Read Online Endless Night by Maureen A. Miller - Free Book Online
Authors: Maureen A. Miller
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His wet fingers wrapped around the shift knob as he wrenched the vehicle into First Gear and lightly tapped the gas.
Whirrrr.
With a curse, he inserted the clutch and yanked the stick into Reverse.
Sturdy tires that kept him safe on the icy Boston roads spun uselessly in the muddy trench. With quick prompts of his hand, Jake rocked the Jeep back and forth, but each tap on the gas resulted in the same effect.
Whirrrr.
He took a deep breath and felt a sliver of rain trapped in his collar slip and meander down his back like a frigid fingertip.
Son of a —
He jammed the stick into neutral, opened the door and stuck his boot out into the muck that seemed no less treacherous than quicksand. The Jeep had churned the mud, making it impossible to negotiate, and to make matters worse, the rain had picked up again.
Jake tried to glance up toward the house, but water trickled into his eyes, thwarting his efforts. Through his squint, he could only glimpse a shadowed outline of the cursed structure. He felt compelled to shake his fist at it.
Rounding the back of the vehicle, he splayed his palms across the rear bumper and hunkered down to heave it into motion. The Jeep bucked against the pressure, rolled an inch and then fell back into its rut.
Son of a—
Jake was soaked everywhere, making him more determined than ever to get out of this damned place. With renewed effort he leaned into the motion, shoulder and arm muscles screaming while his legs acted as anchors. Again the vehicle rolled forward, and again it staggered back into place.
Jake looked up into a sinister sky and appealed to an unseen force for help. It came in the form of two pale hands that grabbed the bumper and a soft, throaty voice that called out.
“Try it again.”
For a moment he just stared at Megan.
Only two seconds under the deluge and Megan’s dark hair was pasted to her cheeks, making her eyes even more solemn. Long, dark lashes blinked against the invasive drops as she nodded before bending down to the task at hand.
Jake smothered a grin at her determined stance. The woman broadcasted conviction when it came to getting him out of the house. His grin faltered at the sight of Megan’s drenched jeans which sculpted her bottom way too intimately.
More determined than ever, Jake shouted, “One, two, three!” and shoved with all his might.
In his periphery he could see Megan’s strained expression, and he felt the vehicle start to pitch forward. Just as quickly, it rolled back into place and Jake instinctively reached for Megan to draw her out of its path.
“One more time,” she shouted.
Wow. She must really want him out of here.
In unison they stooped and, on a silent command, thrust for all they were worth. Jake felt the strain down the length of his body as his toes sought a solid groove in the mucky surface. His thigh muscles panged with the effort, but miraculously the vehicle budged.
Caught up in the momentum, Megan cried out, “It’s moving!”
They doubled their efforts, their bodies stretched past the point of balance.
Disaster happened fast.
The Jeep found stability and rolled lazily forward, but the motion was so unexpected that Jake and Megan landed with an inelegant splat in the mud.
Megan came up sputtering first, while Jake slumped in the puddle, watching in contempt as the vehicle rolled several feet and then halted, bogged down in the mire.
Son of a—
“Son of a bitch.” Megan dragged her fingers through her hair and snapped her wrist to shake off the mud. Narrowed eyes stared at the rear end of the Jeep, and from what he could read of her full lips, she was coming up with some nasty adjectives for his four-wheeler.
“My sentiments too.” He got to his knees and tried to step up, but his boot slid, nearly tearing an Achilles. “Crap!”
“Are you okay?” On all fours, Megan found more stability in a crawl.
Rain beat down on them with uncanny precision—directly into their eyes. Jake could barely see
Whirrrr.
With a curse, he inserted the clutch and yanked the stick into Reverse.
Sturdy tires that kept him safe on the icy Boston roads spun uselessly in the muddy trench. With quick prompts of his hand, Jake rocked the Jeep back and forth, but each tap on the gas resulted in the same effect.
Whirrrr.
He took a deep breath and felt a sliver of rain trapped in his collar slip and meander down his back like a frigid fingertip.
Son of a —
He jammed the stick into neutral, opened the door and stuck his boot out into the muck that seemed no less treacherous than quicksand. The Jeep had churned the mud, making it impossible to negotiate, and to make matters worse, the rain had picked up again.
Jake tried to glance up toward the house, but water trickled into his eyes, thwarting his efforts. Through his squint, he could only glimpse a shadowed outline of the cursed structure. He felt compelled to shake his fist at it.
Rounding the back of the vehicle, he splayed his palms across the rear bumper and hunkered down to heave it into motion. The Jeep bucked against the pressure, rolled an inch and then fell back into its rut.
Son of a—
Jake was soaked everywhere, making him more determined than ever to get out of this damned place. With renewed effort he leaned into the motion, shoulder and arm muscles screaming while his legs acted as anchors. Again the vehicle rolled forward, and again it staggered back into place.
Jake looked up into a sinister sky and appealed to an unseen force for help. It came in the form of two pale hands that grabbed the bumper and a soft, throaty voice that called out.
“Try it again.”
For a moment he just stared at Megan.
Only two seconds under the deluge and Megan’s dark hair was pasted to her cheeks, making her eyes even more solemn. Long, dark lashes blinked against the invasive drops as she nodded before bending down to the task at hand.
Jake smothered a grin at her determined stance. The woman broadcasted conviction when it came to getting him out of the house. His grin faltered at the sight of Megan’s drenched jeans which sculpted her bottom way too intimately.
More determined than ever, Jake shouted, “One, two, three!” and shoved with all his might.
In his periphery he could see Megan’s strained expression, and he felt the vehicle start to pitch forward. Just as quickly, it rolled back into place and Jake instinctively reached for Megan to draw her out of its path.
“One more time,” she shouted.
Wow. She must really want him out of here.
In unison they stooped and, on a silent command, thrust for all they were worth. Jake felt the strain down the length of his body as his toes sought a solid groove in the mucky surface. His thigh muscles panged with the effort, but miraculously the vehicle budged.
Caught up in the momentum, Megan cried out, “It’s moving!”
They doubled their efforts, their bodies stretched past the point of balance.
Disaster happened fast.
The Jeep found stability and rolled lazily forward, but the motion was so unexpected that Jake and Megan landed with an inelegant splat in the mud.
Megan came up sputtering first, while Jake slumped in the puddle, watching in contempt as the vehicle rolled several feet and then halted, bogged down in the mire.
Son of a—
“Son of a bitch.” Megan dragged her fingers through her hair and snapped her wrist to shake off the mud. Narrowed eyes stared at the rear end of the Jeep, and from what he could read of her full lips, she was coming up with some nasty adjectives for his four-wheeler.
“My sentiments too.” He got to his knees and tried to step up, but his boot slid, nearly tearing an Achilles. “Crap!”
“Are you okay?” On all fours, Megan found more stability in a crawl.
Rain beat down on them with uncanny precision—directly into their eyes. Jake could barely see
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