AllFreeNovel
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1
SHANE
Iwas a mechanic, not a tow truck driver. But when Blackbear Bluff got snow, me and my trusty four-wheel-drive pickup got to work.
“Rescue number one,” I announced to no one in particular.
The car was up ahead—a silver sedan. It sat on the grass next to the road, but at a slant. The back end was solidly in a ditch, and there was no way I could get it out at that angle. This would require a tow truck.
I flipped on my hazard lights, pulled off the shoulder just behind the car, then checked my rearview mirror for approaching vehicles. No other cars in sight.
I continued that level of care as I stepped out, walking around the back of my truck and up the embankment toward the car. It couldn’t hurt to be careful, just in case a car blasted over that hill behind me.
By the time I reached the passenger door of the car, the snow was coming down so hard, I could only make out the form of someone sitting in the driver’s seat. Was it male? Female? No telling.
But even as I arrived at the passenger window, I couldn’t see much, thanks to the fogged-up glass. In any other situation, I’d hightail it out of here. I wasn’t a cop. I wasn’t even armed. I was just here to help out.
In these parts, sneaking up on cars was a good way to get shot.
“Excuse me,” I called out, not sure what would happen if I knocked on the glass. “Are you okay in there?”
The blob on the other side of the glass was moving now, and I definitely made out curves and some long hair. The driver was a woman. I looked up the road in each direction, then made my way around the front of the car. If she was hurt, I wouldn’t be much help. I wasn’t a trained paramedic or anything, and I had no idea how long it would take to get emergency personnel up here.
“Please be okay. Please be okay. Please be okay.”
I chanted that to myself as I approached the driver’s door. Suddenly, that door opened, pushing so far out into the road that if a car had been passing, it would have knocked it right off. Luckily, no one was coming.
Holding on to the hood of the car, I made my way to the door just in time to see a blonde head of hair poking out, followed by a light blue coat. But what really captured my attention was the face. Beautiful blue eyes framed by long, dark lashes and a pair of utterly kissable lips with just a hint of shine.
“You have to help Max,” she said. “I think he’s okay. Just shaken up. He wasn’t belted in or anything. I don’t know if that’s against the law here. Are you a police officer?”
That was a lot. And it was said breathlessly while she scanned the area. Panic filled her eyes as she looked back into the car.
“Are you okay, Max?”
Max? I hadn’t seen anyone else in the car. Maybe Max was her kid. But surely, she wouldn’t have been driving around with a child not belted in. Not to judge or anything, but that would be fucked up.
Then I heard it. Whimpering. I added that to the sweet lilt of the woman’s voice when she spoke to Max, as well as the fact that he wasn’t belted in.
Max was a dog.
“He’s in the back seat, pressed up against the door,” she said. “I tried to squeeze over the seat. I think he’s scared. Or cold. Do you think we could get the back door on the other side open?”
I was staring at her when she returned her gaze to my face. I knew I needed to say something. Gaping like a lovestruck teenager wouldn’t help the matter.
“Why don’t we get you into my truck?” I asked. “It’s warm, and it’ll keep you safe from passing vehicles.”
“Not without my dog.” She shook her head. “He’s my emotional support animal. He needs me.”
Didn’t people need their support animals, not the other way around? I was pretty sure that was how it worked. But it was too cold out here to stand around arguing.
I looked up the road. Still no cars approaching, but that could change.
“Max can come too,” I said. “Let’s go around and get him.”
“Max can be skittish around strangers,” she warned.
Crap. Was some dog going to bite my hand off? I hoped it wasn’t one of those giant dogs with big teeth. Little dogs could bite too, but with their smaller mouths, they could do less damage in a shorter amount of time. At least that’s the way I was looking at it.
