Fight for Her by Kelly Favor Read Free Book Online Page A

the car wasn’t moving. It sounded like the front of the car might have been pushed into the wheel well.
    “Dammit!” She shrieked, smacking her palms on the steering wheel five or six times. “What the hell is wrong with me?” She was crying harder now. It was all self-pity, and shameful, and it made everything worse.
    Why couldn’t she have driven carefully and started speeding once she’d gotten to the main road? Why did she have to crash here of all places?
    Moments later, her worst fears were realized, as Gunner came running down the narrow road, looking anxiously at her car. She could see him in her rearview mirror, but she didn’t get out.
    He approached the driver’s side door. “Krista, are you okay?” he called out.
    She didn’t answer. She was still crying and she didn’t want to talk to him, didn’t want him to yell at her and call her an idiot, a reckless driver. Whatever other things he was going to say—she didn’t want to hear them.
    “Krista, open up.” He tried the door but it was locked. “Krista, open this car or I’m going to break a window and come in.”
    She rolled her window down. “Just call the police,” she said. “I’ll wait here until they come.”
    “The police? In this town?” he said. “It’s one guy, Denny Harbacker. They call him Dumbass Denny behind his back and sometimes to his face.”
    “I don’t care,” she said, not looking at him.
    “Listen, I need to know if you’re hurt.”
    “I’m fine.” She wiped her eyes and sniffed. “Please, just leave me alone. I’ll walk down the hill. I don’t care.”
    “I’m not letting you walk down the mountain by yourself. Don’t be ridiculous.”
    “Leave me alone, Gunner!” she shouted.
    She fully expected him to say screw it and walk away. But he didn’t. When she looked up again, Gunner was still standing there by her door. His eyes weren’t angry or harsh or judgmental, just concerned.
    “Come on,” he said softly. “Get out of this car and let me bring you inside.”
    Krista realized that Gunner was right. It was ridiculous for her to sit inside a car that wasn’t capable of being driven anywhere, acting like baby. So she opened her door and got slowly out of the car, grabbing her purse, wincing a little as she did so.
    “What is it?” he asked, alarm in his voice. “What hurts?”
    “It’s nothing,” she told him, shaking her head. “My neck’s a little bit stiff. It’s fine, though.”
    “Come on, we need to get some ice on it right away.” He put one hand on her lower back and the other around her shoulder, slowly guiding her away from the car. She was surprised at the gentleness of his touch.
    For a man as big and powerful as he was, Gunner’s hands were sensitive, holding her just tightly enough, but not exerting undue pressure.
    Her body was tingling and warm as she realized how close they were, and Gunner still didn’t have his shirt on. She glanced to the side, as his chest and ribcage brushed against her back while they walked together.
    They walked in silence for a bit. “You were flying down that road like a bat out of hell,” he said, breaking the silence.
    “I know I shouldn’t have driven so fast,” she admitted, “but I was upset.”
    They got to the clearing by the cabin, and he finally released her, and as his hands withdrew, Krista felt a sense of loss. She wished he would touch her like that again. It was as though she could still feel the heat from his hands on her body, the safety of it, the caring way he’d held her.
    Gunner opened the door to the cabin. “Come inside and sit down. I’m going to get an ice pack together and then call my buddy to come and tow your car.”
    “You think it needs to be towed?” she asked.
    He laughed. “I’m pretty sure of it,” he said.
    “It’s a rental,” she told him.
    “Don’t worry about that now. Just come inside.”
    The cabin was small, but homier than she expected. There was a wood burning stove, a medium