Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 112850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Scout lifted two fingers. She turned, flipping around without another word.
“I haven’t eaten since lunch yesterday,” Wyatt said, sliding his fork from the napkin and digging in.
“You could’ve,” Scout answered, unwinding his rolled silverware.
“He made us stop at Taco Bell. His first meal back in the States, and he wanted Taco fuckin’ Bell.” The tone showed Wyatt’s disgust with that selection.
Scout shrugged as if Wyatt were the dumbest person on the planet.
Thankfully, neither said much more except the few hums and grunts Wyatt gave as he devoured his plate of food. Drinks arrived at the same time as the pancakes and Wyatt’s additional plate. The ticket was placed between us.
“No credit cards, only cash,” the waitress said, placing a carafe of coffee in easy reach. “If you need me to make change or anything else, raise your hand. Thanks for stoppin’ in.”
Probably the cash-only part should have been mentioned beforehand, but I had the money thanks to Tommy leaving cash with the liquor store’s address on an envelope.
I rivaled Wyatt’s gusto in eating my food, finishing everything on my plate before I was completely full. Apparently, relaxation and a good home-cooked meal made me hungrier than normal. “So Bryce settled down?”
“Yep. And she’s female and pregnant with a real baby. Not the humanoid we thought Bryce was,” Wyatt added in his sarcastically funny and accurately direct way of speaking.
Maybe the lack of carbs was to blame for the reason I eyed the last bite on Wyatt’s second plate. A piece of perfectly prepped biscuit with butter and strawberry jam was literally calling my name. I could hear it in the farthest recesses of my mind. Wyatt’s theory on any meal was the best piece needed to be savored and saved for the end.
Stealthily, I swiped the biscuit off Wyatt’s plate and took a large bite.
“Hey!” Wyatt shouted, calling all the attention in the room to them. Instant anger flashed over Wyatt’s brow seconds before he leaped on top of me, grabbing for the remaining bite. I had the biscuit out of reach when a perfectly executed throat punch sent me reeling. I choked, the big bite lodging in the center of my esophagus.
“If no one saw you before, they do now. Thanks to Wyatt,” Scout said.
Wyatt lifted a fist pump in the air, gaining a round of yeehaws from the other customers. I, on the other hand, was in concerning peril. My hand cupped my throat, trying to cough up the bite or swallow it down.
“If Slade doesn’t choke to death, we probably need to hit the road.”
“Don’t touch my food again. I was savin’ it for the last bite,” Wyatt added, his finger in my face. “And you’re payin’.” Wyatt was between me and Scout, crowding Scout to stand and let him by. Con’s chair scraped along the floor, while I was still in recovery mode, reaching for my untouched glass of water. Jeez, that was an effective move. Thankfully, seconds later, it swallowed through with a long gulp of the water.
“I’d’ve heimliched you,” Scout said, laying twenty dollars on the table. “Come on.”
He didn’t wait for me, instead following Wyatt’s mazed path to the door.
With the way we’d just behaved, if I was going to be identified, it would have happened then.
When I got a decent breath down to my lungs, I let the rest of the pain go, happy no one spotted me. I paid the rest of the tab and left. The sun hit as a smile touched my lips. Life was pretty perfect out here.
Chapter 2
Slade
“Scout and I wanted to talk to you about how hard you push yourself. You’re always on the TV or in a movie. We don’t know how you keep up. How many movies did you make last year?” Wyatt asked from the back seat as he leaned over the console before I started the vehicle. I didn’t suspect it to be the question he wanted an answer to. I cocked a side glance at Scout, who had turned to face me. They both cared about me, which added to the weight of their concern.
Two movies released over the last twelve months, three different motion pictures were on the way, a slew of international promotional gigs, and a twenty-two episode series was in fact quite a workload. Add in my charity work and new organic-fare restaurant chain in California and my schedule was packed full. But that information was known and not worthy of a response because I agreed with my buddies. Instead of responding, I pulled my sunglasses from the visor and turned my cap around to keep it from flying off when I drove.
My focus dropped to my cell phone as I began mapping directions. After starting the Jeep, the app appeared on the dashboard screen in the middle of the two front seats. Based on the directions, they’d pass a municipal building, a clothing store, hardware store, and a grocery store, but the end point seemed to be really close to where they were currently parked.