Black Raven Inn: A Paranormal Mystery (Taryn's Camera Book 6) by Rebecca Patrick-Howard Read Free Book Online Page B

Band-Aid on everything until…
    “Until I die,” she muttered aloud as she trudged to her car, angry and frustrated. “I’m going to die and I still don’t understand the ending of ‘Lost.’”
    Sometimes life just wasn’t fair.
     

 
    Aker , Taryn discovered, was more accommodating than she’d initially given him credit for. After working with him for a little over a week she’d almost stopped apologizing every time she changed her schedule. Almost.
    “Hey, sorry I didn’t call,” she spoke into her phone as she drove along Broadway through downtown. “I got held up at the doctor. Is it okay if we go now and work a few hours?”
    “That’s fine,” he replied, his voice clipped but courteous.
    “I’m on my way there but if you need some time I can–“
    “I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. I’m ready. Don’t get out of your vehicle until I get there.”
    That was another thing, too. He was always ready. Taryn wondered if the man just sat by his phone, waiting for her to tell him she needed to go to the motel.
    The thought was kinkier sounding than she’d intended.
    The Nashville skyline rose above her as she flew across the bridge towards East Nashville. She could remember a time when she’d been afraid to venture to that part of town, a fear that was probably as much urban legend as anything. Now more and more houses were being renovated and the area was teeming with young professionals, families with children, and funky businesses.
    Things changed. Taryn wasn’t sure she always liked those changes but she was always happy to have new places to eat.
    Over the course of the past week, she hadn’t gotten much work done. She’d shown up twice to take pictures but the brutal rain had restricted her to the motel’s interior. The interior, as luck would have it, was too dark without any natural light (the electricity was sporadic and mostly didn’t work). The motel’s open parking lot and motor lodge style didn’t offer plentiful protection from the weather.
    Plus, with the rain being so bad, there wasn’t anywhere for Aker to go and still keep an eye on her. One afternoon he’d followed her into the small, cramped lobby to get out of the rain and that had been an uncomfortable experience for both parties involved.
    Taryn was itching to get some real work done. She’d only taken a handful of pictures and none of them had been of the rooms. At the rate she was going, she was never going to get finished, much less meet her deadline.
    The last thing she needed was a pissed off country singer. She’d never be allowed in the Ryman or Tootsie’s again.
    “I should have been sketching by now,” she complained.
    When her car rudely ignored her and didn’t offer a response, she popped in a CD and turned Shooter Jennings up loud. She was in the mood to jam, despite the dismal news from her doctor.
    Determined to make the most out of what was left of the day, Taryn sped down the road with her windows down, her hair flying back from her face. She couldn’t do anything about the state of her health but she could do her job. That was something, at least.
    Aker, true to his word, showed up exactly fifteen minutes later. Taryn had barely pulled into the decrepit parking lot herself when his vehicle came sidling up next to hers.
    “Better weather today, huh?” she asked with a smile.
    “Huh,” he grunted, which could have been interpreted any number of ways.
    “I’m probably going to stay about two hours, is that okay?” she asked brightly, trying not to lose the smile she’d plastered on.
    Taryn was determined to make this man like her. It had become a personal challenge.
    “Take however long you need,” he barked. He was already unfolding his chair and dragging out his cooler.
    As Taryn started towards the motel’s entrance, however, he jogged ahead of her. “Wait just a minute,” Aker ordered as he passed her by, a set of keys jingling in his beefy hand.
    Obligingly, Taryn stood back