My own little sister was going out on dates with cute ranch hands, while I was alone. The only thing that had made my heart race lately was an asshole podcaster harassing a server.
What was wrong with me?
I grabbed my phone, wanting to hurl it across the room even though it hadn’t done anything. Becausehisname was in there. His messages. I’d saved every one like they mattered, and they didn’t.
I didn’t matter to him.
I had to make him stop mattering to me.
Opening my contacts, my finger hovered over the option to block his number. For long seconds, I stared at it. Wondering if this was petty. But then, who the hell cared if it was petty? I was a twenty-eight-year-old woman living my life and doing what I wanted.
Also, I was maybe just a little bit tipsy on bourbon-laced chai.
Snickering to myself, I blocked Dean’s number and tossed my phone on the coffee table. Triumph surged through me. Who needed men, anyway?
What I needed was to take a nice, long bath, listen to music, and read one of my favorite books. That would set me right up. Then I could sleep late tomorrow and be ready to go back on duty for my next shift.
I set my mug in the kitchen after downing the last of thespiked chai, switching off the TV and the lights on my way to my bedroom. There, I pulled off my sweater.
My reflection in the window winked at me. I was undressing, and the curtain was open.
I couldn’t see anything outside in the darkness, but I heard a faint sound. Probably a howl from a neighbor’s dog or a coyote. My neighbors’ houses were close enough to be within sight from the front, but only woods lay behind my home. Something I loved during the day when I could look out and see the trees or take a walk, breathing in nature.
Nobody’s out there, I thought to myself.
Marching over, I pulled the curtains closed. No need to put on a show, even if it was just for the bears and mountain lions and nocturnal critters.
I turned on the taps in the bathtub, adjusting the temperature until steam began to rise. While the water filled, I lit a candle on the edge of the tub.
I stripped off the rest of my clothes and stepped into the water, the heat immediately melting the tension in my shoulders. Sinking down until the water reached my chin, I closed my eyes and let out a long breath.
When I reached over and turned off the taps, the sudden quiet was broken only by the gentle lap of bathwater against the sides of the tub.
The old pipes in the wall clanked and settled. Normal sounds. Familiar sounds.
So why did the tiny hairs on the back of my neck stand up?
I opened my eyes fully, staring at the open bathroom door. Beyond it, my bedroom was quiet. Everything was fine. I was being ridiculous, letting paranoia get the better of me.
I closed my eyes again and slid deeper into the water.
There was a loud crash.
I gasped and sat up, water running down my bare skin.All I heard now was the sound of my own breath and the water sloshing against the tub.
Where the hell had that come from?
It had sounded nearby.
Maybe inside the house.
I got out of the bath, water streaming off me and pooling on the tile. Grabbed a towel and wrapped it around myself. Dashed into my bedroom, my wet feet leaving prints on the carpet. The door to the hall was cracked open, just the way I’d left it earlier, and the hall beyond was dark.
My dresser drawer made a dragging sound as I yanked it open. Tossing the towel aside, I pulled on a tee and sweats, my hands shaking so badly I could barely manage the drawstring.
My gun. I needed my gun. And what about the security system? Shit, had I turned it back on after I got home?
My fingers felt numb as I unlocked the safe where I kept my personal weapon. I checked it quickly, my training taking over even as fear coursed through me.
