Grayson. Delores Fossen

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СКАЧАТЬ damn lucky. A few minutes wasn’t much of a window between life and death, and her storming out had literally saved them.

      Because she looked to be on the verge of panicking, Grayson wanted to reassure her that all would be fine, but he had no idea if that was true. The one thing he did know was that it wasn’t a good idea for them to be in the open like this. There could be a secondary explosion, and he needed to get Eve someplace safe so he could try to figure out what had just happened.

      He glanced at his truck, but it was a good thirty feet away. Too far. He didn’t want Eve to be out in the open that long. There wasn’t just the worry of a second explosion but of their tree-hiding friend and what he might try to do.

      “Get inside your car,” he told Eve, “and slide into the passenger’s seat so I can drive.”

      “Oh, God,” he heard her say.

      And Grayson silently repeated it. He didn’t know just how bad this situation could get, and he didn’t want to find out with Eve in tow.

      “Put the keys in the ignition,” Grayson added when he felt her scramble to get into the car. “And stay down. Get on the floor.”

      No Oh, God this time, but he heard her breath shiver as it rushed past her lips. He wasn’t exactly an old pro at facing potentially lethal situations, but he had the training and some experience during his time as sheriff. This had to be a first for Eve.

      Not too many people had ever come this close to dying.

      Grayson glanced behind him to make sure she had followed his orders. She had. Eve had squeezed herself in between the passenger’s seat and the dashboard. It was safer than sitting upright, but Grayson knew a car wouldn’t be much protection if anything was about to happen. A secondary explosion could send fiery debris slamming right into them.

      He tried to keep watch all around them while he eased into the driver’s seat and adjusted it so he’d fit. He needed to put some distance between the cottage, woods and them, and then he would call for assistance. Someone could take Eve to the sheriff’s office, and Grayson could figure out why all of this didn’t feel like an accident.

      While keeping a firm grip on his gun, he shut the car door and started the engine. He took out his phone and handed it to Eve. “Call the fire department.”

      She did but without taking her stunned gaze off the flames that were eating their way through what was left of the cottage. It had to break her heart to see the damage, and later the full loss would hit her.

      As if she hadn’t had enough to deal with for one day.

      Even now, with the chaos of the moment, he still had her request going through his head.

      I need you to get me pregnant.

      He’d made it clear that wasn’t going to happen, so the situation was over for him. But not for Eve. He had seen that determination in her eyes, and one way or another, she was going to get this dream baby. Hell, this near-death experience might even make her more determined.

      “Hang on,” Grayson warned her as he drove away—fast. He didn’t exactly gun the engine, but he didn’t dawdle, either.

      The narrow road was dirt, gravel and mud since it had rained hard just that morning. With the sinkholes poxing the surface, it was impossible to have a smooth ride. But a smooth ride was an insignificant concern. Right now, he just wanted Eve out of there so he could deal with this situation on his own terms.

      In other words, alone.

      “The gas was turned off,” Eve murmured. “It’s been turned off for months. So, what caused the explosion?”

      “Maybe a leak in the gas line.” And if so, that would be easy to prove.

      “Call the first number on my contact list,” Grayson instructed. It was for the emergency dispatcher in the sheriff’s building. “I want at least one deputy out here with the fire department. Have them meet me at the end of the road.”

      Once help arrived, he could hand off Eve to whichever deputy responded, and Grayson could escort the fire department and others to the scene. He didn’t want anyone walking into a potential ambush.

      Eve made the call, and he heard her relay his instructions to the emergency dispatcher. Just ahead, Grayson spotted the first curve of the snaky road. He touched the brakes.

      And nothing happened.

       Nothing!

      The car continued to barrel toward the curve. So, Grayson cursed and tried again, but this time he added a lot more pressure.

      Still nothing.

      Hell.

      “What’s wrong?” Eve asked.

      Grayson dropped his gun onto the console between them so he could use both hands to steer. “I think someone cut the brake line.”

      Eve put her hand against her chest. “W-hat?”

      She sounded terrified and probably was, but Grayson couldn’t take the time to reassure her that he was going to try to get them out of this without them being hurt. The curve was just seconds away, and the road surface was as slick as spit. But his biggest concern was the trees. The road was lined with them, and if he crashed into one of them, Eve and he could both be killed on impact.

      “Get in the seat and put on your seat belt,” he told her, fastening his attention on the curve.

      She scrambled to do just that, but he figured there wasn’t enough time. To buy them a little more of that precious time, Grayson lifted the emergency brake lever, even though it wouldn’t help much. The emergency brake would only work on the rear brake, and it wouldn’t slow them down enough. Still, he had to try anything to reduce the speed.

      “Hold on,” he warned her.

      Eve was still fumbling with the seat belt when the car went into the curve. Grayson had no choice but to try to keep the vehicle on the road since the trees were just yards away.

      The right tires caught the gravel-filled shoulder, kicking up rocks against the metal undercarriage. The sound was nearly deafening, and it blended with his own heartbeat, which was pounding in his ears.

      Eve’s car went into a slide, the back end fishtailing. Grayson steered into the slide. Or rather that’s what he tried to do, but he soon learned he had zero control. He saw the trees getting closer and closer, and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.

      For just a split second, he made eye contact with Eve. Her gaze was frozen on him while her hands worked frantically to fasten the seat belt. Her eyes said it all.

      She thought they were going to die, and she was silently saying goodbye.

      Grayson didn’t say goodbye back because he had no intention of dying today.

      He heard the click of her seat belt, finally. And Grayson jerked the steering wheel to the left. The car careened in that direction, but not before the back end smashed into a live oak tree. The jolt rattled the entire vehicle and tossed them around like rag dolls.

      Thank СКАЧАТЬ