Alternate Route

By Auburn J. Kelly

Accepting a ride with a total stranger was the last thing Karen thought she’d ever do. But when her car breaks down on the side of a rural Georgia highway, desperation wins out over good sense. Her mundane existence suddenly gets spun on its head when a sexy trucker shows her that there’s a whole world out there waiting to be experienced. And though she wants nothing more than to throw caution to the wind, her self doubt and prudish upbringing won’t let her.

It’s been two years since Cal’s heart was shattered into a million pieces. And with time, he’s managed to piece his life back together. He has his hobbies, his job, and his family to occupy the empty space in his heart. His life is full. Or so he thought...until a beautiful stranger gets into his truck, and under his skin.
The passion between Karen and Cal is white hot, and their chemistry is undeniable—but is either of them brave enough to take a chance on something new? Or will they let the past dictate their future, hindering their chance at happiness?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Auburn J. Kelly
• Release date: Jul 13, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370221301

Auburn J. Kelly

Auburn J. Kelly lives in a tiny rural town in Texas with her husband, two teenage sons, and a neurotic cat. When she’s not sketching or painting, you might find her browsing antiques in some quaint little shop. However, nine times out of ten, she’s likely to be nestled in a corner somewhere with her nose in a book. As a writer of romantic fiction, Auburn draws inspiration from the world around her. She is fascinated by the complexity of human emotion and its impact on behavior. Writing has turned out to be the perfect outlet for that interest, as well as providing another channel for her creativity. She is the author of the novella, Alternate Route (available on Amazon), and will soon be releasing Finding Grace, Part two of the Weathering Stormy Series.

Book preview

Alternate Route

A Novella

Auburn J. Kelly

Copyright © 2017 Auburn J. Kelly. All rights reserved.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

For my husband, because you made me believe.

Table of Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Epilogue

About the Author

Chapter 1

Karen uttered a string of curses while she frantically searched the contents of her purse. Where the hell are they? She had given up smoking two years ago but she kept a pack of Marlboros in her purse for emergencies. When her fingers wrapped around the small, rectangular box she plucked it out and flung her purse into the passenger seat. Steam still poured from underneath the hood of her BMW as she leaned against the door and lit her cigarette. With her eyes closed, she tilted her head back and exhaled a long plume of gray smoke. If Mom and Dad could see me now…. She could practically hear her mother clucking her tongue in disapproval. See, Karen. If you had listened to your father and me….

Karen looked at her phone again. Still no bars. She held it out over her head, hoping for just a tiny white speck, indicating some sort of signal. Dammit! Now what? The last time she’d seen anything resembling civilization had been at least ten miles back. And, if she wasn’t mistaken, she was still a good eight or ten miles from the next town.

It was supposed to be simple – breeze into Boot Heel, find a quaint little B&B, get a good night’s sleep, and get her interview tomorrow morning. By tomorrow night she’d be back in Augusta. Easy peasy.

But fate was a bitch, and apparently it had other plans for Karen. She was in the middle of nowhere. Her car was fried. She had no cell reception. And, there was a pretty good chance she’d be unemployed if she didn’t make her deadline. In short, she was screwed.

Dark clouds rolled in, blotting out the sun, and the damp Georgia air had Karen rubbing the goose bumps on her bare arms. Had she even thought to bring a jacket? She grabbed her small duffle bag out of the back seat and rifled through it, but all she found was a pair of yoga pants, a t-shirt, a half-empty water bottle, and some running shoes. She tossed the bag in the back seat and tried to remember what she’d packed in the suitcase that was in the trunk. Surely she’d brought a sweatshirt….

As soon as she stepped out of the car, the sky released a threatening rumble, and icy cold drops of moisture stung her skin.

Well that’s just great.

The little silver car at the bottom of the hill instantly drew Cal’s attention. His truck groaned and grumbled as the gears shifted downward and the big truck eased to a crawl. Damn. That’s a hell of a place to be stranded. The narrow, winding highway was lined with dense pines and there was a blind curve just fifty yards from where the stranded car sat. Cal had seen many an accident along that little stretch of road. Orange, reflective signs screamed their warning, but all too often they went unheeded, and the consequences were usually catastrophic.

Cal pulled up behind the car and uttered a curse under his breath when the first fat drops of rain pelted the windshield. They were the first he’d seen in weeks, which only complicated the situation further. New rain after a dry spell was never good. The water would cause the oil to rise up to the surface and make the highway slicker than frog shit.

The little silver car without its flashers on was a sitting duck.

Cal pulled on a baseball cap and flipped his hazard lights on before bailing out of the cab. When he approached the silver BMW he couldn’t help but chuckle a little bit at the tiny blonde who was wrestling with something in the trunk – and losing. The damned thing was nearly as big as she was. She tugged and tugged until whatever it was caught on turned loose. The momentum knocked her backward and she was swallowed up by the enormous black suitcase when it landed smack on top of her. The woman scrambled underneath it, letting loose a string of curses that would make a sailor blush. Cal tried not to laugh out loud as he jogged over to rescue her from the man-eating luggage. Here, let me get that for you.

I don’t need your help, thank-you-very-much, she snapped. Her heart-shaped face was flushed from the altercation with the suitcase and her chest was heaving from the exertion. It was hard not to notice the way her wet blouse clung to her pale skin. The thin white fabric did nothing to hide the lacy bra underneath. Rivulets of water streamed from the ends of her shoulder length hair and her blue eyes were wild and underlined with black smudges. She reminded Cal of a wet baby tiger – cute but fierce. She stood up and wiped her hands on the sides of her beige slacks before planting them firmly on her curvy hips. The