s fine. She’s probably just acting up. First time she’s had to share attention from me before, you know.”

“Oh, so it’s my fault,” Winnie returned.

He glanced at her sidelong. “I’m not saying it is, but I did warn you about offending her.” With a sigh, he unbuckled. “I’ll go see what the problem is.”

“From the sound back there, I would guess Minnie coughed out her engine.”

“Hush,” he said with a pointed look, then he got out and closed the door behind him.

Winnie smiled happily to herself. He was fun to tease. Then again, maybe she shouldn’t under the circumstances. If the car really was dead and they ended up being stuck wherever the heck they were, what were they going to do?

Her concern didn’t last long. She knew Matthew would take care of them both.

Choosing to be a damsel in distress again, Winnie?

Fine, she’d put forth some effort, too. She pulled out her phone to search for what was nearby—a car garage, a hotel, Foxwood—but, to no surprise, she had zero service.

The first time she had experienced no cell service on the road to the estate, she’d been utterly and absolutely frazzled. Now, she didn’t know if it was the slower paced two days she had or her time spent with Matthew, but she was completely at ease.

A few minutes later, Matthew lowered the hood and came back to the car, giving a shiver as he left the cold air outside for the now-lukewarm air inside. Rain beaded in his beard and dripped from his curls.