“Having a party?” the kid asked with a snicker. “Or apityparty?”
I smiled sweetly at him. “What’s your name?”
“Billy.”
“Well, Billy,” I said as I handed him my Visa. “Go fetch the machine from the closet, because I’m paying with credit.”
I savored his groan as he obeyed.
I carried my bounty of junk food outside. A deep rumbling vibrated through the ground, announcing the arrival of a gang of motorcycles before I saw them. They came around the bend in the road, riding two-by-two. They looked like the same guys I’d seen at the police station last night, though there were closer to twenty of them instead of just six. The logo on their leather jackets was a snake coiled around a skull, with the word COPPERHEAD in bronze letters above.
Something about the bikes was unnerving. I shivered even though it was a warm, humid afternoon. The sooner I was out of this little town, the better.
Back in my room, I microwaved the burrito and then bit into it before waiting for it to cool. Hunger truly was the best spice, because it tasted better than any frozen burrito I’d had in my life. While eating, I sat in bed and scrolled through the map on my phone. Eastland was indeed a one-road town, just off the interstate and surrounded by little square plots of farmland. The aerial view in Google Maps looked like a chess board whose squares were floating away in every direction.
I zoomed back in on Eastland. The community center where I had to be in the morning was only about half a mile from my motel. Close enough to walk. The diner was even closer. I could’ve gone there for dinner.
“Don’t worry,” I told my burrito. “You’re doing a good job all by yourself.”
I washed it down with my Diet Coke while deleting Momma’s frantic emails. She’d left fourteen of them, which I swiped away without listening. I felt guilty enough that she and Dad had been worried sick for most of a day before I had a chance to call them.
I was almost through all the voicemails when I saw one from a different contact.
Scott.
My thumb hit the play button before I could stop myself. As I held the phone up to my ear, I prayed there was an excuse for the text I’d seen on his phone. That this was all some funny misunderstanding we’d be laughing about years from now.
“Hey,” came Scott’s monotone voice. “It’s, uh, me.” He cleared his throat. “Listen. Charlotte. I didn’t want you to find out that way. I should’ve told you about Tammy. We’ve been seeing each other for—”
I tossed my phone to the other bed as if it were a poisonous snake. I didn’t have the emotional energy to listen to it right now. The simple confirmation that there was another woman was enough to crush me.
It felt like my rib cage was being squeezed. Leaning back against the headboard, I sucked in a breath and let it exhale through my clenched teeth. I wasn’t going to cry. I was too exhausted to cry. I’dalreadycried before getting confirmation.
Somehow, I think I had known for a while already. Like deep down, part of my brain realized our relationship was unrepairable, but I had refused to acknowledge it. I’d been avoiding the truth all this time, hoping we could get back together.
Nope,I thought sadly.It’s all over now.
“I need something stronger than you,” I told my Diet Coke, swapping it out for a beer from the fridge. The cap twisted off with a hiss, and I flicked it into the trash can. I drank from the bottle until the tightness in my rib cage loosened just a bit. Enough that I felt like I could breathe.
“To Scott,” I said, toasting the air. “The cause of all my problems.”
But my problems were just beginning.
8
Charlotte
A knock came on my door.
I blinked awake, my eyes scanning the dark motel room. Had I imagined it? The only sound was the hum of the mini fridge over in the kitchenette. There was nothing that—
Knock knock knock.
Three hard knocks, unmistakable in their urgency. Like police announcing they were about to kick the door in.
“Coming,” I called, rushing out of bed to the door.
Before I could reach for the handle, the door swung open with a bang. Jayce stood in the doorway, bulging arms crossed over his chest. The moonlight reflected off the colorful ink on his right bicep, and his blue eyes glistened with a smile that didn’t touch his lips.