A Dark Autumn Read Online Free Page A

was going to blame it on the chilly air.  
    His smile was crescent-shaped and white, with perfectly rowed teeth. She had never seen a smile so perfect, except in movies.  
    “The trees I mean…” He looked up. “Such beautiful colors. They almost seem unreal.”  
    Feeling like a dope, Michelle nodded. She finally found her voice. “It always is. I love coming out here this time of the year.”
    “You’re from here?”
    “Well…I’m from Charlotte actually, but my family owns the cabin right over there.” She pointed to the trees over his left shoulder.  
    The handsome stranger turned around as if he could actually see it from where they stood in the woods. “Oh yeah?”
    Michelle nodded, again.  
    “I passed it a little ways back. It’s nice.”  
    “Are you from here?” she asked.  
    He shook his head. “No, I’m only visiting. My name’s Rick Myers. You can call me Ricky, everyone else does.” He extended his hand over the circle pit.  
    Michelle even liked his name. Ricky. She smiled as she reached out and took his hand. They shook. His hand was soft and warm. “I’m Michelle Hopkins.”  
    “Nice to meet you.”
    “You too.”
    “Well, Michelle Hopkins, I will leave you be.” He smiled that faultless smile again. “I’m going to keep walking and take as much of this place in as I can.”  
    She couldn’t reply. Her voice had snagged in her throat. Michelle didn’t want him to leave, but couldn’t tell him to stay. As he walked around the rocks, smiling a farewell, she mouthed words that wouldn’t articulate. Finally, something like a cough or gag shot from between her lips.  
    It was enough to stop him. “Are you all right?”  
    Smiling, she managed to produce a sentence. “Yes, I’m fine.”
    “Okay,” he smiled again.  
    He was about to leave when she stopped him. “Listen, Ricky, if you don’t mind, I could walk with you, and…give you the tour, so to speak. I was taking a walk myself, and would sure love the company.”  
    “You don’t mind?”
    Ask my wet panties that. She smiled. “Not at all.”
    “I would love the tour, Michelle. It sounds great.”  
    “Okay.”  
    Yes, it sounds perfect.  
    She joined him at his side. She almost put her arm around his, but caught herself. As they began to walk, Michelle tried to comprehend what she was doing, why she was acting like this. She hadn’t acted so juvenile since she was…well…a juvenile. But all it had taken was one dreamy guy and she was right back to acting like a bitch in heat. She wanted to feel guilty about it. Picturing Britt stuck in horrible traffic on his way to Raleigh, cursing from behind the wheel, and wishing he was with Michelle, she still couldn’t make herself feel bad about this.  
    “Where are you from?” she asked, hoping to keep her mind distracted.  
    “Georgia.”  
    “Wow,” she said. “So far away?” She felt something like depression in her chest.  
    “It’s not so far. Just a five hour drive.”
    Again, Britt frowning in his car flashed in her mind. “Yeah, but five hours is still five hours.”
    He laughed. It was soft, ear pleasing. “True, but once I got here, I realized how it was all worth it.”
    Another flurry of heat shot up her neck. She could feel her forehead beginning to perspire. Is he talking about me? Probably not, but she liked to think that he was. “Is this your first time here?”
    “Yep. But it won’t be the last, that’s for sure.”
    “You should see it during the summer.”
    He groaned as if savoring a wonderful taste. “I bet it is fabulous . Green, warm, and I bet that lake is great to swim in.”
    Something about the way he’d reacted threw up a red flag. She had never once heard a man use the word fabulous to describe anything. But Michelle chose to ignore it and keep the conversation going. “Yeah, it is. Skinny dipping is a lot of fun too.” She nudged him with her elbow.
    Laughing, Ricky rubbed the back of his neck. It