A Shadow's Light BK 2 Read Free Page B

he belonged in the forest, let alone working manual labor. He wore glasses with thin gold frames and had well groomed brown hair. His shirts, normally collared, were always ironed to perfection. If his work jeans got a hole in them, he would throw them away that night. Always clean shaven, he looked like he belonged in a classroom.
    “What’s up, boss? You three alright?” yelled Rob, even though he was only a few feet away.
    Wincing at Rob’s volume, Enrique replied. “Damn deer jumped out in front of us.”
    “Did you hit it?” asked Jordan.
    “Apparently not,” replied Enrique, turning back to examine the front of the truck.
    Test had to force himself not to stare at Alyssa. Even so, every couple of seconds his eyes would creep up and meet hers. She actually seemed to be staring at him . Suddenly he felt a tap on his shoulder.
    “Did you see it?” asked James.
    Test was caught looking at Alyssa instead of listening to the last bit of conversation. Blushing, he looked at James.
    “See what?” asked Test.
    “The deer, knuckle head,” replied James with a slap to the back of Test’s head. “Did you see the deer jump out? They said it changed direction in mid air.”
    “I saw something out of the corner of my eye, but I didn’t get a good look at it,” replied Test.
    Alyssa watched him intently. She noticed the scar on his left cheek and it made her curious. Everything about him made her want to know more. Out of character for herself, she spoke to him without being spoken to first.
    “Well, I got a close look at it, and I thought it was going to end up in my lap,” she said in a shy voice while she kicked at the ground.
    Test, suddenly surprised she was talking to him, replied with a jab at his boss. “I’ll bet. Good thing your uncle never drives in a straight line, otherwise it may have.”
    “Now wait a minute, mister. Are you saying that I’m a bad driver?” asked Enrique.
    Feeling a rush of awkwardness come over him, Test replied. “No sir, I would never say that. I guess I mean that it’s a good thing that deer don’t swerve all over the road too, otherwise you might have been in trouble.”
    The group began to laugh as Enrique reached out and playfully put his hands around Test’s neck. He shook him for a couple of seconds and then replied in jest. “Mr. Johnston, you’re lucky I like you.”
    Alyssa was now staring at Test without regard to the fact that anyone might be watching her. She felt an absolute attraction to him, and every action that he made. Every word spoken solidified that fact.
    “Okay everyone lets get going before it’s pitch black in here,” said Enrique.
    “Yeah, load up you guys,” barked Rob as if he was in some sort of a leadership role.
    James looked to Test and rolled his eyes. “Dang, I guess we’d better get going huh?”
    Test grinned and looked at the ground. James, Jordan, and Test followed Rob back to their truck. He waited for the other three to climb into the bed first and, as he waited, glanced back over his shoulder. He could see Alyssa staring at him through the space between her opened door and the cab of the truck.
    Enrique sat behind the steering wheel, waiting on Alyssa for only a moment before losing his patience. “Come on, Alyssa. Let’s get goin’.”
    Alyssa didn’t move. Enrique followed her eyes forward to see Test quickly turn away from them and climb into the back of the other truck. Suddenly he had a fantastic idea. He opened his door and put one foot to the ground. Placing his head between the door and the cab, he yelled.
    “Hey, Chance! Come here a minute.”
    Test turned and squinted into the darkness. The light had nearly gone, making it difficult to see even several feet away.
    “Chance, come here,” yelled Enrique once more.
    As the words came from his mouth, Alyssa flew into the truck and slammed her door shut.
    “What are you doing?” she asked as she slapped the seat with an open hand.
    Enrique sat silently and