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“Shit, shit, shit.”
Jenna banged her fists on the steering wheel, punctuating each swear word.
The strange rattling her old Honda had been making for the last couple of days had finally caused the car come to a halt. She’d managed to pull the vehicle over before it stalled on her, but now she was stuck god-knows where with no way of getting on the move again.
She cursed herself for trying to save a few pennies and not getting the breakdown cover on her insurance. She shouldn’t have known she’d end up needing it, especially considering her car was more than ten years old and currently covered hundreds of miles a week.
Sitting back in her seat, she let out a sigh. First thing she needed to do was figure out where the hell she was. She’d not planned on stopping for at least another fifty miles or so, and so hadn’t paid attention to which towns were located on this route.
A sign was positioned on the road up ahead. She craned her neck forward, squinting, trying to read it.
Arlington, three miles.
She’d never heard of the place before. It was bound to be a tiny hick-town, but as long as it had a garage, she couldn’t complain.
Jenna glanced over her shoulder at her belongings piled in the back seat. Her clothes were strewn everywhere. Take-out boxes, empty candy wrappers, and plastic soda bottles littered the passenger foot well. Though most of the time germs made her nervous, for some reason the car felt like her own personal space, somewhere infections from the outside world couldn’t enter. While she always used disinfectant wipes if someone else touched the car for any reason, her own mess didn’t bother her.
Two thoughts entered her mind. Did she intend on abandoning all her worldly belongings on the side of the road while she walked to the next town, and was she really going to let a mechanic see the god-awful mess her car was in? She wasn’t about to start clearing the interior up now, but she couldn’t leave all of her belongings here. While she didn’t own much, leaving her laptop in the car wasn’t even an option. She could survive without everything else, but her laptop was her means for survival, and if she didn’t have the piece of equipment, she didn’t work. If she didn’t work, she didn’t eat, and in Jenna’s mind that was as bad as not living at all.
She sighed again and reached across the seat to gather her laptop bag and purse. The rest of her stuff would have to stay. At least she was wearing sneakers, so she wouldn’t have to worry about getting blisters on the walk.
Jenna pulled her long, dark curls into a hair-band and secured it so her hair was out of her face. She opened the car door and climbed out, pulling her bags out with her. Slinging them over her shoulder, she started the walk into town.
Within ten minutes, she found herself huffing and puffing. Her bags seemed to double in weight with every footstep she took. She wasn’t one for hitting the gym, and the extra pounds on her body, combined with her aversion to exercise, meant her hips and knee joints were starting to ache. The three miles suddenly felt like a ridiculously long distance.
A couple of cars drove by and she considered sticking out her thumb. But the chance of any of them heading to the next town was pretty remote. Most continued along the highway. She walked down the side of the exit ramp, following the sign for Arlington. The day was overcast, but still warm, and sweat began to form beneath her arms and drip into her cleavage. Her footsteps grew heavy, and the insides of her thighs started to rub.
The roar of an engine approached from behind. She glanced behind to see a flatbed Ford truck start to slow as it reached her. The truck was old—at least 1970s—but was in immaculate condition, the red paintwork shiny.
Jenna hesitated, unsure if she should pretend she hadn’t noticed and keeping walking, or if she should turn and flag the truck down. They were on the two lane road leading to Arlington now, and the truck was headed in the right direction.
She hoisted her bags into a more comfortable position, her back groaning in response. Sweat ran from her hairline and into her eyes, stinging. Damn it. She’d only walked about a mile, and the thought of doing twice that again made up her mind.
Plastering on her most winning smile, and hoping whoever was driving didn’t notice her sweaty face and dark patches on her t-shirt, she turned with a hand out held.
The driver had already begun to signal and pull in toward her. She hoped she hadn’t just flagged down a mass murderer or rapist. She was only too aware of the dangers that faced a woman alone on the road, though people she’d known had caused her more harm than a stranger ever had.
The truck stopped just ahead, and Jenna broke into a slow run to reach it, hoping she didn’t stumble over the gravel, clumps of weeds and potholes on the side of the road. She accidentally kicked an empty soda can, and sent it skittering across the asphalt.
She reached the car to find the passenger window already down.
Her heart stuttered as she peered in. A young man, in his mid-twenties, around her age, she guessed, sat in the driver’s seat. A well-muscled forearm covered in tattoos was slung over the steering wheel as he twisted to face her. The tattoos continued up his arm and vanished beneath the sleeve of his form-fitting white t-shirt. His hair was scruffy and a little too long, and she noticed some more tattoos creeping up his broad neck and a small silver ring embedded in his earlobe. His square jaw was scruffy with stubble, his lips full. When he opened his mouth to speak, his teeth were straight and white, and she caught sight of a tiny flash of silver on his tongue.
Jeez, where the hell else was this guy pierced?
The thought made her already red cheeks deepen with heat.
“Hey,” the guy said. “You need a ride?”
She couldn’t decide if she should tell him no and keep walking, or accept and climb in his lap. This guy was everything her mother—when she’d been alive—had warned her about. But his eyes were a brilliant, piercing blue, and though he looked like trouble, his smile was soul-meltingly cute.
“Umm, yeah. My car broke down on the highway. I need to get to the next town to find a mechanic.”
He grinned. “You don’t need to get to the next town.”
“Oh?” He’d flustered her. “I don’t?”
“Nah, you’ve got one sitting right here.”
She blinked in surprise. “You’re a mechanic?”
“Sure am. How far back is your vehicle?”
“About a mile south on the highway.”
He reached over to open the passenger door for her, and she tried not to stare at the numerous tattoos, or the way the muscles in his forearm tensed as he pushed open the door. “Jump on in.”
Jenna carefully placed her bags in the foot well and then climbed into the truck. She resisted the urge to get her antibacterial wipes from her bag and wipe down any area she might have to touch. She needed to be careful of germs. Plus, other people driving always made her nervous—she normally avoided it at all costs—and the person doing the driving on this occasion didn’t help.
“So where are you heading too?” he asked.
She shrugged. “Nowhere in particular. Just driving until somewhere catches my eye.”
He glanced at her, his eyebrows lifted. “Seriously? You traveling or something?”
“I guess you can say that. I just don’t like staying in one place, that’s all.” Her tone was curter than she’d meant it to be, and he shot her a look, his blue eyes slightly narrowed.
“Anyway,” he said, as he swung the car in a U-turn and headed back the way she’d just walked. “I’m Ryker.”
“Jenna,” she said, with a smile, trying to make up for her coldness. This guy was offering to help her and she didn’t want to piss him off.
“It’s good to meet you, Jenna. Nothing improves my day more than picking pretty girls up off the side of the road.”
She laughed. “Yeah, right.” He was obviously hoping to get some work from her. He could hold off with the fake flattery. It wasn’t as if she had a whole heap of options.
He pulled back onto the highway and Jenna leaned over to point at her stalled Honda.
“That’s the one.”
Ryker pulled over. “Okay, wait here. I’ve got some tools in the back. I’ll go take a look. Have you got the keys?”
She passed them over to him, and he gave her a grin and a wink. “I’m a magician with anything with an engine. I’ll get you back on the road in no time.”
“Great, thanks,” she said, though her stomach dipped in disappointment. Had part of her been hoping she might get to spend a bit more time in Ryker’s company? She watched the muscles in his back move beneath his t-shirt, the heat causing the material to cling to his skin, as he ran at a slow jog to the other side of the road.
She watched as he pulled up the hood and leaned over, her gaze focusing in on the soft, worn material of his faded jeans over his ass. The tattoos and piercings weren’t the normal thing she went for—if there even was such a thing—but she had to admit the guy was well built.
Jenna gave a sigh and flapped her face with her hand, wishing the old truck had air. The last thing she wanted was to appear a sweaty mess in front of Ryker, though she guessed the ship had already sailed on that front. Anyway, he was just looking for a job and at best had taken pity on the fat girl struggling down the side of the road.
She glanced back over to find Ryker pulling himself out from beneath the bottom of her car. He brushed the dirt from his back and then glanced over to her. He caught her watching and gave his head a slight shake.
Damn. What did that mean?
Ryker checked for traffic and then ran back across the road. He threw his bag of tools in the back of the truck and climbed into the driver’s seat.
He twisted to face her. “So, do you want the good news or the bad news?”
“Err, bad news first?”
“The bad news is that most of the exhaust has rusted away. I’m going to need to order in some parts and they’re probably going to cost you about twelve hundred dollars.”
“Shit.” The car probably wasn’t even worth that much. “What’s the good news?”
“The good news is that I can tow you to my garage and you get to spend a couple of days in Arlington while your car gets fixed.”
“Awesome,” she said, her tone flat. Inside, her stomach churned with mixed emotions. She didn’t want to have to stay in one spot, especially not now, but the idea of getting to see Ryker again made something inside her flutter.
Besides, she didn’t have much choice.
She gave Ryker a smile. “Looks like you’re towing me then.”
He grinned back. “And I’ll have to show you all Arlington’s main sights.”
“It has sights?” she said, doubtful.
His tone lowered. “Perhaps not, but I’m sure I can show you something.”
A thrill coursed through her veins. Was he just offering to show her around town, or did his words hold the promise of something more?