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Charlotte took several breaths and tried to compose herself. “I heard a sound in my car and when I pulled over I realized I had a flat. My cell phone died so I couldn’t call anyone. Then this car pulled up with dark windows and he was almost hiding himself so I couldn’t see his face. I got scared.” She let out a sob. “Really, really scared. He wanted me to get in the car but I told him my husband was coming to pick me up. And then things got even scarier. He was insistent, so creepy. I ran for the car and he followed me, then tried to get in the car. So I pressed on the horn and prayed. I prayed like I’ve never prayed before. And then you drove up. I think between your arrival and the horn, he fled.”
Charlotte’s breathing felt labored. Marc was patting her arm in a soothing manner. She just wanted to close her eyes and rest her head against his chest. She fought the urge to lean on him. He’d saved her. She knew the stranger had most likely left due to his car pulling up.
“You saved me,” she blurted out. “I can’t begin to thank you for it.”
Marc looked into her eyes. “You saved yourself by heading back to your car and locking it up. And then you blew the horn. Pretty brilliant thinking.”
“I-I was so frightened. I froze up at first. And my cell phone died. I felt so helpless.”
“I think we should call the police. I can go fix your flat and maybe they can send a squad car out here.”
“I-Is that necessary?” Charlotte asked. She winced as she flashed back to another time she’d been forced to contact the police and file a police report. It hadn’t been pretty. In the end nothing had arisen from her report. Nothing more than a dead end.
Marc nodded. “I think it is. If this guy is out there hoping to lure women into his car or take them by force, the authorities need to know. This could very well happen to someone else if we don’t report it. They may ask you to come down to the station tomorrow to look at mug shots, but…I think you can handle that, Charlotte.
Charlotte bobbed her head. She certainly didn’t want anyone else to feel the anxiety and fear she’d experienced. “Yes, I’ll do it.”
Marc picked up his phone and began to dial 911. He began to have a dialogue with the dispatcher. “I’m with a friend who
just had a scary experience on Tea Tree Road.” He listened for a few moments, then continued. “She had a flat tire and a man tried to lure her into his car. Seems he wouldn’t take no for an answer and then tried to forcibly enter her car.” Another pause ensued. “Yes, we’re still at the location. Sure thing. Thanks.”
“What did they say?” Charlotte asked. Her nerves were still rattled.
“They’re sending a car out here asap.”
Charlotte let out a sigh. It felt as if she might still be in shock. Everything had happened so fast. The Belles of the Ball event seemed almost like a lifetime ago. In a matter of an hour her entire life had turned upside down.
Marc leaned in and suddenly she could smell the spicy scent of his cologne. It was light without being overpowering. Up close his eyes were almost espresso colored, like her favorite coffee drink. A slight stubble graced his cheeks. It did absolutely nothing to mar his devastating appeal.
“Are you okay? Really?” he asked, his voice full of a tenderness that yanked at her heart strings. She wasn’t sure if it was the shock or his nearness or the fact that he’d rescued her from danger, but all Charlotte could focus on was the nearness of his lips to hers.
“I’ll be fine,” she said in a low voice, trying to keep her gaze focused on his face rather than his perfectly shaped lips.
He reached out and grasped her hand, squeezing it lightly. “You’re a brave woman.”
“I don’t feel brave. I’m very thankful you were here.”
Marc nodded. “I am too. I hate the thought of you being in danger.”
The tension hovering in the air between them was thick. Charlotte knew Marc felt it too, but perhaps much like herself, he didn’t quite know what to make of it. Perhaps everything just felt heightened due to the crisis.
“I’m going to go take a look at that tire and hopefully patch it up for you. The police should be here shortly I imagine.”
Marc got out of the car and strode toward her vehicle. Within a matter of minutes, he was on the ground working on her tire.
Although tonight’s incident had been terrifying, Charlotte felt blessed as she looked out of Marc’s car window at the sight of him fixing her tire. She had felt so terribly alone during the ordeal with the stranger. But God had sent Marc as living proof that no one is ever truly alone. She had terribly misjudged this man based on her own bias against him. How in the world could she ever thank Marc for coming to her rescue?
* * *
When the police arrived, Marc had just finished replacing Charlotte’s tire with the sturdy spare in her trunk. He walked over and greeted the officer, briefly explaining what had transpired. Charlotte stepped out of the car and began describing the terrifying events of her evening. Marc opened the back door of his car then dug around for a bit before pulling out a wool blanket he’d stashed in the back. He walked behind Charlotte and draped it over her shoulders. She hadn’t stopped shivering since he’d arrived on the scene.
She sent him a look full of gratitude. Marc didn’t want to stop to examine why his heart was thrumming wildly inside his chest. Charlotte brought out his protective side. She put on such a brave face all the time, yet she radiated a vulnerability that touched him deeply. Regardless of how she felt about him, Marc liked her. A lot. Way more than he should.
He kept a discreet distance while Charlotte was interviewed by the police officers. After agreeing to meet them at the station in the morning, the officers went on their way. Marc has assured them he would see to it that Charlotte made it back home safely.
“Thanks for fixing my tire,” Charlotte said. “I’m suddenly feeling inspired to take tire changing lessons.”
“It wasn’t a problem. It’s way easier than it looks.”
