Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 27808 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 139(@200wpm)___ 111(@250wpm)___ 93(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 27808 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 139(@200wpm)___ 111(@250wpm)___ 93(@300wpm)
“The last one didn’t seem to do much,” I remind her.
“I’m going to figure this out,” she reassures me.
“Okay,” I sigh.
“I’ll call you in the morning.” We say our goodbyes, ending the call. I stare at my phone in my hand.
I didn’t have a giant social life back home, but now knowing there are only two people that I can call or that have my number has loneliness sinking in. I usually enjoy being alone. I can get lost in my work. But it’s different when you have no choice.
I slip my phone into my back pocket, wanting to keep it close. I’m still a little leery with everything that went down tonight. I try to get lost in some unpacking to pass the time. I grab a soda from the fridge after I’ve been at it for a while. When I see the time, I realize only thirty minutes have passed. I really hate unpacking.
Pulling my phone back out, I look up some information on chickens. The likelihood of someone skulking around in dark clothes, stealing chicken eggs in the middle of the night doesn’t sound right. The chicken must not be laying them as Marly first thought. I spend the next twenty minutes gathering whatever information I can.
“I want a chicken.” I’d have to build a chicken coop. That’s not happening. I can’t even unpack. Don’t they get cold outside? I thought I saw a few snowflakes out earlier in the day. I quickly realize that I in no way can have a chicken. I’d worry, and I’m doing enough of that about myself. I don’t need to add to it.
I read over the reasons a chicken would stop laying eggs suddenly. There are nine suggestions. My favorite is the chicken just being broody.
Before I can think better of it, I pull my phone out and text Jackson, remembering his number when he spouted it off. I send him the link about the chickens. I watch as it shows he read the text. The bubbles pop up, and I know he’s texting me back.
I have your number but still need your name.
Bell
I’ll be by to fix your door in the morning.
You don’t have to do that!
I broke it. So I’ll fix it.
I tasered you.
As you should have.
I smile down at the phone.
You really don’t have to.
I wasn’t asking.
His response should annoy me, but for some reason I only smile bigger.
CHAPTER 5
JACKSON
I stay the night at Marly’s house or, to be more precise, I sit on Marly’s porch and keep watch over Bell. I wonder if that’s short for something. It’s a cute name and fits her doll-like features perfectly. There’s probably some kind of mental disorder that I can be tagged with because no normal man decides he wants a woman based on the sound of her voice, but there was something about her that struck me to my core—and gave me a raging hard-on. It really didn’t matter what she looked like; her delicate lips, round face and pink cheeks are a bonus. My body reacted viscerally to her voice. I’d have taken her if she looked like Shrek himself.
Thankfully she’s not green with growths coming out of her skull. Instead, she’s a perfect, pocket-sized woman that I plan to eat up in one gulp.
I spend the entire uneventful night imagining all the ways that I am going to fuck her senseless. They include in the bedroom, on the stairs, over the back of her living room sofa—assuming she has one and she does in my fantasies because that would give me a perfect angle to ram my cock into her sweet pussy—doggy style, cowgirl, missionary, butterfly, tied up, hair pulled, and anything else we can maneuver ourselves into.
By the time the sun rises, my body aches with unreleased tension. Impatiently, I wait for my delivery to show up. The kid sporting a fresh buzz cut arrives at eight.
“Sorry,” trips off his tongue as if he senses I’m on edge. “The warehouse didn’t open until seven. I’ve got everything you need to replace a door along with window and door sensors, glass breakage detection, and interior movement sensors. The control panel is in this box along with a mobile unit the client can carry with them. Do you want me to stay and help you install it?” he offers.
“No.” I don’t want anyone else inside Bell’s house but me. “Tell Todd I’ll be busy all day and that I’ll come by the office tomorrow to deal with the Hong Kong stuff. If they ask where I am, tell them I had a family situation to deal with.” That isn’t a complete lie. I wouldn’t have broken down the door if my sister hadn’t begged me to come and unhex her chicken.
The boy salutes me and jogs back to his Jeep. I shake my head over his formality. It takes at least a year before the military training wears off.