Read Online The Gathering Dark by Christine Johnson - Free Book Online

intensity sent a shiver through her. He didn’t seem cocky anymore, and there was an edge in his demeanor that she hadn’t seen before. She licked her lips, weighing her response. In her bag, her phone began to ring. The ridiculous ringtone broke the tension in the car.
    “I bet that’s my mom.” She bent and wrenched open the front pocket of her bag, digging frantically until she came up with her phone. Keira had never been so grateful for a distraction—even if it did mean dealing with a thousand questions from her panicked mother.

Chapter Nine
    “K EIRA?! I JUST GOT your message.” Her mother sounded frantic. Keira could hear the slip-slosh noise of papers being thrown into desk drawers. “What happened? Where are you? I’m coming right now.”
    “Mom, calm down. I’m fine. I called the insurance company and a tow truck, and Walker’s driving me home. The car . . . ” She hesitated, seeing the damage in her mind’s eye. “The car’s pretty bad.”
    “I don’t care one whit about that old car, as long as you’re not hurt. And who on earth is Walker?” Her mother demanded. “I haven’t heard that name before.”
    “He’s just a friend, Mom. From the music store.”
    Walker shot her a sly look when she said the word “friend.” The way his lips quirked up at the corners said that he had every intention of making a liar out of her, but then his face darkened. He cracked his neck uncomfortably.
    Keira watched him out of the corner of her eye. “We were having coffee before the guy ran into me. Walker stayed to help.”
    Her mom made a skeptical noise. She always made little “oh, it’s too bad you’re not going to the dance with all of your friends” comments when homecoming and the winter ball rolled around, but Keira knew that her mom was secretly relieved that she didn’t date. It was one less thing to worry about.
    “Well, I’d like to meet him. I need to thank him, anyway. I can’t believe I wasn’t available when you called. The one time I had to take shorthand all week, and this happens. And where is your father? Did you try him at work?”
    “I did, but it went straight to voice mail.”
    “Oh, nice,” her mom snarked.
    Walker pulled into the driveway, and Keira felt a rising flood of embarrassment lapping at her ankles. She saw the faded siding and the wild tangle of untrimmed bushes with fresh eyes. It was all so shabby.
    “Mom, we’re here. I’m gonna go, and I’ll see—”
    “Wait,” her mother interrupted. “I’m in the car. Have Walker stay for a few minutes. I want to meet him.”
    “Mom, we’re just friends . And I’m sure Walker has other stuff to do tonight, besides hanging out until you get home.”
    Walker turned off the car. “Nope,” he said, loud enough for her mother to hear. “I’d be happy to stay and say ‘hi’ to your mom. Besides—” He lowered his voice enough that the phone wouldn’t catch it. “If your ‘vision’s funny’ then you shouldn’t really be here alone.” He raised his eyebrow pointedly.
    “Good,” her mother chirped in Keira’s ear. “I won’t be more than fifteen minutes. Twenty, tops, if there’s traffic. See you then!”
    Keira ended the call and closed her eyes. When she opened them, Walker was staring at her expectantly.
    “Well, are you going to invite me in?”
    She grabbed her bag off the floor without even bothering to zip it shut. “Fine. Come on in. But when my mother starts with the fake Junior League act and the snippy comments about the mistakes people make when they’re young, don’t expect me to rescue you.”
    Walker’s charcoal eyes widened. “Hey. I did save you from having to ride home with Shrimp.”
    Keira’s shoulders sagged. He was right. He’d done her a favor and she was being prickly as a thistle. Just because he’d managed to slip through all her hot-guy defenses didn’t make it okay for her to act like a brat.
    “Sorry. You’re right. Mostly, I’m embarrassed about