Bound to Her - Deborah Pin (books for 9th graders .TXT) 📗

soothe her nerves instantly. She could feel tears pricking the backs of her eyes and she fought to stifle them as he stepped

from his car and watched her for a moment. Given the serious look on his face, she’d not quite stifled how hard this was for her. He stood watching her for a moment before he started walking toward her.

“Can’t quite seem to walk in.” She laughed humorlessly and he

smiled gently.

“You wouldn’t be the first victim who’s experienced that feeling.” He

shook his head and exhaled deeply. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to trivialize

or generalize how you’re feeling right now. It’s just very normal to feel

that way. How about we walk in together?” She nodded as a tear

escaped her eye and ran down her cheek.

She shook her head in frustration and he reached to her shoulder, studying her eyes. She wanted more. She wanted to feel his strong, firm

arms around her but that was insane. He didn’t get paid to hand out hugs to frightened young women but fuck she sure needed one.

Apparently touching her was okay, though. When he reached up to

brush her bangs away from her eye to take in the damage, she tensed.

“Nice shiner.” His eyebrows shot up as he took in the state of her face.

It was bad. The swelling had turned quite colorful over the past twenty-

four hours and she’d spent the day dodging questions from students about what had happened. There was no hiding the damage.

She chuckled quietly as she held the door open for him and he

sauntered casually past her into her living room. She followed him, commenting as she walked. “On the plus side though I look hot with a

black eye. So I’ve got that going for me.”

He smiled. They stood staring at each other in her living room and

her body started trilling at the quiet closeness.

“I wanted to take another look around and ask you a few more

questions.”

“Didn’t you say you had a partner? I’m starting to think that was a lie.” She was trying for playful, knowing damn well it would be a struggle given her less-than-playful mood.

“He’s shy.” He smirked. “Why? Would you prefer to work with

him?”

“That’s not what I meant, but since you bring it up, is this considered

a conflict of interest for you?” She sure as hell hoped not.

“What? The fact you vehemently hate me for my tardiness issues or the fact you teach my son?”

“Both.”

“We don’t have a personal relationship, so no.” His voice trailed off quietly as he held her gaze and her breath caught in her throat. “But if you’re uncomfortable working with me, please tell me.”

Her heart started pounding as her brain started spinning. Where to even begin processing what he’d just said? No personal relationship was

a good place to start. No duh—but she wasn’t sure she liked hearing him

say it. Uncomfortable? Hell yes she was uncomfortable. But it was the really good kind of uncomfortable that left butterflies in her tummy and

left her blood tingling through her veins until the warmth of it settled between her legs. She didn’t want to deal with some other detective.

“No. I’m glad you’re the one working on this case.” His lips pulled up

ever so slightly at the corner before relaxing.

He turned from her and started looking around her living room. It was still in disarray and he studied the odd angle her railroad-cart coffee

table was sitting at He studied the fireplace for a moment and then he turned back to her. “Show me.”

She had only just made it to the kitchen and was starting to pick up

the groceries she’d abandoned on the floor from the night before. Half of

it would be going in the garbage at this point but as she stopped and looked to him, his eyes were serious and dark. She lined herself up facing

the side door as though she was getting ready to reach for the storm door

to shut it and he stepped in front of her.

“He pushed me. Here.” She pointed to the spot just between her breasts. His eyes flashed to the spot before returning to hers. “I fell back onto the floor and I started crawling backward, Exorcist-style if you ever saw that scene, toward the living room. He followed me.”

“Was he moving quickly as though trying to catch you?”

“No. Not at all. I wasn’t moving fast enough to warrant it and he just

followed me. Very creepy. When I reached the fireplace he reached down

and grabbed the collar of my shirt, pulling me up.” He nodded as his eyes moved around the room. “Hit me a couple times. Imogen called, I

answered, threw the phone away from him so he couldn’t disconnect

it…”

“Good move.”

“Thanks. When he punched me I spun and fell into the mantel and

then to the floor and the last I saw of him, he was running out the door.”

“What about workmen, servicemen? Have you had any in your home

recently?”

“My home is older than dirt. So sure, I have them in regularly.

Plumbing, tile work. There was a roof issue and I nearly had to gut the

bathroom a year or so ago. So yeah. A ton. But really recently no. It’s probably been nine months or so.”

“Any of them strike you as unusual? Pay too much attention to you?

Anything?”

“No. I usually see their butt cracks more than I see them. You know,

I’m not really good at making enemies, pissing people off.” The sudden

small smile on his lips gave him away. “I mean, aside from you.”

The smile slowly faded as he walked down her hallway, peered into

the bathroom and then continued on to her bedroom. She followed him

to her bedroom, finding him looking around the room. There was

something odd about seeing the man standing in her small bedroom with

his hand rested easily on the footboard. It sent a tingle up her body as her mind wandered to a very nice little fantasy of him lying on her bed.

When he turned to her, his face was gravely serious and those most

intoxicating images faded. He followed her eyes down to his hand and he lifted it from the bed as she felt the heat creeping into her cheeks but

that flush faded quickly when he opened his mouth again. “I don’t think

you pissed anyone off. He wasn’t here because you upset him.” Her eyes slowly dropped to stare at the middle of his chest. She knew that. She didn’t want to admit it but she knew it.

“Could he come back?” Talk about the most pointless of all questions.

She caught his eyes shifting from her before he looked back. “Of

course it’s possible.”

She took a deep breath before turning from him to leave. “I need to pick up the groceries I left in the kitchen. Feel free to look around as much as you need.” She left without another word.

He found her in the kitchen, staring out to her backyard with her hands on the side of the sink. There was an open beer sitting beside her

and she was just staring. The bags were all gone and a large garbage bag

was sitting by the side door ready to be taken out.

“Your spare bedroom window was unlocked and the blinds were

open in your bedroom. Make sure you check your windows regularly

and keep the blinds closed, especially in a bedroom. If it’s daylight you

can open them but I always recommend closing them when the sun starts

to go down. It’s far too easy for people to see in and watch you with open

blinds when it’s dark out.”

She nodded and then there was a knock on the front door. As she let a

serviceman in, he watched her. She looked nervous and unsure, not the

way he remembered her from their first encounter on parent-teacher

conference night. He didn’t like that she was scared and unsure right now but he understood of course. The man was there to install a couple

of motion-sensor floodlights. He waited for her as she showed the man the side door and front door, where she wanted the standard exterior lights changed out.

When she rejoined him in the kitchen, she took a swig of beer and found his eyes. She blushed for a moment as he watched her and then she walked to the fridge and pulled out a package of chicken and a couple packages of fresh herbs and vegetables, setting them on the counter.

“Would you like to stay for dinner?” He was suddenly struggling to

swallow but he forced himself to hold her gaze.

“I can’t do that.” No sense sugarcoating it.

“You can’t eat?”

“Not with you.” He watched her and she didn’t look away.

“Are you attracted to me?” Fuck. Her voice sounded exceptionally vulnerable and quiet and yet her question was loaded with backbone.

God, he was so attracted to her.

“Don’t.” The very question left his groin tight and his heart

hammering. Hell yes he was attracted to her and he wanted her to know

just how much at the moment but that wasn’t going to happen. “I’d better go.”

He watched her for a moment longer. She looked nervous and she

looked confused and all he wanted to do was touch her, reassure her.

Instead he pulled his business card out of his pocket, wrote his cell number on the back and handed it to her. “You call 911 if it’s an emergency but if you see anything suspicious or have anything to report,

you call me.” He turned from her to leave out the side door, grabbing the

bag of garbage for her.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.”

He stopped dead in his tracks and fought with himself about turning

back to her. A quick, polite, professional and impersonal response was what he should give her. But he didn’t. He turned to her slowly. She held

a pan in her hand and as she met his eyes, she set it on the stove.

“We just can’t. I’m Sorry.” And he was. He may not have outright admitted he wanted her but he may as well have. He simply couldn’t stand the idea of rejecting her when all he really wanted was to have her.

Chapter Six

He didn’t expect to see her again so soon but as he snatched up his cell phone the next afternoon, he sucked in a quick breath as he heard his

partner’s words. “Your vic’s here from the home invasion the other night.”

“Why?”

“The asshole left her a nice little message. Not sure how the hell to play it. Do we even have something that will play those little tape thingies anymore?”

“I’ll be there in ten.” He hung up and seven minutes later—he might

have sped—he was walking back into the precinct.

He found her sitting beside Stephens’ desk alone. Stephens had

obviously abandoned her, not that he was surprised to see that—he was

a bit of a dick. “Hi.”

“Hi.” She held up a small tape in her hand with a somewhat sheepish

look on her face.

“I had no idea they even made such things anymore. Haven’t you

heard of voicemail? Or even a digital answering machine?” He smirked

at her before he could stop himself and her face relaxed.

“But then I wouldn’t have these great little tapes to tote around when

psychopaths call me and leave me romantic messages, now would I?”

She had him there. He caught himself smiling again but even as they

looked at each other, her face fell. She was nervous. Of course she was nervous—a psychopath had left her a romantic message.

He slipped his suit jacket off his shoulders as she watched and he tossed it over the back of his chair before sitting and facing her. “Where’d Stephens go?”

“To find a tape player. He’s not nearly as nice as you.”

“And I ain’t that nice to begin with.” He was smirking at her again and she was smiling.

“No you’re not.”

“Care to tell me what we’re going to hear on this tape?” Her cheeks instantly burned scarlet and she looked away from him.

“Not really. In fact, I’d rather just leave the tape and let you listen to it when I’m not around.” She looked hopeful.

“And I’d rather you be here. I’m sorry. I don’t want you to be

uncomfortable but it’s important. I need to be able to ask you questions.”

She took a deep