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

Zen let go of Fred only to place his hand on his shoulder. “This is Fred Munson.”


Anthony nodded and turned back to Zen. “Justin’s not driving? I didn’t see his name in the papers.”


“Nah, he’ll meet up with us in Manheim, but he had some things he had to do this week.” Zen glanced at Fred who once again was studying the floor.


Anthony rubbed his mouth and nodded again. “I’ll go report you’re here.”


Zen guided Fred toward the bar with a hand at the small of his back.


“Zen!” Several of the other drivers came to meet him. There were hugs and handshakes, friendly bantering, and snide comments. A beer ended up in his hand, and when he turned to introduce Fred, he was nowhere to be seen. Fuck


Zen scanned the room, took a sip of his beer, and moved through the serving area. Fred was still nowhere to be seen.


Chapter 15