CHAPTER 5 ALEXIS
He merges onto the highway and heads north, which is probably the smartest plan since my father will think I’m going south—back home to Los Angeles.
I have no real destination in mind, and I’m not sure if Danny does, either.
“Where are we going?” I ask.
“Who cares?” He reaches over to squeeze my hand. “We’re together. That’s all that matters to me.”
I draw in a deep breath and exhale, and it feels like I’m breathing in some happy form of freedom and exhaling the oppression I’ve lived under for the last twenty-eight years.
It sounds dramatic since I have a good life. But the good life has come at the expense of nearly every personal relationship I have, including the one I have with my only surviving parent.
But I have Danny now. He’s my family. He’s my home.
“When do you have to be back?” he asks quietly.
“Christmas Eve.” I sigh. “I’m doing a live special with a few other singers in Los Angeles. We’ve already practiced and pre-recorded some segments.”
“And I assume Brooks and your dad will be there?”
I nod. “Most certainly.”
“That gives us nine days,” he says. “How hard do you want to run?”
My brows dip. “What do you mean?”
“I mean…do you want disguises? Clothes? Do you want to be gone all nine days? Do you want to go somewhere remote where nobody will find us?”
“I want to run like I’m racing a marathon for my life,” I finally say. “With you. I want to walk in the sunshine down the street holding your hand without worrying someone will find us. I want to just be normal for nine days. Can we just be normal for nine days?”
He presses his lips together. “Absolutely, Lex. Absolutely.”
“I feel like I’ve hardly spoken to you since you went back to Vegas last week,” I say.
“You haven’t,” he grunts. “But I understand why. Your father…he’s a powerful man, and you were stuck.”
“I was. But then I realized it was time to take control of my life.” It sounds so simple now, but the truth is I have no idea what sort of complex consequences I’m leaving in my wake.
“And that led you to me?” he guesses.
“When I looked into my heart, I only saw you there. I couldn’t go through with something as big as a wedding when it wasn’t to you.”
“So you’re saying that your answer to my proposition last week might have changed?” His tone is filled with hope.
“I think if you asked me again, my answer might be different,” I admit.
“Then maybe I’ll ask again.”
My heart races.
I hope he does.
We keep heading north with no destination in mind, and it’s romantic and dreamy as we travel together, leaving our cares behind us. Leaving our entire lives behind us.
We’re an hour north of Santa Barbara when I ask, “What ever happened with your father?”
“I bought us some time,” he says.
“How?”
He lifts a shoulder. “I told him if he didn’t stop threatening us, I would have an investigator look into his secrets, too.”
My brows dip. “But you already did that.”
He nods. “I did. And ultimately, using his fatal illness against him felt wrong.”
My heart seems to grow bigger at his words. He’s taking the high road here even though his father isn’t. “Even though he’s using it against you? God, Danny. You’re such a good man. Do you know that? What you’re doing should be proof enough that you’ll never be like him.”
He grips the wheel a little tighter then glances over at me. “Before you shower me with compliments, you should know that I decided to have Chloe see what else she can find on him.”
“I stand by what I said. You’re a good man, and I’m so lucky I found you.”
He leans over to bump my shoulder with his. “I’m the lucky one.”
“Do you think he’ll talk once he finds out we’re both missing?” I ask.
He shrugs. “He’s a total wild card, but Chloe is working hard to find what we need. I’m sure he’ll be in touch before he does anything. He has to try to squeeze more money out of me first.”
“Good point. I’m so sorry for what you’re going through, Danny.”
He huffs out a mirthless chuckle. “You’re going through some shit of your own, babe. Good thing we have each other.”
Good thing we have each other.
Truer words have never been spoken.
“Are you getting hungry?” he asks a half hour later. “San Luis Obispo is coming up and they should have plenty of options.”
I nod. “I am. You?”
“I haven’t eaten all day. My stomach was in knots,” he admits, and my chest tightens.
“I’m so sorry for what I put you through.” My voice is soft as I reach over and rest my hand on his thigh.
“I’m sorry for what you had to go through,” he says, reaching down and squeezing my hand. He clears his throat. “We could get gas here, too, and if you want, we could stop somewhere and grab some clothes for you and whatever we need to disguise ourselves.”
“Oh, good idea. I have literally nothing except my purse, which I thought to grab when I left. But I don’t think I want to use anything in it anyway or my dad can trace my location.”
“Good call. In fact, we should pay cash for everything. Both of us so we can’t be traced,” he says. “But I don’t have any cash.”
“Then let’s get some while we’re here. It’ll take my dad some time to hire someone to trace your credit card anyway, and we’ll be long gone from here by then.”
He twists his lips as he glances over at me. “Are you having fun with this?” he asks.
I can’t help a little laugh. “You know what? Abso-fucking-lutely.”
“Did you just say fuck?” he demands.
“Indeed I did just say fuck,” I confirm.
“God, I love you,” he murmurs.
We pull into a gas station, and he fills up. And then we pull into a Target parking lot.
The last time I was in a Target, I was seventeen and relatively unknown.
And back then…it was one of the greatest stores I’d ever been in.
I pull the hat down low, and with his beard, he’s relatively unrecognizable, but he keeps his head down as we walk in.
“Grab a cart,” I say. “We’re gonna need some essentials.”
As it turns out, essentials are a completely new wardrobe, a couple of suitcases for easier travel, all kinds of make-up and toiletries, and, naturally, road trip snacks including donuts.
Danny grabs some things, too, and we head toward the check-out, where our bill totals over nine hundred dollars.
Yep. Still one of the greatest stores I’ve ever been in.