Page 22 of Erik's Salvation
The image of the bath in her head was the only thing that lured her out of the car and into the rain. A strong gust of wind slapped her in the face, water hitting her head and shoulders so hard she was drenched in seconds.
She tucked her head low and ran.
Her feet sank into the wet grass beside the road, her skin completely chilled by the time she reached the driveway. She cursed the distance from the road to her house throughout the entire run.
Had she actually thought living so far from the road would benice? Peaceful even? Well, this run wasn’t peaceful. She wouldn’t wish it on her worst enemy. Well, maybe Erik when he was scolding her, but that was a special case.
By the time she reached her front porch, her teeth were chattering and she was pretty sure she looked like a drowned rat.
She rummaged through her bag with a wet hand, searching for three whole heartbeats before remembering…
No.
Her keys. She’d thrown them in the car during her little fit and never picked them back up.
She allowed herself one second for her heart to drop and frustrated tears to prick at her eyes, then she shook her head and straightened.
This was fine. Aggravating, but fine.
She ducked her head once more and ran back into the rain. If possible, it felt like it was falling harder, and when lightning flashed through the night sky, rumbling thunder was quick to follow.
When she finally reached her car, she was almost contemplating just sliding inside and sleeping there—until she tried the handle.
It didn’t open.
Oh God! She’d clicked the lock. It had just been instinctual. Muscle memory. She hadn’t even thought about it.
This was it. The final nail in her coffin. No keys. Dead phone, so no way to call a locksmith. And, just to top it off, her sugars were low and she’d eaten her last snack while leaving work.
Panic bubbled inside her, almost drowning out the sound of the rain. Then her gaze caught on her driveway again.
Was Erik home? Please let him be home.
With gritted teeth, she ran back down her drive, water drowning her as she went. She’d just stepped into his yard when her foot slipped, and she fell flat into a puddle of mud.
Okay, she’d been wrong. Locking her key in the car wasn’t the last nail in the coffin,thiswas.
She wasn’t usually a crier. She couldn’t even remember the last time she’d shed a tear. But right now, she could shed a bucket load.
“What the hell?”
The deep growl had her head shooting up and her gaze colliding with a very wet, very handsome-looking Erik as he stepped outside. The rain soaked into his crisp white shirt immediately, making it stick to his chest like a second skin. She could see every one of his dozen abs while he power-walked across the yard. Big. Sexy. Dangerous.
The second he was by her side, his strong fingers wrapped around her upper arms and pulled her to her feet like she weighed nothing. His touch was warm, and she wanted to sink into it.
“Are you okay?”
Even though he’d shouted, his words barely crossed the inches separating them, the storm almost washing them out.
She nodded, her teeth now chattering so fiercely she could barely get a word out. “My c-car stopped down the s-street. Then I locked my house k-key inside.”
He cursed, and before she realized what he was doing, he whipped her up into his arms and carried her to his door.
Hannah stopped breathing. Her lungs literally wouldn’t let a single breath through, but that had nothing to do with the cold or the rain and everything to do with the hard chest pressed to her side. The powerful arms wrapped around her back and legs. Hell, the storm around them almost ceased to exist.
She didn’t manage a single breath until she was in Erik’s living room and he was lowering her to the leather couch.
Once she was down, she gasped and tried to get back up. “No, I’ll g-get it wet.”
