When Darkness Falls (28 page)
Read When Darkness Falls Online
Authors: Jennifer Youngblood,Sandra Poole
Chloe’s jaw dropped. “Dad!”
Hank laughed as he reached for Chloe’s hand and linked his fingers through hers. “Your dad’s right. It’s time that I made my intentions clear. Let’s talk about it.”
L
ong after everyone
else went to bed, Chloe and Hank were sitting on the swing in Lila’s backyard. Hank had his arm around her, and she was snuggled into the curve of his shoulder. The rhythmic creaking of the swing seemed to be playing against the steady beating of her heart.
“Well, it didn’t take you long to have my parents eating out of the palm of your hand.”
He chuckled. “I don’t know about that. Your mom’s still not sure, but at least she’s giving me the benefit of the doubt.”
Chloe laughed. “Yeah, she’s a tough one, for sure.” She smiled. “But she likes you … I can tell.” Her mind flittered over the events of the past two days. Something miraculous had happened to her, and she needed to tell Hank about it. She only hoped he would understand.
She swallowed hard. “Hank, there’s something I need to tell you.”
He looked at her. “Sure … whatever it is, you can tell me.”
“That night when I went into the water.”
She saw his jaw clench as a tortured look came into his eyes. “I thought I was going to lose you.” He hugged her tighter.
“Me too.” Tears pressed against her eyes, and she blinked to keep them at bay. “I thought I was going to die.” She shivered as her mind went back to that black night that had nearly destroyed her. “The water was coming in, and there was nothing I could do … except pray. I started praying, and this warm feeling came over me. It was like I could feel protective arms being wrapped around me. It’s been a long time since I prayed. All of this time—I was so angry about everything that happened to me that I thought God had forgotten me.”
“God never forgets,” Hank said tenderly.
She nodded. “I know. I realized that in the car. He was there for me the instant I needed Him. All this time … I’m the one that had turned away from Him.”
Hank nodded.
She looked deep into his eyes. “There’s more … in the car … I couldn’t breathe … and then I blacked out.” She hesitated, not sure how to continue, but he gave her an encouraging look. “And then I saw Dan.” She saw doubt creep into his eyes. She forced the words out of her mouth. “I don’t know how, but Dan was with me in that car.” Her mouth went dry. “I know this sounds impossible, but I believe he saved me.”
Time seemed to stand still, and then he nodded, his eyes taking on a far-away look. “The police officers were searching for you because Garrett had told me where they were taking you. It’s a big reservoir, and they didn’t know where to look. You could’ve been anywhere. The officers said they heard a man’s voice—calling for help. And then they found you on the shore. They couldn’t explain it. You were unconscious, so it couldn’t have been you who was calling for help. They never found the man, but the officers swore that they heard him.”
“My hands and feet were bound. There was no way I could’ve escaped from that car on my own.”
Hank’s eyes locked with hers, and she saw the thing she’d craved most—understanding. “I believe you,” he finally said.
“You do?” She couldn’t stop the tears from flowing down her cheeks.
“It’s the only thing that makes sense.” He thought for a moment. “That time you told me you were seeing your dead fiancé, you were serious, weren’t you?”
“Yes,” she admitted quietly.
“Do you still have feelings for him?”
Her eyes went wide. “Dan?”
He nodded, his jaw going tense.
She laughed, thinking how crazy it was that Hank was worried about her affections for a dead guy. “No, not the way I feel for you. I love you, Hank Singleton,” she said fiercely.
He looked relieved. “I love you too.”
“This whole time—when I kept seeing Dan—I assumed it was because a part of me couldn’t let him go, but I realized in the car that it was Dan who couldn’t let go. That’s why he kept coming to me. He was trying to make amends for what he’d done. I felt that in the car.”
He took her hand in his. “Well, he certainly made his amends … and then some. I will forever be in his debt. He brought you back to me.” A pained look came into his eyes. “I thought I’d lost you.”
“Life has given us a second chance.”
The corners of his lips lifted in a smile. “And I plan on taking full advantage of that chance.”
She thought of something else. “Have you heard from Garrett?”
“No, and I don’t expect to.”
“You helped him disappear, didn’t you?”
Conflicting emotions battled in his eyes. “Does that make me a terrible person?”
“No, it makes you a good brother. I’m glad you did it. Garrett was a lifesaver.” Her voice trembled with emotion. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without him in that warehouse. Despite his obvious faults, he’s a good man, and I wish him every happiness.”
He touched her hair. “You are everything to me,” he murmured. He began lightly tracing her collarbone with the tip of his finger. A tingle ran down her spine as her breath came faster. He gave her that crooked smile that made her go weak in the knees, and then his lips came down on hers, igniting a flame that coursed through her body, turning her bones to mush. When they pulled away, they were both breathing hard.
Something caught the corner of her eye, and she saw Dan, standing at the corner of Lila’s house. She blinked, and then he was gone. Even though she’d only caught a glimpse, she had the distinct impression that he was smiling. And she knew, in some inexplicable way that was impossible to put into words—that she would never see him again.
A look of concern crossed Hank’s features. “Are you okay?”
She gave him a tender smile, letting herself get lost in those fathomless turquoise eyes. “Yes, everything is great.”
H
ey there
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J
ennifer grew
up in rural Alabama and loved living in a town where “everybody knows everybody.” Her love for writing began as a young teenager when she wrote stories for her high school English teacher to critique. She feels that it’s a great privilege to be able to write with her mother, Sandra Poole. “Writing together adds a depth and spice to our work that neither of us could get independently,” she says.
Jennifer has B.A. in English and Social Sciences from Brigham Young University where she served as Miss BYU Hawaii in 1989. Before becoming an author, she worked as the owner and editor of a monthly newspaper named
The Senior Times
. In addition to her love for writing, Jennifer works in the home design industry. She and her husband owned an interior design gallery where she specialized in custom window treatments and floral arrangements. Jennifer continues to do interior design for select clients.
She now lives in the Rocky Mountains with her family and spends her time writing, carpooling, attending basketball games, and doing all of the wonderful things that make up the life of a busy wife and mother.
S
andra grew
up in a small community in northeast Alabama called Alder Springs, the setting of Sandra and Jennifer's first novel, Livin' in High Cotton. It was there that she developed a deep love for literature in a two-classroom country school. She recalls that every afternoon the teachers would bring their classes together and read such classics as
Rip Van Winkle, Moby Dick, The Headless Horsemen
, and The
Taming of the Shrew
while all their students sat on the floor.
Sandra has worked in the administrative field for over twenty-five years. She worked her way through college while her daughters were very young and completed a four-year degree in three years. Later, she earned a Masters in Business Administration. Her experience has ranged from being an executive secretary and human resource manager for Fortune 500 companies to being an assistant to one of the vice presidents at the university where she eventually retired. She now works in the education field.
For Sandra, writing is a continual journey of discovery. She has so many ideas for other books running through her mind that it's hard to focus on one at a time.
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