Chapter Thirty
It was time. At last. The green-eyed gorilla had finally left Ashley Cox’s apartment. He’d stood there with his head cocked long enough before he’d left, though, as if he were listening. But then he’d nodded once and strode to the elevator. Obviously, he’d waited until his little girlfriend locked herself in for the day.
Like that would keep her safe? Hardly.
He licked his bottom lip, his gut already filled with the gnawing, razor-sharp need that ruled every move. Couple that with the giddy anticipation of the tears and terror that lay ahead, and…
He palmed his junk to keep it from getting ahead of the game. He was primed for a very good day, but patience. He needed patience.
He liked this part of the game. There was so much to look forward to. It was like Christmas Eve. The expectation! His heart skipped a beat at the thought of all the afternoon would bring. The shrieks. The joy! The pain. The screams! It was enough to make a man come in his pants. But first…
He needed to surprise her. Yesssss... This part of the game was the best. Surely, Ashley Cox would agree. It wasn’t like she’d have a choice, would she?
Chapter Thirty-One
She was a woman in love, and Ashley knew it. She’d done something outrageously bold this morning. She’d made love, well, almost. But she had initiated her first ever, honest to goodness, sexual encounter with Tripp, and she’d had two orgasms! How wonderful was that?
Sharing a sweet, intimate encounter with him had brought her world into clearer focus. He’d been so gentle and giving. The poor guy had been dead on his feet, yet still he’d given her a morning she’d treasure forever. If only they’d had more time. She was falling hard for the gentle giant of a man, and she had no way to stop herself. For the first time in her sheltered, boring, timid life, Ashley was in love, and it was spectacular.
Floating on air, she twirled silly, lazy circles across her living room floor, her arms lifted like wings, and her heart on that handsome devil who’d just left. She’d told him she’d be here when he returned, but wouldn’t he be surprised? Because she was done being a loser and a coward. A scaredy-cat. Ashley wanted her life back today. She used to have dreams. Well, hello world, today, because of Tripp, she started dreaming again.
Pulling off her tank top, she slipped back into her violet bra. She’d seen Tripp’s eyes light up when he’d first seen it. She intended to blow his mind when he returned, and she met him at the door dressed in nothing but sexy underwear. A shiver ran over her shoulders. She’d never dared do anything so naughty before.
With a quick, backward glance at her closet full of boxy man shirts and loose pants, she made a mental note to go clothes shopping. Today, she’d dressed for success. Violet success! But work first, play later. Snagging her bathrobe, she covered herself, then hurried back to her kitchen and went to work.
Grinning like a silly woman in love, Ashley pulled the frozen chicken breasts she’d bought on sale last week out of her freezer. They went into the microwave to defrost. Besides beading, she dabbled in cooking. She wasn’t sous chef caliber yet, but she knew her way around her kitchen, and she was fixing her specialty this morning, chicken and dumplings. It’d be the perfect comfort food to take to Tripp’s poor mom. The last thing she needed to worry about was what to eat or where to go for dinner.
After washing the thawed chicken in her kitchen sink, Ashley patted the pieces dry and placed them in her already-lined-for-easy-clean-up crockpot. She poured an entire carton of chicken broth into the mix, added an array of delicious spices, turned the pot to high, and busied herself tidying up what little mess she’d made. The chicken breasts would be tender and ready for shredding in a couple hours. By then, she’d have celery and onions chopped, ready to be tossed into the mix. In the meantime, she’d slice and cook several carrots to be added later. When they were tender, she’d turn the crockpot off and strain the broth. It wouldn’t take long to thicken it into rich chicken gravy, and shredding crockpot chicken was simple.
Then, prest-o, change-o, back into the crockpot the aromatic stew would go. Dumplings were as easy as—she snapped her fingers—that.
Hmmm. Maybe Mrs. Harrison would like a serving of chicken and dumplings, too. Good thinking! Ashley had more chicken in her freezer. She could make enough for Tripp’s entire team. Happily at work in her kitchen, she started humming some commercial jingle. She couldn’t wait to see the look on Tripp’s handsome face when he came back and she opened her door. What a great, sexy day to be alive!
Chapter Thirty-Two
Most people thought deadbolts made their homes impregnable. They couldn’t be more wrong. Deadbolts were as easy to break into as locks on bank vaults—if you knew how. Which he did. Pulling his well-used set of lockpick tools from one of the many deep pockets of his trench coat, he dropped to a knee. The final game had begun, and he was going to win.
Good thing he always carried this unique set of lock pick tools. Deadbolts were all designed with inner pins, but some with more difficult-to-pick spool pins. The trick was to get past the deadbolt’s inner workings, do it right, and do it fast. A deadbolt had to be picked counter-clockwise. Pick it clockwise and you were a fool. Game over. Go home and jerk off in the shower.
First step: Concentrate. He slid a tiny tension wrench into the lock’s aperture. With his right hand, he maintained the right amount of tension, while he inserted one of his many rakes in his left hand, just over the wrench. Deftly, he manipulated
