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I’d pushed her so far away that she didn’t even try to make small talk anymore.
It was probably for the best, but it felt like absolute shit.
I opened the box that held the tracking necklace I wanted Callie to wear. I thought it was pretty enough, but I’d let Cathy look at it to make sure. She said it looked artsy, like something handmade.
I knew she wouldn’t like the fact it would track her every movement, but it was for her own good. I took it downstairs, ready to insist she wear the necklace for her own safety.
I heard music as I got close to the bottom of the stairs. When I rounded the wall separating the entryway from the living room, I saw Callie, her back to me, dancing.
Her hair was loose, but it didn’t look freshly slept on. It hung past her shoulders in soft waves. She wore a tank top, so her long, lean arms were bare and moved gracefully as she danced.
Callie was mesmerizing when she woke up looking like she’d just rolled out of a cardboard box. She looked completely fuckable even in sloppy nightclothes, with her hair sticking up.
Calliedancingwas like some kind of a drug that made me instantly hot and happy the minute I took it.
Her tights showed off that glorious ass of hers, and those shapely thighs. The way she moved her upper body meant her shoulders and neck were on display.
She was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.
She moved into a pirouette and stumbled when she saw me, stopping herself short with a little yelp.
“Holy shit,” she said, gasping for breath. “You startled me.”
“Sorry,” I said, clearing my throat. “Didn’t want to interrupt you.”
She put her hand on her chest. “That’s okay. Just caught off-guard.” She motioned at the TV. “I didn’t mean to…I mean I know I have a set-up in the basement…but I was watching the ballet on PBS and got carried away. I’ll go back downstairs.”
I handed her the necklace. Before my tongue caught up with my brain, she’d opened it and was already holding the necklace up to the light.
“How pretty.” She grinned at me, and I wondered if I could get away without telling her the truth. But I could see she was confused by the “gift”.
“It’s a tracking device,” I said, struggling not to have to clear my throat. “I want you to wear it all the time during the day.”
Her face fell. “I’m not going to go jogging on my own again, Blake.”
“Okay. But if you did, or if you got taken, it could be the difference between getting found…or not.”
I’d ruined her delight at the necklace by telling her it was a tracking device. And I’d just one-upped that by saying “if you got taken.”
She went from disappointed to alarmed in a split second.
“Have you heard something?” she said, the hand holding the necklace slightly trembling.
“Nothing like that.” I put my hand over hers. “I’m just being extra careful. The chance of something happening is minuscule. But just in case…”
Callie eyed the necklace like it might bite her, then she said, “Well, at least itispretty.” She turned and held both ends up in front of her shoulders, clearly waiting for me to put it on her.
Touching her was not a good idea.
She scoffed and held the necklace out to me, dropping it before my hand was even around it. “I don’t think I can get it clasped.” She turned and lifted her hair with one hand.
I held my breath as stepped close to put the necklace on her. My knuckles brushed her skin as I joined the ends behind her neck and clasped them together. Despite myself, I touched the chain and slid it in place to hang properly around her neck.
I let my hands slide down to rest on her shoulders.
Callie dropped her hair and turned to face me but didn’t move away.
I looked down at where the necklace hung between her breasts. I swallowed and finally brought my gaze back to her eyes.
