AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I give her my most genuine smile and say, “Actually, I was wondering if you’re hiring at the moment.”
Her face falls as she shakes her head. She’s pretty, with long dark hair and a kind smile that brightens up the room. I hate to see it fade. She lets a breath out as she looks at me sheepishly. “I’m sorry. We just hired someone a couple of days ago and don’t have any openings right now. If you leave your number with me, though, I can call you if something suddenly opens up.”
This isn’t the first time I’ve heard something like this, nor is it the last, but my heart wilts a little anyway. The money I have left won’t last forever. Soon, I could have to start living out of my car. I would have started doing that already were it not for the fact that it’s stolen and I’m sure my step-father has already reported it as such. And as much as I dislike the motel I’m staying at, at least I get a bed and a door with a lock. That kind of safety has helped me keep my wits about me in a way that I’m sure sleeping in my car wouldn’t.
Still … I feel like I’m running out of options. And it’s beginning to feel overwhelming.
“Hey, are you okay?” she says, tilting her head at me.
“I’m okay, thanks,” I say to her with a weak smile as I lean over to grab a napkin and ask for a pen. After scribbling my phone number on the napkin, I thank her for her time before ducking out of the café.
It’s hard to keep the fear from taking hold at this point, but I make myself keep walking as I try to convince myself to keep my cool. I’ll get through this. I know I will … or at least I hope I will. I have no other option than to get through it if I want a chance at having a life without fear or abuse or strife.
I’m so lost in my thoughts that I can barely keep track of where I’m going. My feet carry me through the streets as if they know where they’re going, and I let them. It’s late enough that there aren’t many places open still, and anywhere that is open I’ve probably already applied to.
It’s only when I see a brilliant flash and hear the squeal of a car horn that I realize I’ve crossed a street without looking both ways.
For a moment, I wonder if the bright light means I’ve died.
And then the car horn blares again. It startles me out of my shock and I scramble the rest of the way across the street. Once I’m out of the direct shine of the headlights, I realize why they’re so bright. The car that I stepped in front of is one of those incredibly expensive sportscars, which means it also has those newer, super-bright lights.
My heart pounds as it hits me that I could have died. I didn’t, thank god, but I could have if the driver hadn’t stopped in time.
Before I can make a run for it, the car’s hazard lights flicker as the driver shifts the vehicle into park. After a moment, someone steps out of the passenger seat.
My breath catches. A man, tall and built and dressed well in a gray tailored suit, appears. His dark, fathomless eyes find me immediately, looking me over with an intensity I’ve never see in another person before.
It’s as if he wants to devour me, and the thought makes goosebumps prickle on my skin unbidden.
He approaches me carefully, his big, powerful body moving with the grace of a predator. His brow furrows, softening his intense aura, making me feel like I’m a hurt animal and he’s here to help. Or perhaps go in for the kill.
“I’m so sorry,” he says as he draws near. His voice is low and rough, rasping warmly in my ears like a purr. “Are you hurt?”
I’m not going to lie, his words of concern throw me for a loop. I was expecting to get a lecture, if not a verbal lashing. Instead, this tall, intimidating man waits patiently for my answer as I gape at him.
I didn’t expect him to be so handsome. He’s close enough now for me to see how the light shining from the streetlamp above. The crappy light quality does nothing to dull the sharp lines of his face or hide how haunting his eyes are.
Instead of answering him, I’m transfixed, drawn in by his gaze.
“Are you hurt?” he repeats.
I blink up at him, at a loss for words. Finally, I force out a quiet reply. “No.”
The man abruptly lets out a breath, his shoulders immediately losing their tension. For a moment, I’m mesmerized by the soft smile of relief that curves his lips. “Thank god,” he says. “Are you okay?”
“What?”
“You just walked out into the road. Looked like you were on another planet. Are you okay?”
I fight a derisive snort of laughter. It’s the second time tonight I’ve been asked that. At least this time I don’t feel like crying.
“I’m fine,” I mumble. “I’m sorry I wasn’t paying attention.”
He gives me a searching look, those dark eyes piercing me straight through to the bone. I have a feeling that given the chance, he’d make even the worse criminals tell him everything they’ve done. There’s no denying that gaze, not that I’d want to under normal circumstances.
But these aren’t normal circumstances. Nothing about this has ever been normal. Even so, I doubt a man as wealthy as this stranger seems to be would care about the troubles of a person like me.
“Do you need help?” the man asks. “Do you want me to call anyone for you? Your parents? The police?”
