Ashley's Billionaire Bundle - The Complete Story

Thick snowflakes silently fell on Ashley’s windshield as she drove along the snow-covered highway. Determined to keep going, she glanced at her speedometer before concentrating on the treacherous road. Putting gentle pressure on the gas pedal, she practically held her breath as she waited to see if her tires would stay steady on the icy pavement. The wipers slid across the windshield as she gripped the steering wheel in the ten and two o’clock position. With virtually no experience driving in the snow it was just her luck that her drive from Las Vegas to Reno had coincided with the unusual, late spring snowstorm. 

It was early evening, but with the gray clouds hanging overhead and the steadily falling snow, it felt much later.

The GPS assured her that she was going the right way, but with the nearly whiteout conditions, she could’t tell for sure. She tried to convince herself that this was all part of the adventure—leave all that she knew and move to a new city to start a new life. Wasn’t that what most new college graduates wanted?

Ashley looked in her rearview mirror, but when she saw no headlights behind her, she felt very alone. What if she got stuck in a snowbank? How would she get out? Who would help her? She was a girl from Las Vegas. Why on earth had she thought she would like moving north where it snowed?

If she was honest with herself, she’d had a romanticized vision of this type of weather—curled up in front of a blazing fire reading a novel, and when she got chilly, a handsome man would tuck a soft blanket around her legs. And then he would fix her a cup of hot cocoa with whipped cream on top.

At the thought of being chilly, Ashley realized that her feet were cold. Despite turning up the heat, only icy air blew out. It was like her car was protesting being out of the sunshine.

“Dang it.” She hit the dashboard like that would change her car’s mind and make it shape up.

Shape up or ship out. 

The words she’d learned from her dad jumped into her head, words that she’d said to her boyfriend the week before after she gotten tired of him treating her like dirt. He’d shipped out all right, dumping her without a second thought.

Frowning, she reminded herself that she was putting men out of her life while she focused on starting her career. No men equaled no distractions.

Wriggling her toes, she realized they’d gone numb. Grimacing, she turned the fan off—no point in speeding up the freezing process—and focused on the road.

When she began shivering, she came to the conclusion that as much as she wanted to make it to Reno that night, continuing driving in these conditions was a bad idea. Maybe there was a motel nearby where she could spend the night and wait out the storm. 

Peering into the whiteness that surrounded her, she couldn’t see much, but she could see that she was in the middle of nowhere. Not a house in sight. 

She had no choice but to continue driving.

The snow came down harder. It was starting to become difficult to tell where the road was. 

Panic built inside her but she told herself if she was careful she would be fine. 

Then her tires slipped. 

Her panic blossomed. Her heart thundered with terror. 

She was in trouble. Deep, deep trouble.

Desperate now, and anxious to see if her GPS could help, she glanced at her phone, which was mounted to her dashboard. It insisted that she continue on for another forty miles, and it didn’t show any approaching side streets.

Hardly daring to take her eyes from the road, she kept glancing at her phone as she tried to decide if she should risk making a call. She didn’t have Bluetooth so she would have to look away from the road for a moment to tap her screen. Of course, she could stop, but that presented problems of its own. Next to the road were deep snowbanks, so pulling off of the road wasn’t an option. And she didn’t think stopping in the middle of the road was a great idea either. With her luck, even though she couldn’t see anyone behind her just then, if she stopped, a semi was sure to come barreling down the highway and crush her like a gnat against its windshield.

No, she would have to do her best to keep driving while she dialed. With her gaze ricocheting between the road and her phone, she managed to punch in 911, but then she paused. If she completed the call, what would she say? Hi, my name is Ashley Spencer. I’m not from around here, but I’m scared of driving in the snow. And, oh yeah, the heater in my car is out and I’m getting really cold. Can you help me?

She wasn’t so desperate that she was willing to make herself look like an idiot. At least not yet.

Then the feeling of being in trouble settled over her and she knew she needed help. She pressed the Send key.

Nothing happened.

That was when she noticed that she had no service. Willing her phone to connect with a cell tower, she stared at the screen for a second. Not only did she not get service, but when she looked up a fence was racing toward her. Or maybe she was racing toward the fence. It was hard to tell in the state of sheer horror that swept over her.

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