by Katie Cross
I silently toasted Jim’s sentencing, which we celebrated in addition to the finalization of the girls becoming my legal dependents. May he rot in prison for decades, I thought to myself. Maverick and I would toast to that later, when the girls weren’t around.
“To—”
A motorcycle revved its engine in the parking lot. I rolled my eyes. What idiot drove a motorcycle in the middle of winter, anyway?
“Do they not see the closed sign?” I muttered, glancing out the new windows.
Then my blood turned cold.
A twentysomething guy with dark hair pulled to a stop just outside. Maverick’s younger brother, Benjamin. I’d met him twice now. He threw his legs off a very familiar motorcycle. I straightened.
“Is he . . .”
Maverick grinned as he took a sip of sparkling cider. “Yep.”
My feet propelled me forward several steps. “That’s a . . .”
“Yep.”
Lizbeth, Ellie, and Devin flanked me at the window as Benjamin pulled his helmet off and set it on the bike. His shoulder-length hair shifted in the wind as he strode toward us. Benjamin had never been charming like Maverick. He was more intense. Brooding. His budding career as a jiu-jitsu fighter meant he stalked instead of walked. Still, he’d been the warmest person in Maverick’s family so far.
Meeting Mallory loomed on the horizon, but I felt no fear.
All words fled my mouth when Benjamin peered into the coffee shop. A half-smile tugged at his face when he saw me pressed against the glass like a two-year-old.
“Maverick,” I whispered.
“Yes?” he drawled from right behind me.
“That’s not just any Indian Boulevard motorcycle.”
“Nope.”
I turned around to ask how he’d found my bike. Dad’s bike. The exact bike I had sold to a total stranger months ago. And Maverick was kneeling on his left leg, a familiar blue box in hand. A squeak peeped out of me when I recognized the unique color.
That was a Tiffany’s box.
Lizbeth, Ellie, and Devin stood behind him now, grinning from ear to ear. Maverick smiled. The certainty and depth in his eyes made my heart hum.
“Mav?” I whispered.
“Bethany, will you be part of my team? Forever?”
The box opened onto a glittering collection of gems that trapped a gasp in my throat. Tears filled my eyes as I brushed past the box and put my hands on his face.
“You found my dad’s bike.”
His grin widened. “Yes. I hired someone to track down the owner, and I made an exorbitant offer. He sold pretty quick. Did you see this box?”
“Yes. But the bike—”
He tilted his head back and laughed. Then he leaned closer, gaze narrowed. “Are you going to say yes or no?”
“Yes!”
“To be clear, is that a yes to the bike or a yes to the ring?”
“To both,” I cried, laughing. “Yes, Maverick! I want to be a part of your team forever.”
He stood, scooping me up in his arms, and laid a kiss on me that sent tingles all the way through my toes. I laughed against his lips, deliriously happy as Benjamin opened the door, admitting a cool brush of wind across the back of my neck.
“She say ‘yes’?” Benjamin asked.
“You bet she did,” said Lizbeth.
Maverick ended our kiss an hour too early when Devin and Ellie made fake gagging sounds. I smiled, enjoying the warm flow of his breath on my cheeks.
“I love you, Mav.”
“Not half as much as I love you.”
“Sure you want to commit to this?” I asked, glancing around the shop.
“I’ve never wanted anything more.”
“Great!” Shoving away from Maverick, I whirled around and skipped outside, snatching the keys from Benjamin. “Now get me on that bike already!”
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Acknowledgments
Lovesick
Hey there! If you are wanting more, you’re in luck. Here is a preview of the next book in “The Coffee Shop Series,” Lovesick.
Lovesick
Chapter 1
My knuckles turned white as I gripped the steering wheel of my little Honda, a silent mantra in my head.
I won't slide off the canyon road. I won't plunge into the icy river below. I won't die tonight. I won't slide off the canyon road . . .
"Don't be so dramatic, Lizbeth," I muttered to myself. "This is fine. Everything is fine. I'm not panicked. Nope." My voice broke as another gust of wind slammed snow flurries into my window. "Not at all!"
Hearing my voice offered no consolation.
Snow pelted my windshield like a vortex of flying white icicles, obscuring my view. Only the illumination of my headlights existed in the darkness.
I'd never felt so alone.
The soft scent of plumeria lingered in the car. My head still world with visions of a bridal dress, bubbling flutes of champagne, and so many flowers I had a headache. But still, the thought of my college roommate Kayla's wide smile, her adorable partner, made it all worthwhile. Both brides looked ridiculously happy tonight.
A wad of cash crinkled in the cup holder of my ancient Civic. We'd managed a brilliant game of poker before calling it a night, and I'd swept in the cash. Maverick had been more than a father figure to me—he'd taught me all the gambling I'd ever need to know.
Despite the unexpected acquisition of $100, every muscle in my body tensed. Although I crept along at 25 miles an hour, I felt as if I wasn’t moving at all in the snow vortex. Bethany was going to kill me when she found out I didn’t have the winter tires put on my car.
But really, who expected an early October blizzard.
Not this girl.
The sub zero temperature outside left a delicate swirl of frost along the edges of my windows, despite the defrost kicked to maximum. All the happy vibes from the bachelorette party faded when my front tire skidded on a patch of black ice.
The car jerked to the right, then back. I clamped my mouth shut and gripped the steering wheel. My heart dropped through my stomach as I let off the gas. The car slid around to the front and whipped me around.
By sheer willpower, I managed not to scream as I pumped the brakes and tried to counter turn the steering wheel.
But the Honda headed right for a break in the trees on my left—the only barrier to the frothing river one hundred yards below.
Only a single second passed when I comprehended that my car, if kept on this trajectory, would plunge between the trees and right into the canyon. The fresh snow, frozen over on top, wouldn't slow me down enough.
What waited on the other side of those trees wasn't going to be pretty. Plenty of people met their deaths on this winding canyon road before.
A cold burst of terror shot through my body when the trees passed me on either side. As if my car were possessed, it headed down hill. I stomped on my brakes, but the tires skidded past anyway.
My front bumper collided with a rock with a sickening crunch. A pop rang in my ears as the air bag deployed, flipping my car onto its side.
Then I screamed.
Half in a daze from the airbag, I barely registered the car flipping onto it's its hood, then back on the passenger side. It remained there for a moment, then two. I looked down at the ground. My body weight would tip us back onto the wheels, surely.
A gust of wind shook me. Carried with the momentum of downhill gravity, the car rocked, but didn't drop yet.
I held my breath.
Just out the window, I could see snatches of white in the canyon. The car stood on its side, nearly on the edge of a slippery slope of snowy rocks and shale. Below, thousands of gallons of water streamed by in white, freezing rapids. A thousand thoughts whirled in the back of my mind, settling into one snowy focus.
I could not
fall with the car.
And this car was going to fall.
Snow pelted the cracked windshield. A burst of cold wind brushed across my face—until I realized the whistling sound wasn’t the wind, but my frantic breaths. One wrong move too big and this car would plummet into the icy depths, taking me with it.
“Okay,” I whispered. “I have to remain calm.”
Could anyone have noticed from the road? Not likely, but I flashed the brights just in case. There was a mild chance someone would see my brake lights, but how likely was that? Almost not at all. I hadn’t seen any other cars while driving. Panic filled me like a hot tea kettle, all billowing and encompassing.
Bethany would never know what happened. Ellie would always wonder. How long would it take them to find my car in the river?
I let out a little cry and the car moaned.
I froze.
If I so much as moved, my Honda would land back on the tires. The steep mountainside would take me right into the water.
The snow continued to drop, thick and gauzy. An icy chill snaked into the car. My breaths came in frantic gasps. Fractured glass, like a spiderweb, marred the windshield. The smoking steering wheel. Something in the back of my mind told me I was in shock.
The car groaned, inching closer to the ground.
It didn’t matter anymore. Whether or not I moved, this car was going down. If I wanted to live, I had to move.
“Think, Lizbeth,” I murmured. “Think this through.”
But I couldn’t. No matter how hard I squeezed my eyes shut, they popped back open, fixated on the icy depths below.
Smoke-filled the interior of the car as I pawed the airbag out of my face with a whimper. With a quick intake of breath, I jammed my hand into the seat belt. It stuck one. Twice. With a guttural cry of desperation, I hit it again. It loosened, hissing as it retracted. The movement nudged the car. It slammed onto the tires.
Frantic, I shoved at the jammed door with my shoulders just as the wheels started to roll. With a cry, I tried again. Nothing. Blood streaked through my body in a whirl. It thundered in my ears. A scream gathered in my throat, rushing out in a wild shriek.
I rolled the window down. The ground moved beneath me.
“Help! Please!”
Throwing my upper body out the window, I scrambled to get through as the rolling wheels gained momentum. The churn of the river strengthened, even with the wind in my ears. My legs didn’t follow.
The seat belt!
I kicked my foot, trapped around the seat belt, in sheer panic. Rocks slipped beneath the front tires as it crested the edge of the cliff face. I felt it slip, then shudder.
A hand gripped my arm.
With a grunt, someone yanked me free. My leg pulled free of the seatbelt and I slammed into a body. A willing pair of two strong arms dragged me away from the car as it careened over the edge. We landed on the ground with an oof.
The crash of the car slamming down the mountain side followed. It flew down the ravine to slam into a boulder the size of a store. Then it flipped head-over-heels and disappeared into the river with a wet crunch.
I blinked. My mind raced. How was I not in that car?
“You all right?”
A pair of bright olive eyes tucked into the hoodie of a parka peered at me. Broad shoulders and a strong hand were the only things keeping me from following my car down the ravine.
My breath caught—this time, I wasn’t sure I’d get it back. I knew those eyes. The sprinkling of stubble on a chiseled face. My stomach dropped all the way to the river.
“JJ?” I whispered.
He grabbed my shoulders. “Lizbeth, are you okay?”
What were the odds that he would have saved me? Him, of all people? He whom I had secretly loved from a distance since I was sixteen years old? Surely this was little more than a terribly real nightmare. I put a hand on my swimming head, realizing that it deeply ached.
Then everything went black.
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And thanks for being here. I’m honored to share my world with you.
Warmly, KC
Also by Katie Cross
The Health and Happiness Society
Bon Bons to Yoga Pants (Lexie)
I Am Girl Power (Megan)
You’ll Never Know (Rachelle)
Hear Me Roar (Bitsy)
What Was Lost (Mira)
The Health and Happiness Society Collection
The Health and Happiness Cookbook
Recipes from I Am Girl Power
Finding Anna
Coffee Shop Series
Coffee Shop Girl
Lovesick
Runaway
Wild Child
About the Author
Katie Cross grew up in the mountains of Idaho, where she still loves to play when she gets the chance.
If she’s not finding the nearest taco, she’s probably hiking in the Colorado mountains with her three vizslas (you read that right), two dogs, and hottie husband.
Her favorite food is everything. She’s a sucker for romance, though she seems like a toughie. And when it comes down to it, being present in the moment is her favorite thing to do.
To learn more about Katie, visit her website.