Loving the Chase (Heart of the Storm #1) by Sharla Lovelace

area. There’s rotation there.”
    “Shit, we’re almost there,” Zach said, although his speed was down to a crawl. He handed the handheld radio over his shoulder to Maddi. “Hit that button and tell Rudy where we’re going.”
    She did, and then another voice made his muscles twitch.
    “We have one on the ground, I repeat, on the ground.”
    Jonah Boudreau.
    “Give me that,” Zach said through his teeth. Maddi held it over the console, and Zach snatched it from her hand. “What’s your location, Jonah?”
    There was a pause, and Zach’s patience with the rain dispersed with the knowledge that Jonah was where he was supposed to be. He glanced at Simon’s screen, and a perfect rotation danced beautifully.
    “Identify,” came Jonah’s voice over the radio.
    “You son of a—” Zach cut off his words and pressed the button. “You know who this is, Jonah. What’s your location? We are approximately one mile out of Mossy Cove and it is a full whiteout.”
    The telltale sound of hail thwacked against the windows and made a metallic sound against the hood.
    “Shit,” Maddi said from the backseat.
    “Hope your station’s van has good insurance,” Simon said.
    “West side of Mossy Cove,” came Jonah’s curt reply. “Unstable funnel on the ground—it’s bouncing. Best to stay where you are.”
    “I’ll bet,” Simon said.
    “Oh, my God,” Zach heard Maddi whisper behind him.
    “It’s okay,” Hannah said. “We’re fine.”
    “Damn it,” Zach said, banging the steering wheel. “We’re not fine, we’re missing it. We’re like sitting ducks here.”
    “Still rotating,” Simon said. “Still traveling south—no, south-southwest, we may run right into it.”
    “Right into it?” Maddi said, her voice pitching upward. “Are you—do we want to do that?” A gust of wind slammed into the side of the vehicle, making her gasp. “I mean, shit, you can’t see a foot in front of us.”
    “Part of it, Maddi,” Zach said. “This is why it’s hard to get where you want to go when this starts.”
    She didn’t respond, and the disappointment that was raging through him gave way to a stab of satisfaction. Maybe for once, she’d see that it was harder than it sounded. That it was work. That he hadn’t just been out joyriding seven years earlier while the world caved in around her.
    The noise got louder and louder, the wind harder. A piece of plastic siding bounced off his hood, making her suck in an audible breath, and the gust that pushed them afterward nearly made him do the same. He’d felt wheels leave the ground that time, just for a second. That was actually a first.
    “Fuck, it’s almost on top of us!” Simon yelled, staring at his screen. That was the only place to see it. To see anything. “Stop!”
    “No!” Maddi cried, and through the roar, Zach’s stomach tightened at the fear in her voice.
    “I’ve lost visual,” Jonah’s voice said then through the radio.
    Zach slammed the vehicle in “Park” and grabbed the receiver. “It’s on us,” he said, throwing the receiver down. A tree limb hit the roof and the anemometer, and he saw money go up in smoke. “Y’all hold on! Maddi?”
    He twisted and found her hand, holding on for dear life. She would not be alone this time. His siblings knew how to handle it. She didn’t.
    And she didn’t pull away. He felt the bite of her nails digging into his skin, and squeezed tighter. The air around them changed, moved, breathed, as if the solidity of the vehicle was just a farce. His ears popped at the pressure, making the deafening roar even more overwhelming. Maddi’s other hand grabbed his seat like she was hugging it, and she buried her face in the seat, releasing a guttural scream just behind his neck.
    The terror in that sound knocked the air from his chest.
    “Keep your eyes closed,” he yelled, squeezing her hand tighter. He felt her violent shaking as the vehicle rocked.
    “It’s pulling up,” Simon said then through