Missing Pieces - Chapter 15
Hailey
Monday
My plan last night had somehow worked. My lie about there only being king beds left in the hotel had gotten Tyler to wake up in a great mood.
A great, very flirtatious mood. And he had even said that Mrs. Hunter wasn't his type.
Not those exact words, but close enough.
And if he didn't have eyes for her, then maybe he really didn't only chase redheads.
Because I had never seen a redhead more gorgeous than her.
His good mood was contagious, but it didn't really take away from the fact that I had woken up with this awful feeling in my gut.
I needed to focus on getting to Pasadena, despite how appealing stopping at the four corners monument and jumping Tyler's bones sounded.
The longer I was away from my dad, the more guilty I felt.
My mission was to get the money, not explore the Grand Canyon and Tyler's body.
So why did I so badly want to do both? I glanced at Tyler out of the corner of my eye.
He turned toward me at the same time and smiled. I immediately turned back to the road.
"Truth or dare?" he said.
I laughed. "I'm not playing truth or dare with you."
"Why not?"
"Because it's a game for kids."
"Sounds like you're chicken."
I laughed again. "I'm not chicken. Fine. Truth."
He put his left elbow on the center console and leaned closer to me. "On a scale of one to ten, how attracted are you to me?"
God, I should have picked dare. I kept my eyes glued to the road and tried to play it cool. "You're awfully conceited. Who says I'm attracted to you at all?"
"You seemed attracted to me when you kissed me the other night."
"Yeah, well, I wasn't thinking clearly. It just so happened that I hadn't had tequila in quite some time."
"Fair enough. You still have to answer the question, though."
"Fine. You're an attractive guy, sure. Like a seven."
Tyler laughed. "I'll take what I can get. Your turn."
"Truth or dare?"
"Definitely dare."
I pressed my lips together. I had wanted to ask him the same question. But I had lied. He was a ten. He probably would have just lied to me too. I said the first dare that popped into my head. "I dare you to moon the next car that passes us."
He laughed. "Fine." He started to unbutton his shorts.
"Oh my God, you're not seriously going to do that?" I put my hand out to block the view of him. Not that I really wanted to. It was just a reflex.
"You think I'd back down from a dare? Never." He pushed his shorts down his legs but kept his boxers on. "You're going to have to slow down if you want someone to pass us."
I took my foot off the gas. "You don't actually have to do this. Let me think of something else."
"No, this is perfect. Here comes someone now."
I watched him unbuckle his seatbelt and stand up in the moving car. He winked at me as he pulled down the back of his boxers, keeping the front of himself covered.
I stared past him at the van that was driving by. The couple in the front didn't seem to notice, but a little girl in the back looked like her jaw had hit the floor.
"Oh my God!" I pointed to the kid.
Tyler ducked down, peered through the front windshield, and started laughing hysterically.
Which made me start laughing hysterically. But I didn't miss the side view of his ass before he pulled his pants back up. His firm, perfectly squeezable ass. I gripped the wheel tighter than necessary and tried to push the image of his ass out of my mind.
"That was epic," he said and playfully shoved my shoulder.
And there was that spark again. That little indescribable burst of electricity that made my whole body feel alive.
He slowly let his hand fall from my shoulder. My heart was beating so loudly, I swore I thought he could hear it.
"Your turn," I quickly said.
"Truth or dare?"
"Truth."
"What's your greatest fear?"
I hadn't expected such a serious question after he had just mooned a ten year old girl. I bit the inside of my cheek. Losing my dad. That fear seemed to be seeping into my system. The farther I drove away from my hometown, the guiltier I felt. "Can I pass?" I could feel him staring at me.
"I'm just trying to get to know you."
Why was I trying to hide from him? Didn't I want him to know me?
Didn't I want this to be more than whatever it was right now?
"I'm terrified of being alone. Not in the physical sense.
I'm fine being home alone and reading a book or whatever.
That's fine. But I'm scared of not having anyone to count on. " I swallowed hard.
"It seems like you and your dad are really close."
"We are."
"What happened to your mom?"
I wish he was still mooning strangers.
"I'm sorry, you don't have to answer that. I just..."
"No, it's fine. I don't have a mom. It's just my dad and me." I knew how weird that sounded. Everyone had a mother. Humans didn't just get dropped off by a stork. "I mean, of course I had a mom. I just...don't anymore."
"I'm sorry."
I knew what he probably thought that meant. And I didn't feel like correcting him. "No, it's fine. Truth or dare?"
"Truth."
"On a scale of one to ten, how attracted are you to me?" I smiled at him and then looked back at the road.
"You really can't tell?"
I shook my head. "Honestly, half the time I think you like me and the other half of the time it seems like you wish I had never gotten in your car."
"I'm really glad you climbed into my car."
"Yeah?" I tried to hide my smile. "Why is that?"
A big, fat raindrop fell against the windshield with a splat.
"I find you incredibly refreshing."
"Why, thank you, Tyler. But you didn't answer my question."
"You're a fucking ten, Hails."
I didn't dare turn my head toward him. I didn't want to see whether or not he was smiling and joking around with me. I wanted to believe he really did think I was attractive. And the way he had said it affected me in an embarrassing way. I pressed my thighs together.
"Not that it matters," he said. "Since you only think I'm a seven."
I didn't need to look at him to know that he was smiling now. It was strange how quickly you could feel like you really knew someone even after only a few days. I wanted to tell him that I was lying. Because Tyler Stevens was a fucking twelve.
The rain started to fall faster. I turned on the windshield wipers. The storm had come out of nowhere. It had been sunny five minutes ago.
"Do you want to switch with me? I don't mind driving."
"No, I got this." I leaned forward slightly. It was like someone was throwing buckets of water on our windshield.
"Really, I can..."
"I got this, Tyler. Don't you trust me?"
He laughed. "Not really."
I hit his arm and made sure not to wrap my fingers around his perfect biceps. "I just opened up to you about my biggest fears. Don't be an ass."
"My biggest fear currently is that you're going to drive us off the side of the road."
"I'm a good driver!" I leaned forward in my seat even more. It was almost impossible to see. But I refused to back down. All I could hear was the rain splattering against the car, making the whole thing shudder.
"Seriously, Hails, pull over. We can just wait out the storm. This is crazy." He put his hands on the dashboard and leaned forward to get a better look out the windshield.
And of course I stared at him. Because it was impossible for me to not stare. My eyes just loved gravitating toward him when he wasn't looking, when I couldn't be caught.
That's when the car slid. I slammed my foot on the brake but nothing happened. Oh my God.
"Hit the brake!" he yelled.
"I'm trying!" I tried to pump the brakes with my foot, but the car continued to swerve.
Tyler reached down and pulled the emergency brake and the car started to slow just in time for it to collide with something.
My body jolted forward, pressed hard against the seatbelt, and then jolted back. It felt like my heart was beating out of my chest. I had almost killed us.
"Are you okay?"
Crap. Fuck. Shit. God, what had I just done?
"Hails, are you okay?" He touched my cheek and turned my face toward his.
The concern in his eyes was almost palpable. And just for a second, I didn't feel like I had just royally fucked up. I felt safe. With his hand on me, I felt so content.
"I'm okay," I whispered.
He immediately dropped his hand from my cheek and opened up the door, stepping out into the torrential downpour.
"Tyler!" I yelled but he had already slammed the door.
I saw him run his hands through his wet hair as he looked at whatever damage I had caused to his car. He kept them on the top of his head like he had never seen something as horrible in his life.
I unbuckled my seatbelt and stepped out into the rain too. It was pouring so hard that the rain almost hurt my skin.
"Get back in the car, Hails!" he yelled over the sound of the splashing water.
"Let me help!" I stepped around the car and saw the huge dent in the front fender.
The tire had a large gash in it and was already completely deflated.
We had run straight into a small boulder.
If Tyler hadn't pulled the emergency brake, the car probably would have been totaled.
And we'd both be... I tried to ignore the thoughts floating around my head.
I looked over at Tyler. His t-shirt was completely soaked. It clung to his strong chest and biceps. I suddenly had no desire to help him put on a spare tire. All I wanted to do was touch him.
"You've already helped enough!" he said.
I had no idea how I could want to rip someone's clothes off at the same time I wanted to rip their throat. I stormed over to him. "You can't fix anything when it's pouring. You need to wait for the rain to let up."
"I can fix it. Would you just get back in the car?"
"No." I wasn't really angry. I was just completely focused on his baby blue eyes and I never wanted him to stop looking at me. I always wanted them on me.