Page 10 of Unexpected Temptation
Chapter Five
Amelia gritted herteeth when her front tire got caught in another pothole, making the car shudder and the sound of steel screech.The jarring effect of each hole caused discomfort to vibrate up her spine, and it had contributed to the headache that started that morning to grow steadily.
She wished someone had told her driving a Lexus up this mountain probably wasn’t a good idea.She’d been driving this windy, winding, uphill road for close to thirty minutes and hadn’t seen any form of civilization.She also noticed the air getting colder and thinner.The road wasn’t exactly steep, but she could definitely feel the difference in the atmosphere.
It grew darker in the shade of the trees as they became denser.The trees were so thick that a person couldn’t see a few yards into the forest.It made her feel better because she didn’t feel like she would fall off the side of the mountain if she lost control of her car.Now she’d crash into trees, which she considered safer.
The clouds had increased, darkened, and became menacing since she had left Kane’s store, and it had caused her already frazzled nerves to twist and intensify until she thought they’d snap.
A scream tore from her mouth when the car’s back end hit a patch of gravel, making it slide into a mammoth-sized pothole on the side of the road.A moan of discomfort slipped from her throat as a twinge of pain radiated down her spine as the vehicle came to a jarring halt.
After what felt like a lifetime, she was able to loosen her grip on the steering wheel and took several calming breaths until her heart and breathing were under control.
Amelia pulled her phone from her purse and grimaced.
“Crap, no bars.”
She rolled her eyes.Who would she have called, Kane?He’s the only one she knew, except the waitress, and she had his number.Yeah, she could do that if she had service out there in the middle of nowhere.She glanced at the time and saw thirty-five or so minutes had passed since she left Kane’s store.She got out, afraid of what kind of damage she would see.
Amelia knew she desperately needed the vehicle to get where she was going, and how would she get back down the mountain?Ask him to drive her after she crushed his heart?She snorted.
She got down to look under the car and flinched when the gravel rocks dug into her knees.A piece of metal looked like it might be damaged, but since she didn’t know a thing about vehicles, she wasn’t sure.She did know that she wasn’t going to get out of this predicament by herself.
Amelia stood and brushed off the dirt and gravel from the knees of her jeans and hands before looking around.She looked back at the way she’d come and then forward.One way was downhill, which would have been much easier, but that would have taken her back to town and would have likely been a longer walk.
The other way went up.Not steep, but it would be challenging for her due to the altitude.She noticed it was harder for her to breathe already, and she hadn’t started the walk yet.
Amelia knew she would have to walk.She just had to decide which way.
Kane had told her it would take her at most half an hour to get there.She knew she’d gone slower than he probably guessed, but the road intimidated her so much she’d been extremely careful.
She looked back and forth again.Which way?So, if she’d been driving a while, Jaylen’s place should be right up ahead, she guessed.Amelia smacked her hands together.There, the decision was made.
Amelia snatched up her purse and locked the doors.
Within a few minutes of walking, the muted light and the sounds of the woods sent shivers up her spine.She knew some of it was due to the chill in the air, which had grown steadily, but the rest was the nature around her.
A spike of fear zipped through her at every snap of a twig or rustle of branches.She had no idea what animals lived in the area and was terrified to even think about it at this point.
Amelia finally saw a slight bend in the road ahead.She also caught a low glimmer of light and fewer shadows farther up.She walked hurriedly toward it, careful to take deep breaths and stay out of all the ruts and holes.The last thing she needed was to sprain an ankle.
She had just hit a smooth patch in the road when the first raindrop hit.Within seconds, the shower turned into a deluge that drenched her.She gasped as the cold water seeped straight through into her underwear.The shivers started racing down her body, and soon after, her teeth began to chatter, and her movements became sluggish.
“Could someone die because of a rainstorm?”she asked out loud.Oh, hell, yeah.If they were as cold as her, absolutely, hypothermia was dangerous.
It had been balmy in town, but for some reason—the rain or the chill in the air, or both combined—were making her feel bone-chilling cold.How much farther was this place because she didn’t know how much longer she could go?
Her heart seized in her chest for a second when she caught sight of a house through the trees.Oh, thank God.Just a few more yards.She could do this.
As each step took her closer, different concerns started to plague her mind.What if he wasn’t there?What if the house was locked and she couldn’t find any other shelter?Amelia shook off the questions that spiked her already terrified mind.She would have the answers in just a few minutes.She was smart, she reminded herself.She would figure it out.
A scream tore from her throat that she tried with some success to choke back, at the enormous, menacing animal that snuck out of the woods and stopped smack-dab in her way.She pressed her hands over her mouth and swallowed back another scream when the dark shape moved forward slowly, and a deep growl pierced the air between them.
