Prologue
Amanda James gripped the seat tightly as the car ripped around the tight corner. She had said she liked to drive fast, but what exactly had she gotten herself into? She leaned back into her seat again as they flew around the S-bend. The car had been heavily modified with, among other things, a metal roll cage, a fire extinguisher, and an engine that absolutely roared. It was so loud inside that Amanda almost had to shout to be heard.
“Well, I’ll say one thing. It goes fast,” Amanda said loudly.
“You haven’t seen fast,” the man in the driver’s seat said.
They left the S-bend behind them and shot out onto the straightaway. Amanda felt her adrenaline spike as he pounded down on the accelerator, the speedometer rising well beyond any safe speed.
“I’m pretty sure I’ve seen fast now,” Amanda said.
The man in the driver’s seat laughed and Amanda brushed back her straight platinum-blonde hair. The driver, Tom Cooper, had suggested they take a ride, and Amanda was beginning to wonder if the whole thing was a bad idea. At first she thought that Tom was simply into her, but now she wondered if he had some kind of death wish. The way Tom worked the gears was almost maniacal, the inked black tattoos on his powerful forearm flexing as he manipulated the shift lever. He brushed his shaggy black hair out of his eyes and cast her a smoldering glance. She just wished he would keep those brown eyes directed ahead. Amanda wasn’t looking too bad tonight. Her curves were out in full force, and her form-fitting dress left little to the imagination, but still…
Keep your eyes on the road, sailor.
Tom reached down for her hand. His touch was strong, possessive. She took her hand from his. She wasn’t ready for that. Not yet.
“Tom…”
Tom took Amanda’s hand back, and at that moment, he seemed more focused on her than his driving. The car wandered over the centerline.
“Yeah, babe?” Tom growled, staring over at her.
“Look out!”
A semi-truck came over the rise toward them, its air horn blasting through the night air. As the bright headlights bore down on them, Amanda wondered if the chrome emblem on the truck’s grill would be the last thing she ever saw.
Chapter One
ONE DAY EARLIER
Amanda danced across the Wild Alpha Auto showroom floor with a smile on her face. She was inexplicably happy. It was just such a sunny late-summer day that she felt like smiling. Amanda had been working as the receptionist, office manager, and all-around go-to-gal at Wild Alpha Auto going on six years now, and she counted nearly every one of her coworkers as friends. From Brandon and Jeremy, to Jada and Chloe, she was close to everybody, and none more so than the general manager, Greg Smith. Greg was, after all, more than just her manager. He was her mentor, her counsellor, and an all-around good guy.
Today, the entire dealership was operating like a well-oiled machine. The showroom was buzzing, the service department was buzzing, heck, even the auto detailing shop was buzzing. Which reminded Amanda. She grabbed a piece of paperwork from her desk. She had a delivery for the new employee.
“Jada, hon, cover for me out front.”
“You got it, girl,” Jada said.
Amanda skipped out the back door and headed to the wash shack, birds chirping in the tall trees above. Secretly, Amanda was happy that she had received the paperwork she was now delivering. Not so much because she wanted to get outside, but because she wanted to have a chat with the man she was giving it to.
Tom Cooper, a friend of Amanda’s brother, had come to town two days previously, and Amanda had asked Greg if they might have a job for him. Greg had assigned Tom to the wash bay. Not a plum position, to be sure, but the business promoted from within based on attitude and ability. Do a good job and there was no telling where you might end up. A rainbow hung in the mist above a sleek red Ferrari that was being sprayed down. The radio played
Amanda James gripped the seat tightly as the car ripped around the tight corner. She had said she liked to drive fast, but what exactly had she gotten herself into? She leaned back into her seat again as they flew around the S-bend. The car had been heavily modified with, among other things, a metal roll cage, a fire extinguisher, and an engine that absolutely roared. It was so loud inside that Amanda almost had to shout to be heard.
“Well, I’ll say one thing. It goes fast,” Amanda said loudly.
“You haven’t seen fast,” the man in the driver’s seat said.
They left the S-bend behind them and shot out onto the straightaway. Amanda felt her adrenaline spike as he pounded down on the accelerator, the speedometer rising well beyond any safe speed.
“I’m pretty sure I’ve seen fast now,” Amanda said.
The man in the driver’s seat laughed and Amanda brushed back her straight platinum-blonde hair. The driver, Tom Cooper, had suggested they take a ride, and Amanda was beginning to wonder if the whole thing was a bad idea. At first she thought that Tom was simply into her, but now she wondered if he had some kind of death wish. The way Tom worked the gears was almost maniacal, the inked black tattoos on his powerful forearm flexing as he manipulated the shift lever. He brushed his shaggy black hair out of his eyes and cast her a smoldering glance. She just wished he would keep those brown eyes directed ahead. Amanda wasn’t looking too bad tonight. Her curves were out in full force, and her form-fitting dress left little to the imagination, but still…
Keep your eyes on the road, sailor.
Tom reached down for her hand. His touch was strong, possessive. She took her hand from his. She wasn’t ready for that. Not yet.
“Tom…”
Tom took Amanda’s hand back, and at that moment, he seemed more focused on her than his driving. The car wandered over the centerline.
“Yeah, babe?” Tom growled, staring over at her.
“Look out!”
A semi-truck came over the rise toward them, its air horn blasting through the night air. As the bright headlights bore down on them, Amanda wondered if the chrome emblem on the truck’s grill would be the last thing she ever saw.
Chapter One
ONE DAY EARLIER
Amanda danced across the Wild Alpha Auto showroom floor with a smile on her face. She was inexplicably happy. It was just such a sunny late-summer day that she felt like smiling. Amanda had been working as the receptionist, office manager, and all-around go-to-gal at Wild Alpha Auto going on six years now, and she counted nearly every one of her coworkers as friends. From Brandon and Jeremy, to Jada and Chloe, she was close to everybody, and none more so than the general manager, Greg Smith. Greg was, after all, more than just her manager. He was her mentor, her counsellor, and an all-around good guy.
Today, the entire dealership was operating like a well-oiled machine. The showroom was buzzing, the service department was buzzing, heck, even the auto detailing shop was buzzing. Which reminded Amanda. She grabbed a piece of paperwork from her desk. She had a delivery for the new employee.
“Jada, hon, cover for me out front.”
“You got it, girl,” Jada said.
Amanda skipped out the back door and headed to the wash shack, birds chirping in the tall trees above. Secretly, Amanda was happy that she had received the paperwork she was now delivering. Not so much because she wanted to get outside, but because she wanted to have a chat with the man she was giving it to.
Tom Cooper, a friend of Amanda’s brother, had come to town two days previously, and Amanda had asked Greg if they might have a job for him. Greg had assigned Tom to the wash bay. Not a plum position, to be sure, but the business promoted from within based on attitude and ability. Do a good job and there was no telling where you might end up. A rainbow hung in the mist above a sleek red Ferrari that was being sprayed down. The radio played
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