| |
Shock still filtered through my form at Michael’s words and the sun couldn’t set fast enough. I glanced at the magnificent colors painting the sky and couldn’t find the calmness they should have instilled in me, instead, death loomed, casting its dark hand over the earth.
The Welcome to Ohio sign loomed less than a tenth of a mile away and I shifted in the seat trying to find a comfortable position.
When we passed the sign for the upcoming rest area, I said, “I need to hit the next rest area,” with a voice that sounded foreign and strained.
He didn’t acknowledge that I had spoken, but he did take the gently curved exit into the rest area.
“We’re going to need gas too,” I said when he pulled into a parking space.
“You can get that after we do our business and grab a bite to eat.” He waved toward the building and I sighed, giving him a nod of ascent.
He pulled the keys out of the ignition and handed them to me before exiting the cab, leaving me to lock up as he hightailed it toward the restrooms. I thought about seeing if Damian was okay, but my bladder had other ideas and I made a mad dash inside.
By the time we had finished our business and bought our food, the sun had dipped below the horizon and I found my pace picking up as I headed toward the truck. Even though I was only awake for a few hours with Michael in the cab, the relief of having Damian back in the front with us drove my feet forward.
I threw the latch and pushed the gate up. Damian was already on his feet, pacing in the small space between the door and the mattress and the moment the door cleared his head, he jumped down on the pavement and looked at the bag in my hand before meeting my gaze.
“I’m ravenous,” he said. His voice soft and raspy and every bit as sexy as ever.
“Get in the cab,” Michael said as he walked past us. There was no leeway in his command and Damian and I exchanged a look.
Instead of issuing a smart comeback, Damian reached up and slammed the door down, locking it before escorting me to the truck. He opened the door and let me slide into the middle of the bench seat before he slid next to me. The first thing he did after Michael turned the engine over was to crank the heat.
“We still need gas,” I said and pointed to the low fuel light.
“Damn machines,” Michael muttered and pulled into one of the gas lines. He drummed his fingers impatiently on the steering wheel and I traded a glance with Damian and he rolled his eyes at me.
A strained silence filled the cab and when we pulled up to the pump, Damian slid out and took care of gassing up the truck and then knocked on the driver’s side window.
“I can drive,” he said when Michael rolled the window down.
Michael kept his gaze for a minute and then nodded, relinquishing the driver’s seat to Damian and crossing around to the passenger side. No one spoke as we pulled out onto the highway.
The hum of the truck lulled me into a sleepy trance and my eyelids kept drifting closed.
“You’re welcome to use my thigh as a pillow,” Damian said, cutting into the thick silence.
“I’m fine,” I said and yawned.
A dimple appeared in his cheek and he sent a sideways glance that all but said ‘yeah, right”. I shook my head and rubbed my face to get the cobwebs out of my brain.
“I’m sorry I was such a prick earlier,” he said, looking over my head at Michael.
Michael met his gaze and nodded, accepting the apology in silence and then he yawned and settled into the corner of the cab with his head against the headrest.
“I’m sorry I broke your arm,” he said and closed his eyes.
Both Damian and I exchanged a glance. Getting an apology from Michael was more progress than either of us had hoped for and it alleviated some of my angst relating to our last conversation.
I wondered how Damian would take the news when we told him about my being a trinity.
“How long until we reach Connecticut?” I asked.
Damian glanced at the road signs and his lips moved as he silently calculated distance. “We should get home before the sun rises,” he said. “Even with a hunting break.” He licked his lips. “I won’t make it through the day without blood.”
Michael’s arm shot across the space. “We don’t have time to stop.”
Damian glanced at the offering and then back at the road.
“As much as I’d like to tear into you, Uncle Mike, I can’t. You are in human form, remember?” He didn’t even look our way.
Michael pulled his exposed wrist back and crossed his arms. “Then you’ll have to catch up to us,” he said.
Damian cocked his head, considering this before he sighed. “Okay, but you need to stay on this route and if you pull off for any reason, you’ll call and leave a message?”
“That’s reasonable,” Michael agreed. “But I think I need some rest before I take over driving again.”
“I can drive,” I said, and stretched, reminding both men that I was still in the car.
“You’re sure?”
“Yes, I had enough sleep to be okay for a little while,” I said, glancing at the sparsely populated highway. “And I’d like to drive, anyway. I hate being a passenger unless I have a book or something, otherwise I just drift off.”
“Okay, I’ll get off at the next rest area,” Damian said.
It turned out to be another hour and a half before the next highway rest area and I was ready for a bathroom break from dinner. Michael snored against the door and I took the keys from Damian and headed inside. When I returned, Damian stood by the driver’s side and gave me a small smile, nodding toward the cab and a still sleeping Michael.
“You might have to stop somewhere along the way for him. If you do, just text the mile marker and I’ll meet up with you. I’ll try to get ahead of you once I’m done hunting and I’ll text you what exit I’m at. Okay?”
“Are you okay?” I asked before he stepped away. We hadn’t had a moment since Michael joined us and his gaze flickered to the interior of the truck and back.
“I had some time to think today and, while I’m still angry for the bullshit games he played, I think I can understand it. Especially when I step back and think of what I would have done in his shoes.” He shifted and reached for me, stopping just short of contact before lowering his hand. Frustration filled his features and he closed his eyes. “So yes, I’m okay. Are you?”
He opened his eyes and met my gaze.
“I’m fine,” I said and gave him a reassuring smile. I wasn’t about to tell him about the trinity or Michael’s ultimatum. Not until we were settled in the safety of a new home away from Michael and all the complications that came with dragging around an archangel in human form.
He pulled the door open for me and shut it as I settled into the seat. Before I had a chance to turn back to the window, the shuffle of feathers crossed over the windshield and he was gone, disappearing into the night.
Michael stirred, shifted and after a few minutes the snoring began again. With no radio to drown out the offensive noise, my nerves started to jump on edge and my jaw tightened against the rising bitch factor.