The Lost Alpha Prince (Book 15 of the Regal Eclipse Pack Series)

Chapter 14

John had been on the truck for about ten weeks, when suddenly everything changed again. They were in California, heading through the desert to cross the mountains. Paul had been quiet most of the day which was unusual for him. John sat staring out the window, Susie purring in his lap. He leaned his head back, his eyes closed as he half dozed. While the scenery was beautiful, it also felt like it took forever to cross those mountains and they'd made this drive several times over the last ten weeks.

"Think I'm going to pull over a bit early, John," Paul suddenly said. "May take more than ten hours off."

John glanced at the time. He knew Paul still had about two hours of drive time left. Paul usually pulled every mile he could every day. "Not making money if the truck ain't moving," Paul had said more than once.

"You feeling okay?"John asked him.

"Just really tired today. Probably cuz you're doing all the heavy lifting and I'm not getting enough exercise," Paul grinned.

John smiled at him. "You want me to find a place for us to park for the night?"

"Um, no I actually know of the perfect place. Somewhere off the beaten path," Paul said with a big smile. He suddenly seemed excited.

"Okay." John closed his eyes again. He didn't care where they stopped at. Paul knew his way around and had places he tended to prefer. John had no clue, so he went along with whatever Paul wanted. The man seemed to know exactly when, what and where.

"Boy you need to be a bit more disagreeable occasionally," Paul told him one evening.

John just smiled. "I don't have a reason to be. I don't know where I'm going. And you obviously do."

"Some days," Paul agreed.

John snorted. "Every day." Paul could probably drive the rig with his eyes closed and still get them to their next location safely.

Paul pulled off into an empty parking lot in a small town a good thirty miles from the highway. Across the street was a three story hotel with a saloon. "You go over there for a shower or to use the bathroom. Tell Rita, Paul Jordan sent you."

John nodded. "You going?"

Paul shook his head as he unbuckled his belt. "I'm going to go to bed. But you go on without me. We'll be leaving early in the morning. Same time as usual. She'll feed ya too. I'll probably walk over tomorrow. She'll be mad if I don't stop in and say hi."

"Alright. I'll be quiet when I come back," John told him. He was looking forward to a hot shower more than anything. It had become one of his guilty pleasures and he was glad that John got free showers when he fueled the truck. Finding out the price of one had made him almost choke.

"Aww I ain't worried about it. You're too quiet as it is. Night John." Paul stood and stretched, then moved over and sat down on the bottom bunk.

"Night Paul." John grabbed his things and climbed down out of the truck. He walked across the street, his gaze following the road as far as he could see. To the left, there was nothing for miles except mountains and sand. To the right, there was a small town, with not much to it. It was quiet, though there were a handful of people moving about. He noticed a gym next to the hotel. He pursed his lips, eyeing it quietly but continued on into his destination.

John walked into the hotel and up to the front desk. A pretty auburn haired woman was behind the desk and she smiled widely at him. "You looking for a job, honey?" Her gaze moved over him slowly, taking in every detail.

John raised an eyebrow at her. A job? Working here? He would have thought she would ask him if he wanted a room. "No ma'am. I'm looking for a shower. Paul Jordan sent me. Are you RIta?" He'd never had a woman look at him so intently, but then he realized that wasn't exactly true. Sara was the only other woman he'd been around, though she had seen him naked. This woman looked like she wanted to see him naked. Her gaze had moved over him more than once before he could finish his sentence.

Both of her eyebrows shot up. "You riding with him?"

He nodded. "I am."

"Then I'm Rita. Where is he?" She glanced behind him like Paul would just suddenly appear out of thin air.

"He's real tired, and already in his bunk," John told her. He wanted to get back to the truck too. He was a bit worried about the man.

"I saw him pulling in. Truck's loud. Ain't seen hide nor hair from him in almost two months. He better come say hello before he takes off," she muttered, then looked John over. "You look like you could use a hot shower, a hot meal and a good woman. I can provide two of the three. Come with me. What's your name, son?"

John blinked. A hot shower and a hot meal, he hoped. "John."

"Alright, well come with me John. And let me tell you, if you ever need a job, you let me know," Rita said.

John watched her walk out from behind the desk and head down the hall, him right behind her. He wondered what he'd do at a place like this. Rita seemed very interested in him, though he had no idea why.

She stopped in front of a door and unlocked it, then walked inside. John followed her in and glanced around the small room. The main thing he noticed was the small double bed. He swallowed.

"You can take a shower right here. When you get done, if you go three doors down on your right, you'll find the kitchen, and Andre will serve you up a meal." Rita flashed him a smile.

"Thank you very much, Rita. I appreciate it," he told her with a smile.

She nodded. "Like I said, if you ever need a job, you just let me know."

"Like at your hotel?" John asked curiously.

"Good grief no. That would be a waste of those muscles and good looks. Working at my hotel..." she muttered under her breath with a shake of her head. "Complete waste."

John's brow furrowed. "Sex?"

She gave a short laugh. "Sex sells, but prostitution is illegal in California and not really my cup of tea. I'd love for you to work at my saloon. Most of my staff are men. Good looking, heavily muscled men like you. They bartend, serve and dance. Most of my customers are women. Horny women who appreciate the show," Rita told him.

"I see." Not really but then again, his life so far had been a little crazy. This had to be in the top three weirdest conversations he'd had so far in his short life. Or maybe he should say in recent memory. But it was also intriguing. He'd never thought about doing something like that.

"Man as good looking as you would make fabulous money working at my saloon. Just something to think about if you ever get off that truck, but honestly, I'm kind of glad Paul has a young man to help him out. He's not getting any younger. He should retire, but I know why he won't. Life is lonely when your life partner is gone." Rita grew quiet for a long moment, staring off into space. She suddenly seemed to snap out of it. "Well anyway, enjoy your shower."

"Thank you," John said, giving her a smile.

She stared at him for a long moment, then left the room.

Two hours later, he was clean and well fed. Rita offered him a place to sleep as well, but he declined, and left the hotel. He crossed the street and got back inside the truck. He sat his bag down, deciding to take care of it later when Paul wasn't sleeping, then moved over to the bunk. He reached up to grab a hold of the top bunk to haul himself up, and happened to glance at Paul.

The man was laying on his back, his lifeless eyes staring off in the distance. John froze for a few seconds, then leaned down to touch Paul. The man was cool to the touch. "Paul?" He quickly checked him for a pulse. He already knew he was dead, but John stilled tried to wake him. He drew in a harsh breath and climbed back out of the truck. He ran across the street and burst into the hotel.

"John?" Rita looked up from the desk.

"Call for help. Paul's dead."