Synopsis: Katie and Adam are afraid of love.
She carries the scars of a first kiss gone terribly wrong.
He uproots his life to flee the stinging betrayal of an ex.
When trust is no longer an option, all romance is suspect.
As a young paramedic, Adam rescues people for a living but cannot save himself. Katie, just out of high school, struggles with a tortured home life she cannot escape.
Everything changes when Katie hops into the front seat of Adam's ambulance. Overwhelmed by what they are feeling, neither possess the confidence to make the first move. They walk away from each other, full of regret.
To find her, Adam risks his future. To be with him, Katie sacrifices her security.
Little do they know, what little time they do have, is being measured by a heartbeat that is slowly dying out.
~Tease~
Chapter One
Katie
Katie
CRASH!
The force of the
impact is jarring, but it doesn’t completely startle me. A split second before
the SUV hurtles into Grandma’s driver’s side door, I catch a glimpse of it in
my peripheral vision. Grandma isn’t so lucky.
“Are you okay?” I
gasp.
“I think so,” she
says, moving to unfasten her seat belt.
The driver of the
SUV is already outside of his vehicle inspecting the damage. It is a miracle
Grandma isn’t trapped behind the steering wheel. She is able to open her dented
car door. She struggles to stand, wincing in pain. The passenger in the SUV is
already on his cell phone, probably calling 911.
I don’t want to
get out of the car. It is a February afternoon. The temperature is hovering in
the teens. The wind is whipping through the movie theater parking lot as snow
flurries begin to fall. I crouch down in my seat. Why did this have to happen? I don’t want to deal with a guy who
drives like Rambo, taking down every elderly woman in his path. Maybe if I
close my eyes, it will all go away.
A speeding police
car with
lights flashing arrives on the scene. Do
they really need to make such an entrance? They probably just left the donut
shop down the road. No need to give in to
the sugar rush.
Grandma slowly
sits back in her seat as Rambo’s father comes over to our car.
“Ma’am, are you
all right?” he asks.
“I don’t know…I’m
awfully sore,” she says, rubbing the back of her neck.
“It’s not a good
idea for you to be moving around. Why don’t you just sit back and stay as still
as you can. The police are here now. Let me go and talk to them,” he says.
He strides into
the wind head-on as his son bends down to analyze the damage to his front
fender. Really? He can’t even come over
and see if the old lady he hit is okay? He has to send his dad? Way to be a
man.
I lean forward and
open the glove compartment to find the insurance information and registration
card.
“Here comes
someone now. Are you able to roll down the window, Grandma?” I ask.
“I think so…let me
see,” she says, hitting the power button.
“How are you
doing, ladies? Anyone seriously hurt?” asks a female police officer, her blonde
curly hair blowing around her head like a tornado as the wind begins to
increase.
“Well, I feel a
little banged up,” Grandma replies.
“Look straight
ahead, and keep your head against the headrest. Do not move a muscle. I don’t
even want to know what happened. We’re going to give you an incident report
that you can fill out later and drop off at the station next week. For now,
just sit tight until the ambulance arrives,” the officer says with practiced
authority.
“I don’t think I
need an ambulance,” Grandma says.
“Grandma, it’s
better if you go and get checked out at the hospital. Just to be sure,” I
insist.
“Listen to your
granddaughter. We’ll all feel better if you let them examine you,” the officer
responds.
“Okay, if you
think it’s necessary,” Grandma sighs.
“Try to relax. I’m
going to talk with the other driver. Remember, don’t move,” the officer
commands.
“Yes, officer,”
Grandma replies meekly.
“Well, I guess they
don’t want our paperwork,” I grumble. What
a mess. We just wanted to get out and enjoy a movie without having it end
in disaster.
It is the first
time in a week that I have left the house. I’m still a
little weak after what seemed like a never-ending bout with the flu. Last
weekend, I was in the emergency room sick as a dog. Looks like this weekend is
going to be more of the same. Except this time, I won’t be the patient.
This wouldn’t have
happened if I had been driving. But the wind was so fierce that Grandma didn’t
want me getting sick again. So she told me to wait at the entrance of the
theater and she would pick me up. I ran from the theater entrance to the car,
yet I
still felt chilled to the bone. I didn’t notice anything amiss
with Grandma. Everything seemed fine, until she plowed through an intersection
without stopping. That’s all it took to land us in this predicament.
I look up as the
ambulance pulls into the parking lot. A lanky guy with scruffy blonde hair and
a face full of stubble jumps out…without a jacket…wearing short sleeves. Is he crazy? We’re practically living on
an ice planet, and he’s dressed like it’s a summer day. And he’s going to be the one taking care of my grandmother? I think
he’s the one who needs to get his head examined.
{End of Tease}
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About the Author
I really hate talking about myself. My goal is to have the shortest author bio imaginable. I would much rather have a conversation with my readers.
Are you able to escape within my pages?
Does my writing make you feel something?
Are there characters that you can't get out of your head?
Let me know!
Email me at faithsullivanwrites@hotmail.com
Follow me on Twitter at @_FaithSullivan_
Maria, I'm so glad we've become Twitter friends. Thanks for the post :-)
ReplyDeleteGreat teaser.
ReplyDelete