A Kiss in the Dark. Karen Foley

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СКАЧАТЬ taking his proffered hand to hitch herself up onto the bench seat. His skin was warm, his fingers strong and sure as they closed over her own.

      She watched him as he came around to the driver’s side and pulled himself up behind the wheel. Mere inches away from her, in the confined space of the cab his presence was overwhelming, the sheer maleness of him assailing her senses.

      Suddenly, he turned toward her on the bench seat, one arm sliding along the seat back behind her shoulders as he craned to peer through the rear window and align the truck up with her car. Lacey’s nostrils flared. She could smell him. A clean scent of male sweat and soap. She realized she had only to turn her face and her lips would brush along the smooth bulge of his biceps where they rested on the back of the seat.

      Rigid, Lacey clutched her overnight bag with both hands and forced herself to look straight ahead, but found herself staring at his thighs. They were lean and well-muscled beneath the close-fitting blue jeans. She swallowed. His hand on the steering wheel was strong, with long, tapered fingers and neat, clean nails. She noted he wore no rings and felt an unreasonable sense of relief. Sliding a sideways glance at him as he maneuvered the tow truck into position, she couldn’t help but wonder what he was thinking about her.

      COLE MACKINNON COULD scarcely believe his good fortune as he jumped down from the cab and began the process of hitching the car to the tow truck. He’d been back in Black Stone Gap for less than two days and had stopped by Sully’s garage that night on a whim. They’d been kicking back with a cold beer when the call had come in. Sully, his longtime buddy, had been on another line so Cole had automatically picked up the second phone when it began to ring off the hook. He’d helped Sully out before so it was no big deal when he’d offered to tow this one in. He actually enjoyed playing the Good Samaritan. But when the headlights of the truck had first swung over the car, he’d been nearly speechless at the sight of the woman who reclined in the driver’s seat.

      She was pale and slim, with bare arms and legs, and ginger hair that fell as soft and straight as summer rain to skim her smooth shoulders. In the stifling heat of the Kentucky night, she looked as cool and refreshing as a tall glass of mint tea. When he’d reached under the dash to release the hood, he’d had to fight the urge to skate his palm along the silken length of her leg, fiercely reminding himself that he was there to help her. He had absolutely no intentions of seducing her. No way, not a one.

      None.

      He finished fastening the coupling on the hitch. As he straightened, he glanced through the rear window of the tow truck in time to see her scoop that silky hair up in both hands and pile it on top of her head, exposing the sweet, vulnerable curve of her neck.

      Damn.

      He stood transfixed, all his good intentions vanishing, scattering like so many fireflies into the heat of the night.

       2

      SHE WAS UNEASY. Cole glanced over at her as he eased the truck into gear and slowly maneuvered it out of the parking lot and onto the dark main road. Hell, she should be. If she’d even an inkling of the thoughts that were racing through his head, she’d be a whole lot more nervous. She tried to act casual, but he didn’t miss how she stole furtive glances at him, and continually smoothed her fingers over the skirt of her dress.

      Everything about her, from her accent to her little designer purse, shouted Northerner. He was betting from somewhere in the Northeast. Which meant she was probably as frigid as a New York winter. She’d no doubt be shocked if she knew of the lustful imaginings he’d just had of her. She’d probably never had a fantasy in her entire life. His eyes slid to the overnight bag that rested on the seat between them. And he remembered what had been spilling out of that bag only moments before.

      Scraps of satin and lace.

      He felt a smile twitch the corners of his mouth. Okay, so perhaps she did harbor a fantasy or two. He’d give a lot to know what they were. Then do his damnedest to make them all come true.

      He’d returned to Black Stone Gap just two days earlier, having been gone for more than five years. Not even Sully knew his real reason for coming back. He’d told his friend that he was looking for work in the coal mines, knowing the word would spread quickly in the small community. A good mining engineer was worth his weight in gold.

      But what he hadn’t told Sully was that he didn’t really need the work; he was undercover for the Department of Labor, investigating an alarming spike in the number of accidents in Black River Mine No. 2, the biggest and most active coal mine in the region. He hadn’t wanted to come back; he’d been happy enough in Norfolk, working as a structural engineer for the state of Virginia. Until the night he’d received a call from a friend and former instructor at Virginia Tech.

      Cole had studied mining engineering under Stu Zollweg, and had later participated as part of an inspection team led by Zollweg to identify safety issues in several West Virginia mines. He’d found the fieldwork both challenging and satisfying. After obtaining his Master’s degree, he’d returned to Black Stone Gap and been hired as an engineer in the Black River Mines. But less than six months into the job, he’d lost a good friend in a tunnel collapse. He’d been consumed with guilt and anger; he should have known about the weak tunnel structure. He should have been able to avert the accident.

      Instead of sticking around to help uncover what had gone wrong, he’d bolted. He’d moved to Norfolk the day after his friend’s funeral and had gotten a job as a structural engineer, helping to build highway tunnels and bridges.

      When Stu Zollweg had called out of the blue, Cole couldn’t have been more surprised. But the offer he made was even more surprising. Stu worked part-time for the Department of Labor as a mine safety inspector. The Bureau of Mines had sent safety inspectors into the Black River Mines on several occasions, but had failed to uncover any significant safety infractions. So they couldn’t understand why the accident rate in the Black River Mines was higher than other mines in the country. Now the feds wanted someone to go into those mines undercover and find out why the accident rate was climbing. Stu had recommended Cole for the job.

      If he could gain access to the tunnels, he could provide evidence of what he had long suspected—that the mines were operating in direct violation of Federal safety codes. He just needed to prove it.

      The air-conditioning in the cab was strong enough to softly stir the fabric of her dress, and even by the dim dashboard lights he could see goose bumps raised along her slim arms.

      “Cold?” he asked. “I can turn down the air if you’d like.”

      “No, thanks. It feels good.”

      She started to say something more when the radio unit on the dash emitted a sudden, loud squawk and a disembodied, static voice filled the cab of the truck.

      “Mac, you there? Over.”

      Cole lifted a handheld mouthpiece from its cradle and pressed a button, speaking into the instrument. “Yeah, I’m here. I’m giving the client a lift home, and then I’ll bring the truck and car in. Over.”

      “Do me a favor, Mac,” came the reply. “Can you bring the truck back first? I just got a call that Stu Barlow’s boy wrecked his truck out on the gap road and forced another car into the ravine. The kid’s fine, but his vehicle’s blocking the road. Bobby just headed over there with the other wrecker, so I’ll take yours and meet him there. Over.”

      “Got it. See you in two. Over and out.” Cole replaced the mouthpiece and gave his passenger an apologetic smile. СКАЧАТЬ