Summary:
She
trusts him with her life. But what about her heart?
Lizzy Bennet loves life as a
lawyer in the city. And not just because of the miles it puts between
her and her ex. However, when she’s attacked on the street just
hours after learning her identity was stolen, she tries to call home
for help and ends up with the last person she expects: the very same high
school boyfriend who broke her heart. He says he’s there to
help, but she’s not so sure, and now, all the endless
questions and regrets are clouding her judgment and preventing her
from seeing the dangerous saboteur closing in.
Small-town auto mechanic, Koby
Knightly, is looking forward to seeing a car show in the city. But
when an unexpected call from his old girlfriend disconnects suddenly, he rushes
to her apartment only to find her limping and bleeding. Throwing his plans out
the window, Koby makes it his mission to protect her
and discover the identity of the person trying to frame
her. Will he also be able to figure out what went wrong between them back
in high school or will a killer get to her first?
Excerpt
from Chapter 1
Lizzy popped up the
collar of her long red trench coat as a shield against the wind and pulled the
knotted belt a little tighter. Maybe she should call her brother instead.
Why had her first thought been Koby anyway? The days of being able to turn to
her former sweetheart whenever she got scared were long gone. After
all, walking down a dark street in Pittsburgh wasn’t the same
as an old horror flick playing at the one-screen theater in her hometown
of St. Claire. Not to mention she was no longer a silly girl who
needed to grab on to some boy’s arm.
Her brother was a sheriff’s
deputy and former soldier. If anyone needed to tell her
if she was being paranoid and crazy, it should be Josh. Not
some country auto mechanic that used to drive her around in high school.
Pushing open the handbag
slung over her shoulder, she slid her hand inside for her phone. She pulled it
out and pressed down her thumb, ready to tell the device to call Josh Bennet
but…
Was that a good
idea?
Now was not a good time. Her
brother would certainly jump in his car and drive through the night
for her, but the timing would be terrible. He was getting
married next weekend. What kind of sister would she be if, right before
one of the biggest days of his life, she pulled him into
whatever mayhem was transpiring in her world? But she knew
her brother. He’d be ticked if she didn’t at least call someone.
There it was again. That
rustling sound. Pausing mid-step, she tried to dampen her throbbing
heart as she turned on her heel to scan the street behind her. Nothing. No
people. No moving cars. No crumpled bits of trash colliding with the hard snow
pushed against the curbs. Sucking in a breath, she continued toward home.
This was ridiculous. She’d
feel better if she was talking to someone who knew where she was and what
was going on. But who could she call for advice other than Josh?
Lizzy
groaned. “Well, I’m definitely not calling Koby Knightly.”
“Calling
Koby Knightly.”
She froze, staring at
the lit-up screen. Her breath caught and a wheel
turned at the top of the screen. It was already dialing.
“Oh no.” Her fingers fumbled
for the red ‘end call’ icon but a lock of hair blew into her face as something
whooshed past her back. Lizzy whirled around but saw only a darkened
sidewalk. Eyes darting, she looked for any sign of movement, but all was still
frozen in place by the hardened remnants of yesterday’s snow. She exhaled,
backing away. It must be the wind. Stop being crazy.
“Hello?”
She jumped and her eyes
went back to her phone. His name was scrawled across the
screen.
“Hello?” His
voice sounded weak through the speaker meant to be pressed to an
ear.
Should she hang up?
“Lizzy, I know it’s you.
Even cell phones from down here in the sticks have caller ID, you know.”
She rolled her
eyes as she trudged forward. Just great.
“Lizzy…” He
said it in a sing-song tone.
What could she say other
than the truth?
She raised the phone to her
ear. “I called you by mist—”
Again, she felt the
ghostlike presence behind her. Gasping, she about-faced, dropping
her hands to her sides. It was starting to flurry and the flakes
danced in the light of the moon. All else was quiet.
Lizzy drug the fingers of
her free hand down her face as she groaned. Pull yourself together,
girl, and get moving.
“Elizabeth.” Koby’s
voice was terse with worry.
She pressed the speaker to
her ear. “I’m fine. I just thought—”
A vice clamped
around her wrist underneath the cradled phone and
shook. It flew from her grasp. She reached for it with
her other hand, but it was halted when someone grabbed her
around that elbow.
About
Allison Pearl:
Allison Pearl is a small-town girl who’s lived just about everywhere. She loves books, tea, chocolate, and watching old movies with her husband and black lab, Sal. To keep in touch and get updates on new releases follow her Facebook page ‘Books by Pearl’ or follow her on Twitter at @AllisonPearl5 and Instagram at @allisonnicolepearl
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