Texas Lightning. Gerry Bartlett
faced him. “Thanks, King. For offering me safety. You’re right. My nerves are shot. The only decision I’m up for now is that I want to get out of here.” She glanced around the parking lot. It seemed empty, harmless, but you never knew. “This place is giving me the creeps. Can we go now?”
“Absolutely.” He slammed the door, then paused to look around. He finally shook his head and walked around to climb into the driver’s seat after tucking the basket of dog essentials into the back seat. YoYo scampered between the seats and attacked the basket, knocking it over and dragging out his bed so he could settle on top of it. He sighed and curled up, obviously ready for a nap.
“Poor little guy. I can’t imagine what he went through, trying to protect our home from invasion then being left out in the heat. I’m surprised no one saw what happened, heard him barking, or called the police. But then I haven’t met any of my neighbors and the apartment below me is vacant.” Anna realized King hadn’t started the truck yet. “What?”
“Give me your gun.” He opened the glove compartment and slid his own inside. “We keep them locked up when I’m driving. That’s my personal rule.”
“Oh, sure.” Anna pulled hers out of the tote at her feet. “There’s probably a law about that.”
“I have a permit to carry concealed in Texas. Do you?” He locked the compartment, then started the engine.
“No, I don’t. I’ve been too busy working.” Anna realized King was driving slowly, watching their surroundings as he exited the apartment complex. “Do you think we’re being followed?”
“Not that I can tell, but I’m going to detour until I’m sure there’s no chance of it.” He pulled out onto the street across from her office building and hit the gas.
Anna checked behind them. A silver compact car came out of the security gates not long after they did. Coincidence? It was a huge complex. When the car turned and followed them, she tried to see who was inside. Man? Woman? No, it was a couple.
“I see them. I’m getting on the freeway. We’ll see what happens.” King reached over and patted her hand. “Relax, Anna. Don’t you think having your computer will be enough for them?”
“No, I’m afraid not. You heard me talking to Mr. Z. It’s password protected and I use a special encryption program.” She looked down at his hand covering hers but didn’t snatch it away. It felt good to have him here, knowing Austin freeways and ready to do something for her. Okay, so maybe managing men had their uses. “Yes, they’ll break through the password easily enough if they’re pros. I could. But the encryption… That’ll take a while.”
“So why would they follow us?” He took his hand away when they got into some traffic that required careful maneuvering.
“Because the program I’m working on is complex. Someone else might be able to finish it, but I doubt it. It’s my brainchild. And it still needs tweaking. The only way it will be worth anything is if I get it done and done right.” She lowered her makeup mirror and tried to see the traffic behind her. Was that silver car still there? It was hard to tell with the dozens of other vehicles on the road. Half of them seemed to be silver compacts.
“Impressive. I know Ron paid a fortune for the rights to your company in Boston, mainly to get that program you’re working on. He said you’re the brains behind it.” King frowned. “I’m suspicious of that silver Toyota back there. Hold on, I’m doing a quick exit and it’s not going to be easy. But it’s the only way to lose them if they’re trying to follow us.” He jerked the steering wheel and she heard the squeal of brakes before they suddenly hit an off ramp at high speed.
“Oh! This is why I have no desire to learn to drive. These highways. Did you see the cars swerve to keep from hitting us?” Anna gripped the armrest as she looked back. No one had been hit, but at least one driver was giving them a one-finger salute. No sign of the silver car at least.
“You don’t even know how to drive?” King wheeled into the parking lot of a large shopping mall. He cruised up and down aisles and finally pulled into an empty slot but left the engine running.
“No.” Anna looked longingly at the department store just a few feet away. She needed new underwear, a couple of shirts, and new jeans. Ordering online was fine but she couldn’t wait for delivery. She was desperate for a shower and would need something to change into after that besides the tight tee. “What now?”
“I figured we could get you a couple of things to tide you over.” He glanced around. “It looks like we’re in the clear. No sign of a tail.”
“What about YoYo? We can’t leave him in a hot car.” Anna also hated to go in alone. She was still spooked.
“He’s coming with us. Anyone gives us a hard time, we’ll say he’s your emotional support dog.” King reached between the seats. “Hey, pup, wake up. Your mama needs you.”
“I do. I’m still jumpy.” She was happy but hesitant when King placed YoYo in her lap. Claiming something like that was cheating. Real working dogs were highly trained, even though running her hands through YoYo’s soft fur soothed her and made her realize why little fluffy dogs made such good candidates for emotional support. She was having second thoughts about even going into the store when King jumped out of the truck and came around to open her door.
“Come on. I doubt you’ll have to lie. I’ll keep him in my arms and we’ll be spending money. You really think anyone is going to try to stop us?” He held out his hand. “Give me the dog and grab your backpack. I know you don’t want to leave it here.”
“You’ve got that right.” Anna handed over YoYo, who seemed to have adopted King, then climbed awkwardly out of the truck. Shrugging into her pack, she followed King into a store where she rarely shopped. She would have been happy with a discount big box store. But this guy was obviously used to the best. He was also right that no one seemed to care about the dog as long as YoYo stayed tucked in King’s arms.
She made quick work of grabbing extra underwear and a sleepshirt. She pushed King toward the purses where he could still keep an eye on her. She was glad he didn’t want to let her out of his sight, but he didn’t need to see her bra size.
“You sure I can’t help you pick out some nightgowns or something?” His wicked grin told her he had some experience in that department. He lifted a lacy confection that was pure sin. “Red. It’s a good color for you.”
“You’re right. Do they have it in flannel?” She ignored his wink and set her pack on the floor to pull out her debit card. A woman bumped into her from behind, her hands full of panties.
“Oh, sorry. Great sale.” She reached past her. “Do you mind? I need to set these down so I can go back and grab a few more.” She dumped the pile on the counter.
Anna smiled but was busy scanning her receipt. No wonder she didn’t usually shop here. Two bras and six pairs of panties plus a nightshirt had cost more than she’d expected. She shook her head, then let it go. The quality was good and they were pretty.
“Anna, are you done yet?” King walked up behind her. “This pup is getting antsy. I think we need to find a tree or some grass pretty quick.”
“Yes.” She took the bag and reached down for her pack. Gone. She looked around. That woman… And she hadn’t even really looked at her. “My backpack. Did you see the woman who came up next to me?”
“Older woman? Dark hair?” King looked around the department. “No sign of her. What the hell? She grabbed your pack?”
“Obviously. I thought you were watching me.” Anna knew she was wrong to blame King but he had insisted…
“I was. Then a fella came over, asking about YoYo. Not that the dog liked him. Growled something fierce. Which should have been a sign, now that I think about it. Son of a bitch!” King stalked around the underwear department and toward the exits. “They were probably working together. That silver