Chapter 98
LIZZIE NUNEZ WAS losing any hope of finding the tall, handsome man with dark hair.
She sat on a set of stained concrete stairs that led to an old apartment building.
Somehow there was a different type of garbage on each step.
Some old burger wrappers on the first step.
What looked like the contents of an ancient backpack had been dumped on the third step.
She didn’t even want to contemplate what was on the end of the step where she was sitting.
Among the pile of refuse were two pieces of used toilet paper. It made Lizzie shudder.
How had she fallen so far? Lizzie thought back to just a couple of years ago.
She was the homecoming queen at her high school.
Now she was desperate to find a man who was essentially going to prostitute her out.
But hunger and fear were huge motivators.
She wasn’t about to spend another night in a shelter.
There was at least an hour until sundown. She was giving herself two hours to find her man. If he wasn’t here by dusk, she’d make a new plan. She’d spent enough time trying to find this guy.
Lizzie sat on the step with her legs pulled in close to her chest. She was wearing the yellow sundress the shelter had given her with the jean jacket she’d found the day before. She nodded hello to a couple of young men who stopped and tried to flirt. But Lizzie wasn’t really in the mood.
She stood up to take a walk around the neighborhood. She intended to swing past the Garden Spot. Maybe she’d get lucky.
Then Lizzie glanced toward the traffic, waiting for a stoplight to turn. Right in front of her, not twenty feet away, was a white SUV. She said out loud, “It can’t be.” Through the passenger window, she could clearly see the driver. It was him!
Lizzie wasn’t risking him getting away again. She sprang into the lanes of idling cars, dodging around a red compact like an NBA player. The SUV was not going anywhere. She rushed to the passenger door and pounded on the window with an open hand.
The driver flinched, then turned and looked at her through the window. After a couple of seconds, a smile slowly spread across his face. He unlocked the passenger door.
Lizzie jumped into the car. She wanted to reach across and hug him. Instead, she kept her cool and simply said, “Is your offer still open?”
“It is.” The man stuck out his hand. “My name is Kyle. Welcome aboard.”
Lizzie took his hand and shook it. She felt so relieved. She couldn’t believe all of her hard work had finally paid off.
Kyle said, “Do you want to collect your stuff?”
“I’ve got everything I need with me.”
“You’ve had a tough time?”
“You have no idea.” Lizzie wasn’t going to go into the defibrillator story. He probably wouldn’t believe her anyway.
Kyle said, “Let’s get something to eat, make a couple of phone calls, then get you to my place in Pacific Heights.”