Read Online Her New Worst Enemy by Christy McKellen - Free Book Online

but settled for nodding
     instead.
    He opened the door and swung himself out, peering through the windscreen at the man
     behind the wheel of the car that had nearly hit them. He looked as shocked as Gideon
     felt.
    He walked round to the driver’s door on shaky legs and knocked gently on the window.
     The guy buzzed it down and stared up at Gideon with a startled expression.
    “You okay, mate?” Gideon asked.
    “Yeah,” the guy said, rubbing a hand over his face as if trying to wake himself up
     from a bad dream.
    “That was a close one.”
    The guy just nodded.
    Gideon looked around for the boy, but he’d already legged it, probably terrified someone
     was going to bawl him out for being such an idiot.
    “Maybe you should pull over for a bit. Get a bit of air before you drive again,” Gideon
     suggested to the man who was now staring into space.
    “I didn’t see him, he ran out in front of me.”
    “I know. It wasn’t your fault.”
    The guy nodded his head again at length, as if trying to convince himself what Gideon
     had said was true.
    One of the cars that had stopped behind Gideon’s tooted his horn, impatient to get
     going.
    “Prick,” Gideon muttered under his breath. He turned back to the guy in the car. “Let’s
     get the cars moved, then I can sit with you for a while if you like, until you feel
     a bit better.”
    “No,” the man’s voice came back at him with conviction. “I’m okay. You go, I only
     live round the corner. Thanks though.”
    “No problem,” Gideon said, reaching into his back pocket for his wallet and extracting
     a business card. “My details, in case you need a witness statement for insurance.”
    “Thanks,” the guy said, taking the card with shaking fingers.
    Gideon stood up and tapped the top of the car, before walking back to where Ellie
     was waiting for him.
    He slid into the driver’s seat and turned to face her. The color had returned to her
     cheeks and her eyes looked normal again, if a little tired. He had an overwhelming
     urge to pull her against him, but he fought it. If he touched her right now, he didn’t
     know where it would end.
    “Is everyone okay?” she asked, putting a hand on his arm.
    His nerves exploded with feeling where she touched him and he gritted his teeth, steeling
     himself against it before answering her.
    “Yeah. The kid ran off, and the guy in the car said he was all right.”
    They both turned to watch as the car that had almost smashed into them was driven
     a few yards down the road and re-parked so the traffic they’d held up could get by.
    “Let’s get back to the house,” Gideon said, starting the engine and ramming the car
     into gear.
    His body hummed and euphoria engulfed him as he drove them the two miles back to the
     house. He was aware of Ellie fidgeting beside him and he longed to pull over and hold
     her to him. To reassure her.
    The thought of what could have been was trying to push itself into his head, but he
     forced it away, unwilling to dwell on it. There was already enough real loss to deal
     with without him adding imaginary scenarios to the mix.
    He couldn’t bear to think of Ellie being hurt. Especially in his care. His heart beat
     like a tribal drum in his chest and he took some deep breaths to try to calm it down.
    As he pulled into the driveway and switched off the engine, the world became silent
     around them. His twitchiness was even more acute in the stillness of the car. He needed
     to do something to get rid of this crazy energy that surged through his body. Maybe
     he should go for another run. No. He didn’t want to leave Ellie alone. He’d get her
     back into the house and make sure she was okay before he did that.
    “Come on. Let’s get the kettle on.” He got out of the car and walked round to open
     her door for her. She looked up at him with an odd expression in her eyes.
    “Since when did you become such a gentleman?” Her voice was still slightly husky and
     the sound of