Tangled In Tinsel The Celebr

This book was given to JOANNA Rączkowska on Instafreebie. www.instafreebie.com

TANGLED IN TINSEL CELEBRATION SERIES BOOK 1

STACY EATON

NITEWOLF NOVELS

Contents Title Copyright Dedication A note from the author

Casey 2. Thad 3. Casey 4. Thad 5. Casey 6. Thad 7. Casey 8. Thad 9. Casey 10. Thad 11. Casey 12. Thad 13. Casey 14. Thad 15. Casey 16. Thad 1.

Books by Stacy Eaton About the Author Want more Celebration Township? Linda

Tangled in Tinsel A Celebration Series Novella ~ Book 1

Written by Stacy Eaton ~~~ Nitewolf Novels

Copyright 2015, Stacy Eaton ISBN: 978-1517236137 All Rights Reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real events or real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

This book is dedicated to my On The Beat Street Team. Thank you for being there for me and supporting me through a really rough summer!

A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR

The Celebration Township Series

Welcome to the first book in the Celebration Township Series, Tangled in Tinsel. This series will consist of 13 novellas that take place over a course of a year, and start off with Christmas. During the course of a year, 12 more stories will unfold in the Township of Celebration Pennsylvania, and each one will release to celebrate an upcoming holiday. Originally, this series was going to begin with Tangled in Tinsel, due to be published in October of 2015, and the other books would release shortly after, but sometimes life does not work the way we want it to. Due to a concussion that I received in late May 2015, my writing schedule has shifted quite a bit. As of late August 2015, I am still not writing much due to the injury and my recovery. Therefore, while Tangled in Tinsel will be released on schedule, the rest of the novella series, starting with Tears to Cheers, will not be released until

December 2016. I know, I know… I’m not happy about that either, but I hope you can understand that I love my writing and I want you to love it too, so putting it off is best for both of us. Enjoy Tangled in Tinsel, and make sure to stay tuned for the next 12 novellas in the story will begin to release.

CASEY

“I can’t believe how much stuff you have, Casey. How

did you manage to accumulate this much crap while still living at your parents’ house?” Brandy dropped the last cardboard box onto a stack of two more. “You forget I lived in a ten-thousand-square-foot house. It was easy to collect things.” I scanned the room as I dusted off my hands and plopped down on the floor. I had plenty of furniture, but it was buried at the moment under a mountain of boxes, lamps, and bags of stuff. Brandy sank down beside me and lay all the way back with a groan. “Yeah, that’s another thing, how are you going to manage going from a sprawling mansion to this little dinky house?” I smacked her leg. “Hey, it’s not dinky, it’s cozy.” Brandy snorted, “Cozy like a ten-dollar hotel room.” “It’s not that bad,” I argued as I critically eyed the dingy yellow wall with a huge water stain down the center of it. “With a little paint and some tender loving care, this place will be great in a few weeks.” Brandy cackled, “A few weeks!” She laughed so hard she held her stomach. “You’ll be lucky if you get this

place in livable shape in a year!” She rolled onto her side and jerked upright, her nose scrunched up. “I just figured out where that odd smell was coming from. You need to either get rid of this carpet or have it cleaned.” She waved a hand in front of her face. “Gross.” “What?” I leaned down and sniffed the carpet. “Oh, god! That’s horrible! Ew!” I jumped to my feet and wiped at the back of my pants in case fibers of the carpet were stuck to me. Brandy pulled her ponytail tighter as she stood beside me. “Maybe we should have taken the carpet out before we put all the furniture in here.” I scrutinized the offending carpet, my hands on my hips as I surveyed the room and tried to figure out what I should do. “I don’t even know where to start.” “If I were in your shoes, I’d start by putting everything back on the truck and leaving,” Brandy advised with a cocky grin. “Very funny, Brandy, but I’m not going anywhere. I just bought this place.” It was my first home, and I was so excited to say that I had gotten it on my own. “Tell me again why you bought this house?” “Stop it. You know exactly why I bought it. It’s the only thing I could find in my price range.” Brandy grew quiet, and I peered over and saw the pity in her eyes. I chose to ignore it and instead picked up a box marked “Bedroom”. “Why don’t we distribute these to the rooms where they belong?” “If that’s what you want.” She picked up a box and walked down the hallway toward a small bedroom I’d decided would be my office. I followed behind her and entered another door just past where she turned off. Just over the threshold, I paused. The house might be small and might need a little

work, okay, a lot of work, but this room; this room made all the hard work to come worth it. In the center of the room, my queen-sized mattress and box spring sat on the floor. I still needed to figure out how to put the frame together, but it wasn’t the bed that held me spellbound; it was the window on the other side of it. There was a large bay window with a cushion situated beneath it, so you could sit and behold the glorious view. In the far distance was a grove of trees that stood so tall and majestic that you felt sheltered. Over to the right was a small pond, and the back of the house faced east, so the sun would rise and shine on me every morning. I couldn’t wait to see the first sunrise as I woke up in my new home. All of my life, I had been a morning person, always preferring to get up at the crack of dawn to enjoy the peace and quiet of a brand new day. Sometimes I exercised, other times I would clean, and then there were the times that I sat back with a cup of coffee and relaxed. I grinned at the window and could already picture waking up to the sunrise. I set the box down in the corner and wondered absently which box held my linens. “Hey, Brandy, did you see my linens box?” I asked as I walked back to the small living room. She waved a hand toward the pile in the dining area, “Yeah, someplace over there.” “Gee, thanks,” I rolled my eyes at her, “that helps a lot.” For the next hour, we moved boxes to different parts of the house. At least separating them made it look like I didn’t have a million of them to unpack. “I’m starving. Is there someplace around here we can get food and a cold beer?” Brandy asked as she shoved the last box into a corner of the living room and then

rubbed her lower back as she arched to stretch it. “Yeah, there is a little tavern down the street. We can pop in there. I could use a beer myself.” “When do you start your new job?” she asked as we locked up the house. “Brr, it’s cold out here.” She pulled her coat more tightly around her body. “I start on Tuesday,” I replied as I unlocked my BMW, one of the few things that I had been able to retain after the whole family drama. “It is getting chilly, but then again it is November, and we are in the north.” “Don’t remind me. Are you looking forward to it—your job—not the weather?” Her seatbelt clicked into place. “I am,” I grinned at her. “I can’t wait. The hospital is really small, but I think it is going to work out perfectly.” “Well, you won’t have to worry about anyone finding you. No one would think to come all the way out to the backwoods to search.” “What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked as I turned onto the main road. “Come on, Casey, you’re a city girl, born and bred on a silver spoon. No one would expect to find you all the way out here in the boonies.” She laughed and I realized she did have a point. “Well, I’m fine with that. I don’t want anyone to find me. I’ve had enough of that, thank you. I’m ready for some peace and quiet, and to have my own life.” I clicked on my blinker as we approached the entrance to Dabby’s Tavern. “But did you have to go so far away? You could have found a job closer to home.” I heard the whine in her voice, one that had come and gone since I told her I was moving several states away to upstate Pennsylvania. “Brandy, I needed a fresh start, and I found this great job. Do you know how hard it is to find a job as a nursing

supervisor in an emergency department without climbing a long grueling ladder?” “If you had stayed where you were, you would have had that supervisor’s job in another year or two.” “And I would have had to face the press, the police, and everyone else that walked through the ER doors. No, thanks,” I muttered as I pulled into a spot. “You know all the attention will die down soon, and then you will be stuck up here in no-man’s land,” she replied as she climbed out of my car. “I’m fine with that. I needed a new start, and I’m going to do it right here.” The door to the tavern burst open, and two men came out, one shoving the other. “I told you to get off the property, Steve. Now get the hell out of here.” The man talking was burly with a dense beard and a red flannel shirt. “Come on, I wasn’t doing nothing,” the other man said as he swayed on his unsteady feet. “Yeah, but another five minutes and I would have had to call the police to come in and drag your ass outta here,” red-flannel guy said and crossed his massive arms. “Now, walk home and get some sleep.” “You want me to walk home? No way, you give me my keys.” Steve shoved his hand out and his feet followed, causing him to almost lose his balance. “You are not getting your keys. You live a half mile away, walk home; the fresh air will sober you up.” Steve said something else under his breath, and Brandy curled her arm around my elbow. “Maybe we should go someplace else,” she urged. “Go on, get home. You’re in the way of these ladies who would like to enter,” the lumberjack-style man stated, and the drunk turned to eye us. “Well, hello there, pretty ladies,” he slurred as he tried

to step forward. Brandy pulled my arm back, but I was used to dealing with intoxicated people at the hospital. “I think your friend there is right. I think you need to take a little walk and sober up.” “But maybe I want to get to know you better,” he countered and burped. “Gross,” Brandy muttered. “Sorry, if you want to get to know me, you need to be sober.” I pulled Brandy beside me and stepped around him as the big man held the door. “Okay, I’ll come back when I’m sober,” he called out from behind me. “Steve, go home to your wife and leave these ladies alone.” I smiled at the man as I passed him. “Thank you.” “No, thank you. I appreciate you not turning and running away after seeing that guy. We don’t see too many new faces around here.” He stuck out his beefy hand, “I’m Dabby, owner of the tavern.” I returned the handshake, “Nice to meet you, Dabby. I’m Casey and this is my friend, Brandy.” “Well, I do believe the first round is on me. Come on in. You all want a table or do you want to sit at the bar?” I turned and scanned the room. Most of the thirty or so tables were full, and almost every eye was turned our way. “Um, how about the bar?” I replied. If we sat there, then I wouldn’t see all the people staring at us. “Don’t mind them,” he waved a hand out toward the crowd. “You all go about your own business,” he called out, and slowly people began to turn around and go back to their food and drinks. “Sorry, small-town people see new faces, and everyone wants to find out who you are. Bar, it is.” He walked off as Brandy and I followed.

“I think you might need to buy a flannel shirt or two. Seems like the appropriate dress code,” Brandy whispered, and I almost burst out laughing because I had been thinking the same thing. Dabby put a couple of menus down on the bar as we pulled off our coats and sat down. “You all passing through?” Brandy answered before I could open my mouth, “I’m just visiting, but Casey just bought a house down the street.” Dabby eyed me carefully, “You buy the old Hoover place?” Of course, with the small town and the house so close to his tavern, he would know which one. I beamed, “Yep, just moved in today.” He shook his head. “I sure hope your husband knows how to fix things.” “She’s not married,” Brandy blurted, and I glared at her. “I’m sure I will be fine doing any repairs that are needed myself,” I stated firmly as I stared down at the menu. “Well, if you need any advice on anything, I can put you in contact with whoever you might need. I know everyone within a thirty-mile radius.” I grinned at him, “Then I am very glad to know you, Dabby. Now, what’s the best thing on the menu because we’re starved?”

THAD

“S o the new neighbors moved in today,” Corrine remarked over the phone as I pulled up to the station. “Looks like a lesbian couple.” I sputtered my coffee over the dashboard. “What the hell makes you think that?” “I don’t know. I saw a few men there moving stuff in, and then there were just two women.” “So because you saw two women, you think they are gay?” I swore sometimes she was an idiot. “Well, you never know. I hope they are. I always wanted to know more about that lifestyle.” “Corrine, stop, stop right there. If they are, you are going to leave them alone. You are not going to pester them.” My stern no-nonsense voice rang through the line, something she hated. “It’s not pestering if you become friends with them. Unless they want me to take part, and that might be kind of odd,” she paused, “but it would be cool to learn about, don’t you think?” Almost every male alive had the fantasy of watching two women together; I was the odd man out. That was

not my cup of tea. “No, leave them alone, Corrine. Let Tommy know I’ll be home in about an hour.” I was a one-woman man, and the idea of sharing the person I cared about with another person or being a voyeur and watching two women together seemed strangely odd to me. Maybe I was the peculiar one. I had nothing against people who were homosexual. One of my best male friends was and had been since high school. We went out for beers and met up once a month for a round of hoops. I even liked his current boyfriend, even if he did shoot better than I did. I hung up from Corrine and made my way back into the station. My fourteen-hour shift was almost over. Normally, I only worked a twelve-hour, but I had gotten called in early this morning to cover a shift when one of the guys had to rush his pregnant wife to the hospital. I grinned to myself as I remembered the sheer panic in John’s voice as he called begging me to cover his last two hours. I pulled up a chair and woke up the computer to do my reports for the day. I could smell her coming before I even saw her. Missy, our nighttime dispatcher, had the most ungodly sickly sweet floral perfume that she probably bathed in daily. Her hands rubbed my shoulders, and I shifted uneasily away from her. “Evening, Missy, how are you tonight?” She practically purred in my ear, “I’m wonderful now. How are you?” I shifted further away from her. That’s all I needed was to go home smelling like perfume. Corrine would never let me live it down. “Glad to hear it. I’m fine, thank you.” “What do you have planned for tonight?” she asked as she leaned against the desk, inches from me. The

desk was like four feet long, but she had to plant herself right there. “Going home to relax, play with Tommy, and get some sleep.” Her eyes twinkled on my last words. I knew better than to say something like that and I tried not to wince. Luckily, before she could add a come on to her suggestive look, the phone rang and I reached to pick it up, giving her a tight smile. “Celebration Police Department, this is Officer Wagner.” I turned away from Missy hoping she would get the message. “Officer Wagner, it’s Jimmy Cosgrove. Stevie is at it again. He’s knocking on everyone’s door on his way home from the bar.” “Alright, Jimmy, where is the last place you saw him?” “He’s at my front door right now.” I could hear Steve in the background asking for a beer and I laughed quietly. “I’m on my way. Keep him busy for five minutes.” He said he would and I hung up. When I turned to stand, I practically slammed into Missy. Her hands went to my chest, “Oh, you got up so fast. I wasn’t ready.” I pulled her two small hands off with one of my own and stepped around her, “That’s alright. You have a good night, Missy. I gotta go get Steve home.” “Aren’t you coming back?” she called as I hightailed it to the door. “Not if I can help it,” I said under my breath. “No, I’ll probably head straight home. You have a nice weekend,” I said loudly enough for her to hear me. I didn’t hear her reply as I was already out the door. It wasn’t that I needed to rush to get to Steve. I knew where he was and he wasn’t a danger to anyone, but I had no problem pretending it was an emergency to avoid

wandering hands. I pulled up to Jimmy’s house to find him and Steve sitting on the porch, both drinking a beer. I shook my head as I got out of my patrol vehicle. “Gentlemen.” Steve turned to Jimmy, “Now what’d you have to go and do that for?” “Do what?” Jimmy sputtered in feigned innocence. Steve tried to stand and spilled half his beer, “You went and called the dang police.” “Steve, Jimmy didn’t call me. I saw you all hanging out, thought I’d stop and say hi, maybe give you a ride home. Where’s Bonnie tonight?” “My old lady is home, where she oughta be,” he stated belligerently, and I held back a grin behind a short cough. “Alright, then, if she’s at home, I’m sure she will be happy to have your company. Let me give you a ride.” “I’m not done with my beer,” he stalled and attempted to sit back down, completely missing the wooden rocking chair and planting his butt on the porch. Jimmy and I started laughing. It shouldn’t have been funny, but it was. I helped him up, allowed him to finish the tiny bit left in his beer can, and then escorted him to my car. I waved to Jimmy as I pulled out and turned toward Steve’s place. “Dabby kick you out again?” I asked over my shoulder. “Hell, yeah! He’s always kicking me out, and he kept my car keys, again,” his voice grew high pitched as he whined. And that was exactly where they should have been. Steve had crashed into quite a few things over the years, luckily none of them people. He’d even gone to prison the last time when his blood alcohol level was double the

legal limit. The judge hoped that six months in prison would be good for him, but it wasn’t two hours after he was released that he was back at Dabby’s Tavern. I helped him out of the car and made sure he made it to his front door. I wouldn’t put it past him to turn and head back to the tavern if he knew I wasn’t watching. The minute the front door opened, Bonnie started shouting, “It’s about time, and Jesus, Steve, the cops had to bring you home again. What did you hit this time?” “Nothing, Bonnie, honey. I asked for a ride.” The door closed as I got back into my car. My phone rang as I pulled out of the driveway, and I sighed when I saw Corrine’s name. “Yes,” I replied dryly to her. “Can you stop by Dabby’s and pick up dinner. Tommy wanted pulled pork. I already called in the order.” What probably really happened was Corrine didn’t feel like cooking and asked Tommy if he wanted pulled pork. Whatever, I loved Dabby’s food. “Fine, I’m on my way over there now.” A few minutes later I parked along the front of the building. The headlights of my SUV hit the back of a silver BMW with South Carolina plates. Not many out-oftowners came in here. I wondered where they were heading. I scanned the tavern as I entered. All the regulars were here for a Thursday night, and I waved to a few of them as I headed to the bar. Two women sat with their backs to me, the one on the right had long brown hair pulled into a high ponytail. She was leaning close to the other woman, whispering in her ear. Were these ladies my new neighbors? “Hey, Thad!” Dabby called out. “Your food is almost ready. You want something to drink while you wait?”

The woman with the long brown hair turned to check me out. Her eyes slipped down the front of my uniform and then slowly back up. She leaned back to the other woman and said something while she laughed. “No, I’m still on duty.” I chose a stool a few seats down from the women and sat down, casting a glance toward the other woman. She was facing her friend and had dark black wavy hair, and that was about all I could tell except that she wore jeans, sneakers, and a sweatshirt. “I had to put Steve out again. He was bothering the Anderson girls, again.” “Yeah, I just took him home. Thanks for keeping his keys. He doesn’t need to spend any more time in jail. I’m not sure Bonnie would let him back home, and then what would we do with him?” We both laughed, and I noticed the dark-haired woman peer around her friend at me. I gave her a friendly smile and a nod. Dabby lowered his voice, “Your new neighbor, and she’s cute as all get out.” I skimmed my eyes over the woman facing me again. She was attractive, but not my type. Her makeup alone made her look like she was high maintenance, and if she was the one driving the fancy car outside, then there was no way. I had to wonder what she was doing buying the house next to mine if she could afford that kind of vehicle. “How much longer for the food?” I asked as my phone rang. “I’ll go check.” Dabby walked away as I cringed and answered the phone. “Yes, Missy, what can I do for you?” “Love, there is someone at the station for you.” “Who is it?” The woman needed to stop calling me love, or honey, or sweet cakes.

“Montel and Agnes are here. They apologized for getting here so late but were wondering if you might be able to help them.” I sighed, “Sure, let me drop dinner off at home, I was just picking it up. Tell them I will be there in about fifteen minutes.” Dabby passed by me and held up three fingers, I nodded as Missy asked me to hold on. I heard her answering another phone. She might be a complete flirt, but she was a damned good dispatcher, and I could tell by how quickly she began to talk that something was up. “Thad, we have a serious accident on the highway. Burns is over at the hospital with a DUI arrest and your relief is not in yet,” Missy declared in her no-nonsense voice. “Fine, tell Montel and his wife that I will call them later. Where on the highway?” Missy gave me the mile marker and I hung up. “Dabby, you’re gonna have to hold those or call Corrine and have her come get them. I have an accident I need to respond to.” I was already moving toward the door as I heard his answer, “No problem, I’ll ask your neighbors to drop it off for you.” I glanced over my shoulder, and for the first time got a glimpse of the other woman. In that one split second, I lost all sense of time and reason. Her heart-shaped face filled my vision, and I zeroed in on her bright blue eyes. Her lips parted, and I felt like time had moved to slow motion. My God, she is gorgeous, I thought just before I slammed into the wall. My head bounced off the hard wood panel, and I reached out to steady myself as I heard gasps and laughter behind me. Way to make an impression, Thad, I

said to myself. My cheeks felt hot, and I knew that they had to be bright red. I stepped sideways and pushed the door open without looking back. The last thing I wanted to witness was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen laughing at me.

CASEY

“O h my god!” I put my hand over my mouth as the

officer bounced off the wall. “That’s gonna leave a mark.” I couldn’t help but chuckle as I cringed. Why was it that when others had the misfortune of hurting themselves you laughed? There were titters around the tavern from people who had witnessed it. “He’ll be fine. He’s got a hard head,” Dabby said as he stopped in front of us. “Did you say he was her neighbor?” Brandy asked as the door closed behind Thad. “Yeah, he lives right next to you. Do you ladies mind dropping the food off at his house on your way home? I’m sure they would all appreciate it.” “Sure, I’d be happy to.” I gave Dabby a smile and glanced at the door again. I had only caught a brief look at the officer’s face, but it sure was a mighty fine one. I handed Dabby the money for our dinner. “Man, did you luck out,” Brandy said as she slid off the stool. “You’ve got one hot man living next door to you.” “And he has a family,” I reminded her as I held the

bag up as proof. She shrugged, “So?” “Don’t even go there, Brandy,” I hissed at her. “I’m not in the market for a man, especially not a married one.” “Fine,” she replied dryly. We called out a final thank you to Dabby and headed back to my new home. By the time we pulled in the driveway, my bladder was ready to explode from the two beers I’d consumed. “Brandy, can you walk this over there? I have to pee so bad I’m about to wet myself.” “Sure.” She headed across the lawn while I rushed up to the door. I wasn’t ready to meet the neighbors yet anyway. I was coming out of the bathroom when Brandy walked in the front door. “You’re not going to believe what that woman asked me.” She dropped her purse and coat on the edge of the couch. “What’s that?” I said as I ripped open a box. “She wanted to know how long we’ve been together.” She giggled. “What?” I didn’t get what was so funny. “She thinks we’re a couple.” She laughed and she pointed back and forth between the two of us. “She wanted to know how long we have been together.” “She did not!” She nodded dramatically, “Oh, yes, she did.” “What did you tell her?” Why would the woman next door think Brandy was a lesbian? Maybe it was so she didn’t have to worry about someone hitting on her husband. Well, she didn’t have to worry about that. “I told her we’ve been together since high school.” She laughed, “You should have seen how round her eyes got.” “Stop! You did not!” I laughed with her as she nodded

dramatically. “I can’t believe you said that.” I went back to opening the box. “So what’s she like?” I dug through the box and pulled out a bunch of packing paper. I wanted to find my coffee mugs so I could make sure I had coffee first thing in the morning. “She is beautiful, thin, kind of a dark complexion, big blue eyes, and you should see the little boy. He looks just like his dad.” “Oh great, so I have the beautiful family living next to me who thinks I’m gay.” “Hey, at least you won’t have to worry about a married man hitting on you,” she threw back. “Like he would anyway,” I muttered and changed the subject. “What time is your flight tomorrow?” “Eleven. You sure you don’t want me to stay the weekend and help you get this place in order? Although, I don’t think a weekend will do it justice.” “Would you leave my house alone? I happen to love it! And no, I know you have things to get done at home. You have already been a tremendous help.” I dug deeper into the box. “Aha! Found them.” I pulled out two mugs wrapped in heavy packing paper. “Now we’ll have coffee in the morning.” “Thank god! Do you know where the coffeemaker is?” I stopped what I was doing and looked at the other boxes. “Um, no, but I’m sure it’s in one of these boxes.” Brandy laughed behind me. We ended up unpacking the rest of the kitchen and filling most of my cupboards. There were only eight cabinets, and I had the bare minimum of kitchen items. Even so, they were slowly filling. I wondered where I was going to put food. I also realized that the kitchen was definitely only meant for one person at a time. Before long, Brandy and

I got tired of rubbing up against one another to put things away, and she went about unpacking while I stowed things in cabinets. “Are you sure you’re going to be alright all by yourself here?” I shrugged one shoulder, “Sure, why wouldn’t I be?” “Casey, you’re used to having people do things for you, like unpack things. Have you ever had to cook food for yourself? Or clean?” She shook her head. “I feel like you have bitten off more than you can chew, especially with this rundown house.” I pushed the last plate onto the stack and turned to her, leaning back against the chipped Formica counter. “Brandy, I’ll be fine. You forget I did live on my own while I was in college. I’m looking forward to having the space to myself.” Brandy glanced around. “Be hard to share the space with someone else. I think this whole house is smaller than your old bedroom suite.” I sighed, “Brandy, I know you didn’t want me to move all the way up here, and, believe me, I’m going to miss you like crazy, but I needed to get away from there. I couldn’t take the way people looked at me and constantly wondered if I was involved or why I was with him and didn’t know.” Her shoulder rose and fell, and I approached her and put my arm around her while we walked back into the living room. “You know I am going to miss you so much, and I’m going to call you all the time.” “Are you sure you don’t want to come back for Thanksgiving? It’s only two weeks away.” We stopped in the middle of the room. I winced. “Brandy, I start my job next week. I can’t take time off that soon. Besides, I already said I would cover the day shift so others could be home with their families.”

She sighed, “I know, but I hate that you are going to be alone.” I hugged her tightly. “It’s okay. I think I need some time to be alone.” “Yeah, I know,” she whispered. “Why don’t we go get some sleep?” I pulled back from her and swiped a lock of hair off her face before I began to laugh. “I hope my neighbors aren’t peeking in my windows tonight.” She looked at me funny, “Why is that?” “Well, she might really get the idea that we are together since we’ll be sleeping in the same bed.” Brandy burst into laughter while I turned off the light, and arm in arm we walked back to my bedroom. Brandy and I talked into the wee hours of the morning even though we were both exhausted. We chatted and giggled about everything from high school, to jobs, to men. Of course, that conversation was short as I didn’t want to think about my past experience, although as I drifted off to sleep, the image of a man dressed in a police uniform flitted through my mind.

“JESUS H. CHRIST,” Brandy muttered. “You need freaking drapes on your windows.” I felt the covers pulled taut and knew she was hiding under them. I tried to open my eyes, and the bright sunlight that I had been longingly looking forward to blinded me. “Yeah, I’ll put that on my list to buy.” I rolled over and looked at my cellphone clock. “Oh, crap! Brandy, get up! We should have been up two hours ago. You’re gonna miss your plane.” That got her moving, and she jumped out of the bed

grabbing her stuff as I ran into the kitchen to put on coffee. I knew where the travel mugs were now, so I could at least get us coffee to go. Twenty minutes later, we hustled out of the house and got in my car. I barely had time to brush my teeth, much less do makeup. A ponytail was as fancy as I was getting today, but Brandy flipped down the passenger mirror and began ”putting on her glamour” as she called it as soon as the car was in motion. Ten minutes down the road, a siren caught my attention, and I saw the telltale red and blue lights flashing in my rearview mirror. “Shit. How fast was I going?” I glanced at the speedometer. “Only sixty-five. What’s the speed limit here?” “I don’t know,” Brandy said as she glanced over her shoulder. “Maybe it’s your neighbor.” “Crap, let’s hope it’s not.” I slowed and pulled over to the shoulder, hoping he was only trying to get around me. No such luck as he stopped behind me. “Damn, I think it is him,” I said as I stared harder into the mirror. “That’s good. I’m sure you can get out of this then,” Brandy said as she put mascara on. “Actually, I’m glad you got pulled over, now I can put my mascara on without getting it all over the place.” “Figures you would find something good in me being pulled over by the police,” I retorted as I dug through my purse for my wallet. A tap on my window brought my head up fast, and I lowered the window as I glanced up. Lord, have mercy on my soul! This man was incredible looking. His short hair was light brown and parted on the side. His blue eyes were striking as they stared down at me. “Morning, ma’am. I’m Officer Wagner of the

Celebration Police Department. Do you happen to know how fast you were going?” I opened my mouth to speak and found words escaped me as I watched his lips to see if they would continue to move. He had the most incredible lips I had ever seen, and I wondered how they would feel. He tipped his head to the side and studied me. “Ma’am, are you alright?” “Casey,” I stuttered out. “Excuse me?” “My name is Casey, not ma’am.” Brandy snickered beside me, and I almost elbowed her. A smirk raised one side of his mouth and displayed the cutest damned dimple I had ever seen. “Okay, Casey, do you know how fast you were going?” “Um,” I cleared my throat. Did I tell the truth? Of course I tell the truth! Jesus, I knew what happened with the police when you didn’t. “Sorry, I was going about sixty-five, but I don’t know what the speed limit is.” “Actually, you were going sixty-nine when you were clocked, and the speed limit is thirty-five.” I cringed, “I’m so sorry. We woke up late, and I’m rushing my friend to the airport. She has a flight out at eleven. I honestly didn’t know the speed limit.” “Well, Casey, now you do, and I hope that in the future you will obey it.” He grinned down at me and held out his hand. “I’m Thad, by the way, I believe we’re neighbors.” I looked at his long elegant fingers as they came my way. Why was my heart beating like it was trying to get out of my chest? I placed my hand into his and we both stared at one another. “Casey,” I said again lamely. “It’s nice to meet you, Casey. Do me a favor and slow

down. Get your friend to the airport safely.” “Yes, sir,” I stated automatically while I realized I was still holding his hand. I yanked mine back, embarrassed at my reaction to him. He laughed a deep laugh and put a smile on his face that made his eyes seem brighter than they had been just moments before. “I’m letting you off with a warning today, not because you are my neighbor, but because you did me a favor last night. Thank you for dropping the food off at home for me.” “You’re welcome, and thank you for not giving me a ticket. I promise I’ll pay better attention.” “Drive safely, Casey,” he leaned down and peered past me to Brandy, “and have a safe flight.” Thad’s subtle cologne reached my nose with his movement. Thank god I was seated, or my knees might have buckled. “Thank you,” Brandy replied. Thad stared at me for another moment before he stood up, “I’ll see you around, Casey. It was nice meeting you, and welcome to Celebration.” “Thank you.” My voice came out huskier than it should have, and I cleared my throat as he walked away. I used the side mirror to watch him; his back was as nice as his front. When he reached his driver’s side door, he turned and our gazes locked in the reflection. He winked and climbed into his truck. “Talk about a hottie,” Brandy said as she fanned her face. I put the window up and checked my mirror again to make sure it was safe to get back onto the road. I’d learned two things just then: One, Officer Thad Wagner was an extreme hottie; second, he was also a very dangerous man, if only to my starving hormones.

THAD

ow. That one word just about summed it up. How I W managed to be professional as I stared into that beautiful face was beyond me. Casey, or more correctly Cassandra Lowe, was one seriously gorgeous woman. I stared at the computer screen in my car, noting that she used to reside on Timber Street in Charleston, South Carolina. I also learned that she leased the car and her insurance was up to date. Even though I had already released her from the stop, I ran her driver’s license just to make sure it was valid. She was twenty-eight years old and about five foot four, the perfect height to cozy up to a man who was five foot eleven, like me. Yeah, like that was going to happen. When Corrine had said that she thought our new neighbors were lesbians, I had thought she was crazy, but last night when I got home, I went out to the mailbox and had a clear view into Casey’s living room. Casey and her friend had been standing in the center of the room, arms wrapped around each other in a tight hug. Casey had

pulled back and gently brushed hair off of her friend’s face. There had been an intimacy there that even I couldn’t have denied. I drove around the township, waving at residents and stopping to talk to a few of the kids who were out playing basketball at the local park. Three times I saw silver BMWs and quickly looked at the rear plate to see if it was Casey’s car. It never was, and when I drove by the house at lunchtime, her car wasn’t parked in the driveway. The babysitter was at home when I arrived, and Tommy jumped off the couch. As I grabbed him, he threw his arms around my neck. At the age of five, he was still in the stage of showing people he cared. I knew it would only be a matter of time before he would consider himself too cool to hug anyone, except maybe his mother behind closed doors. “What’s up, kiddo? You behaving today?” I tousled his hair as I set him down. “Of course. I always behave.” I laughed because I knew that was most definitely not true. “Where is Lindsey?” I asked as I walked past him. “Making lunch,” Tommy answered and dropped back onto the couch to watch one of his favorite programs. Before Corrine and Tommy had moved in, the small kitchen had seemed larger, but now that they had filled the counters with all kinds of gadgets, it looked like it was about to explode. “Hey, Lindsey, how is Tommy behaving today?” I asked as I pulled the fridge door open. “I made you your favorite sandwich,” she said sweetly, and I tried not to roll my eyes. “You didn’t need to do that, Lindsey. I could have made my own sandwich.” I glanced on the rack in the

fridge and found a plate with a thick beefy meatloaf sandwich with lettuce and tomato peeking out from under the bread, and two sliced pickles. “I know you could have, but I worried you might have been rushing in between calls, and I wanted to make sure you got a good lunch.” I peeked at her covertly from the side and tried to ignore the doe eyes batting in my direction. Lindsey was eighteen—but just barely. For as long as I had known her, she’d had a crush on me; although, up until she turned legal, she’d kept the secret closely guarded. It was only after her eighteenth birthday that she had begun to throw herself at me. She had been babysitting Tommy that day, and he’d been playing quietly in the living room. I’d been happily surprised when I came home and found she had made me lunch. While I had been eating and flipping through a magazine, she’d run her hands over my shoulders, and I had frozen mid-chew. I had turned to her. “You need something?” I asked, wondering if she had been trying to get my attention and I hadn’t noticed. Oh, she had definitely been trying to get my attention, but not in the way I thought. Lindsey had slipped onto my lap before I could even understand what she was doing. Her arms had wrapped tightly around my neck and she had plastered a kiss on my lips. I’d been shocked at her advance and shoved her off of me so hard she fell to the floor while I stood up and towered over her. “Lindsey, what the hell are you doing?” She had scrambled off the floor and come at me, her eyes wild with excitement. “I’m a woman now, and I want you to know that.” I had grabbed her shoulders and held her back, “Just

because you are eighteen does not particularly mean you are a woman. I’m eleven years older than you, and this is not going to happen.” “What’s eleven years when you love someone?” She had tried to paw at my chest, but I held her far enough away that she couldn’t do that much damage. “You can’t get in trouble now, I’m old enough.” “Jesus, Lindsey, you’re the babysitter. I am not going to get involved with you.” She hadn’t even hesitated, “Fine, I’ll quit.” I’d looked at her sternly. “You will not. Can you imagine how Corrine would flip if you did that?” She’d shrugged. “Lindsey, this is not happening, not now, not ever. Understand that?” Her bottom lip had come out in a pout, and I had rolled my eyes. Real mature, I had thought as I stepped back from her and snagged the last bit of my sandwich and moved away from her, “Tell Tommy I’ll see him tonight.” Ever since that day, Lindsey had tried everything to get my attention, and while I had been as nice as I could, I shunned every advance that she directed my way. For a while she had even stopped, but that had only lasted a few months while she was dating someone else. The minute they broke up, she was back at trying to hook me. I gave her a simple nod, “Thanks, Lindsey, I’m in a hurry today. I’ll just wrap up the sandwich and take it with me.” “Aw.” The dreaded bottom lip stuck out again, and I forcibly contained a sigh of exasperation. “I thought we could talk.” “Sorry, but I have a lot of paperwork to get done.” I shoved the sandwich in a plastic bag and grabbed a pickle wedge as I turned to leave. “You have a good

afternoon.” I practically ran out of the house to avoid any further conversation. As I climbed into my patrol vehicle, Casey pulled into her driveway and climbed out. I pretended to be reading something on my computer while I spied on her over the top of the screen. Her hair was up in a ponytail, showing off a lean long neck. She wore a baggy bright blue sweatshirt and black yoga pants with sneakers. As she rounded the back of her car, she glanced at my car but turned away to open her trunk after a quick look. She began loading her arms with bags from the local hardware store, and I reached for the door handle. The neighborly thing to do would be to help her. I hesitated for a moment, but when I saw her lift out two five-gallon containers of paint and try to hold them and the bags, I opened my door. As I looked over the hood of my car, she tried to shut the trunk of her car. One of the bags got in the way and the lid bounced back up, almost hitting her in the face. She yelped and stepped back, but the bag had somehow gotten caught on the trunk latch. She yanked at it just as I was about to open my mouth to tell her not to. The thin plastic bag tore clean through and everything inside went airborne. As the bag ripped, Casey began to fall back, and I could do nothing but watch as she landed on her rear end. The rest of her things skittered around the area. One of the paint cans rolled and ended up colliding with the side of her head and I heard an oomph come out of her. I jogged over to her, worried that the can or the fall had knocked her out, but as I got closer, she put her hand to her forehead and hid her eyes. “Please tell me you did not just watch that.”

I bit back a laugh, “Nope, I didn’t see a thing.” I put my hands on my hips and stared down at her. I could see the heart shape of her face, but her hand was blocking most of the view as she hid from me. “Are you alright? You took a nasty fall.” “So you did see that. Damn, and here I thought police officers weren’t supposed to lie.” “I wasn’t exactly lying.” She spread her fingers and glared at me through them. “Okay, I was lying. I was about to come and help you when you got the bag caught on the latch.” I squatted beside her, “You alright? I can call an ambulance for you.” Her hand flew off her face and she rolled to her side, “I’m fine. Don’t you dare call a bus.” She took a second to get to her knees, and I stayed nearby in case she lost her balance. She clambered to her feet and dusted herself off as she looked at the mess around her. My radio squawked as I watched her, but the transmission wasn’t for me, so I ignored it. “Why did you call it a bus?” She looked at me like I had three heads, “What?” “You called it a bus; most people call it an ambulance.” I bent down to start putting the paint brushes, tape, and rollers back into the bags for her. “Sorry, I work in an ER; I’m used to calling it a bus. I thought police officers did, too.” She went to bend over to pick up a paint can and wavered. I grabbed her arm before she could fall sideways to the cement driveway. “I think you need to sit down,” I said as I let the bag I was holding slip to the ground. I took her elbows as she faced me. Her eyes were closed, and she was breathing shallowly, sweat breaking out on her upper lip. “And I think I need to call the ambulance. You obviously hurt yourself when you fell.”

“No,” she whispered, “my blood sugar’s crashing, I got dizzy. I just need to eat something, and I’ll be fine.” I gripped her arms a little tighter in case she started to pass out, “Are you diabetic?” “No, hypoglycemic,” she corrected and wavered. Same difference, blood sugar issue, that’s what it meant. I swooped her into my arms; she was lighter than I had anticipated and I held her easily. “Whoa!” she called out and tried to open her eyes. “I’m fine.” Her head fell back against my arm, and her eyelids closed again. “Yeah, you are most definitely fine, Casey, but not healthy.” I carried her to the front door, “Where are your keys?” “In my pocket,” she slurred. I paused at the front door, “I need you to pull them out so I don’t drop you.” She wiggled in my arms as she shoved her hand into her sweatshirt pocket and pulled out the keys, holding them up. They jangled as her hands shook. “I need to set you on your feet so I can open the door.” She nodded once, and I moved her slowly to an upright position again, keeping my arm around her waist and her back to my chest. With all my gear on, I couldn’t really feel her against me, but I sure wondered what she would feel like if I weren’t wearing my vest and belt. I had to wiggle the lock a few times to get it to finally open, and I picked her back up and carried her over the threshold. The room was full of boxes, but luckily the couch was empty. I laid her out on the couch, and she groaned. “I’ll be right back.” I hightailed it out the door and over to my car, reaching in and grabbing my sandwich. Lindsey

probably wouldn’t be too happy that I was feeding it to someone else, but I didn’t care. I jogged back to the house and into the front door I had left open. I pushed it closed behind me after I yanked the keys out and dropped them on the floor beside the door. “Can you sit up a little bit? I have something for you to eat.” She shifted on the couch, but I ended up having to set the sandwich down and grab under her arms to pull her up higher. I opened the sandwich bag and peeled it back for her. “Here, take a bite.” I put the sandwich to her lips, and her nostrils flared. “Is that meatloaf?” she sniffed again. “Yes, my favorite, now take a bite.” She didn’t hesitate any longer and took a bite so large I stared at her mouth wondering how she fit it all in there. After she had chewed, she opened it again and I pushed it closer. After another two bites, she reached up to take the sandwich from me, her hand closing over the top of mine, and her eyes flashing open. “I think I can do it from here,” she said around the food in her mouth. I slipped my hand out from under hers and leaned back, not realizing until then that I was practically lying over her. “You feeling better?” I asked as she kept her eyes open and blinked a few times. “Yeah, thank you,” she said and shifted on the couch so that our hips weren’t touching. I stood to give her space, and she grabbed my wrist. “Thank you, Officer Wagner.” I smiled, “Thad, not Officer Wagner.” I winked at her and stood up as my radio crackled again. “Sorry, Thad.”

“You know, for someone who works in an ER, you don’t take very good care of yourself,” I joked, but her eyebrows dropped heavily over her beautiful blue eyes. “I know how to take care of myself. I just didn’t have time to eat.” “But you had time to go buy paint and supplies?” I took a second to glance around the living room, my gaze landing heavily on the far wall with the stain. “Speaking of which, I’ll be right back.” I dashed back out the door and bagged up all her things, getting them inside the front door before another bag broke. “I was going to drop the stuff off and go get food. I haven’t had time to go grocery shopping.” She took another bite, chewed, and then continued, “We were in a rush this morning, if you remember correctly, so I didn’t get a chance to eat breakfast. Normally, I don’t have these problems. It’s only when I’m stressed.” She stopped talking quickly and looked away as if she hadn’t meant to mention that. I could see how moving could be stressful; it was nothing to be embarrassed about. My radio crackled again, and I reached for my mic as they called my unit number. The dispatcher told me of a disturbance on the other side of town, and I acknowledged that I would be en route to the location. “I have to get going. Are you sure you’re going to be alright?” I hesitated, worried that it was more than blood sugar issues and actually a head injury. “I’m fine, thank you for the sandwich. I owe you one.” She shifted to put her feet over the edge of the couch and didn’t seem too wobbly. “I’m going to sit here for another few minutes and let my body catch up on the

food, and then I’ll be fine.” “You’re sure?” I asked as I stepped toward the door. She turned and smiled up at me, “Yes, I’m sure. Now, go do your job, Officer Wagner.” “I’ll check on you later,” I winked at her and opened the door, “your keys are here on the floor. Go get some food.” I closed the door behind me and took off at a jog to my car while my gear bounced heavily on my hips at the same time that my heart felt lighter than it had in years.

CASEY

“Y ou are not going to believe what happened to me

today,” I moaned into the phone as I plopped back on the sofa. “What? Are you okay?” Brandy sounded worried, but I knew that in a matter of minutes she would be laughing hysterically. “Oh, I’m alright. My pride is a bit wounded and my tailbone is bruised, but I’m just peachy,” I replied. “After I dropped you off, I decided to run by the hardware store and pick up paint. I wanted to at least get a little bit done before I went to work on Tuesday. Well, when I got home, I was getting everything out of the trunk, and one of the bags got caught. I yanked on it, and it broke and I flew back and fell on my ass.” Brandy burst out laughing but stopped, “But you’re alright?” She started laughing again. “Yes, my butt hurts, but it’s alright.” I kicked my shoes off and curled my legs under me on the couch. “So how did your pride get hurt?” I heard music on her end of the phone and figured she was in her car. “The sexy-as-hell married police officer who lives next

door saw the whole thing,” I muttered. Brandy laughed so hard, I pulled the phone from my ear until she quieted down. “Did he come help you, or did he stand there and laugh?” “Oh, it gets better.” I went on to tell her how he had helped me get up and caught me as I almost passed out, then how he’d carried me into the house and fed me his own lunch. “Are you serious?” While I heard humor in her voice, I also heard concern. “You sure it was sugar and not a head injury?” “I am positive it was sugar. I was fine fifteen minutes after I ate the sandwich.” I thought for a moment about how good it had felt being held in his arms, although being held against his stiff vest and having something pointy and hard from his belt jabbing into my back hadn’t been very comfortable. That didn’t matter because I could just imagine how it would feel to be up against him without those things, and without clothes, too. I fanned my face. “Wow, you have your own hero right next door,” Brandy teased. “He’s not mine, Brandy. Remember, he’s married, and I gave up married men for Lent.” She snorted into my ear. “Besides, I was so embarrassed after he left; I pray to God I never see him again.” “Yeah, right,” she sputtered into the phone. “I bet you already have your next sugar episode planned.” “What?” I gasped. “I didn’t do that on purpose.” “I know that, Casey, but now you know that he will come running.” “Whatever, Brandy.” Although, it sure would be nice if he did, I thought to myself. Brandy and I talked for a few more minutes before

she had to get going. I stared at the wall where I had spent the afternoon painting. The old stain was still visible. In fact under the soft peach paint, it seemed to jump out at me more than before. I never expected painting to be so hard. When I was at the hardware store, I had found a nice employee who helped me pick out all the things I would need. As I stared at the wall, I frowned and wondered what I had done wrong. A knock on the door broke me out of my musings, and I groaned as I pushed myself up slowly. Between falling on the ground and then spending the day climbing up and down off a ladder with my arms over my head while I painted, my body was stiff and sore. What I wouldn’t give for a nice body massage. I pulled open the door to see darkness outside and a figure standing in the shadows. “You should look through the peephole first, or ask who it is. You shouldn’t just open the door, especially without a light on out here.” Thad stepped forward. “Sorry, I wasn’t expecting company,” I leaned over to flick the light switch, but nothing happened when I did, “and the light doesn’t work.” “Probably just needs a new bulb.” “Come on in,” I held the door open and stepped back, “I owe you another thank you.” As Thad stepped into the light from my living room, my eyes grew a mind of their own and slowly studied every inch of him. He was in black track pants, sweatshirt, and sneakers, and I couldn’t tear my gaze away as he moved past me. Then they zeroed in on his backside. Oh my! Married—he’s married, I mentally reminded myself. “No, you don’t owe me anything,” he said as he turned, his hands tucked into the front pocket of his

sweatshirt. “I’m glad I was there to help.” “As embarrassing as it was for me, I’m actually glad you were, too.” I closed the door, “Can I offer you a beer? I did manage to get to the store today.” He smiled and his eyes lit up, “Did you eat dinner, too?” “Yes, sir, I did. I even had an afternoon snack. Did you want that beer? It’s the least I can do for you.” I stepped toward the kitchen and turned back to him, finding his eyes snapping up from my own butt. Ah, so he was checking me out. That thought thrilled me at the same time that it pissed me off. “Sure, I’ll take one since I’m actually off with no chances of getting called back in tonight.” He winced, “I probably shouldn’t jinx myself like that.” I laughed and went into the kitchen to get two beers. When I returned, I pointed to one of the two side chairs and handed him his drink. I returned to my position on the couch and gingerly sat down. “You alright? You look like you hurt.” He sipped his beer. “I’m not used to so much physical activity, especially when it started with taking a beating against the pavement. I’m sure a hot shower and some Motrin will work wonders on me.” He turned his head to study the stain on the wall, and I cringed. I had really hoped to get that covered already. “You need primer,” he stated and took a long pull from his green bottle. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed, and I controlled my sudden urge to lick my lips. “I need what?” I asked, confused by his statement and the feelings he brought forth in me so quickly.

“Primer, you need to put a heavy coat of primer over the stain, or if you really want to get rid of that, cut out that section of the wall and replace it.” I shook my head, “You make that sound so easy, cut out that section and replace it.” He laughed, “What? It’s not that hard to do. I could do it for you.” He leaned up, holding his beer bottle between his knees with both hands. His fingers were long; his nails cut short and clean. I cleared my throat as I wondered what those fingers would feel like on my skin. “What is primer?” “It gets you ready.” Did I just imagine his voice grow low and sexy? “Gets you ready for what?” Whatever it was, I wanted to know more; especially if it was going to get me ready for him. He stared at me for a long moment, his eyes dark and sexy. “The wall, it gets the wall ready. It’s a thick paint that covers stains. You spread that on, but sometimes you need a second coat.” He stared at the stain, “You could probably cover it with two coats, but…” He stopped. “But what?” He stood and approached the wall, tapping his knuckles over the stain area and around it. It was about two feet wide in spots and the entire length of the wall from ceiling to floor. “But I think you are going to want to cut this out and replace it.” He looked at me over his shoulder, “Come here.” I set my beer down and went to stand beside him, having no idea what he was going to show me. “Tap your knuckle on this part of the wall over here,” he pointed to a spot a few feet away, “and then tap here.”

I did as he said and immediately noticed that the board near the stain was spongy, and not solid and firm. “What does that mean?” He sighed, “It means that the wallboard has so much water damage that it’s falling apart. Chances are there is a lot of mold in the board and behind it.” “Mold!” I stepped away from the wall, almost knocking into him. “I can’t live with mold in my walls.” Thad chuckled, “Yeah, not very healthy. I think the best thing to do is let me cut this out for you tomorrow and let’s take a look at what’s behind the wall. It might just be this one board, and we can replace that easily.” “And what else could it be?” I stared at the offending wall. Being an ER nurse, I was familiar with what mold could do to the respiratory system. “Well,” he sipped his beer, “we could open it up and find that all the studs and surrounding sections are ruined, too.” “You’re kidding!” I stared at his profile, zeroing in on his neck again as he swallowed. Why was that action so damned hot? “Let’s just hope it’s the board.” I groaned and plopped down on the sofa, laying my head back on the seat cushion. “I didn’t even think it could be mold.” “Well,” he began hesitantly, “that could also explain the odd smell in here, too.” I lifted my head and picked up my beer, “Oh, no. That’s the carpet.” “What’s the carpet?” He glanced down around his feet. “The odd smell, that’s the carpet.” I took a long guzzle from my beer. His lip curved up as he continued looking over the

carpet. “Well, we need to get the carpet up, too.” “I can take care of that,” I stated as I sat up straight. While I was really appreciative of his offer to help with the wall—because I had no clue about replacing one—I could manage the carpet. “You ever pull carpet up before?” he smirked. “No, but it can’t be that hard,” I retorted. Just because he saw me almost pass out after I went bottom first into the cement, did not mean I wasn’t a capable person. “You do know that there is a pad under the carpet that needs to come up, too, and most likely it is stapled down, which means you have to pull up all the staples, or you will cut your feet or trip. I’d hate to see you fall down again.” Oh, low blow! “Ha ha!” I glared at the floor. “Fine, if you really want to help. I’ll take it.” He laughed and threw back the rest of his beer. “What time do you get up?” I raised my eyebrow at him, “Why?” “So I can come over and start working.” “Tomorrow?” I sputtered. “Yeah, I’m off. I don’t have any plans right now, so I can help out.” He went into the kitchen and I heard the water turn on. He must have been rinsing out his bottle. The water went off and he returned a moment later, “So what time do you get up?” “Usually by five,” I replied, expecting him to be surprised. He grinned, “Great. I’ll be here by five-thirty. Have the coffee on. We have a lot to get done before the hardware store opens at eight.” My mouth fell open, “You’re seriously going to come over here at five-thirty in the morning to help me work on my house? On your day off?” I stressed the last part.

“I sure am. Sleep well, Casey. I’ll see you tomorrow, and thanks for the beer.” He winked at me again and was out the door before I could respond. Whoa…how did that happen? Crap, okay, whatever. I finished my beer while glaring at the offending stain on my wall. Mold! Damn it. After rinsing out my bottle, I figured now was a good time to take a nice hot shower. I stood under the spray and let the warm water spread down over my shoulders and neck. With my eyes closed, it was easy to recall the bright blue of Thad’s eyes. A moment later, it wasn’t water that was sliding down my back and arms but his hands, those long, tapered fingers grazing over my sensitive skin as he washed my body and lightly massaged my muscles. By the time I got out of the shower, I imagined being back in his arms as he carried me to the bed. In my bedroom, I dropped my towel on the bed and stood in front of my mirror, as I brushed my long hair out and checked out my body; it was nice and firm. My breasts were high and perky, my nipples extended in the cooler air of the bedroom. A flash off to my left caught my attention and I turned. I couldn’t see much, but what I could see caused me to drop to my knees out of sight. Standing outside in their backyard was Thad and a little boy. The backyard lamp had given off just enough illumination to show their outlines, and they had been faced directly towards my room. “Oh…my…god,” I groaned as I crawled over to the door. I reached up as quickly as I could and flipped the light switch to throw the room into darkness. I leaned back against the door, still completely nude, and covered my hot face with my hands.

How the hell was I going to face that man now?

THAD

didn’t just see the most beautiful woman alive Icompletely naked, did I? Holy crap, I did, and she knew it. “She didn’t have any clothes on!” Tommy screeched beside me. “Come on,” I ushered Tommy to the back door as quickly as I could. “But she was naked! Gross!” I laughed as I walked him inside. We had been out back for a few minutes looking up at the dark sky, searching for falling stars. It was something that he loved to do every night I was home and the sky was clear. Once inside, Tommy took off to find his mother. “Mommy, our neighbor was naked, and we saw her!” Corrine’s eyebrows lifted high, and Tommy launched himself onto the couch next to her. “You were spying on our new neighbor?” I leaned against the wall between the kitchen and living room area. “No, we were walking back up to the house, she came out of her bathroom and dropped her towel. She had no idea we were out there.”

“But she saw us,” Tommy added. “What?” I shrugged, “I guess we got close enough to the house that the motion light triggered. When she saw the light flash on, she looked out and must have seen us standing there. She dropped to the floor.” Corrine burst out laughing. “Well, did you at least enjoy the view?” she asked me with a sly grin. “No, it was gross,” Tommy reiterated while I wiggled my eyebrows. “Come on, little stud, let’s go get you ready for bed. It’s past your bedtime.” “What’s a little stud?” Tommy eyed me critically as if he were weighing my words to be either good or bad. Corrine muffled a laugh behind her hand while I thought for a moment, “Um, how about we discuss that another time. Come on, let’s get you to bed.” I hustled him off while playing back the scene I’d witnessed through the glass. She was spectacular. The image of her and the conversation we’d had earlier filled my mind the entire time I got Tommy ready for bed. Casey was an amazing woman, determined to do things on her own, but still willing to let someone help her if she needed it. I liked that. I liked that a whole lot. The next morning, my alarm went off at five, and I climbed out of bed and took a quick shower. I couldn’t wait to spend the day with Casey. It didn’t matter that she probably wasn’t interested in me as a man; I was interested enough for both of us. If nothing else came out of it, I knew we would end up being good friends. At a quarter after five, I jumped in my Jeep and drove down to the local bakery that opened at five each morning and picked up two muffins, two Danishes, and two chocolate donuts, all still warm from the ovens.

At five-thirty on the dot, I knocked on Casey’s front door, my toolbox at my feet and our breakfast in the white bakery box resting on my palm. The door jerked open, and I tried to push the memory of her standing naked out of my mind. As hard as I tried, I felt like I had x-ray vision as I took in the baggy sweatpants and sweatshirt. She couldn’t hide that amazing body behind baggy clothes anymore—not from me. “Well, aren’t you the prompt one?” she said as she held the door open and refused to make eye contact. “Come in.” “Good morning, Casey, how are you this morning?” I asked as I picked up my toolbox and walked into the house. “I got us some breakfast on my way over.” Casey closed the door behind me. “Since when is there a store between your house and mine?” She looked my way, but didn’t meet my eyes. Obviously, she was extremely uncomfortable about last night, so I needed to nip that in the bud real quick. “No, I ran down to the bakery and picked up some things. I can smell the coffee, so let’s eat one of these while they’re warm and talk about our game plan.” She relaxed at my suggestion, and I followed her into the kitchen after I set my toolbox down. “Those smell good. How do you like your coffee?” She stretched up on tiptoes, her sweatshirt lifting and revealing a small patch of skin on her lower back. Oh man, this was going to be brutal. “A little sugar, no cream.” I cleared my throat and broached, “About last night—” She held her hand up, her back stiff as it faced me, “I don’t want to talk about last night.” “Casey,” I waited two seconds, but when she didn’t

turn or respond I continued, “turn around and look at me, please.” She hesitated, but finally turned, her mouth in a stern line. “You’re a beautiful woman, and yes, I am going to admit that I was staring at you through the window. It’s not often that a gorgeous woman is completely naked in front of me. I know I shouldn’t have been staring, but you surprised the hell out of me when you sauntered in and dropped the towel.” She cringed, “I did not saunter.” “Yeah, actually you did,” I said around a bite of my muffin. She pegged me with a tight look. “I did not saunter. I merely was relaxed and walked into the room. How the hell was I supposed to know that peeping Toms would be outside?” She filled the coffee while I waited. “I’m sorry you had to see that.” I laughed, “I’m not, but I am sorry that we surprised you,” I shrugged, “and just so you know, Tommy thought it was gross.” Casey laughed as she crossed her arms over her chest. “So how about we forget it happened? I’ve seen plenty of naked people in my job, as I know you have working in an ER. Let’s just let it slide and move on.” I reached for the cup as she set it on the counter. “Fine, thank you,” she stated. “I will tell you one thing, though,” she looked over her shoulder at me as she reached for the coffee pot, “curtains are the first thing I’m putting on the list of supplies for your house.” And just like that, the tension was broken as we both laughed. We spent a good twenty minutes plotting out

the day and eating breakfast. Good thing I got a selection, because out of the six things I had purchased, four of them were already gone, and it was not even six A.M. I was glad that Casey was not the type of girl to not eat in front of a man. In fact, she devoured the food and made little purring noises and moans as she went along. I tried not to put the picture of her last night and those sounds together, but it was really difficult. I cleared my throat, “We need to move your furniture to one side so we can start with the carpet. That’s going to be the hard job, and once we get the carpet up, you can start pulling the staples while I start cutting out that piece of wall.” “Do you do this stuff often?” she asked as she popped the last piece of her donut into her mouth. “I help out where I can.” I got up and filled my coffee mug, turning back and topping off her mug, too. “You want more cream?” “Yeah, just a little bit.” She didn’t seem to have a problem with me making myself at home, so I went into her fridge. You could tell a lot about a person by his or her refrigerator. Of course, she had only been to the store once, but what lined the shelves were the important things for her. She had several bottles of flavored creamer, soy milk, mayo, mustard, eggs, and her hydrator looked full of fruits and vegetables. “What, no ketchup?” I asked as I closed the door. “You want ketchup in your coffee?” A confused look crossed her face, and I barked out a quick laugh. “No, I was checking out what was important to you, the staples that you bought, and there is no ketchup.” “I’m not a big fan of it.” She shrugged. Okay, one thing to remember I thought to myself.

“You ready to get to work?” I asked while I glanced around her living room. We moved most of the furniture out of the room. At one point, I walked back to her bedroom with an end table. I stood at the door and stared at the bed, it was lying on the floor, no frame under it; the frame was propped up in the corner. Another thing to add to the list. Once the furniture was out of the way, I pulled out two dust masks from my toolbox I’d filled last night with all the equipment I figured we would need today. With the carpet smelling this funky, I could only imagine what the dust would do to us. “It’s probably safer if we don’t inhale this stuff.” I tossed one over to her and watched as she pulled it on without question. Man, if this had been Corrine, she would have put up a huge fuss about wearing the mask, but then again, Corrine never would have helped with these kinds of things. We started with one corner. Casey held up the edge while I began cutting it with a sharp box cutter. “Why are you cutting it there? Wouldn’t it be easier to roll the whole thing up at once?” Her voice was muffled behind the mask and I stared at her bright blue eyes. They were so freaking gorgeous that they made my dick jump in my pants. “Easier maybe, heavier yes. We cut it into three-foot strips to make it easier to manage,” I replied as I went back to my task. As we rolled away the top layer of carpet, we found the beaten mat practically flattened to a pancake against the flooring and stained in a ton of spots. “This is gross. I wish I had taken this out before I had even moved in.” “It would have been easier, but if you had done that,

you wouldn’t have had my help.” I winked at her because I knew she couldn’t see my smile. She laughed as she continued to roll up the pieces as I cut them. An hour later, we had the carpet and padding up and started on the laborious job of pulling up all the staples. “You weren’t kidding when you said there were going to be a lot of these. It looks like they put a staple every six inches!” She yanked another one up using a pair of pliers I had given her. “It does seem that way.” I pulled out another few pieces. “Do you mind if I start working on the wall? I’d like to get that section cut out so we know what we are looking at. That way we can get to the hardware store to pick up the supplies right after lunch.” “Yeah, go ahead, I’ll keep plugging along.” As we worked, Casey and I shared stories about our jobs— humorous events that happened out on the streets and inside the sterile environment of the hospital. Ironically, she had more funny stories than I did, and I loved listening to her talk. “Shit,” I muttered as I pulled the wallboard back and it crumbled at my feet. A pungent sweet odor wafted out from the cavity. “What?” she asked from her kneeling position on the other side of the room. I looked back at her, “It’s worse than I thought it was going to be, or at least as bad as I hoped it wouldn’t be.” Her voice grew pensive. “Crap, how bad?” Since this was an interior wall, there was no insulation, but the boards on the opposite side were covered in black. “What’s on the other side?” “My office.” She came over to me. “It’s not supposed to be black, is it?”

I shook my head in the negative. “Looks like it was leaking for a while. The wallboard on the other side needs to be replaced, too.” She sighed, “I’m sorry.” I laughed, “Why are you apologizing? You didn’t ask for this.” “Yeah, but I feel guilty that you’re doing so much work.” She peered up at me, her eyes shining brightly as they met mine. The urge to run my fingers over her cheek and pull her to me crashed through me, and I reached for another piece of wallboard instead. “If I didn’t want to help, I wouldn’t have offered, Casey.” “I know, but—” she started to speak, but I turned to her and interrupted her. “No buts, I said I would help you, and I’m going to.” A crease marred her perfect brow, and if my hands hadn’t been so dirty, I would have brushed a thumb over them. “You go back to pulling those staples. I’m going to cut more of this out, and then work on the other side.” She began to turn away, then stopped and looked back at me. “Why are you helping me?” “’Cause I’m that kind of guy.” I winked at her—and I want so damned bad to get to know you that it almost hurts.

CASEY

H ow much was this going to cost? It wasn’t that I didn’t have some money banked, but I was hoping to save it and not wipe out my bank account the first month in my new house. In purchasing just the paint supplies for the living room, I’d spent a few hundred dollars. This morning when Thad had shown up, I couldn’t even look him in the eye, but he’d put me at ease quickly. Our morning had flown by with chatter about work, never touching on anything too personal. In fact, it wasn’t until I stood next to him and he was telling me about the damage to the wall that I felt something from him. The way he had looked at me over his white dust mask showed me so much more than just a friendly concern. I went back to pulling up staples from the hardwood floor. Most of the floor was in decent shape, if you didn’t count the number of holes in it from staples. The only place that showed damage was near the wall where Thad now stood. I watched him for a moment. His arms were over his head as he drew a knife down the wall, scoring the wallboard to expose the nasty damage behind it. The action made his shoulder seem

wider, and I stared at the flex of muscle under his t-shirt. The toned skin underneath was playing peek-a-boo as he stretched and moved, and I was thankful the dust mask I still wore hid the licking of my lips. When he’d pulled his hoodie off earlier, the tight fitting t-shirt had made all my girlie parts sit up and take notice. Right now, those girlie parts were doing more than sitting up, they were crawling and panting. Married man. It only took those two words to knock the girlie parts back in line, for the most part. As I allowed my eyes to rove unabashed over his trim waistline and snug jeans, I wondered if it was possible to be arrested for looking that damned good while working. A piece of wallboard fell to the ground, and he glanced my way. Our eyes locked instantly and heat began to bubble in my lower belly. Neither of us said anything—or looked away for a long moment. It wasn’t until he spoke that the thread of awareness for each other snapped. “Why did you move here?” It was an innocent enough question, and yet one I could not answer honestly. I shifted over the floor to look for more staples. I finally shrugged as I felt him still staring at me, “I needed a change.” “Must have been something major to uproot you from South Carolina and put you all the way up here.” He turned back to the wall as he spoke. “I just needed a change, and I landed this job, so that’s why I’m here. Didn’t matter where I went, as long as it was away from where I was,” I evaded as I found a staple deep in the wood and worked to tug it out. My hands were sore from clenching the pliers and my knees hurt from being on the floor for so long, but I was

determined. “You’re not going to tell me why you really left, are you?” I flicked my eyes at him, but he was focused on the wall, not looking my way. “That’s all there is to say,” I stated curtly. “Do you think I could have these floors redone and just keep them wood? I kind of like them.” I heard him snicker quietly at my quick change of conversation. “You could. They aren’t that bad, but that’s not something I can help you with. Dabby might know someone who can refinish the floors, but I have to warn you, it’s pretty expensive.” Of course it is. A knock on the door kept me from saying anything further as I stood and stretched my back to work out the stiffness. Damn, I hurt worse today than I did yesterday after painting all day. This house fixing was rough on the body. On the other side of the door stood a beautiful woman with long brown hair and a sparkle in her blue eyes. Next to her stood a young boy. “Can I help you?” “I saw you naked last night,” the little boy blurted out. “It was gross.” Thad laughed heartily behind me, and my eyes flashed to the woman’s face. Oh god! This was Thad’s wife. Was she going to be pissed? The look on her face didn’t give me that impression. In fact, she appeared to be trying to contain her own laughter by biting her bottom lip. My cheeks were scalding hot, and I wondered how they had not melted off my face. “Tommy,” Thad walked up behind me, “that wasn’t very nice.” Tommy hung his head. “Sorry,” he muttered. I needed to do something fast to fix this, so I crouched

down to be at eye level with him. “Well, I’m sorry, too. I didn’t know you were outside, or I would have never shown you my gross body.” I peeked up at the woman, “Sorry about that.” She swatted her hand in the air. “I’m Corrine Wagner. This is Tommy. Don’t even worry about it. Some day he will look back on this and realize how lucky he was.” “Hi, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Casey Lowe.” Corrine and Tommy stepped inside when I pulled the door open wider. “Why is there a hole in your wall?” Tommy questioned as he stood in the middle of the room. “Because the wall was bad and needed to be fixed,” I replied. “You guys on your way out?” Thad asked Corrine as he led Tommy away from the mess on the floor. “Yeah, I need to run down to the pharmacy. I was wondering if you wanted me to stop and pick up lunch for you on the way back. I thought about stopping at Dabby’s and picking up some pulled pork sandwiches.” Thad turned my way while glancing at his watch. “That sound alright with you? By the time she gets back with the food, we can have this done. We could eat and then hit the hardware store.” “As long as you allow me to buy,” I stated. Corrine grinned, “Works for me.” Thad hit her with a stern look. “You don’t need to do that, Casey.” “No, I don’t, but I’d like to.” And I did want to. He was helping me with so much and I was taking his time away from his family. It was the least I could do. I went to the bedroom to pull out cash, coming back to see Thad giving Tommy a hug. I stopped at the entrance to the room and stared at them. Tommy did look a lot like his

father. He was going to be a heartbreaker for sure when he grew up. Thad met my gaze and smiled. My heart melted and yearned for more at the same time. If it hadn’t been for the last two years of my life, I might have been happily married and with a child by now. Unfortunately, life had had different ideas for me, ones that I didn’t like. Corrine broke me from my musings, “Do you have family in the area?” I shook my head, “No, they’re all down south.” At least that part was true. “Do you want to come over next Friday for Thanksgiving dinner? I know that Thanksgiving is Thursday, but Thad always works that day, so we always celebrate the day after.” Thad turned bright eyes my way as I answered, “Thank you, but I’ll be working. I start on Tuesday, and I’m working till Saturday, then I’m back Monday and work seven days straight to cover some shifts for people who are taking vacations.” “Oh, where are you going to be working?” she asked as she pulled Tommy toward her and closer to the door. “At the hospital. I’m the new nursing supervisor for the emergency room.” She grinned, “We need to talk, but not now. I’m going to go get your food. Thad, can you call Dabby and order?” Thad said he would, and Corrine and Tommy hustled out. “Why would she want to talk to me about my job?” Thad answered, “She’s taking classes to be a nurse. She probably wants to bend your ear on that.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket, “Anything special you would like?” Do you come on a bun? I wanted to ask, but instead I

replied, “Whatever you’re having.” Seeing him with his family really hit me hard. His wife was gorgeous, his son a total cutie, and the man himself, well he was worth his weight in gold. Seeing them gave me hope that someday maybe I could have a family. It was the first time in a year that I had even considered my life in that way—and to be honest, I didn’t really want to think about it. Thad and I went back to work. I’d checked over the floor as carefully as I could and began to sweep up the mess, stopping every now and then to pull out another staple that I had missed. Thad finished cutting out both sections of wall, and I finished the sweeping. Neither of us said much while we worked, and I turned, lost in thought, and slammed into his chest. The dustpan fell to the ground with a clatter as a puff of white flew into the air and little ticks from the staples hit the floor with the other debris. Thad’s arm wrapped around my waist to steady me as I began to lose my balance, and one of my hands grabbed his t-shirt, fisting over his heart. Time stopped as we stared at one another, and he pulled me the slightest bit closer. The steady beat of his heart vibrated under my hand, and my eyes went to his lips as he slowly wet them. He tilted his head as his face grew closer, and I realized he was going to kiss me. Oh god, yes! I wanted to feel his lips on mine so badly that I tilted my chin towards his face. The moment before his full lips connected to mine, a young male voice caught my attention, and I jerked back. What the hell was I doing? my mind screamed. Married man! Married man! I was so not going to fall for that, not again.

I practically jumped out of his arms and rushed to the front door as I saw Corrine through the window approaching with two bags of food. “Don’t try that again,” I said harshly before I pulled the door open. Thad called my name, but I ignored him while Tommy ground to a halt at my feet, “Can we eat here?” That is exactly what I needed, a dose of reality. “Yes, of course you can eat here. We just cleaned up, so this is perfect timing.” My voice was more cheerful than it felt, and I had a hard time looking Corrine in the eye as she entered. Jesus, I was a born home wrecker. I was damned if I was going to do that again. “Let me clear off the table and we can eat there.” I moved toward the kitchen as Thad stepped into my way. “I’ll clear it off. Why don’t you get drinks and napkins?” I glared at him. How dare he try to kiss me and then pretend like nothing was wrong? His forehead furrowed as he stared me down. Without another word, I brushed around him and got things ready to eat. By the time we had finished lunch, I had relaxed, but that was only because Tommy monopolized the conversation and asked a million questions. Corrine held up the other half of the conversation by pouring out one question after the other about nursing, and I realized that if I could keep Thad off my mind, Corrine and I could actually end up as friends. I peeked at Thad who sat beside Tommy; he was wiping his mouth and watching me. He’d been studying me the whole time we ate, and I purposely kept from meeting his gaze even though I felt it every second. I wanted to knock him in the head and say, Dude, your

wife is sitting right here! But she didn’t even seem to notice the attention he gave me. Corrine and Tommy left as I cleaned off the table. “We ready to go to the hardware store?” I asked. If there hadn’t been the gaping hole in my wall, I would have asked him to leave with his family. I’d had about all the temptation I could take for one day. “Casey, I think we need to talk about what happened.” I glared at him, “Nothing happened, Thad, and nothing will ever happen. Get that through your mind right now. I’m not interested in a relationship, or sex, or whatever. Okay? If you can’t wrap your brain around that, then you need to leave.” Thad was quiet for a moment, and I wondered if he would decide to take a hike, but finally he nodded, “I get it. I forgot you’re in a relationship already. I can respect that. I’m sorry if I overstepped my bounds.” I almost corrected him, but figured it was probably better that he think I was involved with Brandy. It would make the whole situation safer, although it pissed me off that he didn’t take responsibility for his own marriage. “Thank you, and I accept your apology.” I threw the trash in the can under the sink. “So are you ready?” Our trip to the hardware store was stilted at first, but eventually, we fell back into friendly chatter. Both of us stayed off personal subjects and shared stories about unusual accidents we had both dealt with concerning people who had been working on their houses and had ended up in the emergency room for some reason or another. If we could just keep our relationship in this zone, things would be so much better.

THAD

hat the hell just happened? One minute, I’m W standing in front of her, desire to rival mine glowing in her face, and the next, she’s pinning me with accusing eyes. I knew she was attracted to me; there was no doubt about that. I’d caught her more than once eyeing me from head to toe. Each time, she’d turned away quickly, but not before I saw the want in her eyes. It had to be because of her relationship with her friend. What was her name, Randy? No, Brandy, yeah, that was it; the one who looked like she was total high maintenance. In respect to her, I needed to keep this cool between us. When we got back from the hardware store, I explained what I was doing, and she helped me each step of the way. At one point, she was holding the wallboard up against the wall, and I stood behind her to put a screw into the wall over her head. Her breath sucked in abruptly as I brushed her back harder with my chest than necessary. I stood behind her after I’d put the screw in and stared at the way her dark hair hung from a ponytail down her long neck and between her shoulder

blades. She was leaning into the board, her arms above her head like she was a suspect that I was about to pat down. Her hips jutted out slightly toward me, and all I could imagine was running my hands over her to check every inch of her body and then gripping her hips as I slammed into her from behind. “Jesus,” I muttered as I spun away. “What’s wrong?” Casey asked as she looked at me over her shoulder. “Nothing,” I didn’t make eye contact with her and forced myself to avoid touching her as I put in the next two screws above her head. I ran more screws down the side and then a few on the other side. “You can let go now.” She stepped away slowly, “You alright, Thad?” “Yeah, I’m fine.” I put in a few more screws for good measure, and when I was done, I glanced her way to find her arms crossed and a pissed-off look on her face. “What?” I snapped. “I’m trying to figure out what the hell just happened. Everything was fine, and then all of a sudden you’re huffing and growling under your breath.” She cocked her head to the side. “Trust me, you don’t want to know.” I put the drill down and searched in my toolbox for something, anything, to keep my hands busy and off of her. “Yeah, actually I would like to know. If I did something, then I’d like to know what I did to upset you.” “You didn’t upset me, Casey. I thought about something and that upset me, alright? Let it go.” I stood and turned away from her. She grabbed my arm, “What were you thinking about, Thad?” I stared at the hand.

“Casey, please let it go.” I tried to step away, and she gripped my wrist tightly, she was stronger than I had anticipated. I glared at her, my chest rising and falling quickly as the fantasy I’d just had raced from my mind to my groin in one second flat. “You really want to know what I was thinking about?” She lifted her chin defiantly, “Yes.” “Better yet,” I reached for her wrist, spun her around and had her up against the wall in one second flat, a surprised squeak popped from between her lips. “Let me show you, instead.” My chest pushed against her back and I took both her hands and put them above her head. “This is what I was thinking about, Casey. I was thinking about doing this.” I ran my hands down her arms to her underarms, then lower, where my fingertips brushed the sides of her breasts. I felt her shiver and her head dropped forward to the wall. I wrapped one arm around her waist as if I was checking the waistband of her pants, two fingers slid under the edge of her sweat pants and her stomach quivered at my touch. My other hand gripped her hips as I pulled her back toward me. Her soft ass ground against my groin, but I wasn’t the only one moving here. No, I felt her rotating her hips back against me and the last threads of sanity began to snap as the hand on her stomach shifted and moved up between her breasts. A moan floated in the air between us as I ran my hand under her breast. Did she moan, or was that mine? I didn’t know. I didn’t care. “Casey,” I breathed into her ear and nipped at her exposed neck. “What do you think now, Casey? Glad you asked?” “Thad,” her voice was low and dripping with desire.

“Yes, Casey?” I shifted both hands to the front of her hips, my fingers inches away from her sweet spot. I nibbled on her ear, bent my knees, and then rose slowly to brush my length against her ass, my hands going dangerously close to the insides of her legs. She whimpered. I wanted to touch her, and her body was begging me to do it. Her head rolled back to rest against my shoulder, her chest rising and falling as fast as mine. My hand rose up to grasp and knead her left breast and she released a sigh, one of her hands left the wall and reached behind her to touch me. Her fingers brushed against my neck and gave me chills. “Jesus, Casey,” I breathed against her neck. “I’ve never wanted someone as much as I want you.” Her fingers stilled, and I felt her tense from head to toe. “Let go of me.” “Casey,” I tried to wrap my arm around her waist to keep her there, but she twisted out of my grasp. Her face was flushed, her eyes glazed over with unspent desire. What the hell did I say? “You should go.” Her hands fisted at her sides, and she met my stare for one second before she looked away. “Casey, let’s talk about this.” She held her hand up. “I really appreciate what you have done for me, Thad, I really do, and I’m well aware that I just asked for that, but that was wrong, very wrong.” She shook her head, “You need to gather up your tools and leave, please.” “Wait, Casey,” She nailed me with a hard glare, “Please, Thad, gather your things and leave.” She spun and raced down the hallway, her bedroom door slamming shut behind her. I ran my hands over the top of my head. What the hell

just happened? How had I lost control of that? I’m the one that instigated it, no wonder she was upset. I stared at the wall. It wasn’t finished, but at least it closed up the hole. Screw that. I’m not leaving this half done. Before I left, I spackled the screws holes and joints on both sides. Then I cleaned up my mess, packed my tools, and went home without another word from Casey. I grabbed a beer when I got home, kissed Corrine on the temple, and then sat down on the couch with Tommy. What the hell had I been thinking? She had already told me to back off once, and then I practically tore her clothes off while I had her spread-eagled against the wall. I wanted to smash the beer bottle over my head. I had never been aggressive while having sex, ever. In fact, I was just the opposite. I thought I was too careful, too gentle, maybe, to the point of being boring sometimes. What about Casey brought it out in me? Jesus! I’d acted like a fucking caveman, crushing her to the wall while I touched her everywhere that I could reach. I’d wanted to ravage her, hear her scream while she came. I sucked back half of my beer in one guzzle. “You alright?” Corinne asked as she leaned in the doorway, arms crossed over her chest. “Yeah, I’m fine, tired.” “Did you get everything done?” I glanced at her, “As much as we could today. Is dinner almost ready?” “Yeah, it is. Do you want to call Casey and invite her over for dinner?” Oh, hell no! The last thing I needed was her sitting at the table with Corrine and Tommy while I couldn’t keep my hormones in check. “Nah,” I took a long pull on my beer, “she was getting ready to eat when I left. She said

she was tired, going to turn in after she ate.” Corrine shrugged, “Alright, we can invite her another night. Tommy, go wash your hands.” Tommy climbed off my lap and scampered toward the bathroom as I stared at the twilight coming through the living room window. I was at a loss, but I did know I needed to apologize for what I had done. Tomorrow after I got home from work, I would go over and apologize, sand down those areas that needed sanding, and show her the best way to put primer on—and I’d keep my hands to myself this time. The next morning, I had to work, and I was out the door by five. I hadn’t slept well and I wanted this day over with as quickly as possible. I glanced toward Casey’s house as I drove by and saw a light on in the back, probably the kitchen. She was already up. Maybe I should stop in and apologize now. I took my foot off the gas, but then put it back down. It could wait until tonight. My day was busy, and the majority of the time I was at the station doing paperwork and making phone calls. That wouldn’t have been bad, except Missy had taken a day shift, and every time I turned around, she was there. I finally snapped around three in the afternoon when she came up to me and rubbed my shoulders. I shrugged her off and turned to her, “Missy, I appreciate what you are trying to do, but I’m not interested.” “Why not, Thad? I thought we had something good,” she pouted. “Missy, we have never had anything together. We are friends, plain and simple. I’m not interested in anything further, and I would appreciate it if you could keep your damn hands to yourself. I’m tired of being pawed at.” She blinked rapidly like she was fighting back tears, “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you felt that way.” A tear slipped

out and ran down her cheek, and she swiped it away and turned quickly. “Missy,” I called out after her. Jesus, could I be any more of a prick? I went after her and caught up to her at the door to her office. I took her by the arms, “Missy, I don’t mean to hurt your feelings, sweetie, but honestly,” I took a deep breath and released it, “I’m totally interested in someone else right now. I’m sorry.” “It’s alright. I get it. I really do. You’re too good to be true anyway, especially for someone like me.” She wiped at another tear as it slid down her cheek. “Damn it, Missy, don’t say that. You’ll find someone, just stop trying so hard.” I pulled her into my arms and hugged her. I knew that I probably shouldn’t have been doing that, especially in her office, where people who walked in could see us—and just after that thought crossed my mind, the bell chimed. I let go of Missy and turned around to find Casey glaring at me through the glass. Missy sniffed and wiped her eyes quickly. “Can I help you?” she asked Casey, and for a moment she didn’t get a reply because Casey was too busy throwing daggers at me. What perfect fucking timing! “Ma’am, can I help you with something?” Missy asked her again, and Casey shifted her focus to Missy. Her eyes scanned over her face and I saw disdain in her eyes. “This is not what it looks like,” I approached the desk, and wished I had gone the other way so I could have gone out the door to the lobby. She arched one eyebrow my way and then dismissed me. “Do you need a permit to get an alarm on your house?” she directed the question to Missy. Missy shook her head, “No, we don’t require permits,

but we do ask that you register it once it is active.” She handed Casey a card, “You can call that number and do it over the phone. No need to come back in.” “Thank you.” Cased nodded bluntly and spun to leave. “Casey, wait! Can we talk for a minute?” I turned and ran out of the room, nearly taking a chunk out of the door frame as my holster slammed into it, and then ran to the door of the lobby. By the time I got out of the lobby, she was almost to her car. “Casey!” I saw her steps falter, but she kept going. I ran to catch up to her and reached her just as she arrived beside her car. “Casey, please, let me apologize. I was going to come by after work and apologize for last night, and what you saw in there right now was not what it looked like. She was upset, I gave her a hug. That’s all it was.” She turned to face me, her face stripped of any emotion. “What you do in your life is not my business. Your apology is accepted for last night, Thad. As much as I appreciate your help yesterday, your services will not be needed to finish the work. In other words, you’re not welcome at my house.” She reached for the door handle. “Wait a second, Casey!” I grabbed her arm and spun her around, “I was not the only one taking part in that yesterday. Don’t you dare deny that up until the moment you told me to stop that you wanted me. You were into it as much as I was.” “You’re correct,” she replied with a shrug. “I don’t deny it, but I won’t allow it to happen again. It was wrong, Thad. Wrong, even if there is some crazy-assed chemistry between us, it was wrong.” She scanned the area as she said the next set of words, “I’m not interested in anything more from you. We’re neighbors, and that’s

all.” She crossed her arms over her chest and glared up at me. I knew what she had just said was a lie. She was very much interested in me, but for some reason, she didn’t want to move forward with it. Okay, fine. I would need to figure out why and fix it.

CASEY

hat the hell was I doing? I sank to the floor behind W my closed bedroom door, clenching my eyes as I tried to get my raging hormones under control. Shit! Shit! Shit! That was absolutely the hottest thing I had ever had done to me. I tried not to imagine what would have happened next and instead tried to listen for signs that he had left. For over an hour, I sat on the floor and listened to him moving around in the living room and office area. One time he paused just outside my door, but after a moment, he had returned to the living room. Finally, I heard the front door close. I banged my head against the door behind me twice before I tried to get to my feet. My butt was numb from sitting on the hard floor for so long, and when I stood, I shook out my legs to get the blood flowing again. Of course, the blood was still flowing to other parts of my body. I tiptoed out to the living room to make sure that Thad was gone. There was no way I could face him right now— or ever if I had my way. Thankfully, the room was empty,

and I released the breath I had been holding. I turned to study the wall. While I had stayed locked in my room, he had finished up the work. I cringed as I realized I was going to have to thank him for all his hard work. I did manage to hang my new curtains in my room all by myself even though they were a bit crooked. I also got most of my furniture back into place in the living room. By eight, I was exhausted and took a long shower before climbing into bed. The entire time I worked, I forced myself not to think about Thad, or the way his hands had felt on me as he’d held me against the wall. It had been my fault, I knew it. I had pretty much forced him to tell me what he had been thinking. Damn, what he had been picturing in his mind had been blazing hot. By the next morning, I had decided I needed to seek him out and apologize for blowing up in his face. We were going to be neighbors for a while, and I didn’t want to have hard feelings between us. I knew that we could be friends, as long as we kept our hormones under control. I should explain to him my thoughts on getting involved with a married man; maybe that would calm the lust in his eyes. Yeah, right! I snorted to myself as I rinsed out my coffee cup. What I did know was that I could not be alone with that man anymore, ever. My first task for the day was to look over my finances and see how much money I had to play with. I sighed as I thought about the fact that twelve months ago, I’d had all the money in the world I needed, and now it was gone. I had no doubt that my mother was rolling over in her grave. This was the first time in eight years that I was thankful she had passed. I couldn’t imagine her dealing

with the embarrassment of what my father and Kevin had done. My second job was to call the alarm company and have one installed. I was a woman on my own, and I would spare no expense to make sure my home was secure. Speaking of which, I needed to have the front porch light looked at. Thad had replaced the bulb yesterday, but it still didn’t work. That led me to my third task, I needed to stop by the tavern and see if Dabby knew of anyone who could help me finish the wall and maybe refinish my wood floors. After spending an hour reconciling my accounts and seeing that I still had a fair amount that I could use to fix up the house, I called the alarm company. I set up an appointment with them to come out and take a look at my house, and they recommended that I touch base with the police department to see if they had any restrictions or permit requirements. It was after two when I finally got into the tavern and got a chance to talk to Dabby. As soon as I told him what I needed, he’d picked up the phone and made a call. Before I finished my lunch, he had it all worked out that someone would be out at my place later in the day to finish the wall and give me an estimate on my floor. He told me they even said they’d look at the light for me. I stared at the front door to the police station. Please don’t let him be in there, please don’t let him be in there, I repeated over and over again. With a deep breath, I pushed open my car door and approached the main entrance. When I pulled the door open and stepped inside, I experienced a host of emotions so quickly that I felt dizzy. I was shocked to see Thad with his arms around another woman. Jealousy zapped so hard through my body that

my hair should have been standing on end. The green envy quickly switched over to such an anger that it seethed deep inside my gut. What a freaking playboy! The man was married, and here he was with his arms wrapped around some hussy a day after he had made a play for me—and did I mention that he’s married? I didn’t try to hide my disgust from him—or from her for that matter—and I was glad that I was able to get my answer and exit the building within a couple of minutes. I blinked back tears as I rushed to my car and heard Thad yell my name. My steps faltered at the sound of his voice, but I had to get away from him. He caught up to me and I listened to his explanation, but his words meant nothing to me and I told him so. Yeah, I accepted his apology, and he was right, I did take part in that wild and crazy lust-filled moment just the day before, but I’d be damned if that was going to happen again. The moment his hand grabbed my arm, my resolve began to slip. I stepped away so he wasn’t touching me anymore. “I’m not interested in anything more from you. We are neighbors, and that’s all.” My hands shook as I spoke, and I crossed my arms to hide them. “Casey,” he reached out for me again, and I threw my hands up. “Officer Wagner, if you touch me again I will file a report. I’m not interested in your advances. Do you get that?” I spat the words out through gritted teeth. Pain and acceptance crossed his features. He stepped back, holding his palms out towards me. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to upset you. Fine, if that’s what you want. Fine.” I swallowed the lump in my throat and gave him a

sharp nod before I spun away and climbed into my car. I had to wait for him to step back before I could pull out. He put his hands on his hips and lowered his head. He had more women than he knew what to do with. Did he appear upset because he got caught? Did Corrine know? With a small town like this, how could she not know? When I arrived home, Dabby’s friend was waiting for me in the driveway. I was so thrilled to see an older man and not some young stud climb out of the shiny pickup truck. “Ms. Lowe,” he greeted me as he eyed my car, “I’m George Morrison. Nice ride you got here.” “Mr. Morrison, please call me Casey, and well,” I gazed at my vehicle, “it’s a piece of my past, nothing special.” “Casey, it is. Call me George.” Over the next thirty minutes, we talked about the work I needed done, and shortly after that, he went out to his truck, gathered some tools, and got to work sanding the wall and getting it ready to prime. “You said Thad helped you out with this?” George asked over his shoulder as I sat at the kitchen table and filled out a few forms I needed to hand in at work the next day. “Um, yeah,” I said briefly as I glanced up and went back to what I was doing. The last thing I wanted to do was talk about Thad. “He did a great job. Why didn’t he finish?” It was a harmless question, but there was no way I was going to tell him that I couldn’t be alone with the man, ever again. I gave him an indifferent shrug, “He had to work today, and our schedules were a bit out of whack, so I figured it was easier to get someone else to finish up.”

He nodded. “He’s a fine boy, that one. Takes good care of his family.” I guess he didn’t know he was a cheating menace. “Yes, he is nice.” “We were all taking bets that you and him would hit it off.” I stared at his back with my mouth hanging open. They did what? A strangled laugh fell from my lips, “He’s not my type.” Why would they take bets? Was the whole town crazy? His wide shoulders rose and lowered. “Yeah, I guess I heard that news, too.” I sat up straighter, “What news?” He peeked over his shoulder and I could see his ears turning red. “Um, that you, um, have a girlfriend.” Laughter almost exploded out of my mouth, and I covered it with my hand to suppress it. “Oh, okay. Sorry if that makes you uncomfortable.” “Oh, no. Doesn’t make me uncomfortable at all. See, my daughter lives your lifestyle, so I’m used to it. I don’t understand it much, but I accept it for what it is. It’s a shame, though.” “Why is it a shame?” Was he talking about his daughter or me? “Well, we all had high hopes that Thad would finally find someone who was good for him. We were hoping you would be it.” I stared at him. Did he not know that Thad was married? I glanced at the sink; maybe I shouldn’t drink the water here. “Well, that’s about all.” He brushed his hands over his worn jeans. “All you need to do now is apply a nice even coat of primer on this area and then you will be ready to paint.” He glanced around the room. “The color on the

other walls really warms the place up.” “Thank you.” I didn’t know what else to say as I was still reeling from his earlier comments. “I’ll call you tomorrow with a quote on the floor. I don’t think it will be too much.” He gave me a wink, “I might even give you a discount if you think about going on a date with Thad.” My eyebrows disappeared into my hairline. I knew they had to have. “Excuse me?” His deep laughter rumbled, “I’m just kidding about that, but I will give you a call tomorrow with the price.” I followed him to the door, and he told me he would replace the light this weekend when I was home again. A few minutes later, he climbed into his truck and left. As he pulled out of the driveway, a police vehicle came down the road. I stepped back into the house and watched as they stopped side by side and chatted. When I saw George point back to my house, I quickly closed the door. I spent the next two hours priming the walls and then cleaning up my mess. The entire time I battled with myself to not remember what had happened the last time I had been standing in front of this certain wall. I was starting my job the next day, and I settled into bed early that night to read for a few minutes when my cellphone rang. I grinned, feeling lighter than I had all day when I saw Brandy’s picture on my phone. “Man, I didn’t realize how much I needed to hear your voice until I saw you calling me. How are you?” Brandy laughed with me. “I knew that. That’s why I’m calling. How are you doing? How is the house fixing going? You get frisky with the sexy police officer yet?” “Brandy! He’s married! I have no plans to get frisky with him.” I was too embarrassed to tell her that I had already quite literally been frisked by him.

“Fine, I get it. No married men.” She sighed, “Um, that’s kind of why I’m calling.” Her voice had grown serious, and I knew she was calling because of Kevin and my father. “What happened?” “As you probably remember, the sentencing was today,” she reminded me. Yeah, in the back of my mind, I had known that, but I had chosen not to think about it. “Okay, what did they get?” I steeled myself to hear their punishment. I knew my father deserved to go to jail and Kevin too, even more so, but he was still my father and I felt torn. She inhaled noisily, “Your father got a year in prison and then a year on house arrest.” Two years of punishment, that’s all he got. “What about Kevin?” Brandy hesitated. “Kevin got a year of house arrest,” she finally blurted out. “What? He only got a year? And it is under house arrest? You’re kidding me!” I sat straight up in bed as I practically yelled my response. “Yeah, I know. I can’t believe he’s not going to see the inside of a jail cell.” She paused, “I’m sorry about your father.” I squeezed my eyes shut, “He made his choices, Brandy.” “Yes, he did, but I know you two used to be close.” Her voice was soft as she spoke. “Yeah, well that was a long time ago, before he stole all that money and pissed it down the drain.” I plopped back against my pillow, banging my head on the wall. I glanced in the corner to see my bedframe still leaning against the wall. Someday I was going to get that put together.

Brandy and I talked for a few more minutes, and then she wished me luck on my first day at work. It was because of all that my father had stolen and then gambled away that I had lost my inheritance. When the investigation came out, all of our assets were frozen, even mine, and I hadn’t done anything wrong besides being stupid. I lay in bed staring at the backs of my eyelids, trying to come to terms with the fact that my father was now a convicted felon and would be going to jail. As for Kevin, he didn’t deserve a minute of my thoughts—not after he had taken advantage of my father, and of me.

THAD

car left the station parking lot, and I felt like an H er ass. From the moment I had first seen her, I had been doing one stupid thing after another. Maybe that slam to my head at the bar did more damage than I previously thought. As much as it pissed me off that I couldn’t make her understand, she brought to life feelings that I had never known existed before, not for me at least. I’d heard the stories of the moment you met someone, you felt the connection, and every glance, touch, kiss would set your soul on fire. I’d never believed it, not until I’d met Casey. Her car disappeared down the street, and I lumbered back into the station. When I came around the door to the squad room, Missy stepped out, “That was her, wasn’t it?” “What? Oh, Casey, well, um…” I didn’t even know what to say. She rubbed her hand up and down my arm, for the first time not in a flirtatious way, but in a comforting way. “I’m so sorry that she had to see that. I’m sure she will calm down and things will work out.”

I nodded absently. “Yeah, sure,” I said over my shoulder as I walked away. A few minutes later, I got a call and for the next few hours I was busy going from call to call. I was thankful when the day was over, and as I turned onto my street, I saw a pickup truck pulling out of her driveway. George pulled up beside me. “Hey, Thad, how are you?” “I’m doing well, George. What are you doing in this neck of the woods?” I knew, but I wanted to find out what he’d been doing at Casey’s house without asking him directly. “Strangely enough, that new woman, you know that beautiful one that lives next door to you,” he thumbed back toward her house and I looked up in time to see her door close, “she wanted me to finish your job. She probably could have done it herself, but I didn’t mind helping her. She sure is a pretty thing, isn’t she?” There was no way to avoid it, “Yes, she is. Thanks for helping her out.” “She said you were too busy to get it finished up, but man, if I had been you, I would have called in sick to spend a few hours with that young lady.” He shook his head, “I’m never gonna understand you young people.” “George,” I laughed, “I appreciate you helping her. I know she wanted to get it done quickly. I’m glad she got you to help her out.” We chatted a few minutes longer before we each headed home. As hard as I tried not to look at her house, I couldn’t help myself as I searched for any sign of her. And that is the way it was over the next week. Her car was rarely there, and when it was, the house was mostly dark and uninviting. I had hoped for a chance to check on her, maybe test the waters to see if she was still angry

with me, but the opportunity didn’t arise until Thanksgiving Day. After a physical domestic, I’d had to respond to the hospital to get the victim’s statement. I was walking around the corner when a nurse darted out from behind a curtain and right into me. My hands went out automatically to stabilize the person, and I looked down to find Casey staring up into my face, cheeks turning redder by the millisecond. “Hi, Casey,” I whispered and stared down into her gorgeous eyes. “I’m sorry I didn’t see you there.” Her mouth opened once, then twice, before she shook her head and stepped back out of my grasp. “Officer Wagner, I should be apologizing, I wasn’t watching where I was going. Is there something I can help you with?” “Casey,” I took a step closer and lowered my voice, “can’t we please talk for a second?” She stared at me for another second before she glanced at the nurse’s station, “I’m working, Officer Wagner.” She gave me her attention again, “Is there something I can help you with that pertains to work?” My anger began to build. Damn it, why was this woman being so stubborn! “Casey, come on, just give me two minutes.” She glared at me, “I told you before that we have nothing to say. Now do you or don’t you need assistance here?” I ground my teeth to keep from grabbing her and yanking her behind a curtain and onto a gurney to show her how stupid this was. I knew she felt the same things I did, why was she so adamant about denying it? Was it really because of her girlfriend? The one that lived down south? “I’m looking for the woman who was assaulted by her

husband earlier, Peggy Small.” “She’s down in curtain three.” She began to step around me, and I grabbed her arm. Her eyes flared as they came up to meet mine. “Please let me go.” “I don’t know why you keep denying it, Casey. I know you feel it as much as I do.” She swallowed, “The only thing I feel is your hand on my arm, and my blood pressure rising. Now, release me so I can get back to work.” “Jesus, Casey, give us a chance,” I pleaded quietly and she jerked her arm free. “Like hell I will.” She spun and practically ran down the hallway and around the corner. When I glanced around the room, I found three nurses and two doctors staring at me. One of the nurses smiled, another shook her head and headed down the hall to where Casey had disappeared. I turned away from the rest of them and went to curtain three. For almost two hours, I sat with the victim as she talked about what had happened. I could have left sooner, but I didn’t have any calls pending, and Peggy didn’t have any family here yet. Part of me didn’t want her to be alone, especially after everything that had happened, and the other part of me was afraid to walk out of the curtain and run into Casey again. She’d already chopped my manhood off, what would she go for next? When I finally departed, I only had an hour left of my shift, and I went back to the station to work on my report. My partner had arrested the husband, and our night shift guys would have him arraigned in front of the on-call judge tonight to have his bail set. Corrine and Tommy had gone to a friend’s to celebrate Thanksgiving, so on my way home I decided to

stop into the tavern and grab a bite to eat. It wasn’t until I was halfway to the bar that I saw her. She was sitting with her elbows on the bar and her hands over her face. I should turn around and walk the hell out of here immediately, I thought, but as that thought dashed through my mind, Dabby saw me and called out a greeting. “Happy Thanksgiving, Thad. You just get off work?” Casey stiffened and then dropped her hands to look my way. Without answering Dabby, I stepped closer to her with my hands up, “I swear I didn’t follow you. Corrine and Tommy are at a friend’s tonight, and I didn’t want to go home and fix anything. I’m too beat.” She studied me for a moment and then glanced at Dabby who watched us with great interest. “Have a seat,” she said as she pointed to a seat next to her. “I owe you an apology.” Relief washed over me as if a ten-gallon bucket of ice water on a hot summer day had been dropped over my head. “Why is it that every time we see each other, one of us is apologizing?” I focused on her profile and fisted my hands to keep from caressing every inch of it. Her laugh was brittle, “I know, right?” She picked up her beer bottle, “Can I buy you a beer?” “Sure, if you can do me a favor.” I nodded at Dabby as he set down my beer and stepped away. She eyed me warily, “What is your favor?” “Can we start over? Can we forget about everything that’s happened and just sit here as friends and neighbors and have something to eat?” She let loose a smile that almost knocked me off my

stool. “Yeah, we can do that.” I tipped my bottle to her, “To new friends?” She tapped her long neck against mine, “To new friends.” Over the next hour, we talked about how she was settling into her new job and about the little calls I’d had to handle. We kept our distance from anything personal, and I even forced myself to not ask how things were progressing on the repairs at her house. I didn’t want to remind her of what had happened that Sunday afternoon. When Dabby set the bills down on the bar, I reached for them before she did, and her hand landed on top of mine. “No, Thad, I can pay for my own dinner.” “Casey, I know you can, but would you mind allowing me to pay? Just a friend buying another friend dinner.” She slipped her hand off mine, and I immediately missed the warming contact. “I was supposed to be buying you a beer,” she reminded me. “You can grab the next tab, how’s that?” She thought for a second and then nodded in agreement. “Thank you, I appreciate that.” I pulled some cash out of my wallet and set it on the bar with our checks. As we said good night to Dabby, he continued to observe our every move. I rested my hand on her lower back as I pushed the door open and ushered her out. She shivered as she walked past me, “Wow, it got cold out here.” “Yeah,” I pulled my jacket closed, “it sure did. I heard they are calling for some early snow. It looks like we are in for a bad winter.” She sighed as she approached her vehicle, “And this

car probably won’t be the best ride for the weather.” “I’m afraid not. You’d be better off with an SUV or truck with four-wheel drive.” Her eyes skimmed over her car. “I really love this car.” I joked, “Maybe someday you can afford to own two cars, and you can have one like this for summer and one for winter.” She rolled her eyes, “I have no use for two cars. I’m just gonna have to suck it up and let it go.” When she finished, I noticed that she had a sad look on her face. I ran my knuckles over her cheek. “Why are you so sad? It’s only a car.” Were those tears in her eyes when she gazed up at me? “I know. It’s just the last link I had to my old life.” She shrugged, “I know it’s silly, but I feel like if I get rid of it, then I’ve totally let it all go.” I turned her to face me and put my hands on her shoulders. “Isn’t that why you moved here? To put the past behind you?” “Yeah, it is.” She lifted her chin and met my probing gaze. “Then you should get rid of the car, and completely move forward,” I said firmly. “Let go of everything in your past and focus on your future.” I didn’t tell her that I wanted her to let go of her girlfriend or have me in her future, but I thought it selfishly. “You’re right. I need to do that. Thank you, Thad.” She placed one of her hands on top of mine. “I had a nice time. I’m glad we were able to find a truce.” “Yeah, me too.” We continued to stare at one another, and it was as if a magnet was slowly pulling us together as my feet shuffled a few inches closer and I saw her do the same. “Why is it that when I get within five feet of you, I can’t keep myself away?”

She tried to smile, but it was stilted, “I know.” I pulled her to my chest, forcing myself not to bring her lips to mine and held her in a tight hug. “Casey, I don’t know if I can do the whole friend thing with you. The feelings you bring out in me, I’ve never felt before,” I whispered in her ear as she curled into me. “I feel it, too, but it’s not right.” She went to pull back, but I tightened my grip. “Not yet, let me hold you for another few seconds.” I felt her sigh against me and could have sworn she placed a kiss on my chest as she turned her head and looked up at me. “Thad, we need to figure out how we can be friends and put whatever it is we are feeling behind us.” My hand cupped her face, “Casey, I don’t know if I can do that.” My thumb stroked her bottom lip, and she nuzzled into my hand ever so slightly. She closed her eyes and then they fluttered open, “We have to.” “Fine, if being your friend is the only way I can have you in my life, then fine. I’ll do as you ask, but not right this second.” She opened her mouth to respond, and I swooped down and took her lips in a crushing kiss before she could utter a word. There was a mere second’s hesitation on her part before she clung to me and whimpered. My entire body melted as I curled around her and pushed her gently up against her car. I wanted time to freeze right at that moment where my heart felt so full and my entire body tingled with desire for her. I didn’t want to step back, didn’t want to release her and do as I said I would. I didn’t want to be her friend, but I knew that’s what she wanted. I slowed the kiss, taking gentle slow swipes with my tongue over hers and her lips. My

fingers slid through her long locks one more time before I pulled back and rested my forehead on hers. “Don’t say it. Please, don’t say a word. I know, just friends. I know.” Her breath was heaving out of her chest as was mine, and she clenched her hands tightly around my shirt under my jacket before she slowly loosened her grip. “I’m sorry, Casey, you’re probably furious with me for that,” I finally opened my eyes and found her watching me, “but I had to do that one time.” She shook her head, “I’m not furious. I wanted to kiss you, too. But—” I put my fingertip over her lips, “I know, friends, just friends. I get it. I don’t like it, but I get it.” She kissed the tip of my finger and slipped her hands out from under my jacket. “Thank you for dinner, and for understanding,” she spoke as I stepped back. “You’re welcome for dinner, and I’m not sure I understand, but I will respect your wishes.” “Thank you, Thad. That’s all I can ask of you.” She smiled sadly and climbed into her car.

CASEY

the only one who didn’t like the whole “just H e wasn’t friends” thingy—especially after that toe-curling kiss. The whole way home, I traced my fingers over my lips, replaying it over and over again. I pulled into my driveway and watched out the side window as Thad pulled into his. We both exited our cars and stared at one another over winter’s brown lawn. My feet wanted to walk toward him, but my heart and mind kept them firmly planted in place. “Good night, Casey,” Thad called out after a few seconds. I smiled, even though he couldn’t see it in the dark. “Good night, Thad.” Would we be able to keep that promise to ourselves and each other? More importantly, would I be able to do it? I leaned back against the front door for a moment and once again played out the whole parking lot scene. One more time, and then I needed to zip it up and pack it away. As I climbed into bed a few minutes later, I thought to myself, Okay, maybe a few more times, and then I’ll pack

it away. I fell asleep dreaming of Thad’s beautiful blue eyes staring down at me and my body tingling from head to toe. The next three weeks went by in a blur and before I knew it, it was the week before Christmas. “I can’t believe it’s already the nineteenth of December and you haven’t put your tree up,” Linda, one of the other ER nurses, commented as we sat at the main desk and finished up paperwork. “I know. I bought all the trimmings, but I just haven’t had time. I’ve been working so much overtime that when I get home, I’m beat. Besides, it’s only me, why do I even need a tree?” Linda’s eyes popped out of her head, “You can’t be serious? You have to have a tree, it’s sacrilegious to not have one.” She shook her head. “Why don’t you do it tonight? You’re getting off in thirty minutes.” “But it might take me two hours to get home in this snowstorm.” I shivered, “I didn’t realize it snowed this much up here.” Linda laughed, “Oh, this is nothing; it’s only a couple of inches. Drive slowly, take main roads, and be careful. You’ll be fine.” “Easy for you to say. I think I’ve driven in snow twice in my life, and it was an inch or two at the most.” “It’s almost three, you should be home by four, and you will have plenty of time to put up your tree.” She went back to her reports. “Yeah, maybe. I’ll see how stressed out I am when I get home.” I completed my reports and said goodbye to everyone as I left. I was regretting not taking Thad up on his offer to go SUV shopping. I thought I had at least a few more weeks before we’d get a snowstorm.

As I drove home, I focused on the road. The snow was coming down so heavily that my windshield wipers were set almost to the highest setting to keep my view clear. I felt the car slip once or twice as I put my foot on the brake too quickly. Fifty minutes later, I pulled up in the driveway and let out a huge sigh of relief. Hopefully, by tomorrow when I had to report in for a night shift, the roads would be plowed and safer. I slipped on the driveway as I climbed out and almost went under my car. Why did I move up north? I had only been in the house ten minutes when there was a hard knock on the front door. “Who the hell is out in this weather?” I said aloud as I went to the door. I pulled it open to find Thad and Tommy on the front step. “Casey, I need a huge favor,” Thad’s face was as tense as his voice. “What’s wrong? What do you need?” I stepped aside while the two of them entered the living room. “There was a major crash on the highway, something like seventy-five vehicles, and they need me to come out and help. Unfortunately, Corrine is stuck out at the college and staying at a friend’s house, and I don’t have anyone to watch Tommy.” I glanced down at the little boy as he grinned up at me. “You want me to watch Tommy?” “Please, I’m sorry. I wouldn’t ask if I had any other choices.” “Thad, relax. I don’t mind watching him. Go. Go do what you need to do, but be careful, it’s slick out there.” His shoulders visibly relaxed. “Thank you, I owe you one.” Before I could say anything else, he leaned down and kissed Tommy on the head, “Be good for her.” “Yeah, yeah, yeah. I’m always good.”

Thad winced and looked up at me, “I might owe you two. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” “Don’t rush. Do what you have to do, we’ll be fine. How much trouble could he be?” As he turned away, I thought I heard him say, Make that three, under his breath. Tommy and I stared at each other for ten whole seconds after the door closed. Okay, now what? “Do you want to watch television?” I asked him. “Yeah, okay. Do you have anything to eat? I’m hungry.” “Well, you’re in luck, I am too.” I walked over to the television and turned it on. “Here’s the remote. You can put on what you want to watch. Let me go see what I can fix for us.” “I want hot dogs and mac and cheese,” he said as he climbed up on the sofa and began to channel surf. Hot dogs and mac and cheese, yeah, I don’t think I have any of that. What the hell else could I feed a fiveyear-old? I pawed through my cabinets looking for something that might work. “Tommy, will spaghetti and meatballs do?” I had made sauce and meatballs up the week before and froze them. All I had to do was thaw them in the microwave and cook some pasta. Tommy didn’t answer, so I walked out of the kitchen and looked around the living room; he wasn’t there. My heart skipped a beat, “Tommy!” Oh, my god! He’d been in my house for five minutes and I’d lost him already! “Tommy!” My heart started pounding in my chest, and I took off down the hall, checking the bathroom to find it empty and then my office to find the same. As I reached my bedroom door, I heard a crash coming from within and I jumped as I stopped at the

door. “Tommy! What are you doing?” He had pulled out a drawer to my dresser and climbed on it to reach for something on top. In the process, he had knocked off my vanity mirror and little shards of glass were all over the floor. “Don’t you move!” I threatened him with a pointed finger. I stepped carefully over the glass and scooped him up. “What are you doing in my bedroom?” I carried a strong, squirming little boy back to the living room and dropped him on the couch. “I asked you a question. What were you doing in my bedroom?” He shrugged, “Looking.” “Yeah, well you were doing more than looking. You were touching, and you broke something.” I finally got a reaction from him as his head hung down. “Sorry,” he said quietly. With my hands on my hips, I sighed and glanced around. “I need to go clean that up, and then I need to fix us some dinner. If you can be good while I do that, I have a project you can help me with, but you have to behave and sit on this couch and watch television until we’ve eaten.” His entire body sprang up off the couch, and he jumped on the cushion, “What? What are we gonna do?” I grabbed him by the shoulders and forced him to stand still, “You are going to sit still and not jump on my couch. You are going to park yourself on this couch while I clean up and then cook dinner. Then afterwards, if you have behaved, you can help me decorate my Christmas tree.” Tommy glanced around the room, “You don’t have a tree up yet?” “Nope, and I need some help, but only if you can be good.”

“Okay, I can help you do that.” He plopped back down on the sofa and picked up the remote. “You promise you won’t get off that couch until I tell you?” He rolled his eyes, and I wondered where a child that age could learn such a thing. “Yessssss,” he hissed in annoyance, as if I was just ruining his life—he wasn’t even a teenager! I cleaned up the mirror and hoped that the seven years of bad luck were not being cast on me. Tommy was pretty wild, and that surprised me. I would have expected Thad’s child to be a bit more, I don’t know, tame. This kid was a firecracker. I managed to make dinner with him only getting off the couch once, and then he only came into the kitchen for something to drink. Instead of going back to the sofa, he pulled up a chair and climbed up beside me, asking me question after question. Why did I paint the walls a girlie color? How come I was wearing doctor type clothes? Why didn’t I have any kids? Ouch, that one hurt. By the time we sat down to eat, I was exhausted. I glanced at the clock; it was not even six o’clock. Hopefully, Thad would be back soon. How long would it take to deal with a major car accident? Shit, he was going to be hours. I groaned internally and ate slowly, hoping to kill as much time as I could. I had a feeling that my plan to decorate the tree was going to turn into a nightmare of epic proportions—and, holy hell, was I right! This was the first time I had ever put up a tree, and trying to follow directions while a five-year-old was saying he knew how to do it, put my blood pressure in the extra high range. Two hours after I opened the box, I stood back and looked at the slightly lopsided tree—whatever, I

was too tired to care. Tommy had already begun to dig into the generic ornaments that I had purchased and was haphazardly hanging them from the tree, of course all in one area. By the time the tree was done, so was I. I made Tommy lie down on the couch, covered him with a blanket, and watched him basically pass out in five seconds flat. I collapsed into my chair and closed my eyes. I opened them again when I heard a soft knock on the front door, and then it opened. Thad stood there, shaking snow off his head. I wanted to cry, I’d never been so happy to see him. “You should have locked your door,” he chastised in a hushed tone, and I shrugged as I tried to sit up. “I was hoping one of us would be kidnapped,” I replied as I tried to pluck tinsel off my sweatshirt and stood up. Thad laughed, “Was he that bad?” He glanced at Tommy sound asleep on the couch. “Not while he’s sleeping,” I stated. Thad chuckled again and stepped closer to me. “Why are you all tangled up in tinsel?” He pulled a piece out of my hair. “Because your son thought it was more fun to decorate me rather than the tree.” Thad startled and looked at me hard. “What did you just say?” Was he as tired as I was and couldn’t think straight? I thought I’d said that pretty clearly. “I said, ‘He thought it was more fun to decorate me than my tree.’” Thad grinned and dropped his head back, “You called him my son.” I shrugged, “Yeah, so?”

“That’s what this is all about. You think Tommy is my son.” The grin on his face was huge as he stepped closer, looking almost predatory, and my heart tripped in my chest. “Casey, he’s not my son. He’s my nephew. Corrine is my sister.” “What?” I squeaked out. He rubbed my arms up and down as he got closer. “Corrine and Tommy came to live with me so she could go to college and not have to pay for housing. I’m not married. That’s what you thought, wasn’t it?” Relief flooded my system at the same time as embarrassment filled me. The mixture of the two made my heart beat erratically. “Yes.” “Jesus, woman, why didn’t you say something before?” He cupped my cheeks. “Is that the reason you said we could only be friends? God, what kind of a man you must have thought me to be.” He shook his head. “You’re not married?” Was I dreaming this? Thad leaned closer and placed a kiss on my lips, “I’m,” he pulled back and then gave me another one, “not,” and one more time for good measure, “married, Casey.” I stared up at him for a few long seconds, and then I threw my arms around his neck and drew him to me. Our lips melded together as our bodies did the best they could around his uniform and duty belt.

THAD

t was after eleven when I finally pulled into my Idriveway. I’d meant to get Casey’s phone number earlier to call and check on Tommy, but in the rush to get out to the scene, I’d forgotten about it. The living room lights were bright, and a slightly-tilted tree blinked its winter welcome. Oh, poor Casey! She had decorated the tree with Tommy. Man, did I owe her big. As I trudged through the snow in her front yard, I got a good look in the front window. She needed to make sure she pulled her drapes; it was like looking into a fishbowl. I stopped in my tracks as I caught sight of her curled up in a chair, glittering tinsel all over her head and shoulders. She was so freaking beautiful. I’d made it three weeks on the friend side, but I wasn’t sure if I would be able to keep it up. Every night, I dreamed of her, and every time I saw her, I wanted to crush her to me and never let her go. I kicked the snow off my boots on her front porch and knocked gently before trying the doorknob. I wasn’t surprised when it opened. She needed a reminder on

how to be safe living alone. I pulled some tinsel from her hair and fought the temptation to pull her into my arms. She looked so damned tired and sexy at the same time. “Why are you all tangled up in tinsel?” The next set of words out of her mouth froze me in place for a few seconds. “Because your son thought it was more fun to decorate me, rather than the tree.” “What did you just say?” “I said, ‘He thought it was more fun to decorate me than my tree.’” How had I missed that? How did she not know that Tommy was my nephew? “You called him my son.” She shrugged and began to look uncomfortable, “Yeah, so?” “That’s what this is all about. You think Tommy is my son.” I thought my face would split in half as I grinned at her. “Casey, he’s not my son. He’s my nephew. Corrine is my sister.” If that was what had been holding her back, well that excuse just got shot to hell—and I for one was going to take advantage of it—well, not right this second—but soon. I pulled back from the kiss, “I can’t believe you didn’t know.” “No one ever said anything.” “But I’m not wearing a wedding ring.” I held up my hand to show her, and she snorted in contempt. “Believe me, a lot of men don’t wear wedding rings, cops especially.” “Well, the day I put one on, is the day it will stay on.” I pulled her closer and kissed her one more time. “You have no idea how much I want to stay here and kiss you all night, but I need to get Tommy back home and to bed,

and by the looks of it, you could use some sleep, too.” Her voice was husky when she next spoke, “Okay.” “But we are going to pick this up again tomorrow, right where we are leaving it.” I raised an eyebrow to ask for confirmation. She smiled shyly and nodded. “I’d like that.” After gathering Tommy up, I paused to kiss Casey one more time, “I’ll see you tomorrow. Get some sleep and thank you for tonight.” “You’re welcome. You get some sleep, too. Sweet dreams.” I winked at her, “They’ll be sweeter than you know.” She closed the door behind me, and I didn’t hear her lock it, but she might have been waiting a moment before she did so. I got Tommy settled into his bed and took a shower, grinning like a fool the whole time. She’d thought I was married. No wonder she’d kept pushing me away. She must have thought I was a complete dog. I chuckled to myself as I dried my hair with a towel. Damn, I couldn’t wait until tomorrow to see her again and finally start to get things going between us. I fell asleep and didn’t wake up until Tommy jumped on my bed at seven-thirty. “We decorated her tree. Did you see it?” “Yes, I did,” I replied as I propped myself up on the bed. “Did you behave for her?” He shook his head, “No, I broke a mirror and then spilled my milk on the sofa and dropped spaghetti all over my pants.” I ruffled his hair. “At least you’re honest.” Corrine called a few minutes later to tell us she was going to be on her way home in about an hour. That would get her home a little after nine, and I couldn’t wait

to get next door when she arrived. Casey and I had a lot of things to catch up on. It was a few minutes after nine when I glanced out the window and did a double take. There was another car in Casey’s driveway. Had a friend stopped by? I studied the car and saw that there was an inch of snow covering it. Someone had arrived late last night because the snow didn’t stop until around three in the morning. Was it Brandy? Shit! My mind was in turmoil as I paced back and forth, waiting for Corrine to get home. The moment she walked in the door, I threw my coat on and bolted next door. I paused and took a deep breath. Please let her open the door and throw herself into my arms, I prayed before I knocked. I heard muted voices behind the door, but a few moments later it opened, and I stepped back as I stared at a man. “Can I help you?” he asked as if he had the right to do so. “Who are you?” I queried back. The man glared at me while he ran his eyes up and down my body, taking stock. I did the same to him and found him seriously lacking. “Thad,” Casey’s voice broke our glaring contest, “what are you doing here? Is everything alright?” The man put his arm casually around her neck, a gesture that was supposed to have appeared intimate but screamed property instead. I glanced between them. His eyes were hard, and hers…hers looked scared. “Everything is fine. I came over to check on you. I didn’t recognize the car in your driveway, and I was concerned.” She didn’t get a chance to reply, as the man did it for

her, pulling her closer to his side. “Everything here is fine. I surprised my fiancée, that’s all.” He gave me a smile that was anything but friendly. “Fiancée?” I gawked at Casey, and she averted her eyes. “Yeah, and who are you?” he stated rudely. Casey found her voice and looked up at the guy, “Kevin, this is Thad, my neighbor. I babysat his son last night.” What? Wait a second, we had already cleared that up, or wait! She wanted him to think I was a married man, just doing the neighborly thing by checking up on her. “Yeah, I wanted to apologize for getting home so late, and I believe my son stated he broke something yesterday. If you tell me how much it was, I’ll be sure he pays you for it.” I seethed the words “my son”. Was this the real reason she didn’t want to get involved with me? She was already in a relationship, with a man? What happened to being with Brandy? Jesus, I had too many questions. “It’s alright, Thad, it was no big deal.” The man, Kevin —isn’t that what she had called him?—began to close the door. “Casey, can I talk to you for a second?” I was getting a really bad vibe here, and it wasn’t just that she hadn’t told me she was engaged. Casey looked freaked out, and this jackass didn’t seem to be making her feel any better. She opened her mouth to speak, and the Kevin guy pulled her closer and nuzzled her neck, letting his hand slide down her chest and brush her breast. “Sorry, but she can’t talk right now, we were just trying to make up for lost time.” Casey slammed her eyes closed, and I could have

sworn that she shivered, but I couldn’t tell if that was a good shiver or a bad one. “Thanks for checking on me, Thad,” Casey whispered just loudly enough for me to hear as Kevin began to close the door again. Shit! What the hell was going on? I stared at the closed door for a few seconds before I returned to my house. Was Casey just embarrassed that she had been caught in a lie? Or was there something else going on? My bullshit meter was dinging off the charts with the thought that Casey and that man were really engaged. What if they were? That would also explain why she had been pushing me away. When I got back home, I dropped into a chair at the table. “What’s wrong, Thad?” Corrine asked as she looked up from the paper she was reading. “Casey is engaged,” I said flatly. “What? She’s marrying her friend? That’s great.” Corrine giggled. “No, not her friend, a man.” Corrine looked immediately confused. “A man? I thought she was a lesbian,” she set the paper on the table, “and why are you so upset?” I shook my head, “I don’t even know where to start.” “How about you start at the beginning, but let me pour us some coffee first.” I waited until Corrine had filled two mugs, and then I began to tell my sister everything that had happened between Casey and me, not that I went into great detail about the wall incident or making out in the parking lot, but I shared enough that she got the gist. “I don’t understand it.” She shook her head, “She pushed you away because she thought you were

married, but then she ends up being engaged?” She paused, “That doesn’t make sense.” “I know that, Corrine. That’s what I’m trying to figure out.” I spun my coffee mug absently in front of me, “I guess I just need to wait until I can talk to her alone and find out what’s going on.” “Maybe you can catch her at work,” Corrine suggested. “Yeah, that would probably be my best bet.” In the meantime, I would keep my eye on that vehicle and wait to see if it leaves. I stewed over the situation for a few days, torn on wanting to find out what was going on, and angry that Casey hadn’t told me about the guy. Instinct said something was wrong, but my annoyance ignored what my sixth sense was trying to tell me. Five days later, the car was still parked in front of her house, and she had yet to go to work. I’d called the hospital a few times to see if she was working, but they always said she was off. I happened to be at the hospital on official business on Christmas Eve and cornered one of the nurses I knew was friends with Casey. “Hey, Linda, where is Casey?” I asked as I approached her. Linda looked up from the report she was working on and smiled, “She came down with a bad stomach bug she said.” She cocked her head to the side, “I’m surprised you didn’t know that. I thought you were her friendly neighbor.” I ignored her second comment. “How long has she been out?” “I think since she went home from the storm. I haven’t seen her since then.” “Have you talked to her?” My instincts were getting

itchy. “Yeah, I called her about something yesterday.” She stood up. “Why?” “Did she sound alright to you?” “Thad, what’s going on?” Linda looked spooked, but I was getting a really bad feeling. “Did she sound alright to you, Linda?” “She seemed reserved, but I figured that was because she didn’t feel well.” “Has she ever said anything to you about a fiancé?” I clenched my jaw as she wavered and glanced away. “Linda, come on. I’m concerned for her safety. Please tell me. Did she ever say anything about a fiancé?” “Actually, she did. She said that she was engaged once, but it ended really badly, and that’s why she moved away, to get away from him.” Son of a bitch! “Did she tell you why it was so bad? Did he abuse her or anything?” “No,” she shook her head, “she said she broke it off because she found out he was married. Thad, you’re freaking me out. What’s going on?” I had already spun around and was heading out of the emergency room when she practically yelled the last sentence. I didn’t bother to answer her; I had to find out what was going on.

CASEY

not married! He’s not married! I danced my way H e’s down the short hallway to my bedroom. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t figured that out. Tommy is his nephew, I giggled to myself as I changed clothes and got ready for bed. I curled up under the covers with a grin on my face and lightness in my heart. Everything I’d gone through might just be worth it if things worked out between Thad and me. I fell into a deep sleep as I realized I might have just found the light at the end of the tunnel. The soft touch of a warm hand caressed my bare shoulder, and I shifted under it to get more contact. A hot wet tongue ran up the side of my neck and I moaned, “Thad.” Man, what a dream, he could keep doing this all night long. “Who’s Thad?” The voice that spoke was not the one I had been dreaming about, and my eyelids exploded open as I twisted in bed to look over my shoulder at the man sitting on my bed.

“Kevin?” I jumped as fear and adrenaline spiked through me. “Miss me, baby?” I could barely make out the smile on his lips in the dark room. Why the hell was he here? He was supposed to be serving his sentence locked up in his house. “What are you doing here?” I croaked as I swallowed the bad taste in my mouth. This wasn’t good. “Not going to throw your arms around me and welcome me home?” He cocked his head to the side which helped my anger combat the fear in my chest. “This is not your home. What the hell are you doing here and how did you get in my house?” He shrugged, completely unmoved by my anger. “Your front door was unlocked. You know, you should really lock that.” I almost groaned out loud. I’d been floating on cloud nine when Thad left and didn’t even think to make sure the door was locked. “Who is Thad?” he asked me again. My heart snapped to attention, “What do you mean, ‘Who is Thad’?” “You said that name in your sleep. Who is it?” Did I hear a touch of jealousy in his voice? This man did not have the right to be jealous. “You must have misheard me. I was about to say, ‘That feels good’.” The whites of his eyes practically glowed as they stared my way. “Why did you move all the way up here? It took me a while to track you down.” “Yeah, well you can forget you know where I am and leave. You’re not staying here, Kevin.” His laugh was cold and hard. “Since when do you tell me what I’m going to do? You’re not my wife, Cassandra.” “Yeah, no shit!” I threw back the covers and climbed out the opposite side of the bed. “You need to leave,

Kevin. I don’t want you here.” I faced him over the bed, deep shadows filled the room, making it hard to see him, but I could make out the outline of his body as he faced me. “I’m not going anywhere, Casey. You think I’d come all the way here to find you just to go back?” He barked a slightly demented laugh, “I have no intention of going back. I’m not going to be locked up in my house like some dog in a kennel.” “You can’t stay here,” I reiterated as calmly as I could. “You need to leave, Kevin. I don’t want anything to do with you.” Kevin began to prowl around the bed, and I was tempted to jump up into the middle of it and run out the door, but I stayed put. I needed to show him I wasn’t afraid of him and talk him into leaving. “Of course you want me, Casey.” He reached the foot of the bed and kept coming. “You love me, and we made plans to spend our lives together.” He rounded the corner on my side and my heart beat faster. “It’s you and me together.” The back of his hand smoothed down over my cheek, and I fought not to flinch. “That was before you lied to me, back before I knew that you were married and a thief.” I saw the whites of his teeth as his lips pulled back in a wide grin. “I wasn’t lying to you. I was trying to figure out how to get out of my marriage the best way.” “Bullshit,” I replied and pulled back away from him. “You need to leave, Kevin, you can’t be here.” His voice grew deeper as I felt the tension mount in him, “That’s where you’re wrong, Casey. I’m not going to leave, not without you.” “What are you talking about?” A sliver of fear began to take root in my gut again.

“When I leave here, you and I are going to go over the border into Canada.” He came closer, taking my face between his hands. “I’ll be free and clear of the law there, and we can get married and have that family that we always talked about.” “You’ve lost your mind,” I whispered. “No, I haven’t, Casey, not by a long shot. It just took me a while to figure it all out.” “Figure what out? How to become a fugitive? I’m not going anywhere with you, Kevin.” I tried to step back and ended up against the nightstand beside my bed. The voice that came out from between his lips shot fear all the way into the tips of my toes, “You don’t have a choice, Cassandra.” He reached behind him and pulled out a gun, pointing it up at the ceiling as he displayed it for me. “You’re going to do as I say.” “Or what? You’re going to kill me?” Would he do that? Had he completely lost all of his sense? “I would have no problem putting a bullet in your head. It’s not like I haven’t done it before.” His voice was cold as ice and his eyes looked almost crazed as the words left his lips. My body was paralyzed as his words filled my mind. He had killed someone before? How had he gotten away with it? Why hadn’t I known about it? I didn’t know because he’d never told me, not about killing someone and not about stealing millions of dollars from innocent people. “You wouldn’t,” I said more to calm myself than to fight with him. “Don’t dare me, Casey. That’s what Bridget did, and now she’s dead.” The tangent fear that had held me upright cracked, and I felt my knees buckle. “You killed your wife?”

Kevin turned away from me and took a few steps. “It was easier than divorcing her.” If Kevin had killed his wife, he’d have no problem killing me. What the hell was I going to do? Could I somehow get a message to Thad? “Get back in bed. I need to get some sleep,” he said as he set the gun on the nightstand and began to unbuckle his belt. “I’m not sleeping with you!” I pulled my feet off the floor and rolled across the bed to get to the other side. Kevin paused and looked down at the gun before he turned to me. “I have no intention of having sex with you, Casey. I need sleep, and you’re going to stay right here while I do. I’m not letting you out of my sight.” “Kevin, you can’t do this,” I pleaded. “Please, don’t do this.” He sighed, “Shut up, Casey, and lay down.” He yanked his shirt over his head and pulled his pants down off his hips. “Don’t make me hurt you.” I had never imagined Kevin as a physically-abusive man. In the two years I’d known him, I’d barely ever seen him angry, and he had never raised a hand to anyone. I slipped back under the covers, lying on my side facing away from him on the very edge of the bed. Kevin had changed, that was obvious. He’d admitted to killing his wife, and now he was a fugitive. His cold demeanor gave me no doubt he would hurt me if he had to. The bed dipped behind me as he climbed in. His hand reached out to me and pulled at my arm, “Come here, Casey, I want to hold you.” Could I tell him no? Or would it be better to play along until I could find a way to get free? With a deep breath, I allowed him to pull me to his

side. The last thing I wanted to do was touch him, but he forced me to lie with my head on his shoulder, I had no place to put my hand except on his chest. My eyes locked on to the dark shadow of the gun two feet from me on the nightstand. Could I reach it before him? Probably not, but the harder question was: Could I use the gun against him if I needed to? That one I didn’t think I would be able to do. Kevin ran his hand down my head and back a few times before the movement slowly stopped and his breathing deepened and evened out. Fear of waking him held me still, but there was no way I could relax enough to sleep. I spent the next several hours staring at the draped window as the darkness began to recede and light began to filter in through the edges. When the sun had risen, the room was light enough that I could see better, but instead of looking around the room, my eyes stayed locked on the handle of the black gun sitting on the table. I felt Kevin stir under me, and I tried to pull away. Several times while he slept, I had tried to get away from him, but his arm had been like a vice around my waist and if I tried to shift, it would tighten. Once again, as I tried to lift off his chest, he pulled me tightly to him, but this time, his hand began to move over my hip slowly. I clenched my teeth against the unwanted feeling of his hand caressing my hip and buttock. His other hand brushed against the side of my breast as he turned his head and kissed the top of my head. My stomach rolled. His hands became more demanding. “Kevin,” I pulled his hand off my chest, “Stop, I’m not having sex with you.”

His hands stilled and he sighed, “Fine, I guess you do have the right to be pissed at me for lying to you, and I’ll give you time to forgive me,” he opened his brown eyes and pierced me with a heated gaze, “but it won’t be long before you are begging me to take you again.” He gripped my hand and pushed it down over his rock-hard erection. I was so tempted to twist and squeeze his balls, but what the hell was I going to do once I got away from him? Run outside in six inches of snow in bare feet and a camisole? He shifted his hips up into my stiff hand, rubbing himself against me. “You sure you don’t want it, Casey? We were always good in bed together.” “No,” I stated bluntly. He arched again. “Come on, what a hell of a way to wake up and reunite.” I tried to yank my hand back, but he held it there while he kept rubbing against my palm. “Fine, if you don’t want to have sex, the least you could do is jack me off, or better yet, give me head.” He chuckled deeply in his chest. “I think the last thing you would want is for me to have my teeth wrapped around you,” I growled and yanked my hand as hard as I could while I twisted away from him. He let me go. “Yeah,” he laughed, “you’re probably right. That’s going to have to wait until you trust me again.” Trust him? Like hell I would ever trust him. He lied to me and killed his wife! “Where are you going?” He reached for the gun, and I froze as I looked over my shoulder at him. “I’m going to the bathroom. Are you going to shoot me for having to urinate?” I glared at him. He waved the muzzle of the gun sideways, “Fine, go

ahead, but don’t do anything stupid.” “No, I already did that when I got involved with you,” I muttered as I closed myself off in the bathroom. I leaned back against the door and covered my face with my hands. What the hell was I going to do now? Could I talk him into leaving? Maybe tell him that I had a cop next door that might ask questions? Maybe that would get him to leave. When I exited the bathroom ten minutes later, I had composed myself. I was going to do whatever I had to do to get Kevin out of here. “What’s for breakfast?” he asked as he pulled his shirt over his head. “What do you want?” I queried as I grabbed my robe and slipped my arms in it. “Surprise me.” He grinned, and all I could do was stare. I had seen that same grin and heard those words so many times in the year we had been together. Back then, they used to make my chest feel warm, now they did the opposite. I wandered out to the kitchen and glanced at the house phone sitting on the counter in its charger before turning to put on a pot of coffee. “Don’t worry about making a phone call. I cut your phone line last night, so you have no service.” I spun on him, “You did what?” He shrugged as he pulled out a chair and sat down at my small table. “I wanted privacy.” I shook my head as I turned away and finished pouring water into the coffeemaker. He might have cut my phone line, but I still had my cellphone. There was still hope. “Are eggs alright?” I asked as I opened the fridge. “Fine, make mine scrambled with toast.” I peered over

at him and saw him glancing around my house. “Why the hell did you buy this place? It’s like being in a closet.” I cracked the eggs into a bowl, “You seem to forget that my family lost all its money with the little stunt you and my father pulled. All of my funds are still being held until everything is squared away. This was all I could afford.” I hit the last egg a bit too hard and had to dig out a few pieces of shell from the bowl. “You’ll have your money soon enough,” he stated. I snorted, “What makes you so sure of that? Besides, by the time it gets squared away, I’ll be rotting in jail for harboring a fugitive.” He laughed. “Babe,” he came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, “it won’t be long and we’ll both be free. We’ll be in Canada and there is nothing anyone can do to stop us. It’ll be just you and me like we always planned.” His voice so close to my ear put me on edge and my eyes darted to my knife block. Could I grab one and stab him? Stab wounds could be messy, and if you didn’t hit something major the first time, the person could still come after you. Kevin went back to sitting at the table and asked me question after question about my new job, the people I met, why I chose this place. After breakfast, we moved to the living room where he turned on the television and skimmed the news channels. There was a knock on the door, and my heart galloped in my chest. That had to be Thad. What the hell was I going to do? “Who the hell is that?” Kevin asked quietly. “I don’t know, maybe my neighbor coming over to check on me.”

His eyes were slits in his face as he studied me, and he stood up and reached around to his back. Oh, please God, don’t let him hurt Thad. “Well, we’ll just have to get rid of your neighbor.” He moved to the door as I stood up on shaking knees. Kevin opened it and asked Thad if he could help him. The whole time, my insides were screaming, No, he needs to help me! The shock on Thad’s face was stark as he took in Kevin, and I feared something bad was going to happen. I moved to Kevin’s side quickly, “Thad, what are you doing here? Is everything alright?” I felt Kevin stiffen beside me a moment before he slung his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. I wasn’t surprised that Thad had seen the car. Over his shoulder, I could see the black SUV parked in the driveway behind mine. Thad’s eyes grew large as Kevin told him he was my fiancé. I tried not to wince as he said the words. It would be safer for Thad and his family if they thought it was true and went about his business until I could figure out what to do. Kevin was getting irritated. I heard it in his voice when he all but demanded to know who Thad was. “Kevin, this is Thad, my neighbor. I babysat his son last night.” Would he pick up on the fact that I had called Tommy his son again? Would he get that there was something going on? Or would he think I had lied to him and was trying to save my own neck. I thought that we were in the clear until Thad asked to talk to me privately. Kevin reached around his back, and I knew he was going for his gun, while he snuggled up to me and pretended to be the doting fiancé. I barely got the words out around the bile in my

throat, “Thanks for checking on me, Thad.” As the door closed, I felt like a piece of my soul had gotten stuck on the other side.

THAD

went immediately back to the station. Earlier today Iwhen I left home, I had gotten the tag number off the car sitting in Casey’s driveway. It was time for me to do a little bit of investigating, and I was going to start with the car. The registration came back to a rental company. After checking with the company, I found the vehicle was rented in North Carolina to a man named Oliver Founds. I ran that name through the department of transportation databases in both North and South Carolina and got back four hits. A little more digging, and I had pictures to go with those four people and none of them were the man Casey had called Kevin. I tried running Kevin Founds, but only found one entry, and again, the driver’s license picture didn’t match. I drummed my fingers on the desk in front of me. Okay, let’s try the internet. I opened a browser and typed in Casey’s name. “Whoa,” I mumbled as I saw hit after hit of articles showing up in the search. I clicked on the first one, “Millionaire daughter left without a penny.” As I read the article everything began to click into place.

I now knew that the reason Casey had a BMW was because up until a year ago, she had been a very wealthy woman. That all changed when her father was arrested for fraud and a multitude of other offenses. There was a picture of Casey dressed in a classy suit and high heels trying to hide her face from the press as she was led out of the courthouse. The next paragraph caught my attention and made me grind my teeth. The reporter spoke about the illicit relationship between millionaire Cassandra Lowe and a man by the name of Kevin Henrich. The details stated that the over-one-year relationship had ended with the arrest of Henrich. The next detail slammed into me hard, he was a married man. The rest of the article talked more about how Kevin and her father had been scamming people for a whole lot of money for years. At the bottom of the article was a picture of Casey standing between two men. One was an older distinguished-looking gentleman, and the other one was the man who was with Casey right now. Shit! I went back to the list of articles and read a few more. Most of the details were the same. I opened another tab and did a second search of Kevin Henrich. As the results populated the page, my heart seized when I saw the first headline. “Henrich believed to have killed his wife before he fled.” He had been sentenced to house arrest, and two weeks ago had disappeared after cutting off his ankle bracelet. Police had responded the next day when they received a report from the probation department about the tampering of the bracelet, and when they arrived, they found his wife Bridget shot in the head and the bracelet laying on the floor.

I jotted down the phone number to the police station that was listed and tried to calm my heart. Instinct made me want to run to her house and save her. Experience said I needed to take this slowly and do it by the book. If Casey was being held hostage, then we needed to be careful how we went about this. If she was willingly allowing him to stay there, then she would be arrested also. I hung my head. “Please, God, let her be the hostage and not party to this.” I picked up the phone and called my chief, “Sir, sorry to bother you, but I believe we have a critical situation.” Two hours later, our emergency response team was geared up and ready to go. The chief had responded to the station a few minutes after I had called and given him the scoop. While I waited for him to arrive, I had called down to the police department in South Carolina and advised them of the situation. I was waiting for everyone to get settled, so we could go over the briefing while I replayed the conversation over in my head. “Do you believe that he would hold her hostage, or do you think she might be doing this willingly?” I had asked the detective over the phone. “If Casey is involved in this, I’ll be shocked, but stranger things have happened. She wasn’t one to be shy about telling everyone that she never wanted to see the man again. She even went to see his wife and apologized to her, told her if she had known he was married, she never would have gotten involved with him.” His words made me feel better, but I still had a sour taste in the back of my mouth. What if all of that was just setting the stage? What if they’d planned this all along and she had made it look like she hated the man, so people wouldn’t suspect her when he disappeared?

The briefing started a few moments later, and for the next thirty minutes, I talked to everyone about the details. We went over the layout of the house so they knew what they were walking into. We discussed how desperate he probably was to avoid capture, and that he most likely was armed with a firearm that was believed to be a .40 caliber. Casey was also discussed, and while I hated what we were saying, I knew that we had to take no chances. She would be detained and interviewed to find out if she had anything to do with it. I would have to stay back and keep my distance until it was over. I had already called Corrine and told her she needed to take Tommy somewhere for the night. The other houses on our street were far enough away that the residents should be safe, but I wasn’t taking any chances that a stray bullet, from enemy or friend, would find its way through the walls or windows of my house. Corrine had put up a fight as she didn’t want to take Tommy someplace on Christmas Eve, but when I gave her a very condensed version of what was about to happen, she told me to save Casey and she would see us in the morning. It was ten minutes until midnight when we began to descend on the house. We had already learned that the house phone line had been cut and we’d contacted the cellphone carrier of her cellphone and had them ping it to make sure it was on location. The house was dark as I drove down the street. One police car, especially one pulling into my driveway like it did every night, would not cause suspicion. I was the lookout and stationed on the north side of the residence for the duration. Other members of the team were parked down the street, out of the line of sight, and were hoofing

it toward their locations. Once everyone was in place, the big guns were coming in. It was decided that a surprise entrance was the safest way to handle this one. After everyone had acknowledged their position, the armored Bear Cat rumbled down the street and stopped a hundred feet away. We had hoped we wouldn’t need it, but it was ready if we did. The word was given and I tried to calm my anxiety, but to no avail. I wasn’t going to be able to breathe right until I knew Casey was safe. I heard the discharge of the gun in the back of the house and the glass shattering in the quiet of the night as a gas canister was sent into the bedroom. At the same time, a team of six was on the front step wearing gas masks and took down the front door with a battering ram. The old door pretty much exploded as the heavy metal and strength of the adrenaline-amped-up team members struck it. One member stepped aside, setting the ram down and covering the front door as the other five members entered the dark residence. Within seconds there were loud voices shouting commands, and a woman’s raised voice filled the cold night air. My heart clutched in my chest as I realized that was Casey yelling. A few minutes later, one of the team members announced that they had two in custody and the rest of the residence was clear and secure. Two ambulances pulled up out front. The EMTs climbed out and pulled open the back doors. Both Kevin and Casey would be given oxygen and checked out after being in the gas, then they would both be taken to the station and interviewed. Casey was brought out first, hunched over and coughing roughly as she was directed to the first gurney.

Her hands were secured in front of her with the plastic straps that the team used. The EMT put oxygen on her as she continued to cough and wrapped her left arm with the blood pressure cuff. Three team members exited the residence next, escorting a seriously pissed off Kevin. In between the coughs, he was screaming that he wasn’t going to jail and that he was going to kill Casey for telling the police he was there. I watched from a distance, afraid to get too close to her. If I did, I knew I would pull her into my arms. Until I got the okay that she was in the clear, I needed to avoid her. Casey was coughing less now and scanning the area. I had no doubt she was looking for me. I approached her without any further thought. When I breached the spotlight off the back of the ambulance, Casey turned in my direction. “Thad,” her voice was muffled behind the oxygen mask. Tears streamed down her face, but I knew they were more likely from the gas than from seeing me. I stopped a few feet away. “Are you alright, Casey?” She nodded and wiped her cheeks before she pulled the mask back slightly, “What happens now?” I glanced around the area and saw my chief approaching us. “You have to go to the station for an interview.” “Thad,” she called my name, but I couldn’t look at her. I was so damned afraid to find out she had been involved. “Thad, please look at me.” I took a steadying breath and gave her my attention. “I swear I had nothing to do with this. He showed up in the middle of the night and had a gun. He said he killed his wife and he threatened you and your family. I had to do

what he said until I could find a safe way to get free.” She coughed hard when she finished speaking, and I almost dropped to my knees. Please let that be the truth. I gave her a hard nod and turned away. Thirty minutes later, Casey was in an interview room at the station, and I was standing behind the mirror watching her as she wiped her eyes and blew her nose. Even with her face a total mess and her eyes almost glowing red from the gas, she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. One of our detectives came in and sat down with Casey. He didn’t know all the details from South Carolina and for a few minutes, Casey filled him in while sipping from a water bottle. Then she went into what had transpired this last week, and I felt sick. Why hadn’t I intervened sooner? I rested my forehead on the cold glass as I tried not to beat myself up too much. My chief stood beside me and when she finished with her statement, he put his hand on my shoulder to get my attention. “You didn’t know, Thad.” “I know, but I should have guessed,” I replied bitterly. “Stop giving yourself a hard time and go in there and make that woman feel better.” He glanced at his watch, “It is almost three in the morning, take that woman home and show her a Merry Christmas.” I studied the chief for a moment and then looked back through the glass. “Am I that transparent?” The chief grinned as the detective shook Casey’s hand. “Thanks, Chief.” I yanked the door open, finally feeling like this whole mess was over. When the detective stepped out, he winked at me. I stood in the doorway and inspected every inch of her from her bare feet to her head. A tear ran

down her cheek, and it broke me from my trance. I surged toward her, pulling her hard to my chest. Her arms wrapped around my neck and practically choked me, but I didn’t care. “Casey, are you alright?” I felt her nod against me. “Baby, I don’t know what I would have done,” I pulled back and took her face in my hands, “if he had done something to you.” “I’m so sorry, Thad.” More tears streaked her face, and I bent to kiss them away. “Don’t apologize to me. I wish I had figured it out earlier.” “But you did figure it out, thank God.” She closed her eyes and shivered. “Come on, I’m taking you home.” She stiffened, “I don’t want to go home.” I ran my thumb over her lower lip, “Not your home, mine. I’m not letting you out of my sight.”

CASEY

A ll week long, Kevin had been by my side like a fly on fly paper. He’d made me call in sick to work, and I couldn’t even go to the bathroom without him following me around. When he took a shower, he actually tied me up with two electrical cords that he had cut from my new living room table lamps. He screened every call I got on my cellphone and breathed down my neck when I returned calls from work. The whole time, he kept the gun on him. We had only left the house one time, and that was to go to the grocery store and stock up. Kevin spent the days on my laptop, reading the articles about himself and trying to figure out if the police had any leads. After having been in hiding for over two weeks, Kevin felt like he was almost in the clear. He’d told me that we would stay here for another week or so, and then make a break for the border. He had no way of knowing that there was no way in hell I would go with him. He’d have to tie me up and put me in the trunk, not that I doubted he would try it, but I didn’t think he would risk having a woman tied up as he

crossed into Canada. The only reason I had cooperated up until now was to keep Thad and his family safe. Right after Thad had left, Kevin had slammed me up against the wall and put his finger into my face. “That’s the name you were calling out in your sleep.” “No, I told you—” but he put his hand around my neck and stopped me. “Oh, yes it was. Tell me, Cassandra, were you sleeping with your married neighbor?” The word croaked from my mouth, “No.” I wondered if he would continue to choke me. Maybe he would kill me like he killed his wife. Kevin released my neck and laughed, “That would be so you to be screwing a married man. You seem to like them.” I didn’t think, just lifted my hand and smacked him across the face. “I didn’t know you were married, you ass —and I’m not sleeping with my neighbor.” I wondered what wrath I would incur for my actions, but Kevin surprised me and threw his head back and laughed. “Man, I missed you, Casey. You’re so full of fire.” He walked away from me, but then spun back around and approached me again as I tried to retreat into the wall. “Let me just tell you now, you do anything to warn anyone that I’m here, that neighbor of yours is going to be dead.” His words were like acid on my soul, and I nodded jerkily. I had no doubt that he would hurt anyone who got in his way, Thad included. It wasn’t until the next day that Kevin saw the police SUV parked in the driveway and freaked out. “That guy is a cop!” he’d shouted in my face after he charged into the

kitchen and spun me around by the arm. “Why didn’t you tell me?” “You didn’t ask,” I stated calmly. I’d been waiting for him to see Thad’s work vehicle. I wondered if that would concern him enough to leave, but it didn’t. It had made him more on edge, and he spent the days peeking out the windows and watching the area around the house. Somewhere in Kevin’s insane mind he believed that he would get away from the police and we would make it to Canada. He really thought that we would live happily ever after and have a family. The thought of doing that made me both ill and suicidal. I had no intention of going anywhere with that man, ever. I would have to save my escape for when we were on the road. He would have to stop for gas or to use the restroom and I could find a way to get help then. How I wished I could find a way to get a message to Thad that I was being held hostage. It was frustrating to see him come and go and not be able to ask for his help. Kevin had put my bed frame together, which was good, but every night he tied me to the headboard. By the time morning rolled around, my hands were numb and my arms ached. He didn’t try to force me to have sex with him, for which I was very glad. I wasn’t sure if I could handle being raped by him because that is exactly what it would be. I would not consent, not ever. On Christmas Eve, I sat in the living room and stared at the tree. There were no presents under it, and it had begun to lean more to the side. I thought back on all the holidays with my parents when we would have had huge parties and piles of gifts. This year, my mother’s grave wouldn’t receive the flowers it normally did, and my father was behind bars. Me, I was a prisoner too, only in a house not a cell.

I watched Thad leave for work and wished that everything had been different. What would the holiday have been like if Kevin had not shown up? Would we have spent the night making love by the blinking holiday lights? Would we have stayed snuggled up in bed when the new day began? I sighed as I realized I would never know. At nine o’clock that night, I retired to the bedroom to change. I had nothing else to do. I was bored, depressed, and I just wanted it over with. The best thing I could do would be to lose myself in my dreams. At least that would kill some time and maybe Thad would visit me there. “What are you doing?” Kevin barked from the doorway. “I’m going to bed,” I said flatly without looking his way. I pulled my blouse off and dropped it on the floor. Kevin slipped his hands over my shoulders at the same moment I realized my mistake. Damn it, I should have gone into the bathroom to change. “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered against my neck before he began to spread kisses on it. “I missed you so much, Casey.” I wanted to vomit, but I stood still. “Let’s make love, let me show you how much I missed you.” His large hot hands roamed over my body, and I fought the surge of nausea growing in my stomach. “No, Kevin.” “Come on, Casey,” he began to touch me rougher, “I know you want it. I know you want me.” “No, Kevin,” I shoved his hands off and spun, “no, I don’t want it, and I don’t want you. I want to go to bed.” I brushed past him and into the bathroom where I slammed the door. He stood next to the bed when I came out, the

electrical cord in his hands. “Can you please not tie me up? I’m not going anywhere.” “Sorry, love, but I don’t trust you,” he replied, and my shoulders drooped further. I scooted around him and lay down, putting my arms up above my head so he could tie them. Kevin left me after he knew I was secured, and I stared at the dark shadows while tears slipped down and dripped onto the pillow. Merry Christmas to me, I thought bitterly. I heard Kevin come to bed later, and within minutes he was sound asleep. I wished I could fall into such a deep sleep, but there was no way, not with him next to me. I don’t know how long I lay still before all hell broke loose. The glass smashed inward on my bedroom window, and I tried to sit up straight in bed, but my bound wrists wouldn’t allow it. I twisted to see over my shoulder as the hissing of gas began to fill the room. Kevin was reaching for the nightstand where he kept his gun. I heard a loud clunk and prayed it was the gun hitting the floor. The air around me was starting to choke me, and I struggled to breathe as my eyes began to sting and tear in earnest. A loud crack came from the front of the house and suddenly I wanted to cry for a completely different reason. They were here to rescue me. Thad must have figured it out. Within seconds, the bedroom was filled with men wearing dark tactical uniforms and gas masks; each of them pointing long rifles at us on the bed. “Put your hands where we can see them!” One of the men directed. He repeated it again and then there was a gun in my face. “Put your hands where I can see them!” “I can’t,” I cried around a choking cough, “I’m tied to

the bed! Please, untie me!” There was some muffled conversation, and then my wrists were free, but before I could even get my fingers flexed, they were yanked down and secured again with heavy duty plastic cuffs. Two hands pulled me off the bed and marched me outside. I sucked in clean air as the cold struck me. I had never been so thankful for cold clean air, but still I continued to cough. One of the EMTs put oxygen on me, and I leaned back on the gurney, sucking in deep lungfuls as I tried to expel the acrid gas. Every few seconds, I wiped at my cheeks to rid myself of the salty tears burning my cheeks. Where was Thad? I tried searching for him, but all of the men were dressed the same, and none of them were paying much attention to me. Finally, my eyes landed on him as he stepped into the light. He was wearing his normal uniform but had a rifle hanging over his chest. I wanted to jump into his arms. I needed to know he believed me, yet as he stood off to the side, I saw the pain and confusion in his eyes. He had to believe me. Back at the station, an officer gave me cold compresses to wipe my eyes, and after a while they stopped tearing constantly. My face burned, as did my lungs, and I knew it would take a little bit of time for that to go away. I didn’t mind the pain, in fact I liked it. It told me I was alive. It told me I had survived. The detective and I talked for well over an hour. I explained everything that had happened in South Carolina and all that I knew about Kevin and what he had done since he’d killed his wife. I explained his plan, and I finished by explaining the reason I hadn’t tried to fight him.

There was no way I would put Corrine, Tommy, or Thad in danger—no way. I was physically and emotionally exhausted when the detective opened the door, and Thad stood on the other side. I wanted to weep and beg him to believe me. It wasn’t until he was holding me and telling me that he was taking me home that I knew he already did. When we arrived at his house, I sat in the car and stared at my front door. Plywood had been installed over the door opening. I shook harder the longer I stared at the house and never even realized that Thad had gotten out of the car until he opened my door. “Come on, sweetheart, let’s get you inside.” He picked me up the same way he had at the station and carried me to his front porch. I didn’t have any shoes on, but he had given me a sweatshirt that had been in his locker to wear home. Thad carried me back to his room and gently set me on the floor. “I’ve wanted to have you here in my room for a long time. I’m sorry it’s under these circumstances.” “I don’t like the circumstances either, but I’m glad I’m here with you.” Thad kissed me gently before directing me to the bathroom and telling me to take as long as I needed. He said he would get a snack ready for me and closed the bathroom door after handing me a fluffy towel and one of his t-shirts. I let the tears flow as the hot water washed over me. I wasn’t embarrassed to cry. After what I had gone through, I knew I needed to let it all out, and this was the best way. Twenty minutes later, I toweled my hair dry and slipped on the shirt he gave me. When I pulled open the bathroom door, I half expected Kevin to be standing there

waiting for me. Instead, Thad was leaned back against his headboard, his shirt off and his pants unbuttoned. On a tray in the middle of the bed were two sandwiches and a plate of cookies with two glasses of milk. “I don’t know if you like milk and cookies, but it is Christmas morning, and I do have to pretend to be Santa for a little bit. I promised Tommy I would leave some out for Santa.” I grinned at him as I crossed the room and sank down on the bed. “I love cookies and milk. Is it going to be a problem with me here on Christmas morning?” Thad sat up and leaned my way, cupping my cheek, “Are you kidding me? Corrine is going to be thrilled, and so am I. Tommy won’t even notice because he’ll be too caught up in all his gifts.” He sighed, “Speaking of which, I need to go put together a racetrack for him. It’s his big present from Santa. Wouldn’t be right if he didn’t have it set up when he got home.” “Then let’s go put together a racetrack.” I reached for the tray. “You don’t have to. You are welcome to eat and then get some sleep.” I stared into his blue eyes for a few seconds before I climbed off the bed and went around to the other side where I could stand in front of him. He sat up and faced me. As I approached him, I cupped both sides of his face. “Thad, I don’t want to be alone. I want to be where you are.” I paused, “Unless you don’t want me to.” He pulled me down onto his lap and cuddled me to his chest, “Are you kidding me? I never want you away from me again.” Thad kissed me once, long and slowly. “We need to go put the racetrack together so we can get back here and pick up from right this moment.”

“I seem to remember you telling me something like that before,” I teased and then winced as I saw Thad’s jaw tighten. “You have no idea how confused I was when I saw him at your house. I knew something wasn’t right, but I had no way to reach you and find out what was going on. When I started researching him last night, I was sick with worry.” I leaned my forehead to his. “I was okay. Scared and tired, but I knew eventually someone would figure something out, or I’d get my chance to escape.” Thad’s arms were strong around my body as he held me tightly and breathed me in. “Let’s go set up this racetrack.” I kissed his forehead and stood, pulling him with me.

THAD

listened to the water falling in the shower and tamped Idown the need to go to her. I not only wanted to hold her, but to also look into her face and know she was alright. I wasn’t sure how I stayed as calm as I did when she walked out wearing one of my t-shirts. The top of her creamy thighs reminded me of the night I had seen her naked from outside her bedroom window. Man, how long had that been? Five weeks? Six? Who cared, all I knew was that since that night, I had craved the sight of her. I held myself back from laying her on the mattress and making love to her like I so wanted to. I needed to go play Santa before it got any later. Who knew what time Corrine and Tommy would get home in the morning. Casey carried the tray back out to the living area and curled up on the couch with her sandwich and a blanket, while I sat on the floor and began to put the racing set together. In between bites of my sandwich and fussing with the pieces, Casey and I talked—not about what had happened, I knew she needed a break, but about life back in South Carolina. For almost an hour, Casey

shared stories of her mother while she was growing up. We laughed over the things that Brandy and she had gotten into, and she finally admitted that the whole lesbian thing had been because of Corrine. I had never been so happy in my life as I finished putting the track together and glanced up to see her sitting sleepily on the couch. It was after four-thirty when I pulled her up by her hands and led her back to the bedroom, stopping along the way to turn off the lights and double checking that a half-full glass of milk and a plate of cookie crumbs were still on the table. In the bedroom, I closed the door quietly and watched her carefully as she turned to me and wound her arms around my neck. “Baby, if you’re not up to making love tonight, I get it. We can wait so you can get your sleep.” She gave me a sly smile, “But I thought you might want to open your Christmas present.” “You got me a present?” I stared at her confused. “I didn’t buy you one, but I want to give you me. That is, if you want me.” Her voice was hesitant, “You do want me, right?” “Are you kidding me, Casey? I’ve been dreaming of you and trying my damnedest to keep my distance. Do you have any idea how many times I replayed the whole scene in your living room?” “Probably about as many times as I have,” she grinned. I pulled her close and rubbed her nose with mine. “I bet I thought about it more. Doesn’t matter,” I said as I put my pointer finger over her lips. “Right now, the only thing I want is to make love to you and have you fall asleep in my arms where you are safe and loved.” Her mouth parted on a small gasp, “Loved?”

I hadn’t meant to say that word, but the moment it burst from my lips, I knew it was true. There was a lot that we didn’t know about each other, but we had forever to learn. “Yes, I love you, Casey. I know it’s early, but I have never felt for anyone what I do for you.” I placed a kiss on her lips. “And don’t think you have to repeat those words to me. I’m happy to wait until you feel the same as I do.” “Now who’s kidding? Thad, I think I fell in love with you the day you banged your head on the door as you rushed out of the tavern.” A chuckle burst from my chest as I pulled her to me and lifted her feet off the ground. In one swoop, I had her in my arms, and two steps later, she was on her back on my bed and my t-shirt was up around her hips. “I think I want to unwrap my present now,” I whispered. “Please do,” she replied with a seductive smile. Our lovemaking wasn’t long and all enduring that night. We were both exhausted, and after a short but sweet time, we snuggled up and promptly fell asleep in each other’s arms. Neither of us heard Corrine and Tommy come home at seven in the morning, and neither of us heard the bedroom door open. What the entire neighborhood heard was Tommy yelling at the top of his lungs, “Mommy! The neighbor is naked in Uncle Thad’s bed!” “Oh, I’m so sorry!” Corrine gushed as she rushed into the room and slapped a hand over Tommy’s eyes. “We didn’t realize you had company.” Corrine grinned from ear to ear as she looked down at us. Casey was still tightly pressed against my side, and I felt her laughing. “Sorry, I should have left a note. Give us a few minutes, and we will be out.”

When the door closed, I rolled Casey over to her back as she let loose another laugh, “I’m going to damage your nephew’s mind if he keeps seeing me naked.” “One day, he is going to look back and realize just how lucky he was to have seen what he did.” I gave her a long kiss. “Now, let’s get up and go watch Tommy open presents.” Casey grew quiet. “What’s wrong?” “Maybe I should go home. I don’t want to get in the way of your holiday.” “Casey,” I said slowly, “you’re not going anywhere. Last night you gave me your present, you gave me you. Today, I’m going to give you my present.” Her face filled with confusion. “You shared your love with me, and now I want to share my family with you. I know you don’t really have any family now, so I want you to consider Corrine, Tommy, and me as part of your family.” Tears filled her eyes and as one slipped out the side, I caught it on my fingertip. “Why are you crying?” “Because that is the most incredible and loving present I have ever been given. I love you, Thad, and I would be thrilled to be part of your family.” “I love you, too. Merry Christmas, beautiful.” “Merry Christmas, Thad.”

THE END

BOOKS BY STACY EATON My Blood Runs Blue Blue Blood for Life Whether I’ll Live or Die Garda ~ Welcome to the Realm Liveon ~ No Evil Second Shield Distorted Loyalty Six Days of Memories Barbara’s Plea Cured by Love Finding the Strength You’re Not Alone Second Shield II (August 2016) Tempt Me Too (September 2016) Mistletoe & Cocoa Kisses (Oct 2016)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stacy Eaton is a police officer by profession. Currently, she is working as the department investigator and enjoys digging into cases and putting the pieces of the puzzles together. Stacy resides in southeastern Pennsylvania and is the wife to a police officer and the mother of two. She is very proud of her son who is currently serving in the United States Navy and equally proud of her younger daughter who works hard in her Tae Kwon Do studies. When Stacy is not working her demanding job, or spending time with her family, she works on her business and volunteers with the World Literary Café. She is also on the Board of Directors of her local Domestic Violence Center. When there is time, she writes. Don’t miss any releases! Sign up for Stacy’s Newsletter!

@StacySEaton www.stacyeaton.com [email protected]

WANT MORE CELEBRATION TOWNSHIP?

Check out Chapter 1 of Tears to Cheers Book 2 in the Celebration Series “I can’t believe it’s already the nineteenth of December and you haven’t put your tree up,” I said to Casey Lowe, the new nursing supervisor in our ER, as we sat at the main desk and finished up paperwork. “I know. I bought all the trimmings, but I just haven’t had time. I’ve been working so much overtime, that when I get home, I’m beat. Besides, it’s only me, why do I even need a tree?” I stared at the side of her head, my mouth hanging open until she turned to me. “You can’t be serious? You have to have a tree. It’s sacrilegious to not have one. Why don’t you do it tonight? You’re getting off in thirty minutes.” Casey glanced up at the clock above our heads. “But it might take me two hours to get home in this snowstorm. I didn’t realize it snowed this much up here.” I laughed and waved her comment away with a quick flick of the hand, “Oh, this is nothing; it’s only a couple of

inches. Drive slowly, take main roads, and be careful. You’ll be fine.”“Easy for you to say; I think I have driven in snow twice in my life, and it was an inch or two at the most,” Casey replied. “It’s almost three, you should be home by four and you will have plenty of time to put up your tree.” I turned my attention back to my reports. Casey sighed, “Yeah, maybe. I’ll see how stressed out I am when I get home.” “Sounds like a plan.” Casey had come to work for us right before Thanksgiving. From the moment she had walked through the door, we had hit it off as friends. Casey came from a much larger hospital in South Carolina, and she had a lot of great ideas that would help us be more effective in our treatment and workload. She was confident in what she was doing and great with people, including all the nurses. She didn’t say much about her past, other than things pertaining to work. She mentioned once that she had been engaged, but that it didn’t work out. She didn’t have any siblings and her mother had passed several years ago. When I had asked her about her father, she had grown pensive and quiet, saying that they had a falling out and were no longer in touch. I wasn’t going to pry; wasn’t in my nature to do so. Well, okay, it was in my nature, but only if it had to do with someone’s health, and then I asked a thousand questions to make sure we had all the facts and could administer the right treatments. Casey finished up her reports, and I gave her a quick hug before she walked out the door. Little did I know that would be the last time I would see her until after Christmas.

“Linda,” Marybeth our receptionist at the desk called over her shoulder. With Casey gone, I was now the nurse in charge, so everything important came to me. If it was really important I would reach out to Casey and let her know or get her advice. “I just got word that we have a serious MVA patient coming in.” Figures—with this weather, motor vehicle accidents were a dime a dozen. “How bad is the patient?” “Information I received was: If they could have flown him to a trauma center, they would have. Sounds pretty bad.” I stood and tapped my papers into a neat pile. “Okay, ETA and do we know anything about the patient?” “ETA is ten, plus or minus, and patient is a white male approximately thirty with head, neck, and chest trauma.” Marybeth winced as I approached her. “They had to extricate him from his SUV.” The guy certainly did need a trauma center, but I was determined we would give him the best care that we could. “Fine, give me any updates that come in and get in touch with the orthopedist, general surgeon, and neurologist on call and get them down here stat.” Marybeth flipped a switch on the wall and a small green light came on at the top of the pole beside her station. The green light would let everyone know that we had a serious patient coming in. All of the employees in the department knew what they would need to do. I spun back around, “And get a cardiologist on standby, too, if there is chest trauma. Might as well have everyone ready if we need them.” With the flip of the switch, the energy in the ER immediately changed; some of the staff immediately transferred patients to other nurses, especially those employees with trauma experience; assistants would

know they were going to be stepping up a bit with the workload while we stabilized the patient coming in; and doctors finished their tasks at hand. Marybeth also contacted radiology to get them on standby and called the blood bank to have some O negative brought up, just in case it was needed. I pushed open the doors to one of our two largest rooms and shivered. This room was kept cooler than the rest as it was the closest thing that we had to a trauma room. Not only did the lower temps help the patient by cooling his core temps down slightly, it also helped the staff that would soon be filling this room to capacity while they attempted to treat the patient. A few seconds after I entered, one of the nursing assistants rushed in behind me and began to turn on equipment. I scanned the room, doing a mental check of the machines to make sure they were all there. Nothing like realizing last minute that one of the lifesaving machines had been borrowed and wasn’t where it was supposed to be. The walls were lined with one piece of equipment, or cart filled with gear, after another—no empty spaces, which meant it was all most likely right where it was supposed to be. “About six minutes out,” Jason, one of the other nurses in our department, stated as he entered the room and went right to the large sink to scrub up. I joined him at the sink. “Been a while since we had a trauma,” I stated as I wet my hands and began to scrub them. “We wouldn’t have this one either if it weren’t for the lack of visibility from the snow,” he commented back. “I just got in a few minutes ago; it is snowing harder than predicted.” I wondered if Casey had gotten home safely but

brushed the thought aside as two more people entered the room and broke open packages containing trauma clothing to help us dress. The light blue trauma gown was being tied around my waist when we received acknowledgement that the ambulance had arrived. I slipped the mask over my face as Jason’s gown was tied behind him, and he pulled the mask over his face. Two doctors joined us and went straight to the sinks to wash up while the urgency of rushed voices headed our way. The gurney rolled into the room accompanied by five people: two ambulance personnel, a medic, a nurse from the ER, and a nursing assistant. Thank God the medic was Scott Allen. He had worked with us for years and was a trusted and valued paramedic. The ambulance personnel lifted the patient from the gurney to another one via a backboard, his head held straight and still by blue cushions and straps. Scott whipped off the sheet that lay over him to protect him from the elements, and the sight sucked the breath out of my lungs. “Shit,” muttered Jason as he pushed past one of the ambulance personnel to go hands on by removing some of the field dressings. “You can say that again,” I said softly as I approached the patient from the other side. “Okay, let’s get the rest of his clothing off, please. Tina, take the bottom half, get those shoes and socks off.” Before I could say anything further, Tina, another of our nurses, began to cut the denim jeans off his legs, and Scott began his field assessment report: “I arrived on scene to find this thirty-one-year-old male patient trapped in his vehicle. The SUV appeared to have rolled over several times before coming to rest on its roof against a tree. Speed on the icy road most likely caused it. Single

occupant, restrained with seatbelts, no airbag deployment noted. Patient was semi-responsive in a hanging position in the driver’s seat.” Scott shifted out of the way to make room for us. “He was extricated, placed on a board with cervical collar as you note. He has an eighteen-gauge with normal saline running in his left antecubital space and another in his right antecubital. He has swelling and bruising to his face, with bleeding from several small lacerations, and his chest is intact, abdomen is soft non-tender, pelvis intact, and extremities are normal with some abrasions with lacerations on the arms, chest, and shoulders. Patient became unconscious and was having trouble maintaining his airway, so he was intubated with a 7.5 ET tube and ventilated using BVM.” As my hands flitted over his body, I briefly wondered where to even begin. His shirt had already been cut off and three large gauze bandages had been taped in random places, all of them covered in blood as the injuries underneath continued to seep through the protective covering. This guy was in for a serious number of stitches. “I heard the police mention they think his vehicle rolled at least three times. BP has been steady but high at 145/95 since we boarded him. Pulse is in the one-tens. Left pupil is blown, but the right is reactive, but slow.” I began to pull the bandages off his torso and shoulders, checking his assessment and finding each laceration, long and bleeding, but not life threatening. “Jason, put butterflies on these for now,” I stated and shot a peek over my shoulder, “thank you, Scott.” One of the doctors spoke up, “We need to get the Xrays done. I want a skull series, chest, abdominal, and pelvic. Once those are done, let’s get him straight to CAT scan and make sure we don’t have any brain bleeds.”

I glanced toward the face of the patient, but between the cushions supporting his head and the blood covering his skin, I couldn’t see much. “X-ray technicians are here,” Tina called out as she pushed open the door to bring them in. The doctor called out to the technician, “He might have a skull fracture on his left side, and it looks like the zygomatic bone in his left cheek might be fractured. His ramus and mandible could be cracked also. Make sure we have clear films of those.” “Sounds like he hit his head on the side window or door pillar,” Jason deduced as he removed another bandage covering a laceration, so he could put a butterfly over it. The doctor replied to Jason that he most likely had. As Jason finished up with the third laceration, Tina finished drawing blood from the IV already in place and handed the vials off to an assistant who would put a rush on them for the lab. The patient’s blood pressure was still high, but stable, and so was his pulse. His blood oxygen level was a bit on the low side, but nothing to be worried about, most likely because he was breathing shallowly. More forced oxygen into his lungs would help that. The X-ray technicians went to work, and most of the people stepped out of the room. I helped to remove the foam holding his head still, but kept the straps on his forehead and chin. The man had strong facial features and the left side was extremely swollen. When the technicians were ready, I stepped out of the room after one final glance at the monitor to confirm that he was still stable. Outside the room, the team huddled, waiting to be let back in to prepare for the next step. I glanced at the assistant who was talking to John

Pointer, one of Celebration Township’s police officers, “Is someone trying to notify the family?” she asked him. “His license said he is from Bryn Mawr, which I think is down by Philadelphia. Thad is trying to contact someone down there to try and make a notification.” “Officer Pointer,” he nodded as I approached him and asked, “What is the patient’s name?” John glanced at the small notepad he held in his hand, “Ian Dugan, age thirty-one.” All eyes landed on me as the gasp left my lips. “Ian Dugan? Is his birthday April twenty-fifth?” “Yeah? Why? You know him?” John queried back. I glanced back at the door, “Yeah, I know him.” “Damn, sorry about that, Linda. How long has it been since you’ve seen him?” Jason asked from beside me. Memories of my sophomore year of high school flashed to the front of my mind like a strobe light. Ian’s light green eyes and boyish smile as he grinned down at me when I said I’d go to his junior prom with him filled my mind. I’d been enthralled with his eyes, with the smile that could light up a room along with the deep voice that commanded attention, even at that young age. “I haven’t seen him since I was sixteen, no one around here has.” I stared at the door as the voices around me faded. Ian Dugan was the man I had fallen head over heels in love with in high school, the one I had lost my virginity to on his prom night. He was also the one who disappeared out of my life two days later. He not only vanished from my life, but from our school and our town as well. Shortly after he had left, I had resolved to never fall in love again.

Stay Tuned for more Celebration Romance and Fun! Tears to Cheers releases in December 2016 and will be available for Pre-Order in Mid-September

LINDA

“I can’t believe it’s already the nineteenth of December

and you haven’t put your tree up,” I said to Casey Lowe, the new nursing supervisor in our ER, as we sat at the main desk and finished up paperwork. “I know. I bought all the trimmings, but I just haven’t had time. I’ve been working so much overtime, that when I get home, I’m beat. Besides, it’s only me, why do I even need a tree?” I stared at the side of her head, my mouth hanging open until she turned to me. “You can’t be serious? You have to have a tree. It’s sacrilegious to not have one. Why don’t you do it tonight? You’re getting off in thirty minutes.” Casey glanced up at the clock above our heads. “But it might take me two hours to get home in this snowstorm. I didn’t realize it snowed this much up here.” I laughed and waved her comment away with a quick flick of the hand, “Oh, this is nothing; it’s only a couple of inches. Drive slowly, take main roads, and be careful. You’ll be fine.”“Easy for you to say; I think I have driven in snow twice in my life, and it was an inch or two at the

most,” Casey replied. “It’s almost three, you should be home by four and you will have plenty of time to put up your tree.” I turned my attention back to my reports. Casey sighed, “Yeah, maybe. I’ll see how stressed out I am when I get home.” “Sounds like a plan.” Casey had come to work for us right before Thanksgiving. From the moment she had walked through the door, we had hit it off as friends. Casey came from a much larger hospital in South Carolina, and she had a lot of great ideas that would help us be more effective in our treatment and workload. She was confident in what she was doing and great with people, including all the nurses. She didn’t say much about her past, other than things pertaining to work. She mentioned once that she had been engaged, but that it didn’t work out. She didn’t have any siblings and her mother had passed several years ago. When I had asked her about her father, she had grown pensive and quiet, saying that they had a falling out and were no longer in touch. I wasn’t going to pry; wasn’t in my nature to do so. Well, okay, it was in my nature, but only if it had to do with someone’s health, and then I asked a thousand questions to make sure we had all the facts and could administer the right treatments. Casey finished up her reports, and I gave her a quick hug before she walked out the door. Little did I know that would be the last time I would see her until after Christmas. “Linda,” Marybeth our receptionist at the desk called over her shoulder. With Casey gone, I was now the nurse in charge, so everything important came to me. If it was

really important I would reach out to Casey and let her know or get her advice. “I just got word that we have a serious MVA patient coming in.” Figures—with this weather, motor vehicle accidents were a dime a dozen. “How bad is the patient?” “Information I received was: If they could have flown him to a trauma center, they would have. Sounds pretty bad.” I stood and tapped my papers into a neat pile. “Okay, ETA and do we know anything about the patient?” “ETA is ten, plus or minus, and patient is a white male approximately thirty with head, neck, and chest trauma.” Marybeth winced as I approached her. “They had to extricate him from his SUV.” The guy certainly did need a trauma center, but I was determined we would give him the best care that we could. “Fine, give me any updates that come in and get in touch with the orthopedist, general surgeon, and neurologist on call and get them down here stat.” Marybeth flipped a switch on the wall and a small green light came on at the top of the pole beside her station. The green light would let everyone know that we had a serious patient coming in. All of the employees in the department knew what they would need to do. I spun back around, “And get a cardiologist on standby, too, if there is chest trauma. Might as well have everyone ready if we need them.” With the flip of the switch, the energy in the ER immediately changed; some of the staff immediately transferred patients to other nurses, especially those employees with trauma experience; assistants would know they were going to be stepping up a bit with the workload while we stabilized the patient coming in; and doctors finished their tasks at hand.

Marybeth also contacted radiology to get them on standby and called the blood bank to have some O negative brought up, just in case it was needed. I pushed open the doors to one of our two largest rooms and shivered. This room was kept cooler than the rest as it was the closest thing that we had to a trauma room. Not only did the lower temps help the patient by cooling his core temps down slightly, it also helped the staff that would soon be filling this room to capacity while they attempted to treat the patient. A few seconds after I entered, one of the nursing assistants rushed in behind me and began to turn on equipment. I scanned the room, doing a mental check of the machines to make sure they were all there. Nothing like realizing last minute that one of the lifesaving machines had been borrowed and wasn’t where it was supposed to be. The walls were lined with one piece of equipment, or cart filled with gear, after another—no empty spaces, which meant it was all most likely right where it was supposed to be. “About six minutes out,” Jason, one of the other nurses in our department, stated as he entered the room and went right to the large sink to scrub up. I joined him at the sink. “Been a while since we had a trauma,” I stated as I wet my hands and began to scrub them. “We wouldn’t have this one either if it weren’t for the lack of visibility from the snow,” he commented back. “I just got in a few minutes ago; it is snowing harder than predicted.” I wondered if Casey had gotten home safely but brushed the thought aside as two more people entered the room and broke open packages containing trauma clothing to help us dress.

The light blue trauma gown was being tied around my waist when we received acknowledgement that the ambulance had arrived. I slipped the mask over my face as Jason’s gown was tied behind him, and he pulled the mask over his face. Two doctors joined us and went straight to the sinks to wash up while the urgency of rushed voices headed our way. The gurney rolled into the room accompanied by five people: two ambulance personnel, a medic, a nurse from the ER, and a nursing assistant. Thank God the medic was Scott Allen. He had worked with us for years and was a trusted and valued paramedic. The ambulance personnel lifted the patient from the gurney to another one via a backboard, his head held straight and still by blue cushions and straps. Scott whipped off the sheet that lay over him to protect him from the elements, and the sight sucked the breath out of my lungs. “Shit,” muttered Jason as he pushed past one of the ambulance personnel to go hands on by removing some of the field dressings. “You can say that again,” I said softly as I approached the patient from the other side. “Okay, let’s get the rest of his clothing off, please. Tina, take the bottom half, get those shoes and socks off.” Before I could say anything further, Tina, another of our nurses, began to cut the denim jeans off his legs, and Scott began his field assessment report: “I arrived on scene to find this thirty-one-year-old male patient trapped in his vehicle. The SUV appeared to have rolled over several times before coming to rest on its roof against a tree. Speed on the icy road most likely caused it. Single occupant, restrained with seatbelts, no airbag deployment noted. Patient was semi-responsive in a hanging position in the driver’s seat.” Scott shifted out of

the way to make room for us. “He was extricated, placed on a board with cervical collar as you note. He has an eighteen-gauge with normal saline running in his left antecubital space and another in his right antecubital. He has swelling and bruising to his face, with bleeding from several small lacerations, and his chest is intact, abdomen is soft non-tender, pelvis intact, and extremities are normal with some abrasions with lacerations on the arms, chest, and shoulders. Patient became unconscious and was having trouble maintaining his airway, so he was intubated with a 7.5 ET tube and ventilated using BVM.” As my hands flitted over his body, I briefly wondered where to even begin. His shirt had already been cut off and three large gauze bandages had been taped in random places, all of them covered in blood as the injuries underneath continued to seep through the protective covering. This guy was in for a serious number of stitches. “I heard the police mention they think his vehicle rolled at least three times. BP has been steady but high at 145/95 since we boarded him. Pulse is in the one-tens. Left pupil is blown, but the right is reactive, but slow.” I began to pull the bandages off his torso and shoulders, checking his assessment and finding each laceration, long and bleeding, but not life threatening. “Jason, put butterflies on these for now,” I stated and shot a peek over my shoulder, “thank you, Scott.” One of the doctors spoke up, “We need to get the Xrays done. I want a skull series, chest, abdominal, and pelvic. Once those are done, let’s get him straight to CAT scan and make sure we don’t have any brain bleeds.” I glanced toward the face of the patient, but between the cushions supporting his head and the blood covering his skin, I couldn’t see much.

“X-ray technicians are here,” Tina called out as she pushed open the door to bring them in. The doctor called out to the technician, “He might have a skull fracture on his left side, and it looks like the zygomatic bone in his left cheek might be fractured. His ramus and mandible could be cracked also. Make sure we have clear films of those.” “Sounds like he hit his head on the side window or door pillar,” Jason deduced as he removed another bandage covering a laceration, so he could put a butterfly over it. The doctor replied to Jason that he most likely had. As Jason finished up with the third laceration, Tina finished drawing blood from the IV already in place and handed the vials off to an assistant who would put a rush on them for the lab. The patient’s blood pressure was still high, but stable, and so was his pulse. His blood oxygen level was a bit on the low side, but nothing to be worried about, most likely because he was breathing shallowly. More forced oxygen into his lungs would help that. The X-ray technicians went to work, and most of the people stepped out of the room. I helped to remove the foam holding his head still, but kept the straps on his forehead and chin. The man had strong facial features and the left side was extremely swollen. When the technicians were ready, I stepped out of the room after one final glance at the monitor to confirm that he was still stable. Outside the room, the team huddled, waiting to be let back in to prepare for the next step. I glanced at the assistant who was talking to John Pointer, one of Celebration Township’s police officers, “Is someone trying to notify the family?” she asked him. “His license said he is from Bryn Mawr, which I think is

down by Philadelphia. Thad is trying to contact someone down there to try and make a notification.” “Officer Pointer,” he nodded as I approached him and asked, “What is the patient’s name?” John glanced at the small notepad he held in his hand, “Ian Dugan, age thirty-one.” All eyes landed on me as the gasp left my lips. “Ian Dugan? Is his birthday April twenty-fifth?” “Yeah? Why? You know him?” John queried back. I glanced back at the door, “Yeah, I know him.” “Damn, sorry about that, Linda. How long has it been since you’ve seen him?” Jason asked from beside me. Memories of my sophomore year of high school flashed to the front of my mind like a strobe light. Ian’s light green eyes and boyish smile as he grinned down at me when I said I’d go to his junior prom with him filled my mind. I’d been enthralled with his eyes, with the smile that could light up a room along with the deep voice that commanded attention, even at that young age. “I haven’t seen him since I was sixteen, no one around here has.” I stared at the door as the voices around me faded. Ian Dugan was the man I had fallen head over heels in love with in high school, the one I had lost my virginity to on his prom night. He was also the one who disappeared out of my life two days later. He not only vanished from my life, but from our school and our town as well. Shortly after he had left, I had resolved to never fall in love again.

STAY Tuned for more Celebration Romance and Fun! Tears to Cheers releases in December 2016 and will

be available for Pre-Order in Mid-September