Chapter 6
He found a 24-hour Wal-Mart just off the highway and stopped, knowing they would need a few more necessities they weren't able to grab in their mad dash out of the house. He tried to debate which would be best, letting her sleep or waking her up so she could go in with him. He opted to wake her up, though he knew it would be a bitch of a task. He figured the nicest way would be to simply kiss her awake and proceeded to do so. At first, being startled, she struggled against him but once she finally woke she responded with equal fervor.
"Definitely one of the better ways I've been woken up," she murmured when he pulled away.
"I thought it would be nicer than throwing cold water over your head," he responded with a smile. She laughed and nodded in agreement. "We should pick up a few things we had to leave behind. I should probably invest in a couple of those pre-pay phones-just in case." She looked out her window at the neon sign and slanted him a look. "What? You can get a couple more shirts and some underwear...bathroom stuff...whatever." He sounded exasperated as he tried to explain his thinking.
"Right," she said dryly and pushed the car door open. "I expect you'll need your badge if you plan on wearing your gun inside."
"I've got it," he muttered and reached into the bag to pocket some of the money, just in case. He hooked his badge to his hip and took her hand as they walked inside the store. "I'll find you in a few minutes."
"Right," she said and shoved her hands into her back pockets as she watched him walk away. She grabbed the least hard to steer cart and felt ridiculous as she wheeled it around the sore, grabbing various items and stopping at a display of summery looking camisoles. Deciding she actually liked them, she piled three into the cart and continued on until she got to the "health & beauty" section. She felt a small victory when she found the shampoo and conditioner she used, but was frowning over the body wash when he found her.
"What? Just pick one," he said annoyed when he threw a bottle of shampoo into the cart and a bar of soap.
"Easy for you to say," she told him and put both bottles back onto the shelf.
"What do you usually use?"
"Stuff I have to special order," she told him and grabbed for another bottle that had claimed to smell like mangos. She sniffed it, pondered a second, and offered it to him to smell. "Well?"
"Fruity," he commented and made her frown, "what? It smells fine."
"Fine," she sulked and dropped the bottle into the cart.
"You didn't get any underwear," he commented and she laughed.
"Damn right," she said easily and pulled the cart along behind her.
"Why not?"
"Because, cher, its Victoria's Secret or nothing," she told him and turned to flash a smile at the teenage boy who had whispered a reverent "wow" from the front of the isle behind her.
"Jesus Christ," Alex muttered and pulled her along. "You just became that kid's wet dream."
"Yippee," she laughed and watched him toss a couple toothbrushes and toothpaste into the cart. "Are we done?"
"We should probably get another bag to haul all this stuff in." He lead her towards the area he had seen some travel bags and suit cases in and let her select another duffel bag. "Good, now we're done." They made it through the check out and loaded their bags into the car then proceeded to drive to the little motel on the opposite side of the highway. They checked into a room with a single queen sized bed and carried their stuff inside.
