His smile disappears. “I do too. I really love her. I always have. It’s been hard.”
“I’m sure.” I sit up in the bed. “Roll over and I’ll rub your back.” It only takes him a second to decide that’s a good idea. Thirty minutes later, he’s rubbing mine.
“Know what I like about being here with you, Savannah?”
“What?”
“I like that I can be myself and you won’t judge me or make me feel wrong or bad or small.” He looks like he might cry.
“I would never do that. It’s just not who I am. You know what I think we need to do? I think we need to get some sleep. Would you hold me until I go to sleep?”
He brightens. “I’d love to.” I scoot up against him, my cheek pressed into his chest, and he wraps those big, strong arms around me. And right at that moment, I’m not sure I’ve ever felt safer in my life.
12
Gloria
That was absolutely terrifying. I don’t know what the hell just happened, but it was terrifying.
I just went over to the McIntoshes’ to see if they wanted to come over for drinks tomorrow. That’s all. And when I went to the door, that’s when it happened.
Noise. All kinds of noise. And flashing lights. I fell down. I was trying to run down the steps and I fell down. And I got up and fell down again because it scared me so badly. It was horrible, just horrible. I ran as fast as I could to get away from it. I don’t know what all of that was, but by the time I got home, I was sweating all over like crazy and dizzy as all get-out.
And Russell was so damn mean about it. “What’s going on, Gloria?” he asked. And he was laughing. I was in distress, and he thought it was funny.
“Oh my god! I went over to see if the McIntoshes wanted to come over for drinks tomorrow and all this noise started. It scared the life out of me!”
“What was it?”
“I have no idea! It was horrible, I tell you! I had to get out of there as fast as I could. There were these flashing lights and all kinds of loud noises like car horns and sirens, and I couldn’t get away fast enough. And I fell down twice. Twice.” I’m still out of breath and shaking.
The phone rings and Russell goes to answer it. And here’s what I hear.
“Hello? Yes! Yes it is. Well, hello. Yes, she is. She’s a little shaken up … Oh. I see.” He looks over at me like I’ve done something wrong. “Uh-huh. Well, I don’t blame you one bit. Not one bit. Yes, well, thanks for that and I’ll take care of this. It won’t happen again. No, you’re quite welcome and I’m sorry for all of it, I really am. Take care. Thanks.” He hangs up the phone.
“Who was that?”
His lips are a straight line. “That was Martin McIntosh. Seems they’ve been having trouble with a ‘prowler.’ They set a little trap for anyone who was trying to look in one of their windows.” His eyes are slits. “Gloria, did you try to look in their window?”
“Well, uh, no, I just, uh, I wanted to, I―”
“Damn it, Gloria! You’re going to keep on until some homeowner shoots you! Do you realize how much trouble you could be in?”
“But I didn’t do―”
“You were a peeping Tom, that’s what you were. You tried to look in somebody’s window, Gloria! That’s wrong on so many different levels that I can’t even begin to say. One more incident―one―and you’re going to rehab. I mean it. I’ll have you committed.” I try to say something, but he yells, “I will! I swear! Now go upstairs. I don’t want to talk to you again this evening. I’m now the laughing stock of the neighborhood because my wife’s the neighborhood busybody.”
I can’t help it―I start to cry. “But Russell! They’re doing something horrible in there, I just know it!”
“You don’t ‘know’ a damn thing. Go on. I’m sick of this. You need to go think about what you’ve done.”
I have. And I know one thing for sure. They’re up to more than I ever imagined. And I’m the only one with the balls to find out.
13
Savannah
The doorbell rings just before dinner. When I open the door, it’s Donna and Connor Millican. She holds up a beautiful cake plate with an even more beautiful cake on it. “Well! What’s the occasion?”
“You! That was brilliant! Everyone in the neighborhood is talking about it!” Donna gushes.
“I can’t take the credit.” Martin has come to the door to see who’s there, and I go about the introductions. “You can thank Martin and a friend of ours, Hayden, for that.” I catch Martin’s eye and he nods. “Why don’t you two come in for some coffee? We can cut this beautiful cake. I’d love to sit and chat.”
“Oh, that won’t be necessary. But we do appreciate you and what you did. I’m in awe, really,” Connor says. There’s something about him that’s familiar, but I can’t figure out what. “I guess we should be going. We’re keeping you from your dinner.”
“Oh, nonsense! You’re welcome to stay,” Martin adds.
“Thanks, but no. We need to get back home. But thank you for the invitation and for giving us the show of a lifetime!”
I chuckle. “Glad we could be of assistance! Please, come back anytime.”
Martin and I stand and watch them head back home. She walks with her hands to her sides, and he places a hand in the small of her back. And as they go, I realize what looked familiar.
The backs of their heads. It’s them―the couple from the picture in the paper. “Oh my god,” I whisper out.
“What?”
“Do you know who they are?”
Martin shakes his head. “Our neighbors?”
“Yeah. And the couple from the paper. You know, the BDSM lifestyle couple?”
Martin’s eyes widen. “No. You don’t really …” He watches them walk away. “By god, I think you’re right.” He stares at me. “We’re not the only ones, Savannah. The Millicans live an alternative lifestyle too. Who would’ve thought?”
Not me. Definitely not me.
On Sunday morning, I go out for a little walk. It’s beautiful out, and Martin’s still sleeping. He had a rough night; some things going on at work bugging him, but it’ll be okay. When I pass the Millicans’ house, Donna comes out the door. “Hey! Savannah! Good to see you!”
“It’s good to see you too! We’ve almost finished that cake. Oh. My. God. It’s delicious. I’ll bring the plate back to you tomorrow.”
“Oh, no hurry―no hurry at all. Hey, heard anything from our friendly neighborhood snoop?” She grins.
“Nope. Nothing. After Martin called and talked to her husband, I haven’t laid eyes on her.” I hear a sound behind me and turn to find Becca Henderson walking up. “Becca! I haven’t seen you in a while.”
“I know! Been busy.” She reaches a hand out toward Donna. “Becca Henderson. I live down at two twenty-eight. Nice to meet you.”
“And nice to meet you too! I’m Donna McIntosh. My husband Connor is inside.”
Becca points to Donna’s neck. “Oh, I love your pendant.”
Donna fingers it delicately. “Thank you. A gift from Connor for our anniversary several years back.” That’s the first time I’ve noticed it. It’s a delicate thing, a gold coin-looking pendant, and there’s a design molded into it, a triskelion, and the dot within the center of each enclosed portion is really a hole. As I watch, Becca holds out her arm and there, in a tattoo inside her wrist, is the identical emblem. They lock eyes and both nod. Then it hits me.
“The newspaper. Martin was right.” There’s a fleeting look of panic on Donna’s face. “No-no-no! It’s okay! I won’t say anything to anybody.” I look to Becca’s face. “You too?” She nods. “Then I think I should tell you: Our get-togethers on Friday nights?” They both nod at me. “We’re swingers.”
“Are you serious?” Donna whispers out.
“As a heart attack. So you’re into BDSM?”
She nods. “Yes. We live a dedicated Dominant/submissive lifestyle.” She turns to Becca. “You?”
B
ecca shakes her head. “No. Master/slave. Have for years.” She drops her head and her face turns pink. “My Master’s going to be angry with me because you found out.”
“Tell him the truth. Tell him it was accidental, that we just guessed.”
“Yeah,” Donna adds. “Tell him we’re in the lifestyle too.”
“Yeah, you can tell him we swing. I don’t care,” I add.
“Okay. Maybe that will help. I hope I’m not punished for this.”
“If he wants to punish you, tell him he’ll have to punish us too,” I throw in.
She grins. “Don’t say that. He’d love it.”
“Really?” I’m laughing, and Donna starts laughing too.
“Am I too late for the party?” Another woman strides up.
“Karen! Everybody, this is Karen Reynolds,” Becca says. She points to each of us in turn. “Savannah McIntosh and Donna Millican.”
“Hi, Donna! I’ve seen you in and out. Hey, Savannah, I saw all the commotion over here last night. What the hell?”
I do the best I can to explain and she starts laughing. “Oh my god! Wait ‘til I tell Brett! He’s going to get a hoot out of this! Nosy bitch has been poking around our place for awhile.”
“So is she determined something kinky’s going on at your house?” Becca asks.
Karen nods. “Yep. I’m afraid if she keeps poking around she’ll find out she’s right.” window first. You know, to see if they were She catches sight of Donna’s pendant. “Oooooo, lifestyle? That’s beautiful!” Her eyes fly open. “Wait! The newspaper!”
“Oh, god. I never thought anyone could recognize us,” Donna groans.
“Oh, it’s okay. I’m cool with it.” Becca holds up her wrist so Karen can see her tattoo. “You too?” Becca nods. “Wow. And I thought we were the only ones doing something kinky around here.”
“You’re not. We’re swingers,” I offer.
“No shit! Then I guess I should tell you all: The parties we have every Friday night?” The other three of us all nod. “There are fourteen of us. We have group sex.”
“You mean an orgy?” Becca squeaks out.
“Yup. Big damn orgy. We’re all happily married, but it’s like one huge, open relationship. Three of our girls are pregnant and, quite frankly, we don’t know who fathered whose and don’t care either. They’ll be our babies. We’ll all love them and raise them. One big happy family.” She laughs and slaps my shoulder. “So what is this, ‘The Kink Club?’”
“Looks like it! You know, solidarity could really help us. Whaddya say? Stay in touch?”
“Absolutely.” Becca is smiling. “I think My Master will be happy to know we’re not the only ones in the neighborhood that she’s targeted.”
“Nope. And I’m guessing she’s spying on others too,” Karen adds.
“I’m relatively certain of it.” I laugh. “Unless maybe she learned her lesson.”
Donna smirks. “Oh, yeah. Right. What are the chances of that?”
14
Gloria
It’s been three days and I think my heart’s finally stopped racing. I still don’t know what to think, and Russell’s still mad at me. I really don’t understand why. Everything I’ve done, I’ve done for the good of the neighborhood and us. Everything.
I guess from now on I’ll have to be more careful. I should probably go to the library and see if I can find a book about being a private detective or spy or something. I wish I knew how to work one of those electronic reader things, but I don’t know if I could use one. If I could, I could get those books right now. But I don’t mind going to the library. I’ve learned some very important things about the neighborhood down there from the gossip, uh, information they give each other.
But I can tell you this: It’s not over. Not by a long shot. If they want to keep me out that badly, they’ve got to be hiding something. I don’t know what, but something. And now I’m even more determined to find out what it is. That’s my job. And I’m going to do it if it kills me.
Thank you for reading Savannah and Martin, I hope you enjoyed their story. Follow along as Gloria does her best to find out what all of the neighbors are up to.
Cheryl and Samuel at 323 Harper’s Cove (Harper’s Cove Series, Book Five)
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About the Author
Deanndra Hall lives in far western Kentucky with her three silly little dogs and her long-suffering husband. When she’s not writing, she’s working out, eating and cooking healthy, and looking for chocolate she’s hidden away and forgotten about. More than anything else, she loves creating multi-dimensional characters who take over her brain and argue amongst themselves at traffic lights; thank goodness for Bluetooth headsets or she probably wouldn’t be walking the streets a free woman.
On the Web: www.deanndrahall.com
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Also by Deanndra Hall
The Love Under Construction Series
Laying a Foundation with prequel, The Groundbreaking
Tearing Down Walls
Renovating a Heart
Planning an Addition
The Citadel Series
One Simple Mistake
One Broken Promise
One Poor Choice
One Wrong Glance
The Legacy Series
Atonement
Legacy of Freedom
Legacy of Faithfulness
The Witch of Endor Series
Laid Bare
Ripped Open
Torn Apart
The Harper’s Cove Series
Karen and Brett at 326 Harper’s Cove
Becca and Greg at 314 Harper’s Cove
Donna and Connor at 228 Harper’s Cove
Savannah and Martin at 219 Harper’s Cove
Cheryl and Samuel at 323 Harper’s Cove
Tasha and Davis at 333 Harper’s Cove
Lily and Brock at 343 Harper’s Cove
Siobhán and Gabhain at 241 Harper's Cove
The Me, You, and Us Series
Adventurous Me
Unforgettable You
Incredible Us
The Celtic Fan (independent novel)
Rough Stock (part of the Bad Girls of Romance Series)
The Silent Cove Series
Awakening
Retribution, by Anne L. Parks
Banishing, by Jax Jillian
Savannah and Martin at 219 Harper's Cove Page 7