AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Obviously, it was dark when I landed at the Dallas/Fort Worth airport. But now, not having the city lights to brighten the sky up, I can barely see out my window. The car turning onto a dirt road has me a little nervous, and I say a silent prayer that the driver hasn’t taken me out to a remote area somewhere to kill me and drop my body for no one to find.
Thankfully, only minutes later, I see a few lights in the distance. As we cross a cattle guard, a beautiful modern-looking, ranch style home comes into view. Okay, now I can see why Mom chose this place for my AirBnB. It’s roomy, secluded, and I only hear crickets chirping as I step out of the car. This will be a nice break from car horns and emergency crew sirens. I’ll be able to get a lot of work done. Nice.
I take another look around and see a large barn with a single light illuminating two large, wooden sliding doors, but there’s not any more lights to see what else is out there.
“Is this Bearpen Creek outside of Heartville?” I ask the driver.
He nods, pulling my two suitcases over toward me. The wheels hold out well over the rocky terrain. “It sure is. Heartville is like our own slice of heaven out here on the outskirts of Dallas.”
“I’m sure it is.” There are no lights anywhere, and even the moon is hiding in the night sky.
Fred nods, gets back into his car, and pulls away. I tip him through my app, and then turn on the flashlight from my phone. Ah, that’s better.
Finally, I breathe in the fresh air and silently thank my mother for finding me a place in the middle of some real peace and quiet.
I turn toward the house that promises to be my little hideaway for a week and take a step forward. I’m going to make some great progress. I can just feel it, but first, I need some serious sleep.
I make my way up the couple of steps and push the door open. My mother’s email was very detailed, saying the door would be open for me and the key would be inside on a hook by the garage door to lock up if I needed to head into town and get supplies.
I sit my luggage by the front door and turn on the entryway light. Wow!
When you think of a small house in the woods, your mind doesn’t go to a palace with a woodsy style. As far as I can see, the place has all the amenities as any five-star resort. It’s immaculate and roomy. The perfect oasis to get some real work done. My heartbeat ramps up with excitement.
This is going to be perfect. I move throughout the first floor, making my way into an elaborate kitchen with all the gadgets and gizmos you could ever possibly want. I’m no chef, but just seeing the perks of this space has me imagining preparing a quality meal while working over quarterly goals and expenses.
I open the fridge and it’s fully stocked. I smile, mentally thanking my mom again for booking a place that comes fully stocked with food. There’s a bottle of Pinot on the second shelf and I pull it out.
Thank god this wine bottle has a Stelvin screw cap and I don’t need to find a wine bottle opener. I pull a glass down from the first cabinet and pour myself a hefty glass of wine. After the day I’ve had, this is the perfect ending.
I glance out the back sliding glass door, unable to see much outside, but I can just imagine it’s going to be a magnificent view of the creek. I sip the wine, letting the fruity flavors hit my palette. Ah. This is perfect.
As I spin around to go find my room, I nearly come into contact with a Louisville slugger. “What the…” I call out.
Chapter 3
Ryan
“Who the hell are you?” I shout out, my ball bat in hand ready to swing.
The woman standing in my kitchen in the middle of the night appears shocked. Like I’m inconveniencing her. “Me?” she asks, pointing a finger at her chest. She sets down a glass of wine, and I notice my bottle of Pinot Grigio on the granite counter.
“Why are you drinking my wine at one in the morning?” I’ve heard of women going crazy, entering other people’s homes and thinking they’re in their own. The woman appears harmless, so I lower my bat, but I don’t put it away completely.
“Ah,” she presses her fingers to the bridge of her nose like she’s got a headache. “I know what this is. We were double booked. That’s the only explanation.”
I stare at her, assessing her level of crazy, and I notice how incredibly striking she is. Long auburn hair with intense green eyes, and a set of kissable lips that pout as she stares up at me. It’s been a long time since I’ve been around a woman, and an even longer time since I’ve been around one this beautiful.
She’s a downright babe, and I forget the words she’s just said to me. I shake my head. Double booked? What the hell does that mean?
“You’re in my home,” I say in a soothing voice. I’ve always heard when talking to a mentally unstable person to talk in even tones. I don’t want to send her over the edge, but I’m sure tonight will end in me calling the police so they can get this woman back to wherever she came from.
By the looks of her, she comes from money. She’s not some strung-out druggie who stumbled into the wrong house looking for her next fix. No, she’s very well taken care of. She’s most likely from the city. She’s probably some finance guy’s wife, and she got into a fight with him and drove out here to get away. She’s probably so distraught that she thought she was walking into their house and walked into mine by mistake. There are a few other houses down by the lake that other people own. I’m guessing she’s from one of them.
She laughs, and the sound flutters around the kitchen, causing me to soften slightly. It’s a pretty laugh, if you could ever call a laugh pretty. “Your home?” She glances around my kitchen, looking for any clues that would validate my story.
I set my bat down on the counter and lean against it. “Yes,” I cross my arms, “my home. You’re trespassing. I should call the cops on you.”
Her eyes widen with clarity, and I can see she’s, in fact, not mentally unstable. “Call the cops. No, I booked this AirBnB, well my mother did.” She grabs her phone from her pocket and starts scrolling through it. “See, my mother set everything up with a Paula Fields.” She shoves her phone into my face.
