She didn’t have to answer because Carl turned to his friend. “There’s nothing more we can do here. Whatever that was…” He gestured back toward the den. “It’s long gone.”
Mark didn’t look like he agreed, but he didn’t argue, either. After one last intense stare at her, he sloshed his way outside. Julie made a point of keeping back from him. She had no need for any more accidental brushes, real or imagined. And when the men stepped onto the front porch, she firmly shut and locked the door.
Done. Over. Mentally, she closed the drawer labeled “Mark the Fickle Bastard.”
It took her ten minutes to realize that she’d heard only one truck leave. She went to the window, pulling aside the curtain as she searched the shadows outside. There he was, a shadowy outline squatting at the edge of the dry area of the porch. His body was so still he might have been a statue.
Was he sitting sentry?
She couldn’t believe it. No way was he going to sit there all night long like a neglected beagle. Or a bizarre stalker. But how the hell was she going to get him to leave?
CHAPTER 5
It was going to be a cold, wet night, but Mark found a kind of peace in the chill. The days when he would be human were ticking away, so every sensation became special. Instead of cursing the icy wind on his skin, he cherished the sensation of exposed flesh unprotected by fur, of fingers heated by his breath, and toes that squished his soggy socks. Miserable, but even this was beautiful to a man who didn’t expect to live to see the snow.
He heard her open the front door and step out onto the porch. She’d been watching him on and off through the window for the last half hour, and he’d wondered if she’d eventually come out to talk with him. He wouldn’t if he were her. But then he was notorious for not giving a shit what other people did. She, on the other hand, appeared to have a softer heart.
“You’re going to catch your death of cold out here,” she said. She stood in the doorway, electrical light framing her lush figure. He remained in the shadows, trying to force himself to keep watching the grounds and not spoil his night vision by looking toward her. But he couldn’t stop himself, so he turned and smiled.
“I’m pretty hardy.”
“You’re crazy,” she said, staring at the deluge outside. “Nothing dangerous is going to attack me in this.”
Except him. God, she smelled so good, he was already rock hard. Even with the wet in the air, he could smell her musk. Maybe even more so. Musk and something almost as good: hot coffee.
“I know you think I’m crazy,” he said, “and, frankly, you’re probably right. But I can’t leave you unprotected.” Not after knowing there was something so wrong out in the world. Something that had been inside the cabin.
She sighed as she joined him in the shadows, holding out the mug of coffee. “It’s just my dad’s cheap shit coffee, but at least it’s hot.”
He took it gratefully, sipping the brew fast enough that it burned his tongue. His earlier java hit was wearing off, and he appreciated the brain boost. Sitting here scanning the world made him engage too many of his grizzly senses. Caffeine would help keep him on the human straight and narrow. Especially since she’d doctored the drink perfectly.
“Milk and sugar,” he said. “You know how to tempt a man, don’t you?”
She sighed when he’d expected her to chuckle. He turned to study her face. Sure, his joke had been feeble, but it hadn’t warranted that frown on her face.
“You do know I’m a paralegal, right? And I’ve worked on criminal cases.”
He had no clue what she was getting at, so he didn’t respond. Eventually, she would start talking again. It took longer than he expected, but in time, she leaned against the siding and spoke.
“This wouldn’t be the first time a man has created a situation just to get a girl to trust him.” Then she twisted her gaze back toward the den. “Though it certainly is the weirdest. And risking pneumonia is new.”
“I rarely get sick,” he said. He heard a rustle to his right and shifted to hear better. A possum hunting for trash. They never cared about rain. He relaxed again, though he kept his gaze on the darkness. “You should go back inside. Thanks for the coffee.”
“What if I’m attacked through the back door? What are you going to do then?”
“I set a couple traps in the back. I’ll hear it before you’re in any danger. Plus, I do a perimeter check periodically.”
He heard her sharp intake of breath. “You put traps in the backyard?”
“Just at the edge of your property line.”
“And what if I decide to go for a walk?”
“I’ll hear that, too, and join you. They’re not lethal traps, anyway.”
“Do you even hear yourself? Just how long do you plan to hang around?”
“Until you leave in the morning. Then I’ll set up a security system before your dad gets back.”
