Read A Shiver At Twilight for Free Online Page A

gone.”
     
    Gone? She was gone? Carly slowly looked up from his chest and braced herself for the grisly visage and its terrible smile, but JD had spoken the truth. What she saw was no less chilling, though. Once again, the fire had disappeared, leaving not even the glow of ash in its wake. The chair stood still and empty. And the woman had vanished.
     
    She made a sound deep in her throat, looking at every dark corner, fearing what might pop out next. What was this place, where people appeared and vanished, where doors opened and closed on their own, where something shocking waited in every corner?
     
    “You saw her, right?” JD asked, as if he’d already convinced himself that he’d imagined the woman.
     
    “And the fire,” she whispered.
     
    She felt him swallow, felt the effort it took to keep his cool. His hands skimmed up her back to her shoulders and he peeled Carly off his chest to look into her face. They’d both seen the woman. They’d both seen the fire.
     
    “I don’t want to be here,” she said. “I don’t want to be here anymore. I don’t care if it’s a hundred miles, let’s go. Let’s walk.”
     
    She tried to pull away and head for the door but JD kept hold of her, while waves of fear and panic washed over her. What did they do now? Where could they go in this storm? They had to get out . . . .
     
    JD cupped her cheeks with his hands and tilted her face until he could look into her eyes. “Carly, calm down. It’s going to be okay. I promise.”
     
    “Calm down?” she repeated, her voice rising. “You saw her. She was—She couldn’t—Her face—”
     
    He made soft hushing sounds and shook his head. “It’ll be okay. I promise.”
     
    Carly saw that reassuring steadiness in his gaze, the confidence that came with size and strength. It made her suddenly and inexplicably angry. Men always thought things would work themselves out—that they could fix anything that didn't. Her father had been that kind of man—the kind other men respected and women loved. And then some drunk had run him down one evening after work, leaving Carly and her mom on their own with the realization that he hadn’t been super human. He’d only made them feel that way.
     
    “How can you promise that?” she asked, trying to pull free of him. But he held on.
     
    He didn't answer her rage. Instead he simply repeated, “I promise.”
     
    And despite everything, he somehow made her believe him. “Do you think you’re indestructible?” she asked.
     
    “Nah,” he answered. “I know it.”
     
    He was teasing her and she wanted to be mad about that, too. But his thumbs brushed against her cheeks, warm and gentle, reassuring. Her hands lay flat against the hard muscles of his chest and beneath them, she could feel the rhythm of his pounding heart, slower now. She thought about the way his kiss had shaken her to her soul. Never before had something so simple had such an impact on her. Even now, despite her fear, despite everything, she wanted to feel his mouth against hers once more.
     
    “It’ll be okay,” he said again, softer this time, making her look up and into his eyes.
     
    “How can you say that?” she asked. “How can you say that when she . . . she . . .”
     
    Her voice rose again as that feeling of hysteria crowded in. She clamped down on it, fighting not to lose control. She wasn’t some immature little girl afraid of the dark, some weak and pliable woman who needed a man to protect her. Hold her hand, yes. Her trembling body, sure. But she wasn’t going to melt down into a blubbering panic-stricken mess.
     
    At least not until she was home and safe and alone.
     
    JD still watched her, gauging what she’d do next. He still held her face, cupped in his big hands, his thumbs rubbing gentle circles against her cheekbones. Then suddenly he moved closer and pressed his mouth to hers in a hard, fierce, possessive kiss that zinged through her blood like a drug. It shouldn’t