Brody Read Free

loud around me. “A yes or no if he’ll follow us or not? I would just like to be prepared if I have to pop a cap in someone tonight.”
    He said this so light-heartedly, that grin strong, and I let a smile escape my lips. I found myself liking his humor… as well as his voice. He had an accent. It drawled lightly on every syllable he made, the tone so deep.
    I shook my head, pulling my bag to my chest. “No. No, he won’t follow us. I just met him not too long ago.” The man had scared me was all, the way he cornered me, but now, I didn’t find myself so scared.
    Brody grinned wider. He faced the road, getting his truck into gear. “Well, all right then.”
     
    *
     
    Brody didn’t say much after that, though he’d yet to tell me his name. I had a feeling he might have been too scared to carry on a conversation with me considering how the night started with my hesitance. He remained silent, his large hand massaging over his steering wheel, and the bill of his hat covered his eyes in the darkness.
    Words tickled my mouth so many times. I wanted him to talk to me. I liked his voice…
    “Um,” I said lightly. He didn’t even turn. I had to speak louder. “I, um, need to go to California.”
    He panned my way, those eyes of his shining. He faced the road with a nod. “I can get you as far as El Paso. That’s where I’m from. It’s my last stop.”
    El Paso… Texas? That was a step closer. I could do that. And now, I knew the origin of his accent—Texas. He was from Texas.
    That silence hit us again, lingering like a large elephant in the truck.
    “I’m Brody, by the way,” he said, his words so sudden they caused me to jump. They also made my heart flip flop in the large seat of this truck.
    He glanced my way, but didn’t linger like he was expecting a response. He simply glanced, then his gaze went back to the road.
    It wasn’t good to give up too much information about myself, but a name might be okay. I swallowed, dampening my mouth. “Alexa. Some people call me Alex, though.”
    What friends I still had. Family… Why did I tell him that?
    “Can I call you Alex then?” he asked, again, not staring expectantly.
    As of now, he seemed to be an ally. I wouldn’t use the word friend, though. He glanced at me again and I nodded awkwardly under his gaze.
    I looked away quickly, staring out the window and listening to the eighteen-wheeler’s hum. Sleep dragged down on my eyes, days of uneasiness and my body on edge for so many reasons, but I wouldn’t succumb to it. I knew better than to sleep in front of strangers. Men in particular. I knew better.
    Pushing my hands under my arms, I curled up against the door, trying to stay warm. Tonight had been chilly.
    My lashes fanned when heat from the truck’s vents suddenly warmed my face. I turned slightly, catching Brody pull his hand away from the truck’s heating and cooling buttons. I didn’t think he intended on being caught. He didn’t acknowledge what he did at all, simply adjusted the bill on his hat before placing his hand back on the wheel.
    I lay my head against the window again. This stranger was sure surprising me.
     
    Brody
     
    The heat helped. She finally allowed her eyes to close, her head of wavy hair lying against the door. I’d been watching her for a while. Not directly, but with stealth. She’d been fighting sleep for miles. I was glad she finally allowed herself to give in to it.
    I didn’t judge folks. It wasn’t my way, but I was ninety percent sure this girl was a prostitute. All the signs were there—on the outside anyway. There was the way she dressed and presented herself with her physical appearance, then of course, the incident at the diner. That ten percent that she might not be was really buggin’ me, though. She didn’t… act like a prostitute, if that made sense. She completely back-pedaled from that guy and looked absolutely mortified on that bathroom floor by what was happening. Sex workers didn’t do that.