White Out: A Thriller (Badlands Thriller)
Page 32
“We’re not?” she asked.
“No,” he said. “After all, our first kiss was almost twelve years ago.”
She smiled at him. “Always the pragmatist.”
An engine roared in the distance, and Cal rose on stiff hips and began to bark. She turned to see Iver’s truck pull to the curb. Something hot rolled around in her chest as he climbed out of the cab. He walked toward her, a sideways smile on his lips, and leaned down to pat Cal’s head.
Lily rose and brushed her dirty hands across her jeans. “How was your meeting?”
His lips broke into a smile, and he pulled a shiny gold coin from his pocket, settling it into his palm. The outer edge read, To thine own self be true. In the center was a 3.
When she looked up, he was staring at her. His gaze held her, swept across her lips in the way that gave her a bump deep in her gut. She smiled up at him. “Iver?”
He nodded, leaning toward her.
“Ninety days,” she whispered.
“Three months,” he whispered back, his lips brushing hers. “We waited.”
She let out a nervous laugh. “That’s it?”
He shifted back, touching his nose to hers. “If you want it to be.”
She nodded slowly.
“You’re sure?” he asked, the words cracking in his throat.
“So sure,” she whispered.
And he leaned in and kissed her. She pressed her dirty palms to his cheeks and kissed him back, holding him against her. And then he lifted her up and carried her up the front porch steps into the house. He paused at the threshold and studied her face. “What are you thinking?” he whispered.
“That you’re a much better kisser than you were in the eighth grade.”
He dropped his head back and laughed, and she laughed, too. Then he whistled to Cal. As soon as Cal made his way slowly up the steps and into the house, Iver kicked the door closed and carried her toward the bedroom.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
I would not be pursuing this dream if it were not for you, the reader. It is only fitting, then, that my first gratitude goes to you. Thank you for reading this book, for following me to the tiny town of Hagen, North Dakota, and following Lily and Iver in their adventure. While we’re at it, thank you for every book you’ve ever read. It is the greatest gift you can give an author.
Next, my sincere respect and gratitude go to the men and women who devote their lives to the pursuit of justice. As an author, I aim for a realistic portrayal of crimes and their investigation, but I certainly don’t always get it right. Any errors and poetic license are my responsibility entirely.
For research, I am, as always, indebted to the people at the San Francisco Police Department, who have been answering strange questions since book one. Dr. Craig Nelson, associate chief medical examiner, North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, has become absolutely invaluable in an accurate portrayal of death and death investigation—or as accurately as the story will allow. Thank you, Dr. Nelson.
The team at Jane Rotrosen Agency continues to blow me away. I am so lucky to call myself one of their authors. Thank you to all and especially to Meg Ruley, Rebecca Scherer, Michael Conway, Sabrina Prestia, and Hannah Rody-Wright. Thank you also to my fabulous editor, Jessica Tribble; to Sarah Shaw, who makes sure we’re always having fun (we are!), and the incredible team at Thomas & Mercer; to Leslie Lutz for bringing out the best in the book; to Riam Griswold and Rachel Norfleet for the thorough edit; and to Shasti O’Leary Soudant for the fabulous cover art.
I am hugely grateful to those who support the process of writing a book and especially to fellow authors J. T. Ellison, D. J. Palmer, Barbara Nickless, Jason Backlund, Randle Bitnar, and Shawnee Spitler and to the eagle-eyed proofreaders: Albee Willett, Christy Delger, Dani Wanderer, and Whitney Pritham.
Finally, I’m grateful to my family for supporting this crazy dream from the early days. Above all, this book is for the ones who make my life complete: Chris, Claire, and Jack. Because of you three, I am the luckiest lady in the world.
If you enjoyed this book, please leave a review on Goodreads, Bookbub, Amazon, and the like so that others might discover White Out as well.
Sincerely,
Danielle
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo © 2018 Mallory Regan, 40 Watt Photo
Danielle Girard is the USA Today and Amazon #1 bestselling author of Chasing Darkness, the Rookie Club series, and the Dr. Schwartzman series—Exhume, Excise, Expose, and Expire, featuring San Francisco medical examiner Dr. Annabelle Schwartzman. Danielle’s books have won the Barry Award and the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award, and two of her titles have been optioned for movies. A graduate of Cornell University, Danielle received her MFA at Queens University in Charlotte, North Carolina. She, her husband, and their two children split their time between San Francisco and the Northern Rockies. Visit her at www.daniellegirard.com.