Fred Munson likes his job as a traffic cop. He’s good at it. It’s his personal life that could use some improvement. With no friends, and being too shy to talk to anyone while out of uniform, when Fred is forced to use some of his vacation time, he has nothing to fill his days. At least not until he comes home to find his driveway blocked by a stranger with car troubles. A month after losing his father, Zen Zeppelin Cave has also lost his place in the world. The only thing holding him together is focusing on a charity junk car race to raise money for cancer research. And he's crossing that finish line even if he ends up replacing every part of the car along the way. Zen had planned on completing the race on his own, but a spur-of-the-moment decision changes that when he invites the adorable, blushing police officer whose driveway he’s blocking to tag along. Going with a stranger on a road trip is completely out of Fred’s comfort zone, so when he accepts the invitation, no one is more surprised than himself. Together, Zen and Fred head south. But will the old junk car hold together long enough to reach their destination? And will crossing the finish line mean the end of the road for a budding romance, or will they find there’s more to their journey?

Banger Challenge

With shaking hands, he signaled a turn despite there being no traffic, and drove back the way he’d come. The nature was amazing—huge old trees with moss-covered trunks hugging the roadsides. Had he been a rich man, he would’ve bought a vacation home in the area. Riding his motorcycle on these roads would be great.


Twenty minutes later, since he was driving slower on the way back, he turned in on a sad-looking parking lot, across from a small grocery store. He’d go in there soon, but first he’d grab something in the café—sugar always helped a stressful situation.


As he parked, two cops walked out of the café. Zen sighed and got out of the car, pretending he’d never broken a speeding limit in his entire life.


The younger of the two stumbled to a stop. The glare he gave Zen would’ve been amusing if he hadn’t been dressed in a uniform.


Chapter 3