And then to make matters worse, the sleet started, quickly covering the roads with a slick and dangerous glaze that couldn't be seen with the naked eye. She was about to return to the inn when she decided to try one more road, hoping luck was finally with her.
But the road was sheathed with ice that she hadn't noticed until it was too late. A quick pump of the brakes sent her rental car spinning dizzyingly into the trees where it was currently lodged, leaving her dazed and shivering, wondering how she'd ever get out of there.
She'd then compounded her mistake by stepping out of the car to investigate the damage. Within seconds, she was completely drenched by the iciest rain and sleet she'd ever felt in her entire life, Scotland included. She slipped several times and would have fallen flat if she hadn't managed to grab the door handle.
Not your finest move, Frankie.
So here she sat, soaked to the bone with no way to dry off or warm up, out of gas, and with no food or water. To make matters worse, her need to pee was becoming urgent and her cellphone battery had died hours ago, not that the bloody thing had worked out here anyway.
Frankie’s gaze drifted to the paper map Ranger Brooks had given her. Draped across the passenger seat, it was streaked with mud and wilted with water stains.
As if that matters as I have no damned idea where I am, and I’m certainly not dressed to walk anywhere. This is officially a royal mess. Congratulations, Frankie. You've really outdone yourself with this one.
She sighed and shook her head.
How do I always get myself into these predicaments? It’s like I have a talent for it.
"I'm on a beach," she assured herself, trying to ward off the shivers. "It's a lovely tropical island with a warm breeze, and I'm sipping a delicious pina colada as the sun is warming my legs." She closed her eyes, visualizing her dream location. "I'm so warm and content here. I could just drift off to sleep."
Frankie could feel her body responding as her awareness began to float. "That's it. I'm warming up now…" Her voice tapered off, and she lost track of time as she drifted into unconsciousness.
She jolted, her eyes snapping open at a sudden bang to her left.
What the hell was that?
She wondered blankly if a tree limb was about to drop on top of her car. Her mind was so muddled and cloudy she couldn't do much more than stare out the windshield. She had no idea how long she had been stranded, and oddly she didn’t seem to care anymore. She smiled when a light danced along the tree line in front of her car.
Pretty…
She always loved holiday lights. She frowned, staring dazedly out the window.
Isn't it a tad early for that? Why do some people insist on pushing their holiday celebrations further and further out? And are holiday lights supposed to move like that?
Suddenly the light concentrated on her window and she shrank away from the brightness that was visible even through her eyelids.
"Wha—?" was all she got out before the driver's door was yanked open. Ice pellets carried by a fierce wind rushed in and she gasped, trying to shield herself from the weather.
"Frankie Evans?" a deep, velvety voice asked.
Her teeth chattered as she tried to nod. "Mmmhmmm…"
"Let's get you in the truck and warmed up." A deliciously rich, musky scent enveloped her as the man attached to the voice moved closer and scooped her up, one arm beneath her knees and the other under her back, as if she were light as a feather. "Lean into my chest. The sleet is getting worse and I don't want your eyes damaged." His face was hidden by the hood of his jacket, but every instinct in her body told her that this man was there to help her.
Frankie tried to hold on, but she was exhausted and her arms refused to obey any messages from her brain. Thankfully the mountain of a man didn't need her help.
She buried her face against his firm, broad chest as he swung her out of the car with little effort and placed her gently into the cab of his truck, where delectably warm air blasted from the vents. She moaned at the warmth and tried to reach for it, but her arms refused to obey the commands her brain sent.
Her rescuer leaned across her lap and grabbed a metallic blanket, tucking it around her. "Here. This will warm you up quick." He tucked it around her legs and torso, then buckled her into the seat. "I'll grab any bags you have in the car and be back here in a minute." The door closed and Frankie's eyelids saggeddown. The effort to stay alive had drained her and her body was trying desperately to absorb heat as quickly as possible.
"You're soaking wet." She must have drifted off for a second because her eyes popped open at her rescuer's resonant voice. "How did that happen? You didn't get out of your car, did you?" He climbed into the driver's seat and dropped her backpack onto the floorboard. He began to navigate his truck on the icy road.
"I c… crashed into the trees and wanted to see if I could g… get the car out and back on the road." She had to force the words out as her body clenched with tremors.
Her rescuer barked a rough laugh. "That car isn't going anywhere. It's wedged in there pretty good and will have to be towed out. The front end has a lot of damage."
"I know." Frankie ducked her face into the blanket, hiding the bloom of humiliation that flushed up her neck. More than anything, she hated feeling incompetent, and that was all she felt at the moment. If this man hadn't come along, her little adventure would have had a dark ending.
He maneuvered onto the main road, his truck holding steady on the insanely slick roads.
