by Holly Jaymes
At the knock on the door, he said, “That’s probably Wyatt.”
I steadied myself to see him again. I needed to prepare to be in close quarters with a man who was sexually potent, and yet a Boy Scout when it came to doing his job.
“Snow is coming,” I heard Wyatt say. “But it won’t be heavy until later tonight.”
“I think you have everything you need if it starts to pile up. We’ve got the flashlights and candles out.”
“Wasn’t electricity upgraded with the renovations?” Wyatt asked.
“Yes, but it never hurts to be prepared.”
My father said his goodbyes, and I was alone with Wyatt again. He was standing by the window looking out over the lake.
“Did you have a nice night off?” I asked, making small talk.
He turned. “I did. I had dinner with my family. My brother and his wife, Allie, are expecting.” His smile was wide. My heart warmed at the love he clearly had for his family.
“My sister will be excited to hear about that if she doesn’t know already.”
He studied me. “Your sister told Allie that there were probably more photos of you and Trask.”
His words were like a punch to the gut. “What’s your point?” All my warm feelings were gone.
“Just that they might paint a different picture than what is in the media.”
I could only look at him, not sure what he meant.
“I guess the paparazzi only sell the photo that tells the most lucrative story.”
I nodded.
“So, if there was a photo of you kneeing Trask in the family jewels, that might not be worth as much as a picture that makes it look like you’re into him.”
My annoyance dissipated a little bit as I realized what he was saying. “Probably.” Of course, I didn’t knee him in the jewels, though I wish I had. I did push him away, though. Then I wondered if Wyatt was fishing. “Are you hoping there are pictures of my kneeing Trask where it counts?”
He shrugged and turned away. “Do you want to go for a walk? We have time to do something outside before the snow starts or gets bad.”
Getting out would be nice. I realized that if I was going to be snowed in with Wyatt, I would need a distraction. There was only so much small talk and poker two people could do before things got annoying. I’d need a project or something to fill the time.
“I want to go to the store that sells fabric in town. Does it sell sewing machines too?”
He looked at me like I’d grown a third eye. “Going to town isn’t a good idea.”
“My dad says the snow will keep the paparazzi away.”
“There’s no snow yet.”
“What about that kiss?” I didn’t know why I was bringing that up, except that he’d been sure that it had changed people’s minds about who I was. If that was true, then it would be okay to go to town, right?
His jaw clenched. “What about it?”
“You said it would make people think it wasn’t me in town. If I’m with you, they’ll think I’m just one of your girlfriends.”
“I don’t have girlfriends.”
I huffed out a breath. “It’s cover. Don’t you ever go undercover.”
He rolled his eyes. “You’ve been hanging around Trask and crime movies too much.”
I wanted to punch him for that statement.
“This is Eden Lake. We don’t have a lot of crime that requires undercover work. And if we did, we’d have to have state police or FBI or something because everyone knows everyone here.”
“You said yourself that nobody would believe you’d be with me, so if I’m with you, I can’t be me.”
He glared at me with his hands on his hips.
“Please, Wyatt. I’ll disguise myself. Just one store. No one would expect Lily Maddox in a store buying fabric and a sewing machine.”
He blew out a breath. “Your father would kill me.”
“My father trusts and respect you—”
“Right, to make the best choice in doing my job. Taking you to town isn’t the best choice.”
“I’ll waive your poker debt if you take me.”
He stared for a moment and then laughed. “Will you give me a credit too?”
“Sure.”
“You really want to sew that bad? You’re supposed to be laying low.”
I nodded. “I want to see if my idea is worth pursuing. And if I’m going to be snowed in, what better time to test it out? There’s only so much poker we can play, especially since you can’t afford it.”
“Someday, I’ll beat you. You’ll see.” He let out a breath. “Put on something that doesn’t look like Lily Maddox would wear. We’ll go in, buy your stuff and then we’ll come back. No detours.”
I grinned. “Yes. Okay. I promise.”
Ten minutes later, we were in his car driving to town. I don’t know why I felt so giddy. For the first time in a long time, I felt like I was finally moving forward again, not just staying in one place hiding.
He pulled in front of a craft shop on the main street.
“I don’t know that this place will have everything you need. You might have to order to get what you want,” he said parallel parking the vehicle.
“Hopefully, there will be something to help me get started. I really need to get moving. Stop wallowing.”
He looked over at me. “You’ve been wallowing?”
I shrugged. “I’m trying not to be a whiner, but yeah. I’m letting all this stunt me. I don’t want that.”
“Good. Get your hat on. Stop looking so pretty.”
I couldn’t hide my smile. “You think I’m pretty?”
He rolled his eyes. “Now you’re fishing for compliments. You know you’re pretty. You’re paid to be pretty.” He got out of the car and looked around as he came over to let me out. He ushered me toward the shop with his arm around me, passing several people on the sidewalk. I kept my head down as he opened the door and let me in.
“Wyatt, how are you?” an older woman at the counter asked.
I ducked my head and walked further back in the store where I saw fabrics.
“I’m good, Mrs. Tanner, and you?”
“Very good, thank you. What brings you in?”
“My friend is looking for some sewing things.”
“It’s a good time for it. Smells like snow and a lot of it.”
As they chatted, I looked through the sewing section. It was definitely small. There wasn’t any fabric for exercise wear, but there was some stretchy stuff I could test out, and some cute jersey fabric I could make some shorts out of. The sewing machine options were limited to a small plastic gizmo that looked like it might break after one use and a fancy machine that included embroidery options.
I loaded up on threads, elastic, and other notions, then I picked up three bolts of fabric for cutting.
“Would you like me to cut that for you?” the woman asked, leaving Wyatt at the counter.
“Yes, please. And I’d like that sewing machine there too.”
“Very good. How much of these?” she said, taking the bolts of fabric.
“Ah, …four yards of each? I wasn’t sure how much I’d need, but too much was better than not enough. Especially if I was snowed in and couldn’t get more.”
The woman started unraveling the bolt, measuring, and cutting. Every now and then she’d look at me and then Wyatt.
“I haven’t seen Wyatt with a woman in a while.” She said it like a statement, even though there was a question in it.
“Oh, I’m surprised. He seems like quite a catch.” Then remembering what he said about people wouldn’t think Wyatt would be seeing a woman like me, I said, “I guess I’m lucky.”
“You’re not from here, are you?”
Trying to keep my head down, I shook it. “No. But it’s beautiful here.”
Wyatt, who’d been looking out the front window, came back to where I was getting my items from the woman.
“We’ve got to go.” Hi
s voice was tight.
“Is something wrong?” the woman asked.
He looked at me. “Visitors.”
Really? My heart sank.
“Mrs. Tanner, can we leave these here? Maybe my mother can pick them up later?”
“Well sure …but…what’s wrong?” She looked from me to Wyatt.
The door opened, and a pudgy man in brand new outdoor clothes stepped in. There was no doubt that he was here for a photo as his camera couldn’t be concealed.
Wyatt leaned closer to talk lower. “Can we go out the back?”
Mrs. Tanner looked at the man. “Is he dangerous?”
“Not to you. He’s harassing her,” Wyatt nodded to me. “I’m going to get her out the back and round to the car. I’m sorry for any hassle.”
Mrs. Tanner’s face pinched into annoyance as she looked at the man. “You go out the back. Send Sam out front, and I’ll have her put these items in your car.”
“I need to pay—”
She waved a hand. “I’ll get that from you later.” She lifted her head toward the man. “I’ll be with you in a minute.” Then she turned back to us. “I’ll distract him, and you can get Ms. Maddox out to safety.”
I gaped. “You know who I am?”
“There’s a man with a camera the size of a small dog following you around. Between that and the fact that your father is sheriff, yes, I figured it out.”
“We’ve got to go.” Wyatt put his hand on my back and gave me a slight push toward a door at the back of the store. “Thank you, Mrs. Tanner.”
“Always happy to help the sheriff’s department.” She walked over to the man. “Welcome to my shop. How can I help you?”
We hurried through the back room where a young woman was sorting notions. She looked up, startled.
“Mrs. Tanner asked to see you out front.”
“Oh, …okay.” She looked unsure, but we didn’t stick around for an explanation as Wyatt ushered me out the back door. There was a road, and across from that a fence and a wide field. The shop had been in the middle of a long block of attached businesses.
“This way,” he said, moving along the back of the buildings behind the main street. We made it a few yards when a couple of people appeared around the corner several shops up.
“Fuck.” Wyatt stopped, his arm reaching out to keep me behind him. He looked out over the field and then to the building. We were now behind a restaurant. He turned to look behind us and tugged me to follow him. We hurried back the other way, past the craft store.
I glanced behind me and saw the two people following us. God, why couldn’t they just leave me alone?
“Fucking hell!” Wyatt jerked to a stop, holding me back. I looked ahead and saw a few more people, and a car pulled around, making its way up the back street.
“Oh, God.”
“This way.” Wyatt opened the nearest door, pushed me in, and locked the door. We were in a back room of a clothing boutique. He moved quietly and looked out into the main shop area.
“Do you see anyone?” I asked.
“There’s someone outside. Fuck they’re everywhere. Where did they come from?”
I sank down into a chair, feeling completely defeated.
“Up here.” He reached out his hand, which I took, and he guided me to a set of stairs.
“Where are we going?”
“This will take us up to the roof.”
“How do you know this place so well?”
“I grew up here. All these were built after a fire a long time ago. Now all the second story spaces have a roof exit and fire escapes.”
We rushed up the stairs and into an attic space. Along the back wall was a ladder-like structure that went to the roof.
Wyatt pulled me to it. “Follow me up. Okay?”
I nodded.
He studied me for a moment. “Are you okay? You’re not afraid of heights, are you?”
“No. I don’t like falling, but—”
He gave me a reassuring smile. “We’ll try not to fall.” He hurried up the ladder and opened up a hatch-like door. Cool air rushed in, along with a few snowflakes.
He disappeared through the hatch, and then his head looked down at me. “Come on up.”
I climbed the ladder and through the hatch to the roof.
“Wait here,” Wyatt said once I was up.
I stood on the roof, looking out over the lake while gray clouds swirled, and snow began to fall.
Wyatt crept over to the street edge of the building and looked over. He shook his head, and I took that as a bad sign. He waved me over as he started to walk on the rooftop toward the end of the building. He pulled out his cell phone.
“Your dad is going to kill me,” he grumbled as he made a call. He talked low and in some sort of police code.
We reached the end of the building, and again he looked down.
“What now?” I asked.
“Now, we wait for backup.”
I came to Eden Lake to avoid this, and instead of doing as my father had arranged, I’d acted like I could be normal and go out in the world. Now I brought on all sorts of trouble for Wyatt and for me.
“You probably think I’m more trouble than I’m worth.”
He looked over his shoulder at me. “I definitely think you’re trouble. I feel like I should have negotiated more poker credit.”
I couldn’t stop my smile. I was pleased he could see the humor in this.
He walked over to me, his hands rubbing my arms. “Are you cold?”
I was warmed by his gesture. “Not too bad.”
“I’ll get us out of this, but I can’t promise there won’t be a picture or a story. You might want to think about a new plan.”
I looked down. It was strange how I’d only been here for a week or so and yet felt so at home. The idea of leaving made me sad. But I knew he was right.
“First things first, though.” He left me to go look over the edge of the building on the side and then front. “The cavalry’s here. Come on.” He took my hand and led me to the back of the building to a fire escape. The stairs looked rusted out and scary.
“The fire department checks them,” Wyatt said, apparently noticing my apprehension. “If you get hurt, we can blame Josh.”
I gave a small laugh. “I suspect you trust him, so I will too.”
He went first, and then waited for me to join him, and we made our way down.
He took my hand again, and for reasons that made no sense, I was comforted by it. He led me to the corner and looked around the edge. “Come on.”
We trotted along the side of the building to the corner along the main street. He looked in all directions. “We have to hope the deputies rounded them all up. But we should make a b-line for my car. No window shopping.”
“I understand.”
He put his arm around me like he did before to make it seem like we were a couple, and we walked at a quick clip toward his car.
We were nearly there when I heard it.
“There they are.”
“Quick.” Wyatt rushed and opened my door. “Get in.”
I scrambled in, and he ran around the car and got in on his side. “Get down.”
The only option for getting low enough with a seat belt on was to lean toward him. He put his hand on my arm and pushed me down until my head was in his lap.
“Hold on, Lily.” I heard the squeal of his tires as we jerked away from the curb. We drove for a time, and then he swore. “Jesus, those fuckers are persistent.”
He picked up speed. He must have been weaving through the town as each turn felt like a jerk.
“Are you alright?” He asked tightly.
“I’m not carsick. That’s something.”
“Don’t puke on me, Lily.”
We continued on, and I wanted to sit up to see what was going on, but since I’d already caused him enough trouble, I stayed down as Wyatt had asked.
“Think you can keep up with me?” Wyatt said as he looked
into his rearview mirror. “Bring it on, sucker.”
All of a sudden, we picked up speed. I hoped he didn’t have an accident. I wondered how the media would explain my head being in his lap if we died in a crash on our escape.
“That shit piece won’t make it up here,” he growled again. The SUV broke hard and turned with a right jerk. Then it picked up speed again.
“Are we at Pine Rest?” It didn’t seem like the ideal thing to bring the paparazzi to the Minor’s doorstep. Or Tucker McLean’s.
“No.” His jaw was tight. “Hold on, Lily. It’s going to get bumpy.”
He wasn’t kidding. My head bounded on his thigh, and he grimaced. “Sorry,” I said as I considered that I might have hit his sensitive area.
He didn’t say anything for a time. He just drove over the bumpy terrain. Finally, he said, “Hah, that’s right, you fucker. I hope you have triple-A.”
We drove a little further, then he said, “You can sit up now.”
I pushed up, stretching out the kink in my neck and shoulders. We were going up a dirt road into the wooded mountains.
“Where are we?”
“Where those dumbasses can’t follow in their two-wheel-drive cars.”
I turned to look out the back window for cars but was distracted by the items in the backseat. “Oh…my sewing stuff. That was so nice of her.”
Wyatt didn’t say anything, and I let him focus on the rough terrain. Finally, he pulled into a narrower road that led to a small cabin. The light snow on the trees and structure gave it an enchanting appearance.
“Welcome to Dalton Escape.”
“Really? That’s what this is called?”
He parked the car. “Nah, but it seems like a good name now. This is our family’s cabin. My grandparents lived here forever. Now we use it to get away.”
He exited the car and came over to help me out. “We’ll stay here for a bit until I can get a coast is clear, and we decide on your next step.”
I nodded. “Wyatt?”
He stopped and turned toward me.
“I’m sorry I’m such a pain.”
He shrugged. “I needed a little adventure in my life. Besides, I’ve never been in a high-speed chase in which someone was after me.” He grinned.
I smiled back. “I’m glad you see the humor in all this.”
