Clear as GlassWinner of Five Romance Writers of America Contests
Lynn Kellan
CLEAR AS GLASS
Winner of five Romance Writer of America Chapter Contests
Finalist in the 2015 Book Buyers Best Contest
Written by Lynn Kellan
Published by Lynn Kellan
Copyright 2019 by Lynn Kellan
ISBN: 978-0-9977448-6-6
All rights reserved.
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, stored, or transmitted without the permission of the author. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. To obtain permission to excerpt portions of the text, please contact the author via her website at www.LynnKellan.com.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents have come from the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons is completely coincidental.
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Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter One
A branch cracked, loud as a gunshot. Something big was near her car. Something menacing. Something heavy enough to snap a thick branch in two. Jaye Davis dropped the lug wrench and snatched her flashlight off the pavement, pointing the thin beam into the tangle of trees. A bear-like shape disappeared behind a gnarled oak.
Jaye’s heart collapsed to the size of a hummingbird, quivering in her chest. The only weapons within reach were her high heels, a sputtering flashlight, and a greasy car jack. She flicked a glance at the dark October sky. If there were any angels drumming their fingers on Heaven’s countertop, could they swoop down and help right now?
Dry leaves rustled and she aimed the light at a thorny shrub. The beam landed on a pair of round eyes and long ears.
A bunny.
Not quite an angel, but the little rabbit would keep her company while she dealt with a flat tire, a valley with no cell reception, a big something in the woods, a consulting job hundreds of miles from home, and a new client waiting for her to show up.
A disaster.
Help wasn’t on the way. No one seemed to live this far north in Pennsylvania. She was five miles from the tiny town of Shinglehouse, but she hadn’t spotted a shingle or a house anywhere in these wooded mountains. Just bunnies, bears, and the monsters in her mind.
The shadows behind the tree trunks shifted, stretching long fingers into the Allegheny National Forest. An engine’s menacing growl vibrated behind her, and she whirled toward the two-lane highway. Headlights approached, bright enough to hurt her eyes. Jaye shielded her gaze and took a step back. Her right heel pierced a layer of dry leaves and sank into soft earth.
A battered pickup materialized, parking in front of her car on the gravel shoulder. The engine rattled to a stop and the driver’s side door swung open.
A man stepped into the glare of her headlights. He was a little older than she, perhaps in his early thirties. His knit cap, red sweatshirt, and faded jeans were ordinary enough, but he had the broad shoulders and lean core of a linebacker. Something in the glint of his gaze looked smarterand kinderthan any of the football players she’d known.
“Looks like you’ve got a flat.” His oven-warm voice bounced off the bare maple limbs overhanging the road. “Anyone coming to help?”
“Nope, but I’m not alone.” She jabbed a shaky finger toward the woods. “There’s a bunny nearby. Maybe a bear, too.”
One blond brow arched, disappearing under the ribbed cuff of his hat. “Neither one can change a tire.”
“Guess I’m in trouble.” She tucked her wobbling fingers into a fist. This man was six feet taller and at least one-hundred-and-eighty pounds heavier than the average bunny. For him, removing a lug nut would be as easy as twisting a cap off a water bottle.
A shiver zinged down her spine. Should she trust him? Even though her prayer for help had been answered, she would’ve preferred a smaller, less-intimidating guardian angel—one with translucent wings and fairy dust. Not one who could crush a beer can with a careless squeeze of his big hand.
Overpowering her would be just as simple.
Cold wind cut through her wool skirt, slapping against her skin like she wore nothing at all. Jaye felt vulnerable and exposed, which was ironic. She’d fled to this remote part of the Appalachian Mountains to avoid those emotions, not put herself at the mercy of an imposing stranger.
The man reached into his truck and came toward her. Light from her headlights backlit him, masking his expression. Something dangled from his hand. A gun?
Jaye’s heart squirted in front of her lungs and banged against her ribcage. She pointed her flashlight in his direction but the beam fizzled and died.
The stranger kept coming, like a monster from the woods.
She swung the worthless flashlight and hit him below the belt. The jarring impact made the light flicker to life.
Whatever the man held dropped to the pavement with a loud, metallic clatter. He grunted and bent over.
“Don’t take another step.” She backed away, aiming the watery beam at the grimace twisting his mouth.
“Why’d you hit me?”
Some distant part of her brain registered that this man’s voice fell an octave after being clobbered in the groin. “I thought you were going to…”
His head notched up. “Going to what?”
“I have no idea.”
A puzzled frown crinkled his brow. “Why didn’t you ask?”
She kept the light pointed like it was the business end of a gun. “Because sex maniacs and murderers don’t tell people they’re sex maniacs and murderers until it’s too late.”
His eyes widened.
Even in the dim light, she could tell his irises were a dark, slate blue. Not a hint of depravity filtered into his steadfast gaze.
One big hand opened, palm out. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you. My fault. Not yours.” He
