Chapter 2 Man On The Road

• The car sped along the slick asphalt through the torrential storm. Rachel swiped at the windshield, trying to clear the fog, and cursed herself for hitting the road in this downpour.
• “Damn it! I should’ve waited for this rain to let up. I can’t see a thing,” she muttered.
• Rachel slowed down, not wanting to take any chances. It was night, and it felt like the sky was falling apart. Something bad could happen on a night like this. As if the universe had heard her thoughts, no sooner had she considered the possibility, than she glimpsed a shadow in the rain and felt the car slam into something.
• “Oh my God! What did I hit?” she gasped, startled, her voice trembling after the scream she let out.
• Trying to calm her racing breath, she fumbled in the back seat for a flashlight. She didn’t have an umbrella, so, despite not wanting to, she’d have to get wet. Rachel stepped out of the car, the icy rain pelting her body. Shivering, she moved to the rear of the car to investigate what she’d hit. Her jaw dropped when she saw a man lying on the asphalt, blood covering his body—and he was completely naked.
• “Holy crap! Did I kill someone? And why the hell would you be out in this rain, stark naked?” she said, inching closer with caution.
• Rachel didn’t have time to gawk at the man’s apparently muscular, chiseled physique. She knelt beside him and placed her hand on his neck, checking for any sign of life.
• A sigh of relief escaped her when she felt a pulse. He was still alive. She pulled her hand back from his neck, startled by a tingling sensation that shot up her arm, like a spark of static electricity had passed between them.
• “I need an ambulance!” Rachel raced back to the car, scrambling for her phone.
• That night seemed determined to go wrong for Rachel. When she grabbed her phone, she saw it was dead and cursed herself for forgetting to charge it. She’d been so caught up in work that it slipped her mind. She hurried back to the man, calling out to him. Looking closer at his body, she noticed countless wounds—some she knew couldn’t have come from the crash. His shin looked broken, and there were deep gashes, as if claws had torn into him.
• “Were you attacked by some animal?” she asked the stranger, even though he didn’t respond.
• Rachel jumped when the man suddenly grabbed her wrist, his eyes snapping open and locking onto hers. That tingling sensation shot up her arm again, but she forced herself to stay calm and focus on what mattered.
• “Sir, I accidentally hit you with my car. My phone’s dead, so I can’t call an ambulance. I know it’s not ideal, but if you can get up, I can drive you to a hospital in Des Moines—or maybe back to Ames, I’m not sure which is closer. If you can’t move, we’ll have to wait for another car to pass by so we can ask for help.”
• The man lying on the ground kept staring at her. Rachel wasn’t sure if he’d hit his head and couldn’t understand her, because he didn’t respond—just locked his eyes on hers, his breathing rapid. Under the weight of his intense gaze, she realized she was holding her breath.
• “Can you understand me?” she asked, trying to break the strange tension.
• “Just help me. I can get up and make it to your car,” he said.
• A shiver ran down Rachel’s spine at the sound of his voice—strong and commanding, even in his battered, wounded state. His deep, gravelly tone carried an air of authority.
• “I think I can manage. Put your arm around my shoulder,” she said, inching closer.
• As the man draped his arm over her shoulder, Rachel caught a whiff of cinnamon coming from him. Though she wasn’t a fan of the scent, it suited him, and she found it oddly pleasing. She thought his cologne must be remarkable to linger so strongly despite the mud and blood covering him.
• That electric jolt coursed through her body again, stronger this time. Rachel glanced at him, catching his gaze, and knew he’d felt it too. The whole situation was starting to feel beyond strange.
• “My God, you’re heavy,” she grumbled as he stood.
• Rachel could never have imagined herself in this scenario—caught in a storm, helping a massive, naked man into her car. In different circumstances, it might’ve been intriguing, but right now, it was downright bizarre and unnerving. Yet, oddly, she wasn’t afraid of him. On the contrary, she felt strangely calm—too calm. She realized that being near this man, even in his battered state, gave her an inexplicable sense of peace.
• “Lean on the car. I’ll open the back door for you. You might be more comfortable lying down,” Rachel said.
• She opened the door, grabbed her bag, and tossed it onto the floorboard. Then she pulled out a towel and a blanket, throwing the towel onto the front seat and setting the blanket aside.
• “Come on, lean on me again,” she instructed.
• He leaned on her, their bodies pressed close. She could feel his warm breath, even through the rain, and he was panting, clearly in a lot of pain.
• Rachel helped him into the back seat and returned to the driver’s side. She took a deep breath, grappling with what she was doing and all the possible risks.
• “Use the blanket to cover up and keep warm. It’s a bit weird and awkward with you naked in my car,” she said. “I’m taking you to the hospital in Des Moines.”
• “No!” His voice came out almost like a growl.
• Rachel glanced at the man in the back seat. That “no” sent a shiver through her body. It didn’t even sound like the same voice as before. Only then did it hit her that she might be in a car with a fugitive—or worse, a killer. She’d have to figure out a way to keep him from trying anything against her.