Page 32 of Fatal Thrill
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Jaya’s faceburned with heat and she laid it on the cool window of the rental. They had landed without her having a second of privacy after taking the test. Jon had changed his shoes, and he kept stealing glances at her in the backseat as they left the airport in a deluge of sleet andrain.
All it would take was a nod or shake of her head to convey the message. All she had to do was look at him, meet his eyes, and give him the answer he wanted. Yes orno?
Like everything else in her life, she never did anything halfway. The two lines on the stick had showed up immediately. So much for the three-minute wait. But then she’d dropped the stick and it had slid under the vanity, and she’d heard Shelby outside thedoor…
And that bastard Colton couldn’t fly the plane straight if his life depended onit.
The window warmed from her hot cheek and Jaya shifted her face to find another cold spot. It was Ireland, so they were driving on the wrong side of the narrow highway, around a steep curve about halfway up a mountain. She was burning up, the embarrassment of puking on Jon the least of it. Was Finn okay? Where was her dad? What was Jon thinking? She needed five minutes — God could certainly grant her that, couldn’t he? — to show Jon the test results and see hisreaction.
Because she wasn’t about to nod her head yes in the backseat of the dark car, with Colton and Shelby up front, while sleet pelted the windows. She wanted to be able to look Jon in the eyes and see whether they lit up or shut down. That would tell her what she needed to know. They needed a minute alone to share this hard-left turn both their lives had taken, and needed privacy to doit.
Fingers brushed across hers and she slid her gaze to the left to see his hand held out to her. She met him halfway and he slipped his fingers into hers, squeezinggently.
He’d said he’d stand by her no matter what, and she believed him, but he hadn’t said he loved her. Never mentioned marriage or raising a child together. Was it fair to him to ask such a thing? He lived and worked in DC, she in Good Hope. He traveled all the time, apparently even out of the country. When would he have time for her and thebaby?
Could she raise the babyalone?
All the itchy, no-good feelings about absentee fathers pricked her skin. She didn’t have her mom to help out or her best friend. Even if Finn came back to Good Hope, he wouldn’t exactly be a reliable source of support, and good ol’ Dad was a lostcause.
If she was going to have Jon’s baby, he needed to be part of her life, not just dropping in on occasion. In essence, they had a lot to talk about and she wasn’t broaching the subject until they were alone and could discuss their futuretogether.
“Car on our tail, coming up fast,” Coltonsaid.
Jon released Jaya’s hand and pivoted in the seat. “Not expectingcompany.”
“That’s what I was thinking.” Colton’s eyes showed in the rearview mirror, the flash of headlights spotlighting the interior as the car got right on their bumper. “No one even knows we’rehere.”
“It’s probably just some drunk,” Jaya said, rubbing her eyes. She needed a cup of something warm to shake off the cold, a toothbrush, and a warmbed.
“He’s not bobbing and weaving like a drunk,” Colton argued. “He came out of nowhere when we passed that lastturnoff.”
Shelby looked between the seats, sending a glance at the rear window, then at Jaya before turning back. “Just let himpass.”
Colton must have taken his foot of the gas pedal because the car slowed. “Passing on this road won’t be an easytask.”
Since Jaya couldn’t see any farther up the windy road than what the headlights illuminated through the sleet, she had to agree. She hoped whoever it was got the job done—the bright lights shining into their car were blinding her and she was already working up aheadache.
Next thing she knew, the drunk driver swerved into the passing lane andaccelerated.
Good deal. Get on by, you ding-dong.
Finally, she could see again, at least somewhat better, the glare of the headlights focused on the curving road, no longer blinding her. Shelby watched the car as it pulled up alongside them. Colton continued to decelerate, the windshield wipersthwackingaway and the heat blasting from thevents.
Over the cliff, an icy lake lay below, the snow looking a bluish-gray under the clouds. Here and there, a star peeked through and Jaya thought it looked cold and lonely out there, but also somewhat peaceful. That frozen landscape had no cares, no worries. It justwas.
She looked back, noticing the passing car was still right next to her. From the glow of the dash, she saw the driversneer.
Whatthe…?
The car swerved suddenly, Colton swearing. Jon grabbed Jaya, keeping her from smacking her head into the window and shouted, “Getdown!”
He pushed her head onto the seat before she could breathe and there was a jerk and a crunching noise as the passing car crossed the line and smacked into herside.
Shelby yelled, Colton put his foot on the gas pedal once more, and their rental did a small fishtail on the slick road. Next thing Jaya knew, Jon shoved her to the floor, there was a loudbam, and glassshattered.
The next few seconds went into overdrive for her, the car spinning, Shelby screaming, Colton swearing, and over it all, the sound of moregunshots.
