Wow! Grateful much?Then again, she was alone, probably shook up, and he outweighed her by at least seventy pounds. Little did she know she was as safe with him as she would be with a nun. No, safer. He could protect her better than a nun—not that he’d need to.
He jumped into the passenger seat, nearly smashing his knees against the dashboard. What the hell had he done to piss off the universe today?
Beside him, she slid off her hood, revealing a tangle of thick honey-blond hair. Fresh scrubbed, she looked younger than he’d first guessed. She reminded him of one of the 4-H kids from high school.
“I’m Noah Hunnicutt. Thanks for the ride.”
“Thanks for not hitting me,” she squeaked. “And for helping me catch Rover.”
“Rover?”
The animal whimpered from the cargo area.
She shook her head. “A placeholder name. I didn’t want to just call him ‘Dog.’”
“And so I don’t have to just call you ‘Girl,’ do you have a different name you’d like me to use, placeholder or otherwise?”
Pleats formed between her caramel brows. “I’m older than I look.”
“Sorry. Can I call you something besides ‘Woman’?”
“Hailey. My name’s Hailey Bailey.”
“Hailey Bailey,” he repeated, trying not to sputter with a laugh.
“My dad thought it was funny,” she groused. “My sister is Kaylee.” She turned the key, and the vehicle seemed to cough. She pumped the gas pedal and twisted the key again. No cough this time, but a supremely pathetic wheeze that died out. “Oh no, oh no, oh no! Donotgo Friday the 13th on me!”
“Friday the 13th?” Was she expecting Jason Voorhees to spring from the trees and murder them?
“Yes,” she growled and cranked again. The starter gave up after two whirring noises. She threw her head against the backrest. “I was referring to bad luck.”
He schooled his rising dismay. “Can I try?”
“Be my guest.” She snatched the key from the ignition, only handing it to him once they’d swapped places. This girl was taking no chances he might steal her car, though he could have easily tossed her out and stolen it anyway … if he could get it to run.
After several unsuccessful attempts to get the SUV running, he wrestled his phone from his pocket.
She pointed at his device. “There’s no cell service.”
“Maybe not for you.” He poked at Micky’s number and waited. Nothing. He tried again, twice, with no luck. “Apparently not for me either.”
He dialed Charlie’s number and held his breath. Two silent beats passed, and the phone finally rang. His brother picked up on the third ring. “Yo, bro. What’s up?”
“I’m stuck at the top of Coal Bank Pass with two flat tires.”
“How the hell did you—”
“Never mind how it happened. I tried calling Micky, but it didn’t go through. Can one of you come haul my ass out?” He darted a look toward Hailey, who sat as rigid as her car, staring at the snow-crusted windshield.
“Not anytime soon. I’m stranded in Grand Junction. This blizzard is wreaking all kinds of havoc. I just heard on the radio that CDOT is closing a bunch of roads.”
“Well, shit! Can you call Micky?”
“In case he’s sitting on his ass,notpulling other wrecks off the road?”
Noah deflated. “He knows other tow operators. Maybe one of them can help.”
“I’ll give him a shout as soon as we hang up. I’ll call Reece too. You okay otherwise?”
