The Man of Her House

by Constance Masters

  The Man of Her House

  By

  Constance Masters

  Copyright © 2013 by Stormy Night Publications and Constance Masters

  Copyright © 2013 by Stormy Night Publications and Constance Masters

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  Published by Stormy Night Publications and Design, LLC.

  www.StormyNightPublications.com

  Masters, Constance

  The Man of Her House

  Cover Design by Korey Mae Johnson

  Images by Jenn LeBlanc and Bigstock/Mon5ter

  This book is intended for adults only. Spanking and other sexual activities represented in this book are fantasies only, intended for adults.

  Chapter One

  Alyssa stood in the backyard staring at the large yellow house. To the outside world it was probably much the same. A little worse for wear and needing a bit of love and care, but mostly the same house that had stood there for some fifty years. It was odd that things could be so much different and yet so much the same. Their neighbors probably walked past this house every day assuming that it was just as it always had been. But nobody knew how full of love it used to be on the inside or how empty it was now.

  Alyssa scraped around under the pots at the back of the house in search of the key. After she’d lost several, her mom and she had come up with a system so she’d never be locked out. The strong scent of herbs wafted through the air as she lifted each small container. Maybe her mom had forgotten which plant to put them in, but she wouldn’t have forget to leave her keys completely. The system was her safety net. Her mom knew that. She knew she couldn’t get in without them.

  “Damn.” she said, laying down the last coriander-filled planter. Her mom must have decided to be stricter with security than usual, to seal the house up tight before she’d gone away. Or maybe she’d just stopped leaving out her key. Out of sight out of mind, she guessed. Whatever. It certainly mustn’t have crossed her mind that her only child could quite possibly be locked out of the house. There was a clap of thunder, and then the rain started.

  “Just great! That’s all I need.”

  There was only one thing to do. She just hoped she could do it without drawing too much attention to herself, but she had to do something. After hitching for two days and then spending the night in a park when she couldn’t get a lift, she was tired and hungry. She was in need of a hot shower, a warm bed, and the bathroom. Even more so now that she was being rained on.

  She went around back to the window with the dodgy lock. Hopefully her mom had forgotten about that. She’d have to force it, but there’d be time to worry about fixing the lock later, like after she got a job. God knows when she would be able to get a job. Her mom wasn’t clear about how long she was going to be away. At least a month though, so she had time. Of course, there was the problem with food. Her mom would have paid the bills up before she left so she would have basic utilities. Hopefully there was some food in the freezer. It would be easier to tell her mom that she wasn’t going back to school if she could tell her that she had a plan. That could be tomorrow’s problem—after she actually got into the house.

  Alyssa laughed aloud when she saw what was under the window. Some sort of lacerating garden. Plants of different shapes and sizes that were all some sort of cactus or spiky plant. The one blocking her access was huge. It was pretty, though, and the least deadly looking of the bunch, but seriously, could this day get any worse? As thunder clapped again, seeming to shake the ground beneath her, she jumped, her negative thoughts leaving as she focused on getting out of the rain. What she needed was something to climb on, so she wandered up the back garden to look for a ladder or anything that would get her high enough to dodge the pesky bush.

  “Nice touch.” she muttered when she saw some men’s clothing hanging on the line outside. She had to give it to her mom, hanging a man’s clothes was actually pretty smart. Making any potential intruders think that a man was staying there would help deter anyone from trying to break in. Most people anyway. Not her. Luckily no one had to actually wear the fairly drenched clothes.

  Right up the back in the corner was a neat little rock garden that looked like it had been recently laid. A variety of pink, red, and yellow flowers and evergreens were lined up beside it like they were about to be planted—which was kind of a strange thing to do for someone about to take a vacation. The outdoor setting was still there but thrown in the corner as though its days were numbered. Something here was a bit off.

  No ladder. In fact, there was a lot of stuff that seemed to be missing. She wandered into the old shed, but it was cleared out too. There were a few tools hanging on the wall, and the sawhorse was still there, but that was all. Okay, something wasn’t just off, it was seriously weird.

  Alyssa sighed. She just wanted to get inside. Why was everything so hard? She ran her hand over the sawhorse but realized it was too short. Then she remembered the outdoor setting and ran back outside, determined to make that work. One chair wasn’t going to be tall enough, but she could stack them.

  The tired and grumpy young woman grumbled under her breath as she dragged each chair towards the house. “First she doesn’t put out a key, then she plants a bunch of people-slicing greenery under the other easy way to get in the house.”

  She climbed over a couple of the smaller plants, cursing as a couple of the sharper spikes scratched through her jeans. One left a pretty decent sized tear.

  “Fucking great!” she said, realizing she now needed the bathroom. She dumped the stack of chairs down on top of the plant that had scratched her legs and then climbed up. She could only just reach the window with her fingertips. She knew the lock was loose, but she’d need to be a little closer in order to break it. She climbed down off the chair, carefully nudging each spike until she had a safe place to land. She shoved at the large bush until she could get the stack of chairs closer. She could finally get a better hold on the window, but she squealed as something stung her tummy. “Ow!” she squeaked. “Stupid thing.”

  Her need for the bathroom overpowered the pain from the scratchy plant, however, so she shoved with all of her might until the window finally freed and the broken lock tinkered onto the kitchen floor. Success! Now all she had to do was climb up to the window ledge.

  When she dropped to the floor she smiled. The kitchen was the same old kitchen. Same fridge with the alphabet magnets. The little frame with her first grade picture in it stuck in the middle. There were some new appliances, but basically things were the same. As complicated and fraught with annoying people and situations as the last few days had been, it was all worth it. She was home.

  It seemed the first thing she always did when she came into this room was head straight to the fridge, even if the counter had been laden with the beginnings of a home cooked meal. That wasn’t going to happen this time. No Mom, no dinner. She’d have to make her own food. Bathroom first.

  * * *

  Time away at school had taught her to be a little independent, even if it meant rustling up a quick meal rather than gourmet cooking. Her mouth started to water when she found the unopened package of bacon. She checked the date to make sure it was still good and then did the same with the eggs.

  With the food situation figured out, she opened the freezer hoping to find some ice cream or something sweet. Oooh, cookie dough, her favorite! And there was a loaf of bread, which meant she could have some toast with her eggs. It was looking like her meal was leaning towards gourmet after all. Well… that w
as a stretch, but it was a step up from boxed macaroni cheese. It was actual food. Comfort food even. What could be better than breakfast for dinner when you were tired and alone?

  Looking down at her disheveled appearance, she stopped just before she turned on the flame under the pan. Except for her hands that she’d washed after using the bathroom, she was filthy and her clothes were damp. Her body was achy, and parts of her were suffering the aftermath of the plants that had attacked her. If she was going to have breakfast for dinner, she may as well have a shower and put on some pajamas. The food would taste better if she were clean.

  Once the thought had seeded in her mind, she could almost feel the hot water on her back as it rinsed the scented shampoo from her hair. The fragrant steam would clear her head and take away all the annoyance of the last few days, even if it was only superficial. She didn’t think there was anything that could take away the heavy heart that had settled on her with her mom’s latest news.

  The news that had been the final straw to a bad few days, and it was what had sent her running home. All the way home she’d been flying by the seat of her pants—hitching, resting in a park with one eye open while she sat on her bag. At least now she was home safe and she didn’t have to stay on hyper-alert every minute anymore. Alyssa shook off the negativity and headed for the shower, clomping up the stairs with her mud-filled shoes, determined not to let her disappointment in the woman who had always been closest to her ruin her homecoming. This might be the last chance for her to have some peace in the home she’d always loved. Let her mom have her vacation with her new boyfriend. What did she care? For now, a shower would fix what needed fixing.

  * * *

  Alyssa was grateful that she’d left some of her stuff here last time she was home, because she wasn’t able to bring much with her. Hopefully her friend would forward it on in a few days. With a towel wrapped around her, she padded into her room to get some pajamas. She shook her head. Seriously, Mom? There was actually men’s clothes hanging in her closet. She was starting to think that the things on the line outside weren’t all for show. Ew, did this mean that her mom’s friend slept in her room? In her bed? That was so gross. Thank God he was on vacation with her mom, because she didn’t want to look at him, not ever.

  * * *

  By the time Alyssa was ready to start her dinner, she was positively whacked. It was all she could do to get the simple meal together. She managed though, pushed along by the hunger that was tearing at her.

  She took her ladened plate into the living room, where she put on the TV. It was a large flat screen, a big improvement from the twenty inch that had been there for as long as she could remember. Apparently they now had cable, she realized as she took a bite of her toast. Had her mom won the lottery or something? She’d begged to get cable when she was a kid. Begged. She’d been the only kid… well one of the only kids that didn’t have it. She’d hated that standing-on-the-outside feeling when everyone talked at lunch about what they’d watched the night before.

  Finally full, Alyssa went in to the kitchen to get a drink. She looked around at the devastation of the room. She’s knocked over one of the canisters when she’d climbed through the window, and there was gritty sugar all over, not to mention the mud on the floor and in a trail up the stairs. She didn’t even want to think about the remnants of her hastily-prepared meal all over the counters or the used frying pan on the stove.

  “Too tired,” she said to no one. “Mom would hate it, but then Mom’s not here.” She opened a can of soda and after a few sips left it on the counter to be part of the mess to be dealt with the next day.

  When she got to the top of the stairs, she started to turn towards her own room but then shuddered at the memory of the man’s clothing. Her mother’s room was a better idea. It’d be nice to spread out in her mom’s large bed and put on the television. Like staying in a hotel. She knew her mom wouldn’t go away without putting clean sheets on the bed, and it was always tidy. She loved sleeping in a tidy room, she just didn’t like what was involved in getting it that way.

  The room smelled vaguely familiar but not the same. There was a mix of washing detergent from the freshly laundered bedding and just a hint of her mom’s perfume. It made her a little sad that there was no lingering odor of her dad’s cologne. She opened the closet and sighed. His clothes were gone. It was like he’d never been there. Her dad had only been gone four years, and her mom had wiped him out of her life like he’d never mattered at all.

  Tired and sad, Alyssa flipped back the covers and climbed into her parents’ bed as she had when she was small after she’d woken from a bad dream. Only this dream she wouldn’t wake up from. This dream was a bad one. It was real, and what was worse was that there was no one to hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay.

  * * *

  Jesse picked up the bags and dumped them in the cart. He had breakfast stuff in the fridge, but that was about all besides milk, bread, and butter. It was way past time that he stocked the fridge with some healthy food. It had been a few days since he’d moved in, and he hadn’t done a full shop yet. He needed a steak, a baked potato, and a salad, and he needed to be eating it really fast, which meant it was probably going to have to be a microwave baked potato. His stomach growled in protest at the wait. As a second thought, he picked out a bag of potato chips to munch on while he drove back to the house.

  It was dark as he pulled his truck into the driveway and walked around the back. The rain had appeared out of the blue and had drenched the clothes he’d hung out. He had to do some more work on this garden. If he could find the time to get the fountain done tomorrow, then he could install that before putting the plants in. That was part of the reason he was here in the first place. The yard, and of course some renovations inside.

  This job was a little different than any he’d done before. Jesse had been close to his Uncle Ned since Jesse’s parents passed away in a car accident when he was just sixteen, so when Ned asked Jesse to travel two states away from his home to do this renovation for his lady friend, he hadn’t hesitated. After the death of his parents, he’d gone to live with his grandpa, and since Uncle Ned had lived close by, the three of them became a tightknit family. Grandpa Jack had been a big believer in keeping busy, so he’d thrown Jesse into his contracting business. Between him and Ned, they’d always managed to give Jesse the love and guidance that he’d needed. It had been his grandfather that had taught him everything he knew about the hands-on part of the business, and his uncle that had pushed him into getting a degree in business.

  Jesse’s grandfather had passed when he was two years out of college, and he’d taken over the business then. That was five years ago, and here he was, twenty-eight-years-old and a long way from home. He liked this place, although being here had made him think a little about just how alone he was now. It would be nice to meet someone.

  He had done this type of renovation before, but usually he’d been able to complete his work and then go home. So when his uncle’s girlfriend had pointed out that the house was empty and suggested he stay there while he worked, Jesse had agreed. The crew that worked for Jesse had loyally agreed to come with him, and they would be arriving soon if they hadn’t already. They would be settling into their accommodation tonight and would be starting work the next day. It would be nice to have their company and their assistance with the work. He’d arrived a few days before but had mostly been doing a couple of odd jobs around the place and collecting the materials they needed to start when the guys arrived. He had made a bit of a start on the gardens, but not nearly as much as he would’ve liked.

  Lost in his thoughts as he neared the house, Jesse barely noticed as the motion of his body turned the automatic light on. That wasn’t unusual, but the kitchen window being open was. So was the pile of chairs under the window and the smashed shrubbery. His mouth dropped open as he saw the damage and the penny dropped. There’d been a break in. He quickly opened the back door with the key and flipp
ed on the light.

  “Oh, crap,” he said surveying the devastation that used to be a neat kitchen. Well it had been when he’d left that morning. What the hell did they do? Did whoever it was that had broken in cook themselves dinner? His eyes then fell to the floor where muddy prints marred the once clean floor. The footprints were in messy patterns in the kitchen and trailed up the stairs. “No,” he said, realizing the intruder could still be there.

  He took the stairs two at a time wondering if he was about to come face-to-face with the culprit. The door to the master bedroom was open. It had been closed this morning, he was sure of it. Actually, it had been closed ever since he got there, and there had no need to open it. He sidled along the wall, hoping not to be seen or heard.

  * * *

  Alyssa woke up with a start. She wasn’t sure why at first, but then she heard heavy boots on the stairs. Without much time to think, she grabbed the first thing she could see to defend herself, yanking the cord from the wall as she jumped behind the open bedroom door. She made it just in time to see a large male figure heading towards her. She wanted to yell and call for help, but she also wanted to stay invisible. Her voice caught in her throat, making it impossible to scream even if she attempted to.

  Too late. He was there in the room. She raised the lamp as high as she could and then brought it down with as much force as she could muster. The large figure ducked, and the lamp smashed noisily on the bedroom wall.

  “Were you gonna hit me with that thing?” the intruder asked as he snatched what was left of the would-be weapon from her hand.

  Alyssa swung her fists at his face, but he caught first one and then the other easily in his big paws. She kicked out at him, desperately trying to release her hands, but instead of getting free she found herself on her back on the bed, her heart pounding with terror as he straddled her, pinning her beneath his weight. “Get off me!” she yelled, trying hard to wriggle out from underneath him. “Perverted prick!” He might be bigger and stronger, but she wasn’t going to give up without a fight.