AllFreeNovel
Share Us
These thoughts circle on a merry-go-round through my head, meant to reassure me. My body isn’t getting the message. My hands are instantly cold and clammy, and pinpricks of sweat pop on the nape of my neck and in my armpits.
I swallow back my fear as Tom turns to me and runs a hand down his face. “Stay here. I’m going to take a look.”
He jumps out and before he even reaches the front of the car, he’s drenched. His thin white T-shirt sticks to his skin, exposing the chiseled outline of his pectorals, tiny, peaked nipples, and the expanse of muscles down to the waistband of his jeans.
For a brief moment, I’m taken back to when I first met him. The way he stood, easy and happy, in the door at the Marmont. His shirt wasn’t wet, but I imagined this very image.
Regret mingles with fear, engulfing me. Why did I push him away? Have I ruined things? I don’t know what we’re doing or if there is even something to ruin.
A clap of thunder slaps me back to the present. The rain relentlessly pounds on Tom’s back as he fumbles with the hood of the car. Water falls from his now sopping head of hair onto his forehead and into his eyes.
With the back of his hand, he wipes away the dampness and lifts the hood. I can no longer see him. What if it isn’t safe in the car? What if he needs my help? I can’t just sit here and do nothing.
I unbuckle my seat belt, exhale all my concerns, and head out into the downpour. Chin tucked into my chest, I try to shield my face from the icy spikes of rain.
Pointless. Wind whips the water in every direction. Within seconds, I’m drenched and my hair is plastered to my face.
“What’s wrong?” I stand beside him and raise my voice over the wind.
He doesn’t look at me, piercing eyes fixed on the engine with complete focus. “Go back inside. There’s no point in both of us getting soaked.”
“Should I call for help?” Lois comes to mind because I wouldn’t have the first clue who else to call.
He faces me. Raindrops sluice down his face and seep into his eyes. He squints. “Leighton, let me handle this.”
His tone echoes my cold and distant one from not too long ago. Before I can stop myself, my fear gets the better of me.
Careless, thoughtless words fly from my mouth in a snarky tone. “So far you’re doing a great job.”
“Leighton.” My name has never sounded so lethal and sexy all at the same time, and I’m equal parts shocked and aroused.
He straightens to his full height, seeming oblivious to the weather around us.
His eyes track every inch of me, and I’m more than conscious of how my clothes, all cotton, cling to me, leaving very little to the imagination.
Something has shifted in Tom, and the easygoing guy I’ve come to know is nowhere in sight.
“Get in the car. It’s dry and safer in there.” His searing gaze intensifies with hungry appreciation as he roams my body.
Another deafening crack of thunder causes me to jump, and this breaks whatever is between us. My heart does an anxious flip as our surroundings sharpen in focus. Fear and doubt have me in a vise.
“I’m not useless, you know.” My hand rests on my now cocked hip. “Tell me how I can help.”
“There isn’t much you can do. We’ll have to call someone.”
I spin on my heel, ready to take care of this. “I can call—”
The earth slips out from under me. I scream and squeeze my eyes shut. In the darkness, the interior of the airplane forms in my mind. Lights dim, everything shaking and rattling as the plane suddenly drops several hundred feet.
“You okay?” Tom’s gentle voice snaps me out of the memory and I open my eyes.
He looms over me, half standing, half bent, sort of blocking the rain. His hand is outstretched to help me up. I slipped and am now on my ass, sitting in what looks like a muddy river where the ground used to be.
“Just great.” I take his hand, and with one tug, I’m on my feet.
Though covered in mud, I make the mistake of wiping my clothes as if that will make them miraculously clean. And now both my hands are covered in mud.
Clearly amused at my calamity, he releases a small chuckle but quickly schools his features the second I narrow my eyes on him. “This isn’t funny.”
