Road Tripping Read Online Free PDF Page B

interstate in Beckley to fill up.
Ashley went in with Ethan as he paid so she could go to the bathroom, and they
were walking out together when they saw a police car pulled not far from their
stolen car.
    Two officers
were standing nearby, talking.
    Ashley jerked
to a stop, her heart jumping into her throat.
    “Don’t look so
guilty,” Ethan said, stopping beside her. “They’re probably not paying any
attention to us.”
    “What if the
car was reported stolen?” Ashley crossed her arms tightly across her chest,
thinking about how all her hard work at being good over the last eighteen
months would be thrown out the window if Ethan got her arrested. “What if
they’re trying to act casual and are waiting to see who gets in the car?”
    “I doubt that.
They look like they’re just killing time.” Ethan’s tone was laidback, but he
didn’t move forward to the car, so he must not be absolutely sure.
    “We can’t just
stand here like this in the middle of the lot for no reason.” When she saw one
of the police officers glance their way, Ashley pretended to be straightening
Ethan’s shirt. “We’ll look suspicious, even if they’re not waiting for us.”
    “I know that.
Pretend we’re having a conversation, and it got so intense we had to stop.”
    Still fidgeting
with the buttons of his camp shirt, she couldn’t help but notice that the
t-shirt underneath was so thin it was almost threadbare. “You really need to
dump this stupid t-shirt.”
    “What are you
talking about?” His body stiffened, like he was offended.
    Leave it to
Ethan to not care when she insulted him or swore at him but get all upset when
she threatened his favorite t-shirt. “You’ve had it since you were in high
school. It’s falling apart. I’m surprised it even still fits, since you were
skinny back then.”
    He frowned. “I
wasn’t that skinny.” Despite his frown, there was an unexpected warmth in his
eyes that she used to see there a lot.
    “Yes, you
were.” She couldn’t help but feel a sudden wave of fond memory at the thought
of Ethan in high school. He’d made her laugh and teased her and had once gotten
into a fist-fight with a guy who had stood her up for the Christmas dance.
    Even Mark
hadn’t done that much for her.
     “They’re
looking at us,” Ethan murmured, his eyes still soft with that something .
“I’m going to do something so we don’t look suspicious, so try not to get all
upset about it.”
    She had no idea
what he was going to do. She was too distracted by the memories.
    So she was
stunned when he raised a hand to the back of her head and then leaned down to
kiss her.
    She’d never
kissed Ethan before, and she had no desire to kiss him now.
    He was smug and
obnoxious and infuriating, and he’d brought nothing but trouble into her life.
    She didn’t pull
away, though. At first, she was so surprised she couldn’t. Then, when his mouth
started to move against hers and he eased her closer against him, she didn’t
really want to pull away.
    It felt good.
Amazing. He was a really good kisser. He was Ethan . And she wanted to
kiss him back.
    When she
realized that she was genuinely responding, she sucked in a breath and tried to
pull away.
    “Don’t,” Ethan
murmured against her mouth, holding her head in place with his hand. “They’re
walking toward us.”
    So she couldn’t
pull away like she wanted—since kissing him was a better option than being
arrested. But her heart was pounding painfully, and she fisted her hands in his
old t-shirt to channel her surging nerves.
    “Not in the
middle of the parking lot, kids,” one of the policemen said as he passed. “At
least make it back to your car.”
    They broke
apart, and Ashley heard herself giggling as the anxiety eased into relief.
    “Sorry, sir,”
Ethan said, much more compliantly than he would ever respond under normal
circumstances.
    So they returned
to the car, which the police obviously hadn’t flagged as being stolen.
    Ashley,