Can't Hardly Breathe (The Original Heartbreakers #4)

He’d seen death a thousand times, in all its incarnations. Disease. Violence. His granny had died in her sleep with a smile on her face, drifting away peacefully. But he was not prepared for this.

Thea had clearly been inside a vehicle, moving away from the coming tornado, which was her only saving grace. If Daniel were with her, he would be shaking her, screaming at her, then covering her with his own body to keep her safe. But she didn’t want to be kept safe. She wanted to be in the middle of the action.

“—funnel clouds,” he heard her say, the screen alive with images once again. “Yes, yes, they’re forming a second tornado, and look! They’re dropping! Search the center of the winds. Can you see? Can you see?” She sounded excited.

She wasn’t going to be able to escape the worst of the wind or the flying debris. Power lines were flashing as they fell. Damn it! Tornadoes were faster than cars, the absolute worst place to be. The metal could compact, smashing the people inside.

He was roughly two hours away from her. If he left now, he would reach her after the storm had passed. If he stayed put, he risked not being able to reach her at all. Roads were going to flood, and debris was going to form blockades. That was just the way things worked.

Welcome to Oklahoma.

He pocketed his phone as the website continued to stream, cut out and stream again; he ran outside. No hail, so no problem. But the valet attendants were nowhere to be seen. They were probably inside, staying warm and dry. They were smart. At their stand, Daniel shot the lock preventing him from getting his keys. When the cabinet door swung open, he dug through the contents until he found what he needed.

He removed the lid from a nearby garbage can and held it over his head. He ran into the storm, the droplets slamming into the metal. Once he was under the cover of the parking garage, he ditched his shield and picked up the pace. Took him a minute or twelve, but he found his truck and jumped inside.

The engine gunned. Urgency filled him as he pressed the gas. He sped out of the garage and down the street. He was downtown, near Bricktown, where some of the streets were one-way. Construction cones and detours led the way and, yes, certain areas were already flooded. He navigated back roads until he made it to the highway, the rain continuing to fall.

As many combat situations as he’d faced, he should have handled today’s danger with aplomb. But he’d never been such an emotional wreck. If Thea was hurt...

He flew down the road, ready to act if he hydroplaned.

The website had gone quiet again. He fished the phone out of his pocket, glanced at the screen. It was blank, and his concern for Thea redoubled, becoming a sickness in the pit of his stomach, acid in his veins, a blade at his throat.

The closer he got to Strawberry Valley, the lighter the rain pitter-pattered, and yet more debris littered the road. Finally he could go no farther. Not in the truck, anyway. Trees, power lines and other vehicles blocked the roadway.

He was only five miles away, roughly half an hour on foot. He parked on the side of the road, jumped out and ran. The air was thick with moisture, the sky growing blue and bright, as if there’d never been a storm. The ground sloshed, his Italian loafers quickly ruined. Like he cared.

A family of four was hiding in a drain, but he didn’t stop to chat, only called, “You’re safe now.” Was Thea? He reminded himself she had some training. She knew what to do. But even experts could make mistakes, and tornadoes were never predictable. The funnel could turn in less than a second, and if you were in the way, you were dead.

He made it to the inn, but she hadn’t returned. A crowd had gathered in the lobby, including his dad and the pups, Lyndie, Ryanne, Harlow, Jessie Kay and Holly.

He petted both dogs and hugged his dad, demanding, “Where is she?”

Virgil was pale. “I don’t know, son. We lost contact with her.”

“Wait! The feed is live again. She’s still streaming,” Holly said, rushing to his side. As pale as his father, she offered him a laptop.

Jazz must have been holding her cell phone, because Thea appeared on screen. When Daniel saw she was alive and well, relief nearly felled him—but it was the anger rising inside him that he focused on. There was a cut on her cheek and arm, blood dripping. Her hair was soaked, her clothes plastered to her body...but her mud-smeared skin was aglow.

She motioned to the destruction behind her, but he couldn’t make out her words.

Daniel searched for visual clues to discern her location and finally spotted something he recognized. One of the only trees left standing was an old oak with a thick base and towering branches. It was on the edge of the town’s only park. He’d played under that tree as a child, and he and his friends had notched the bark.

“Be nice to her,” Holly pleaded. “Please.”

“I can’t make any promises,” he grated, already heading for the exit.

Carol stepped in his path to stop him. He would have walked around her, but the gentleman his momma raised wouldn’t let him.

“You’ve got your knickers in a twist.” She kept her gaze steady on his, determination pulsing off her. “You think Dottie foolishly risked her life.”

“I don’t think it, I know it.”

“Well, that’s all well and good, but if you go to her like this, you’re going to drive her away or force her to choose you over her life’s passion. She’s lost so much already. Let her have this. The one thing she loves. Don’t try to take it away from her,” she pleaded. “Let her be happy.”

He moved around her. Screw being a gentleman. Carol had no idea what she was talking about. Thea needed someone to take the storms away from her or she’d pull this shit again. He would rather she live, pissed off at him, than die, happily chasing another storm.

He made his way to the park, where he found her standing beside a van, drinking from a bottle of water. He closed the distance, determination in every step.

“Daniel!” Grinning, she raced over and threw her arms around him. “You’re here! Did you check out the webpage? Did you see my report?”

His arms remained at his sides, lest he shake some sense into her. “How could you be so stupid, Thea?”

She stepped back, her smile fading. “What are you talking about?”

“Not only did you risk your life, you worried the hell out of your family and friends.”

“But I’m fine. Jazz knew what he was doing and—”

He motioned to the cut on her cheek, silencing her. “Not all of you is fine. And the fact that you trusted your ex with your safety—stupid,” he repeated.

“Dorothea!” A grinning Jazz bounded over. He was holding up his phone, shaking it. “I sent the network a link to your page, and they loved you. They want to—”

Daniel drew back his fist and punched the bastard in the nose. Cartilage snapped, the man howling with pain, stumbling back and nearly falling into a puddle.

Thea flattened her hands on Daniel’s chest and pushed. “What are you doing?”

He paid her no heed, moving around her to get in Jazz’s bloody face. “You took her out in the storm.”