10. Tessa #2
“How do emergency crews get through?” she wondered, looking at the extremely minimal breakdown lane next to the car and the sea of vehicles around them.
She half expected to see an accident up ahead, complete with sirens, lights, and emergency vehicles aplenty, but everything on her app said it was just your typical congestion along U. S. Route 1 in the summer.
She couldn’t imagine how people lived like this. If she wanted to go anywhere, all she needed to do was get to a train station, and off she went.
The whole experience had her feeling oddly penned in.
“Hey, you okay?” he asked, suddenly feeling the shift in seriousness on her end of the car.
“Yeah,” she said, sadly. “Just… some leftover stuff that bugs me.”
“Like what?” he asked, no judgment at all in his tone.
If anyone could understand how this all was affecting her, she knew it would be Greer.
He’d been there by her side for weeks and had a front row seat to the circus that was her ex.
He’d spent hours studying his fight footage for their upcoming match in a few weeks, and he certainly had gotten to know him by proxy, learning what levels he would sink to in order to get what he wanted.
“Being closed in,” she said, giving a light laugh that sounded a touch manic.
“I hate being in places where I can’t move freely.
It reminds me of when he’d sit outside of my internship job and just wait for me to leave.
At least there I could use the back exit or go out with a group so he wouldn’t approach me. ”
“I’m not letting that man anywhere near you,” Greer said, rolling the car forward another few feet before slowing to a stop again.
He reached his hand for her, and she took it eagerly, sandwiching his massive palm between her two smaller hands.
The heat that he gave off was almost unreal, and the sensation was soothing to her.
“I know,” she said, believing him. Having him as her own personal bodyguard had made her feel safer than she ever had in her entire life. “Still, there are some things I’m adjusting to. I never really know if he’s gone or if he’s just waiting to pop up in my life again.”
Greer squeezed her hand. “If he does, we’ll be ready for it.”
Giving him a grateful smile, she felt the car pick up speed as they finally seemed to break through the bottleneck that slowed them down. As the line of cars began to spread out, Tessa watched as the coast flew by, peeking at them in between spots of land and trees.
When the GPS finally barked at them to turn off the main road, Tessa leaned forward in excitement, feeling the journey coming close to the end.
The speed limit signs began to drop as more homes came into view, and before they knew it, they were traveling through a brick-lined downtown area where traffic slowed down only briefly this time.
By the time they arrived on the other side, the car announced they had finally made it to their final destination.
“There it is,” Tessa said, pointing at a quaint Victorian home perched on the side of the road. Turning into the half-moon driveway, Greer pulled the car into a space along the side of the building, the only spot that seemed to be open.
“Wow, looks like a popular place,” he remarked as he put the car into park.
“It actually looks better in person than it did online,” Tessa said, nearly astounded.
Quickly getting out of the car, Greer wrapped his arm around Tessa’s waist as they strolled around to the front of the inn.
Tessa returned the gesture, feeling anchored in his presence as she took in the beautiful landscaping.
The building seemed to be surrounded by flower beds, all blooming and giving off a marvelous scent that mixed with the salty ocean air.
“Hello!” a booming voice called to them from the dark interior. Going from bright and sunny outdoors to inside had given Tessa pause, taking a moment to adjust and see a rather tall, older man behind the check-in counter.
“Hello,” she called back, moving forward with Greer. “We’re checking in.”
“Name?” he asked, punching away at his keyboard.
“Tessa Montgomery,” she said, a moment of panic searing her brain, wondering what might happen if her reservation hadn’t gone through.
“Ah, yes,” he said with a few more keystrokes. “The ground floor patio, nice choice.”
“Only choice,” Greer said, laughing, which made the innkeeper smile and nod in kind.
“Well, it is a busy weekend around here,” he agreed. Reaching behind the counter, he tore off a booking agreement, sliding it over to Tessa to sign. “Let me find your keys, and we’ll get you all registered.”
“Thank you,” Tessa said, taking a glance at the verbiage before signing her name.
“Breakfast starts at seven in the room across from us,” he said, pointing. “The room number is on the keychain, and you can best reach it by parking around on the side.”
“Already there,” Greer said.
The man nodded. “If you need anything, dial zero, and it’ll connect you with me for the next fifteen minutes. Then we have our shift change.”
“Oh, really?” Tessa said, looking at her wrist where her smartwatch had been.
But since she’d chucked it out the window in Vermont, she realized she had no idea what time it was.
“It’s five forty-five,” the innkeeper said.
“Oh, my gosh, it’s nearly six?” she asked, not realizing how late it had gotten. Casting a panicked look at Greer, he ground his teeth at the realization.
They needed to leave immediately if they were going to make this beach party!
Passing along their quick thanks and goodbyes, Greer and Tessa made their way to the door and then burst into a run down over the stairs and around the side of the building.
Greer was first to pop the trunk, gathering their things as Tessa sorted their keys, running to the side entrance and unlocking it.
Holding the door for Greer, he breezed inside as the two of them began to search the room numbers in the hallway they found themselves in.
“This way,” Tessa said, motioning to her right. “We’re in room 109.”
Greer followed as they began counting down to the room they were in. Tessa sped on ahead, finding the door and sliding the metal key in the lock. When it unlatched, she held the door for him, and he deposited all of their stuff on their queen-sized bed.
“Do you need anything out of the bags?” he asked, breathing just a touch heavy from the exertion.
“No,” she said, trying to catch her own breath.
“Then let’s get out of here. The sooner we get to Harbor’s Head, the sooner we can find Tierney.”
Tessa loved how positive he was, no matter what. Nodding to him, they quickly made their way out of the room, down the hall, and back into the sunshine once more.
Tessa squinted her eyes as the hot sun beat down on her in the parking lot. Finally reaching their car again, she got in and fastened her seatbelt as Greer crawled in behind the wheel.
Only, when he pressed the button to start, it didn’t.
“Whoa, what’s going on here?” he said, hitting the button a couple more times.
Nothing.
“Do you have the fob on you?” Tessa wondered, remembering a time when she’d lost her keys out of her pocket when she went to get gas and couldn’t get the car to start.
“Yep, still have it,” he said, patting his shorts pocket. “I think something’s wrong.”
“No, there can’t be anything wrong,” she insisted, watching him push the button again. The car didn’t so much as attempt to turn over.
“I’m not sure what’s going on,” he began, turning to face her. “But I don’t think we’re going anywhere in this.”
“Greer, what are we going to do?” They were so close she could almost taste it. Just a few miles off. So close to what they were hoping for, and this happens?
“First, we aren’t going to panic,” he said, reaching over and taking her hand. “We can get a ride into town, but we’re going to have to do a taxi or a rideshare.”
“Do you think they’ll have those in this little town?” She had looked at getting food delivery when they were in New York, and there hadn’t been one person assigned to the area on her app. Where Boston was crawling with services, she’d learned they weren’t always available in smaller, rural towns.
Greer puffed his cheeks out before exhaling. “I’m not sure.”
“Holy cow, it’s getting hot in here,” she said, suddenly overcome with the heat of being inside a car with the sun beating down.
“Let’s go over there,” Greer said, cracking his door open and pointing toward the front of the building where it was blissfully shaded. Following him over, Tessa pulled out her phone, calling up her rideshare apps, trying to see if anyone was in the area.
“There’s nobody,” she said, trying to tamp down her panic. “Nobody’s available on any of the rideshare apps I’ve got.”
“I’ve found a couple of taxi services,” he said, his thumbs passing over his screen. “But they’re all showing a huge slowdown right now. The next one available won’t be for another hour and a half.”
“Are you serious?” she asked, wondering, once again, how anyone could live like this.
“Well, think of it,” he reasoned. “If you don’t have rideshare drivers, the taxis have the market. Of course, they’re flooded with customers.”
“Right,” she said, feeling her body sag against the beautiful container garden bed she was just admiring on the way in. “What are we going to do? Walk?”
“We could,” he offered, pocketing his phone. “You said we’re right next door to Harbor’s Head, right?”
“I mean, we are according to the map,” she said, having a look at the main thoroughfare in front of them. It was already packed with cars moving relatively slowly, all probably heading into town. “I think it was around five miles, though?”
Were they seriously going to try to walk into town?
“Wait,” Greer said, his eyes drifting down the road as he lit up in a massive smile. “I’ve got a better idea.”