My head swiveled in the direction the car had gone, and I sprinted toward the horrifying sight in front of me.
3
Allegra
My gratitude that the driver hadn’t called it a night before picking me up quickly turned to terror when we approached a red light, and the car started to skid sideways instead of stopping. He wasn’t able to stop the slide, and we kept going into the intersection. The accident happened in seconds, but it felt as though a lifetime passed before we crashed into the light pole on the other side of the intersection. The vehicle slammed into it so hard, the front end crumpled.
My seat belt prevented me from flying forward, but it hurt like heck where it pulled against my body. I was dazed when the car finally came to a rest, and I slammed back against the back seat. The crash was hard enough that the airbag went off in the driver’s face, and he was slumped in his seat.
Other than the snow falling, everything around us was still. My head felt as though it was spinning. I blinked a few times in an attempt to clear my vision, but it was still fuzzy around the edges. When I tried to undo my seat belt to get to the driver, I discovered it was stuck. The driver hadn’t moved or said anything, and I was starting to freak out. I stretched out my arm to shake his shoulder as I asked, “Hey, are you okay?”
He didn’t answer, so I yanked on the buckle at my left hip and tried to disengage the lock. It didn’t accomplish much. The buckle didn’t budge, and the belt tightened over my body, biting into my shoulder and making me whimper in pain.
“Here, let me help.” My head jerked to the right, and I was stunned to see a man crouched down next to me. I had no idea where he came from, or how he’d opened the door without me hearing anything. I must have been more out of it than I’d realized because he was less than a foot away from me.
His piercing green eyes were locked onto my face, and it felt as though he could see straight into my soul. My heart started to race, pounding so hard I wouldn’t have been surprised if it had burst through my chest. It could have been because of the adrenaline rush from the accident, but it also might have been due to the fact that the man reaching for the buckle to release my seat belt was incredibly gorgeous. His dark hair and tanned skin were a stark contrast to the pale green of his eyes. Although he wasn’t standing, I could still tell he was tall, and his muscles strained against the sleeves of his winter coat.
“Wha—” My question turned into a gasp when he slid one arm around my back and the other under my upper thighs to tug me out of the car.
“It’s okay. I’ve got you,” he soothed, carrying me down the street toward the diner. His deep voice felt like a caress across my skin, sending shivers down my spine. My reaction to him was overwhelming and completely out of character for me. I’d never felt this kind of instant attraction to anyone else, and I wasn’t sure if it was somehow partly due to me being vulnerable after the accident. As ridiculous as it sounded, maybe slamming into that pole had made me more open to being attracted to a man. I didn’t know how else to explain it when I’d never been drawn to a man like this before.
I leaned my head against his shoulder and breathed deep, his masculine scent filling my lungs. There was a hint of pine, which made me think he smelled like Christmas—only better because it was mixed with something purely masculine that sent my already befuddled senses reeling. I was acting so out of character; I was starting to wonder if I’d hit my head during the crash or something.
The man strode past the diner and shifted his hold on me to open the door of a big, black truck parked a few stores down. He’d carried me all that way without breaking a sweat, and I was awed by his strength.
He was incredibly gentle as he placed me on the seat and leaned close. He scanned my face and body, his green eyes filling with concern as he asked, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I think I’ll be fine.” I lifted my arm to touch my right shoulder, pretty sure it had been badly bruised by the seat belt. I quickly regretted the action, and when I cringed in pain, he wrapped his fingers around my wrist and lowered my arm to my lap.
“Let me check that for you,” he offered, his thumb stroking the inside of my wrist.