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Leaning against the door, he crossed his arms and eyed her with a steely look. “And you know this for sure how?”
She could tell there would be no talking to him. Pivoting, she tossed her purse onto the sofa and headed to the bedroom. “I’ll be right out, after I change clothes. I decided against staying in tonight. You did say you were taking me to dinner, right?” She shut her bedroom door before he could answer.
Allie had kicked off her heels, stripped off her jacket, and was bending over, stepping out of the matching skirt when he came in uninvited. Straightening, she pivoted, the protest dying on her lips the moment she saw him stalking toward her with a glint in his eyes that sent her pulse skittering with anticipation. “Now, Brett.” A bubble of giddy excitement drew her smile even though she held out a placating hand, as if to ward him off. “Don’t be cranky. I would have gotten around to telling you.”
His lips curled at the corners. “Not good enough, little one. I liked your pose when I came in. Resume the position.” He accompanied the order with a twirl of one finger.
Her blood surged through her veins in a heated lava flow, and she never considered resisting. After all, she wanted him, craved what he could do to her with every fiber of her being even though she was unsure of his mood. Or, maybe that uncertainty added to the spice of his dominant control. Besides, she liked the way he called her little one in that slow drawl with an undertone of caring. Turning her back to him, she bent over, relieved when he slid an arm around her waist to steady her. Grabbing her ankles, she turned her head to look up.
“What are you going...oh!” The swat on her silk-covered buttock stung in a good, very good way.
Brett smacked her other cheek. “Your friend mentioned some dead flowers?”
Her breath whooshed out as she nodded. “No big deal, other than grossing me out. They were left on my doorstep the morning after my car was spray painted at Casey’s.”
“And the other night? What happened?” He followed those questions with two more, butt blistering spanks that heated her entire backside, making it difficult to concentrate until he pinched one throbbing cheek.
Allie yelped, muttering, “Okay!”That pinch hurt.“Someone blocked the door to the laundry room Sunday night. Ricky came by a few minutes later, so it wasn’t for long.” A shiver racked her body, remembering the terror of her inability to escape the dark room.
He seemed to read her reaction accurately, sliding a hand inside her panties to run a soothing caress over her throbbing buttocks that worked to calm her jitters from that memory. “There, that wasn’t so difficult, now, was it?”
She sighed in disappointment when he removed his hand and helped her upright. Turning around, he kept her from leaning against him with his hands on her shoulders. That astute gaze was even more probing without the Stetson he’d left in the other room, and she squirmed under his penetrating stare. “What?” she grumbled.
Shaking his head, he blew out a breath. “Nothing, just making sure you’re okay. I gotta tell you, Allie, I don’t care for the scare your friend’s revelations gave me. You should have told me right away, at the very least about getting locked in Sunday night. I want to know more about your neighbor, and your relationship.”
Oh, dear, that might go as well for her as delaying telling him about the laundry room incident. She needed food before she got into her and Ricky’s split, even though he couldn’t be the one behind harassing her. If she remembered correctly, he seemed to have an alibi for at least one incident. “Over dinner. I’m starving. Where are we going?”
“How about the Roadhouse?”
“The best steaks in Casper?” She grinned and patted his chest. “You know, there might be some perks to dating a rich guy. Give me five minutes.” Not to mention dating a dominant man with a hard hand, she mused when he dropped his hands, and she took a step that emphasized the throbbing ache covering her cheeks and heating her pussy.
“Don’t keep me waiting, for dinner or an accounting of you and Ricky,” he warned before walking out.
If he didn’t look as good from the back as the front, she might have stuck her tongue out at that. Following orders that would get his hands on her were one thing. Dictates like that just ticked her off. Still, if she wanted food...she dashed into the closet to change.
“So, you see,” Allie said an hour later, waving her fork at Brett across the candlelit table. “It can’t be Ricky. He didn’t know I was going to Casey’s, and, even if he did, the night someone spray painted my windows, he was at his monthly poker game. He’s never missed a night the whole time I’ve known him.”
“That you’re aware of,” Brett countered. “What about the night you were run off the road?”
Allie rolled her eyes. “He drives a Legacy, not a souped-up truck or SUV.” She worked with facts every day, needed the numbers to add up for each equation, and, so far, they didn’t warrant suspecting Ricky.
Brett leaned back in his chair and sipped his drink, eyeing her over the glass before saying, “He could have rented something. I doubt the bumper of the vehicle that pushed you sustained any damage, unlike yours.”
“So, I have one stalker vandalizing my car at Casey’s and work, and one running me off the road, and twelve-year-old pranksters harassing me at home? No one has that much bad luck, do they?” She wasn’t buying that scenario. “Have you spoken to your ex? Maybe she hired someone to run me off the road.”
“Put that way, you’re right, it doesn’t sound plausible. I plan to pay Gina a visit tomorrow. Like you with Ricky, I can’t see her harassing you to this extent. She’s not the jealous type. Her interest in me is monetary.”
Allie chuckled. “Found something we have in common – we each chose poorly last time around.”
“I can’t argue there.” Brett ran a hand over his chin. “Let’s change the subject to something that will take your mind off whoever is targeting you. I’ve planned a play party for tomorrow night. Casey’s isn’t open until the weekend, so we can meet upstairs and end the evening earlier.”
Finally!That was Allie’s first reaction to hearing her ultimate goal when first approaching him was finally attainable, and she didn’t hesitate to accept. “I’m in.”
“I figured you would be,” he returned in a slow drawl. “Since I’m self-employed, my time is more flexible for getting to work, so I’ll stay with you during the week, and you can spend weekends at the ranch. Ready to go?” He tossed down a generous tip and stood.
Allie didn’t argue, even if his suggestion was phrased as a dictate. Emotional exhaustion tugged her down as she pushed her chair back. She could always put in her two cents tomorrow, that was if she could come up with a reasonable argument on why she shouldn’t jump at this chance.
“I suppose that’s the easiest solution.” She sighed, exaggerating her reluctance to take their relationship to the next level then couldn’t prevent a yawn.
