lose a hand if they tried to take it from her.
A loud ‘thud’ echoed between the buildings. Kyndel stumbled to a stop. She looked and listened. The longer she thought about what she’d heard, the easier it was for her to convince herself someone had yelled for help. So, for the second time in about as many minutes, she searched the inky shadows for signs of life. Her anxiety level quadrupled the longer she stood still. She wanted to scream when only the sound of leaves rustling across the sidewalk and the occasional car passing by reached her ears.
Disgusted, she grumbled aloud, “You’ve gone bonkers, Kyn.” The sound of her own voice somehow calmed her rankled nerves and she added, “Get to stepping, girlie.”
The clicking of her heels bounced off the brick wall of the library as she hurried past. Resuming her original mantra, she added Must kill Grace at the end for good measure.
“I swear when I get my hands on…”
Her words were cut short as the unmistakable sound of a man groaning came from the shadows.
A chill skittered down her spine.
Goose bumps covered her arms.
She counted to three, unable to move…simply listening…praying it was only her imagination. One deep breath later, she slid her right foot forward, prepared to make a beeline for home at a high rate of speed.
The groan came again. Closer than before. More desperate…almost pleading.
The need to help the injured grew within her. Turning towards the darkness, Kyndel searched for the source of the noise.
Shaking so much her teeth chattered, she looked for any sign of the man she knew needed her help.
“It’s time to make a decision, Kyndel. Fight or flight. What’s it gonna be? God knows standing like a bump on a log isn’t solving a damn thing.”
Flight won. She turned, almost running, her satchel clutched tightly to her side like a lifeline.
“Keep your head up and eyes front. Home’s only a few blocks away,” she reassured herself, with the promise of snatching her best friend bald for the stupid mess she was in.
Feeling guilty and worried for Grace, her heart at war with her brain, Kyndel thought aloud, “Hope everything’s okay…”
Grace had always been a little scatter-brained, but she’d never just forgotten Kyndel before. It bothered her that there’d been no answer at Grace’s office or on her cellphone when Kyndel had tried to track her down before leaving the office. She’d even taken a chance and tried her own home because Grace had a key, but only got voicemail there, too. It was a war between anger and worry that accompanied most of her thoughts about her friend lately.
The running joke was that Grace spent most of her time hooking up with eligible bachelors she met at work. The good Lord knew her bestie was gorgeous; five foot nine, long raven hair, blue eyes, and a curvy body without an extra ounce of fat. To top it off, she was a first-year lawyer, with a promising career. Grace had it all…brains and beauty, the total package.
Giggling nervously, she gave herself a mental swat to the back of the head. She didn’t want anything bad to happen to Grace, just a bump or bruise, even a hangnail would explain being left. If she really had just forgotten, Kyndel was going to be pissed and more than a little hurt.
The shadows seemed to be closing in. Fear pushed Kyndel until she was almost jogging in her sensible work heels. Looking over her shoulder, the toe of her shoe caught an uneven piece of concrete, and from one heartbeat to the next, she was falling forward. Arms flailing, mouth stretched wide in a wordless scream, the sidewalk racing toward her face, everything around her seemed to happen in slow motion. All she could think was that’s gonna leave a mark.
Bracing for impact, she squeezed her eyes tight and prayed…then nothing happened. Opening one eye, then the other, Kyndel found herself hanging above the sidewalk, looking at a pair of the biggest feet she had ever seen—and they were sexy.
Sexy feet? I really am losing it. Wait! Why the hell am I above the concrete?
Warmth radiated from the perfectly muscled arm wrapped around her midsection. Goose bumps emanated from the extra-large hand holding firmly to her blouse, just a little too close to her breast.
She wiggled to change position, the cushion of her well-rounded ass finding the ridges of an incredibly hard set of abs. She trembled. Her heart raced. Just the thought of