“Man, I did my time staying in really crappy motels. Don’t forget to put your clothes in a hot drier for bedbugs too.”
“You do know how to show a guy a good time.” I shuddered and vowed to stop at a laundry and hot tumble everything before bringing it into the house.
Griffin bent and kissed me. “I’m just getting started—” The sounds of a big engine and raised voices outside made him turn his head. “That’s probably our ride.”
“Our?”
“We’ll drop you at the shuttle to Reno. One less cab fare for you. Come on, before fans storm the bus.” He held a hand out to me. I slung my bag on my shoulder and wove my fingers through his.
Sure enough, the Chaser Lost bus had pulled up at the curb. A small group of gawkers stood in the parking lot eyeing it, talking and pointing. Griffin said, “Run!” and dragged me at full speed toward the bus. Voices rose in shouts behind us, but the door swung open as we approached and snapped closed behind our asses. We hustled up the steps and dropped into a couple of empty seats as the bus headed out into traffic.
“Thanks,” Griffin said to Pete. “Bus station first.”
“Sure thing.” Pete spoke into an intercom to the driver, then eyed us. “Good night?”
“Fair to middling,” I said airily.
Griffin laughed and kicked my ankle.
“Coffee?” Shondra held out two mugs.
“You’re a goddess.” Griffin took his, and she set the other in a cup holder in the arm of my chair.
I sipped the hot, dark brew and watched the small town go by.Just minutes now, just seconds…We turned, slowed, and came to a stop.
“Bus station,” Pete noted.
I stood and faced Griffin. “Better if you don’t get off here, I imagine.”
“Probably.” He pushed to his feet and opened his arms.
I wrapped him up tight as I could and we swayed together in a breath-stealing clinch.
“I’m gonna miss you,” Griffin told me.
My laugh was waterier than it should’ve been. “It’ll be literally twenty-six hours. We’ll survive.”
“I’ll write a song about it. Lovers separated by the airline schedule. It’ll be a big angsty hit.”
“No doubt.” I kissed him, stepped back, and picked up my bag. “Thanks Pete, everyone, it’s been an honor.”
“Do right by Griffin and we’ll call it even,” Shondra said.
I trudged down the stairs, leaving Griffin behind. As I headed for the shelter, the bus pulled away. I didn’t look back.
The local bus station was minimal and dusty, and even bleaker when the shiny tour bus had gone. Several folks tried to talkto me about who I was and why I’d arrived in the Chaser Lost bus, but I gave them blank stares and eventually they stopped. There were advantages to being a big, bearded guy who could do resting head-nurse face.
The trip to the airport dragged far more than the trip in. I spent the time on my phone, touching base with Noreen, Phoebe, and Kashira, and then chatting with Mom who sounded upbeat. Apparently, our neighbor Oliver had come over and helped her prune the roses and burlap them for winter. He’d gone up in her books for knowing how to care for Alice’s favorite flowers. He went up in mine for taking some of the chore off Mom’s hands.
Airports sucked. Security lines sucked. Waiting to board and trying to cram a bag in the full overheads, same thing. I sat in my middle seat between a young woman and a businessman in a suit, knees practically to my chest, and took a slow breath. My emotions were all over the place, sky-high when I thought about waking up with Griffin warm at my back, then down into the blahs of travel and another day of putting out minor fires at Wellhaven before I saw Griffin again.
A flight attendant stopped at my row. “Excuse me, window and aisle. Do either of you want a seat in first class?”
The businessman on the aisle immediately said, “Yes, of course.”
I gritted my teeth and exchanged looks with the woman next to me as the man stood and gathered his things. Those extra inches of legroom would’ve been very welcome, and they hadn’t even been offered to me. I must’ve bought a cheaper ticket. I was about to console us with, “Well, an empty seat is a bonus,” when Griffin appeared and slid into the aisle seat, grinning at me.
“You!” I stared at him. “What the fuck did you do?”
