Page 131 of Hurry Up And Wait

“I don’t know where you’re going with this,” he interrupted, “but think very carefully about your next words.”

I chuckled at the insecurity in his voice. “As I said, he’s a type of man. He’s dark and dangerous, and that’s great for dreams. But in reality, a man like him isn’t what women actually want. He will never commit. He will never break his bad habits for a woman. He’s the unattainable man, and as great as that sounds in a book or in a movie, in reality, it really sucks.”

He pulled me a little closer, gripping my hips tight. “So, what you’re saying is that you really want the filthy mechanic.”

I grinned up at him, wrapping my hands around his neck. “The filthier, the better.”

His lips closed over mine and his hand thrust into the back of my hair, tugging as he devoured me. I was scarcely able to breathe. Every inch of me was on fire, but then again, Bowie was a mechanic. He had a way about him.

When he stepped back and grinned at me, I could only flutter my eyelashes at him, still too mesmerized to think of a single thing to say. “So…shall we go home? I’ll show you what a mechanic can really do.”

“Uh-huh,” were the only words that left my lips.

We made it to the crosswalk and waited for the light to change. In this small town, not a single person was out this late, but that was fine by me. I snuggled closer to him as we stepped off the sidewalk and headed for his truck. I glanced up at him, my lips quirking in a smile that he returned.

Bright lights blinded me as the sound of a roaring engine caught me by surprise. Bowie spun around, shoving me behind him for only a split second. Then he was shoving me hard. I went flying, barely clearing the path of the vehicle flying at us. My head thumped painfully off the pavement as I watched in horror as Bowie tried and failed to get out of the way. His body was crushed by the car, flying up over the hood, crashing into the windshield like a rag doll, and then he was thrown over the back of the car. I couldn’t see him from where I laid.

I struggled to move, to get to him, but my head throbbed painfully and my body wouldn’t obey my commands. A whimper left my lips as the door of the car opened and boots appeared in the darkness. I tried to call out for help, but not a sound left my lips. The harsh gleam of the lights accentuated the boots that walked toward me, taunting me with their approach, but I couldn’t do a thing to escape.

Fingers clawed at my hair, nearly yanking it from my scalp. I whimpered at the pain, but couldn’t cry out. Then a cloth was shoved over my face and everything started to fade. My heart thundered in my chest as I thought of Bowie on the ground, his body broken. Was he alive? Was he even breathing?

But all those thoughts faded into a whirl of black smoke as I succumbed to the darkness.

33

ISLA

I sat backin my chair, completely stuffed from the takeout. IKE was staring at me like a crazy person. Yes, I had devoured that much of my meal in just a few minutes. Like the gentleman he appeared to be, he wiped his fingers on a napkin and then brushed it over his lips.

“Would you like more?”

I shook my head, holding up my hand. “I can’t eat another thing.”

“I doubt that,” he smirked.

My phone chimed and I picked it up, reading the incoming text.

I’m about to call. If you ever want to see your sister again, you’ll pick up the phone. And ditch the guard dog.

I could feel all the blood drain from my face as I read the words, but I couldn’t actually force a sound from my mouth.

IKE shoved back from his seat, completely unaware that my world was about to come crashing down around me. He carried his plate to the sink and I finally made my feet move, rushing out of the kitchen and upstairs. I was just getting to my room when my phone rang in my hand.

My head pounded as everything tilted around me. I shook out my hand, forcing myself to calm the fuck down. I wouldn’t help my sisterany by freaking out. I slid my finger across the screen and slowly raised the phone to my ear.

“Hello?” My voice sounded hollow even to my own ears.

I thought I would hear Shawn’s voice on the other end of the line, but instead, it was an automated voice. “You have a half hour to get to the abandoned farmhouse outside of town. If you’re not there in the time allotted, your sister will die. If you bring anyone with you, she will die. I will not contact you again.”

The line went dead. That was it. He had my sister. It had to be Shawn. No one else hated me that much. But where was Bowie? He went with her tonight. This had to be a setup. It just had to be. There was no way Bowie would let anything happen to her.

Unless…was it possible that Bowie was hurt?

My whole body shook with fear as I ran through every single possibility in my head. But as I glanced at the clock, I realized I didn’t have time to sit around and figure this out. If he really did have Riley, she was counting on me getting to her in time. The fact was, I couldn’t take the chance that this was a setup. If I failed to show up, my sister would be dead.

I slipped my tennis shoes on and threw an oversized sweatshirt on, doing my best to look like I was trying to be cozy. At the top of the stairs, I took a deep breath and headed downstairs. I didn’t have any time to waste. I had to get to Riley fast. But I had to ditch IKE. It felt wrong, but I couldn’t risk Riley’s life. The instructions were clear.

I swallowed hard as I stood in the living room. I could hear IKE moving around in the kitchen. There was no way I could just walk out of the house. He would know. I needed a way to slip outside while he was distracted. As calmly as possible, I walked into the kitchen and headed over to the cabinet by the window. I took a deep breath as I pretended to search for something. Then I flung myself backward against the table, drawing IKE’s attention.