“Fuck me.” The Viking shoved a hand through his hair.
“I worry about your friend’s vision,” I said to Justice, pointing at the mug shot of Tina.
Tina had gone bleach blonde at some point in the past decade-plus, making our otherwise subtle differences even more obvious.
“I left my contacts at home,” he said.
“Next to your manners?” I quipped. The caffeine was hitting my bloodstream, making me unusually feisty.
He didn’t respond with anything other than a heated glare.
I sighed. “Get out of my way, Leif Erikson.”
“The name is Knox. And why are you here?”
What the hell kind of name was that? Was it a hard Knox life? Did he tell a lot of Knox Knox jokes? Was it short for something? Knoxwell? Knoxathan?
“That’s none of your business, Knox. Nothing I do or don’t do is your business. In fact, my existence is none of your business. Now, kindly get out of my way.”
I felt like screaming as loud as I could for as long as I could. But I’d tried that a couple of times in the car on the long drive here, and it hadn’t helped.
Thankfully, the beautiful oaf heaved an annoyed sigh and did the decent, life-preserving thing by getting out of my way. I swept out of the café and into the summer swelter with as much dignity as I could muster.
If Tina wanted to meet up with me, she could find me at the motel. I didn’t need to wait around and be accosted by strangers wi
th the personalities of cacti.
I’d head back to my dingy room, take every last pin out of my hair, and shower until the hot water ran out. Then I’d figure out what to do next.
It was a solid plan. It was only missing one thing.
My car.
Oh no. My car and my purse.
The bike rack in front of the coffee shop was still there. The laundromat with its bright posters in the window was still across the street next to the mechanic’s garage.
But my car was not where I’d left it.
The parking spot I’d squeezed into in front of the pet shop was empty.
I looked up and down the block. But there was no sign of my trusty, dusty Volvo.
“You lost?”
I closed my eyes and clenched my jaw. “Go. Away.”
“Now what’s your problem?”
I turned around and found Knox watching me intently, holding a to-go coffee cup.
“What’s my problem?” I repeated.
I wanted to kick him in the shins and steal his coffee.
“Nothin’ wrong with my hearing, sweetheart. No need to yell.”
“My problem is while I wasted five minutes of my life getting to know you, my car was towed.”