Chapter 17
CHAPTER 17
S ky grabbed her keys and her bag and rushed out of the house.
She was running late to work again. Really late.
Not only had she forgotten to set her alarm, she’d spilled coffee on her shirt, realized she’d run out of bread for toast, and tried to put her jeans on backward.
A mess. She was a mess .
Once she reached the car, she was tempted to put her foot to the floor. She didn’t. She hated people who sped. All that did was increase the chance of accidents.
This wasn’t the first time this week things like that had happened. She’d been out of sorts since that damn kiss three nights ago. Last night she’d forgotten about a quiche in the oven and set off the fire alarm. And the day before that, she’d left her phone at work and had to drive all the way back to get it.
How had one kiss upheaved her entire life? It hadn’t even been that good.
Okay, it had been that good. And not just the kiss. The way he’d sandwiched her entire body between him and the wall, the way he’d touched her… Oh God, she was getting hot just thinking about it.
She hit the car’s Bluetooth and called the daycare.
“Good morning, Sky’s Doggy Daycare, Dolly speaking.”
“Dolly, hi, it’s Sky.”
“Sky, I was just about to call you. Rosemary Symes came in with Bella, but she seemed annoyed that you weren’t here. Said Bella needed a bath and you’re the only one who does it properly.”
Sky’s lips twitched. “I think Kristina forgot to use Bella’s own shampoo last time, and Pearl didn’t blow dry her fur.”
“Ugh, and now you’re the chosen one. You are coming in, aren’t you? I don’t want to have to tell that woman you didn’t bathe her dog. She kind of frightens me.”
“Dog owners can be scary. I’m coming in, driving now. I’m just running late. I forgot to set an alarm.”
“That’s not like you.”
“I know. It’s not my week.” She took a right turn.
“Mm, is a certain fire chief boyfriend keeping you up all night?”
She rolled her eyes. He was keeping her up, but not in the way Dolly meant. “I’m hanging up now.”
“Oh, darling, you can hang up, but I’ll just pester you at work.”
Yeah, she knew that. “Bye.”
She hung up as she neared the bridge. The bridge was short and high, stretching over the Willow Creek Reservoir, which was beautiful but cold and deep. When she was a kid, she’d always wanted to play in it. She’d asked her mother so many times, but the answer had alternated between “no, you’ll freeze” and “no, you’ll drown.”
She accepted that now, but ten-year-old Sky had quite a hard time with it.
Suddenly, she noticed a white van speeding toward her.
Why were they driving so fast…?
She reached the bridge—and suddenly they swerved out of their lane and straight at her.
Sky screamed, instinctively turning her wheel, but there was nowhere to go except the bridge railing.
The airbag deployed. Her face slammed into it as the seat belt locked, cutting into her chest, then her head flew back and crashed against the seat.
Then, suddenly, there was stillness. Stillness and quiet. Everything hurt and something wet slipped down her temple, maybe from the airbag, or maybe from her window, which had completely smashed.
Eyes still closed, she tried to breathe. To slow the air moving in and out of her lungs.
Out. She needed to get out of the car.
With shaky fingers, Sky reached for her seat belt. She tried to release it, but it wouldn’t budge. She was stuck. Her heart started to beat faster, panic and a sense of entrapment tightening her chest.
She looked up.
Her breath stopped. And that panic turned to cold, hard fear.
The car had gone through the railing and was hanging partially off the bridge so that all she could see was water and blue skies.
The edges of her vision started to haze, the tremble in her fingers expanding through her body, making everything shake.
She was having a panic attack. But she couldn’t. Not right now!
She closed her eyes.
Breathe, Sky. Just breathe.
She drew in a deep breath and held it for a few seconds before letting it ease out.
Phone. She needed a phone so she could call for help. She checked the middle console but her cell wasn’t there. It must have fallen during the crash. Shit .
A small whimper tried to escape, but she swallowed it down.
She couldn’t get her seat belt off, so she couldn’t search for her phone. But even if she could, she wouldn’t. One small move and for all she knew, her entire car could go over the edge.
What was she supposed to do?
Suddenly, the sound of a car engine approached.
Hope hit her so hard that tears pressed against her eyes. A car door opened and closed. Then a voice.
“Oh my God! Is someone in there?”
She frowned. She knew that voice. Was it Joey? Garfield’s owner?
“Joey?”
“Sky?”
Thank God. “Joey, I need you to call for help! Can you do that?”
“Y-yes. I’ll do that right now! Are you okay?”
“Yes. But I need help, and I need it fast!”
* * *
“I don’t know, she’s pretty fine if you ask me.”
Becket slapped Teddy across the back of his head as he passed where he was sitting. “Don’t talk about Sky like that.”
“I told him,” Moose said, lifting his coffee off the table.
Becket stopped at the coffee machine.
“Hey, a month ago, you wouldn’t have cared,” Teddy protested.
Actually, he probably would have. He just wouldn’t have cared out loud. “A month ago, we weren’t dating.”
“Well, thanks to our little bar trip, I have a girl too.”
“Yeah, yeah, Kristina. We know,” Moose said, sounding bored.
“ You know, but Beck doesn’t.”
Becket frowned. “Doesn’t she work with Sky?”
“Yep, and she is also fine.” Teddy grinned from ear to ear. “We’ve shared one date and a whole lot of dirty texts.”
Jesus .
Becket turned back to the coffee machine and was just finishing a cup when his radio buzzed.
“Station 8, this is dispatch. There’s an auto crash on Kento Bridge. The vehicle’s hanging over the bridge and needs stabilization. A female in the driver’s seat also needs extraction. We need all first responders immediately.”
The alarm went off.
Becket cursed and deserted his coffee as he rushed to the apparatus bay. He pulled on his gear and jumped into an engine with Moose and Teddy. Some of the others jumped into another engine.
“If the car’s hanging over the bridge, the first thing we need to do is stabilize the vehicle,” Becket said as he sped out of the station.
Moose nodded. “Teddy and I will attach the chain.”
“We’ll then work on secondary stabilization,” Teddy added.
“Good. I’ll get the others to block traffic. Hopefully there isn’t already a buildup blocking access.” They needed a clear road to get the engine through.
When he grew closer, cars were lining the road leading to the bridge. He cursed and drove into the opposite lane, passing them.
A small blue Nissan on the bridge came into view. Then he saw a kid standing beside it, a terrier in his arms. The Nissan didn’t look damaged, so it hadn’t been part of the crash. The kid must have called it in.
As he drove onto the bridge, he got his first glimpse of the other car.
His world narrowed to pinpoint focus, and his chest felt like it was about to cave in. He knew that car. He saw it every damn day.
“Sky.”
Moose’s head whipped around. “ Sky? That’s Sky’s car?”
Becket stopped the engine and threw himself out of the cab. He began to sprint toward the car, but Moose was suddenly there, the older man faster than Becket would have thought possible, grabbing his arm.
“Get off me, Moose! I don’t want to hurt you. I need to see her!”
“ No . You need to calm the hell down first.”
He was about to shove Moose off when Teddy suddenly grabbed his other arm. “Becket—”
“That’s Sky in there!” Becket growled.
Irene appeared in front of him from the other engine. She got really close, her voice lowering. “If that’s Sky, then you need to get yourself under control. Her vehicle’s sitting over the edge of the bridge. If anything bumps it or disrupts the balance, it could go over, and she’ll go with it.”
Fear gripped his limbs, despite his words. “I’m smarter than that and you know it.”
“Emotions do funny things to all of us,” Moose said.
Becket forced his muscles to relax. He could easily break out of the hold Moose and Teddy had on him—but they were right. He needed to be calm when he approached Sky. He needed to keep her calm so she didn’t move.
“Fine,” he finally conceded before taking a breath. “I’m okay.”
Slowly, both men released him.
“I’m going to talk to her,” Becket said firmly. “You guys stabilize the vehicle so it’s secure enough to extract her. Irene, check there’s no oil leak.”
They all nodded and started to walk away, but Becket grabbed Moose’s arm before he could leave. “And, Moose…do it fast.”
Moose nodded before jogging back to the engine.
Becket crossed over to her car, his heart pounding so fucking hard he could just about hear it.
Then he crouched next to her window. “Peaches?”