Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 71075 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 355(@200wpm)___ 284(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71075 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 355(@200wpm)___ 284(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
“I’ll be fine. If the road gets too bad, I’ll find a place to park until the snowplows and salt trucks come out.”
“Jade, please don’t be difficult right now. I know that you can handle yourself in most situations, but we’re talking about you driving in the middle of a blizzard.”
“Fine,” I agree with a huff, because even if I know she’s right, I don’t like giving in. “I’ll get off on the next exit and find someplace to stay for the night.”
“Is there an exit coming up?” she asks, and just then a green sign appears in the distance.
“Yes, or I think so—there is a sign coming up.”
“Perfect.” She sounds relieved, but I’m not when the sign gets closer and I see that it’s one for a rest area that lets me know that there will not be another exit for twenty more miles.
“What does the sign say?”
“Umm, it’s for a rest area. I’m going to pull in there and park.”
“What is the exit number?”
“Cybil, please, I don’t feel comfortable with Tanner calling his friend to come rescue me.”
“That’s too bad, because I don’t feel comfortable with you putting your life at risk or sleeping in your car overnight at some rest stop in the middle of a snowstorm,” she snaps.
“All right, calm down.” I silently curse my stupid luck of late and rattle off the exit number, which she immediately relays to Tanner, who I’m guessing is on the phone with Maverick.
“Okay, Mav knows where you are, and he said he will be there shortly.”
“Sounds great,” I lie as I exit the highway, finding a half dozen semis and a few cars parked along the entryway into the lot.
“How’s Pebbles doing?” she asks as I pull into a parking spot and put my car in park. I look over at my companion, who has been asleep in his dog bed, which is buckled into the front seat, since we left the trading post.
“He’s passed out.” I reach over and run my fingers over the top of Pebbles’s head, and he barely opens his eyes to look at me, but his little tail does start to wag. “Since we’re here, I’m going to see if I can get him to go potty.”
“Okay, just let me know when you get back in the car after.”
“Sure, Mom,” I say sarcastically and listen to her laugh, which makes me smile, then say a quick goodbye with a promise to see her soon. After we hang up, it takes me a minute to get Pebbles in his sweater and to put on my jacket, both of which were too hot to wear in the car with the heat blowing.
Once I have my beanie on and Pebbles’s leash attached to his collar, I push open the door to my car and regret the decision almost immediately. Even with my winter coat, boots, and hat, the cold air steals my breath, freezing me from the inside out, while Pebbles, who is against my chest, shivers from head to tail.
With purpose in my step, I head for the sidewalk and go past a large building lit up with golden, warm light toward the area for dogs. When I reach the spot to let Pebbles loose, I hate myself a little. Pebbles was the runt of his litter and weighs about eight pounds soaking wet. He’s tiny, my baby, the only guy besides my dad who’s stuck around.
I kick away the layer of snow that has collected on the grass and kiss his nose before I set him down, telling him, “Potty.” Something he doesn’t hesitate to do, knowing that the faster he goes, the faster I will pick him back up and get him out of the cold.
Once I have him up and in my arms, I walk with my head ducked back to my car—or try to because the sidewalks are covered with a slick layer of snow and ice that even my boots have a difficult time navigating. Finally behind the steering wheel a minute later, I start my car back up, strip off my hat, toss it onto the dash, then take off Pebbles’s sweater, which is soaked with snow, and put him in his bed before placing his blanket over him.
I unzip my coat and tuck it behind me, then hold my hands in front of the heater vent and pray for my fingertips to warm up. Even though it gets cold in Oregon, I swear the cold here feels different, and I’m not used to it.
After I’ve warmed up, I grab my cell phone and send a quick text to Cybil letting her know that I wasn’t kidnapped and another to my parents letting them know what is going on before Cybil can beat me to it. A minute later my cell phone beeps with a message from Cybil with a simple heart, and a second later a text comes through from my dad just saying that he loves me and to make sure to keep him and Mom in the loop.