"I'm taking youhome."
I knew I needed to get home, but still, I had to will myself not to be disappointed. I couldn't stop the question that sprang from my lips. "You’reserious?"
Maybe it wasn’t smart to wish he was driving me anywhere but straight back to my house, yet curiosity had me. There were suddenly so many questions I wanted to ask. I just didn’t know how to phrase them. A car ride to my house was too short for me to be able to even skim the surface of all the answers Ineeded.
He peered at me as he made theturn.
"Of course I’m serious. Are you going to tell me where you live or should I surpriseyou?"
I liked a challenge. "Surprise me." His lips twitched, but his eyessmiled.
"As you wish."I grinned.Princess Bridereferences I could totally get on boardwith.
Bellamy leaned forward and pressed the radio button. Soft indie music drifted into the cab. I listened to the low hum of the emotional lyrics, thinking that they suited him. If I was being honest, Bellamy was already an enigma to me. He could have just as likely turned on heavy metal and I would have thought thesame.
"Do you mind?" he asked, nodding towards themusic.
I shook my head and he relaxed, his shoulders pushing back into the seat as he adjusted and stretched out a bit more. I tried to imagine Knix in his position, though I wasn't sure why, and I found the image amusing. He was much too big to fit in such a small car. He probably had to have his cars custom made, as well as his clothes, the doorways in his house, andmore.
I drifted, watching trees, buildings, parks, and people all go by in the window like a television show without any one main character. I wondered what it would feel like in the driver's seat. In control. I had never seen this kind of show from that side of the car. I was always the passenger, just along for theride.
Bellamy drove the car, handling the beast like it was a sweet animal under his care. When he hit the interstate, he slid into pre-five o'clock traffic. I tried to distract myself, reading the license plates that passed us. Being so close to the ocean, so close to a port city and tourist bedrock, I wasn't surprised to spot a few northern states flyby.
It wasn't until we had passed a few exit signs that I began to get antsy. How far could he be taking me? I think Bellamy sensed my apprehension because after a quick glance my way, he reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone, and passed it over tome.
"I don't need your phone," I said and at the same time he asked, "Can you send a text forme?"
Of course,I thought. He wasn't giving me his phone. That would be stupid. My cheeks tightened with embarrassment. He smiled as I slid the lock across the screen to openit.
"Um...who do you want to send a textto?"
"Alex." He clicked his blinker on and navigated the BMW's front end into the fast lane. How much farther did we need to travel? This definitely wasn't the way home. Another concern hooked my brain when I realized what hesaid.
"You knowAlex?"
The blinker clickedoff.
"We all know Alex. I'm sure Knix has toldyou."
"I know Knix knows Alex, and I know that you know Marv." I paused, thinking about his words before I continued. "Is there anyone else I know that you know? Do you knowErika?"
If Bellamy knew Marv well enough to drive his expensive car – at least, I assumed it was Marv's car, he seemed more likely to own a BMW – and Marv and Knix knew each other, and Knix knew Alex, odds were that they were all buddy-buddy and Alex had just neglected to tell me so. Then again, it's not like I was one of his close confidants. Still, it stung to be left out of theloop.
"Your friend, Erika?" He reached up and turned the radio off. "No, I don't know her. Although I do have a few files on her. We wanted to know how close you twowere."
Was he kidnapping me? Principal Wiggins said I was in good hands. "We're very close. She'll want to know where I am. I should text her too. Can you tell me where we're goingnow?"
He grimaced. "It's not a secret, Harlow, but I would prefer you didn't tell her. Don't worry, I'll have you home in time to be in bed before your shift tomorrow. You did say I could surpriseyou."
"I lowered the phone to my lap. How do you know about my workschedule?"
"I know Alex, Sweetheart, remember?" His smile stretched across his lips when he laughed. It was a good laugh, like he was genuinely amused. "He's your boss and Iasked."
"He shouldn't give out information like that," I harrumphed, picking up his phone again as I pressed myself back in myseat.
I slid open the lock pad again and found the message icon leading to his textmessages.
"You have a new text," I said looking down at the sender's name. "Who's Texas? Is that like a nickname orsomething?"