A Taste of Summer by Beverly Preston

Author:Beverly Preston [Preston, Beverly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance
Published: 2015-07-19T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

‡

Carrie Ann hid beneath her covers, seeking refuge from the deafening cracks of lightning. Huddled on her side, she held one hand over her ear and the other over the pup’s, blocking out the rumble of thunder and high winds howling through the tall trees. Aspen panted, nudging Carrie Ann with her wet nose. Her hand trembled uncontrollably petting her head.

“It’s okay girl. It’s just a storm. It’s just lightning. It’ll be over soon.” She repeated the encouraging words attempting to bolster the tiniest amount of comfort for her and the dog.

Carrie Ann was already wide awake and hanging on every little noise when she heard Aspen’s nails clicking down the hallway in a fast trot. The puppy pushed open the door, scratching and whining at the edge of her bed. It took two whole seconds for Carrie Ann to snatch her by the belly and dive back under the blankets.

Carrie Ann suffered from an abnormal fear of lightning. Each time a bolt of electricity ripped through the heavens it brought back the terrible memory of the night her mother died. The image of her father’s large silhouette sitting at the edge of her bed in the darkness, still haunted her. His grief stricken face unrecognizable, disguised in ashen grey as a bolt of lightning broke through her window. Shadows of his mouth moved in slow motion delivering the horrible news that her mother wouldn’t be coming home. His promise…broken.

The California coastal fog had burned off early that Saturday morning. The calm before the storm delivered an unusually hot June day. The sun shined brightly, warming the top of her head as she played Barbie’s, watching her mom play tennis with a neighbor. Carrie Ann could never remember the precise moment her mother collapsed on the court. Her brain had blocked the horrific memory from her sub-conscious. However, she clearly remembered her father’s promise when he said that everything would be fine. He swore her mother would be okay. All the power her father fought so hard to earn wasn’t powerful enough to save her mother. His promise was broken. Nothing would ever be okay again.

A bright flash exploded in her room as another bolt of lightning crashed to the ground. Carrie Ann screeched out loud. Her feet hit the floor, pup in hand, rushing from her bedroom to the other side of the cabin.

“Summer?” she whispered thickly through the gap in the door. “Summer?”

Nothing had changed. The man could sleep through a tsunami warning. She eased the door open, swiftly tiptoeing across the room. He laid sprawled out on his back in the center of his bed. Silky white sheets draped to his waist. Dark shadows of the night hung in the dips and contours of his bare chest and abs. One arm rested at his side, the other thrown haphazardly above his head. Drinking in the stunning sight of him, she could hardly control her breathing. Her heart beat rapidly, the sound of it pulsed stridently in her ears.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.