Zari Davis flees Dallas after witnessing her fiancee cheating, with no clear plan on where she's going. After flipping her Volkswagon Beetle, she wakes up convinced that the cute guy that's been reading raunchy novels aloud while she slept is actual...
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P L A Y L I S T
Love The Way You Lie - Eminem ft. Rihanna
Zari dropped the phone in her jacket pocket, then clipped the leash to Rebel's collar. "Your daddy texted. He's running late. We don't have to wait for him."
The dog wagged his tail so hard his whole body shook.
Zari opened the back gate and let Rebel lead the way. She'd grown to love this time of day when the horizon swallowed the sun in small bites, and gaps in the trees allowed spears of golden light to streak the earth's floor. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and filled her lungs with chilled air. Only a few more days until Christmas and she'd still not decided what to get Gabriel.
No question what she'd like to receive from him. The ring in the back of the desk drawer. Every day she thought about it. Why wouldn't he propose? She'd regained most of her memory, so what was the holdup?
A Christmas engagement would be just the right amount of time to plan a summer wedding. Guys never thought of things like that. Maybe she should get Silbie to drop a hint. Or not, since he was still upset about the trip to Dallas. At least with his sister. It was almost like he blamed her for falling in love. But he of all people should understand nobody has control over what the heart feels. It had taken him a long time to stop loving Rosie.
Some people might be jealous of a former partner, but not Zari. To her, it proved how deeply he loved. He was the kind of person she'd waited her whole life to find. And now that she had, nothing would come between them. She wouldn't allow it.
Lost in thought, by the time she noticed Rebel cock his head and come to a full stance, it was too late. Luckily, he went into action. As the silver car barreling down the road swerved, Rebel dug in his heels, rushed forward, and threw his body against Zari with such force. She tumbled and landed hard in the shallow ditch by the road.
She blinked, then blinked again, squinting against the fading light of day. What had just happened? It was almost like the driver had aimed for her. Couldn't be. That made no sense. She pushed against her elbow sending a sharp pain up to her shoulder, across her back, and down her hip. She groaned. Rebel licked her cheek. "It's okay, boy. Just give me a minute."
The dog turned in a circle, his leash trailing across her chest. She grabbed onto it, and as if he read her mind, dug his heels into the earth and pulled until she sat upright.
"Such a smart boy. Like a little tow dog." She rubbed her shoulder, then stretched it out and winced. "Oh, that's going to hurt for a while." She slid her fingers along her ribs. "Don't think anything is broken, so let's see if I can stand." Placing palms on the ground, she came to a kneeling position, rocked back onto her feet, then pushed herself up. "Ow!"
Rebel nuzzled her leg.
She patted his head. "It's okay. I'm just a wuss. Come on, let's see if we can make it home without anybody else trying to run over us." She glared down the road in the direction the car had went. "What an asshole."
