Unwrapped Read Free Page B

she managed to contain it and be cool. “Thanks. Though I prefer gorgeous.”
    Laughing he put the car in park in front of the gas station. “Okay, gorgeous, let’s go in and see if we can make contact with the outside world.”
    There was only one truck in the parking lot and the gas station looked like it had seen better days. As they entered, the bell tinkled over the door, the smell of stale cigarette smoke smacked them in the face. A thin guy in his forties with two full-arm tattoo sleeves glanced up from the magazine he was reading. He scratched his scraggly beard. “Hey, what’s up? I didn’t expect to see anyone tonight.”
    “Hi,” Blue said, coming up to the counter, her feet feeling weird and overstuffed in Christian’s wool socks and her ballet flats. “We had a car accident on the highway and I can’t get cell phone reception. Can we use your phone to call a tow?”
    “Sure.” He shoved a chunky cordless phone over to her. “But I doubt you’re going to have much luck. It’s snowing and it’s Christmas Eve.”
    Well, thanks, Captain Obvious. Blue fought the urge to roll her eyes. Fortunately, Christian stepped in, preventing her from saying something seriously sarcastic.
    “Yeah, I know, bad luck, huh?” Christian said with an affable smile. “We have two cars. We were thinking of just leaving the one here and heading on to Lexington.”
    They were? That was news to her.
    “Do you think that’s our best bet? You know the towing companies around here and you know the roads. What’s the word?”
    “You can’t drive to Lexington,” he said, shaking his head. “The highway south of this exit is closed. Guess it iced over bad at the curve and they declared a snow emergency. Only emergency vehicles allowed on the road. It was on the news.”
    “Are you serious?” Blue asked, slightly stunned. Did they really just close roads? Was that allowed? “Is there another way to go south?”
    “Well, there’s always Route 43, but I wouldn’t recommend that. It won’t be plowed and if you get in trouble, there’s nowhere to go for help. I suggest you sit this one out tonight and start over again in the morning.”
    “But . . .” she was speechless. Absolutely speechless. This sucked. Really bad. Like if there were the definition of suck in the dictionary this would be it.
    Christian put a hand on the small of her back and rubbed gently. It was an unexpected reassurance. Thank God she’d hit him and wasn’t doing this on her own. Not that he would probably appreciate that fact, but she was damn grateful.
    “Is there a motel hereabouts?” Christian asked. “I’m not digging the idea of sleeping in my car tonight. I’ve stopped at this exit before and I seem to remember there’s a motel just on down the road.”
    Noticing that the longer they stood there the more Christian’s Kentucky roots surfaced, Blue was amused. “On down the road?” she asked, grinning.
    “What?” He looked bewildered.
    “Nothing.” Blue squeezed her lips together as she glanced at the gas station attendant. He looked equally confused.
    “Well, yeah, there’s old Roy’s place, but I’m not sure if he’ll be open tonight. It’s called the No-Tell Motel.”
    Fabulous. They might as well call it Serial Killers and Hookers Sleep Here. Blue tried not to make a face, but given the grin Christian shot her she wasn’t successful. What could she say? All her thoughts were always splashed across her face, an unfortunate gift her emotional mother had given her.
    “It’s about a half mile east.”
    “Is that right or left?” Blue asked. Men always spoke in terms of north-south-east-west and it just made it more complicated than it needed to be.
    They both raised an eyebrow like this was the dumbest thing they’d ever heard.
    “I got it,” Christian said. “Don’t worry about it.”
    “O-kay then,” Blue said, the eye roll slipping out before she could stop it. “But shouldn’t I call for my tow