Loving Drake by Pamela Ann Read Free Book Online Page A

the…Dani?” Instantly I get a tingling feeling that travels through my body, arousing me. My mood changes from cold to warm as I look at Dani Cooper’s pretty face. “What’s up, girl?” I stand up straight, taking my hands out of my pockets.
                  “Uh…Hey, Matt.” Dani looks distraught. I get a sense that this isn’t the time to flirt.
                  “Everything OK? Want me to walk you home?” I can’t tell what’s going on behind Dani’s big, sexy green eyes. She doesn’t have any makeup on, but I still can’t take my eyes away from her.
                  “Jus…just…come on. Trust me on this. Let’s…hide.” Dani’s voice starts to sound more urgent. She quickly and forcefully grabs my biceps, pulling me forward.
                  “Oh, shit. Run…Run…OK? Just run. Run! ” Dani tries to keep her voice low, but boy, she means business! As we run I catch a whiff of her. The sweet scent I always remembered on Dani is gone. She smells of a wet junkyard, like rust, moss, and mud. I snap back to reality, realizing this is not a joke! We hold each other’s hands tightly as we begin to pick up speed. I really want to know what the hell is going on. “Is someone following us?” I whisper to her, but she doesn’t respond. We keep running.
                  I have been mugged before. It was an awful experience, so I’m not about to let anything happen to Dani. I reach for my pocket knife. It’s always in my right pocket, next to my cell phone.
                  Someone bangs against the mailbox behind us. I feel a knot in my throat as my adrenaline kicks in. My heart starts to race and pounds in my chest. We sprint as fast as we can, our hands clutched together. Dani keeps looking back and forth, making sure we aren’t being followed. She then looks at me with a sly half smile. Only the left side of her lip stretches, revealing little teeth. I recall that used to turn me on at school every time she walked past me…and it still does. My left shoe becomes untied. I clumsily trip over and fall. I totally feel stupid and awkward.
                  I look at Dani and she gives me a concerned look. She then continues to look back and to the sides. We both look at Bushing Park up ahead and nod in agreement.
                  There might be a place to hide there. “Let’s chill in Bushing for a bit,” I suggest, breathing heavily.
                  “OK, but you have to listen to me, please! This thing wants to kill you!” Dani blurts out hastily.
                  “ What ! Are you serious?” I stop on a dime. “Dani, what the hell? What’s going on?” I smoked a little pot earlier, but my high is wearing off. My cloudy mind becomes alert. I finally notice Dani’s clothes looking stained, distressed, and shambled. A light goes off in my head. Shit , I realize. Dani is in some serious trouble, and so am I. Dammit . What the hell am I going to do?
                  I should’ve taken that self-defense class that I’ve been meaning to for some time now. I can’t even protect myself. How am I going to protect her? Dammit . I can’t stop cursing at myself. We continue to run side by side, staying low and trying not to make any noise.
                  Dani, noticing I’m out of breath, starts to slow down, coming to a halt under a tree. I’m badly in need of a break from all the running. How the heck does this girl have so much stamina and energy? She’s hardly tired.
                  “Matt, there’s this thing; it’s coming for you because you are human!” she says as she grabs my arm tighter, ready to take off again.
                  “What! Because I’m human…What the hell are you then?” I barely deliver those words as I exhale heavily. This is absurd. She must be high or something! I throw Dani’s grip away and point