by Iris Abbott
A wolf whistle split the air in the vehicle. Maggie reflexively covered her ears. She inwardly winced for more than one reason.
“What a view,” Holly declared.
“Tell me about it! Could stare at him all day long,” Lily replied.
Maggie clenched her teeth so hard her jaw hurt. She lessened the pressure enough to ease the tension and speak. “Enough! Y’all should be more worried about what he’s doing and less about his backside.”
Marcus was sexy. He was also cocky and muscular. She had enough of brawny to last her a lifetime.
She jerked open the door and marched toward their duplex. “Marcus, hey,” she shouted to be heard over the power tool he operated. “What’s going on?”
He finished whatever he was doing. The buzz of equipment fell silent. He glanced down at her and smiled a sexy, lopsided grin that curled her toes. “Good mornin’,” he greeted.
His charm was hard to resist. The corners of her mouth lifted upward, and she returned his smile. “Hey,” she answered. She unconsciously wound several strands of hair around her finger. As soon as she realized what she was doing, Maggie dropped the hand to her side.
“Thought I’d get started early since I had a key. Speaking of which, if your landlord didn’t change the locks before y’all moved in, there’s no telling who might have a key and easy access to the place,” he warned. “I got a decent look around the doors and windows last night. The windows were all closed and locked, and there was no sign of forced entry.”
A chill raced down Maggie’s spine. “Actually, the landlord told us he has the locks changed between tenants without fail. It was one of the selling points for us.”
Marcus arched a brow. “Any reason to think he might have lied?”
Holly shrugged. “I don’t see why he would.”
“Me either,” Lily agreed. “We’ve been here for almost three months and haven’t had any issues.”
Maggie raised her shoulders and let them drop after a couple of seconds. “So, what exactly are you doing?” she asked as Lily and Holly flanked her sides.
He stepped down from the ladder and turned so that he faced Maggie. He was close enough that she could smell the minty freshness of his breath. She wondered if a kiss would taste as good as he smelled. Her tongue darted out and licked her lips.
Maggie stared hard enough that she saw his pupils dilate. She sucked in a quick breath and took a step forward. Her sandals bumped against his work boots, stopping her forward progress. Giggles finally penetrated the thick fog of desire that muddled her brain.
“Earth to Maggie!” Lily exclaimed.
Holly cleared her throat and laughed louder than she was just a moment earlier.
Maggie’s gaze darted to her feet. She stared at her aqua-colored painted toenails for several seconds. She took a deep breath and raised her head until their stares met. She ran her suddenly damp palms down the front of her shorts.
His eyes followed the movement of her hands. He gave a slight shake of his head and propped his hip against the side of the ladder. “I’m installing a top of the line security system,” he finally answered her question.
“What!” The top of the line usually meant expensive. “Doesn’t that cost thousands of dollars?” She frowned and wrinkled her brows, trying to remember if she had an extra thousand dollars to chip in after her share of the rent, the car payment, groceries, and other bills.
“Umm, yeah,” Holly agreed. “Gigs and ticket prices have steadily ticked upward since all the publicity we got due to Rose’s stalker, but we don’t have thousands of dollars lying around.”
“Don’t worry about it. Y’all get the Barrett family discount,” he informed them.
“We are not family,” Maggie felt compelled to point out.
Marcus shrugged. “You’re family to Rose. She spends time here. That’s enough for Jeremy and Barrett Security.”
Maggie could not argue with his logic. “So, what does top of the line entail?” Other than too much money for her bank account.
He glanced at her then looked at the other two women before he turned to face their side of the duplex. “I installed motion-activated cameras with a digital video feed.” He pointed at what he was working on when they arrived. “The cameras can see anyone who approaches or enters through the front door. I also installed a couple on the other side. One points at the back door and the other toward the patio and your yard.”
“Nice,” Maggie smiled. “There’ll be eyes on anyone who enters, invited, or not.” She was not going to feel one hundred percent safe until they knew who the uninvited guest was.
“Exactly! If someone breaks in, they’ll set off the alarm. Barrett Security and the local police will be notified and respond immediately. If the intruder flees the scene before law enforcement arrives, hopefully, the cameras will have recorded an image for identification purposes.
“I don’t know,” Lily pondered out loud. “Seems like a lot of trouble and expense for a missing cupcake and a few open doors.”
“We don’t know if that’s all,” Holly pointed out. “We left in such a hurry last night we didn’t check to see if anything else was missing. I have a few nice pieces of jewelry that could have been easily pocketed and pawned.”
“Y’all need to do a more thorough search to verify what if anything is missing,” Marcus suggested. “The police need to know if it was a robbery.”
A sudden and overwhelming sensation of dread swamped Maggie. Her chest tightened, and dizziness made her sway. A loud gasp slipped through her lips. “My grandma’s pearls!” she exclaimed in an elevated pitch and volume.
She ran around Marcus, pushed through the front door, and raced up the stairs. Footsteps pounded behind her. Maggie glanced over her shoulder and saw that Marcus and her friends followed in her wake. She twisted the knob to her bedroom and stormed inside.
“Please be here. Please be here,” she whispered under her breath.
Maggie went straight to her nightstand and ripped open the top drawer. She pulled out the small stained-glass box that held her pitifully small amount of valuable jewelry. She flipped open the lid. The single strand of pearls was still snuggled in the box around her class ring and the diamond stud earrings her parents gave her a few years back when she graduated from college.
The muscles in her legs weakened. She stumbled over to her bed and plopped down on the mattress. Maggie blinked back the tears that welled up behind her eyelids. “They’re still here!” she announced. “Nothing’s missing.”
“I’m going to check my stuff,” Lily announced.
“Me too,” Holly informed them before the two women hurried out of Maggie’s room.
She glanced over at Marcus, who had taken a seat next to her. “Those mean a lot to you, huh?” He nodded toward the box, and she assumed he meant the pearls inside.
Maggie gently caressed the smooth, iridescent gems. “These were a wedding gift to my grandmother from my grandfather. She wore them on special occasions and to church every Sunday.” She glanced at Marcus and stared into his gorgeous indigo eyes. “She died recently, so, yes, they mean a lot to me.”
Their thighs brushed. Maggie was acutely aware of his nearness. Her tummy fluttered. Her heart raced, pounding in her chest. She feared it was loud enough for him to hear.
She jumped up from the bed. “Umm, I’ll check my important documents and stage jewelry.” Not wanting to ramble on, she snapped her mouth closed and opened the second drawer of the nightstand.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Marcus stand. “I’ll check on the other ladies and get back to work. I started early and only have about thirty minutes left, then I’ll show y’all how to operate the alarm system.” He swiftly strode toward the door.
Maggie waited until he took a step out of the room before she called out to him. “Marcus!”
He stopped and turned to face her. “Thanks.” She rubbed her hands down the front of her shorts. “For coming out last night, the alarm,
and everything else.”
He grinned at her. “I like coffee.”
She blinked several times. “Huh?”
“It’s been a long three days, and the coffee ran out a couple of hours ago. Could use some more. That would be a great way to say thank you. That or dinner,” he winked and flashed her a sexy grin.
Heat flushed her face. She clasped her hands together to stop the urge to fan herself. “I’ll make a coffee run right now,” she volunteered. It was the least she could do.
He threw back his head and laughed. “I’m gonna keep asking until you say yes.”
The smug look he gave her told Maggie that he fully expected her to cave eventually. She was not so sure, because she knew something he did not. She tilted her head to the side. “We’ll see.”
Maggie could be stubborn when she needed to be. She had a feeling, though, that Marcus was just as stubborn. Theirs was going to be a battle of wills. Maggie began to doubt if she had what it took to withstand his charms and win the war.
“Yeah, we’ll see all right.” He spun around and sauntered away from her room and down the stairs. As soon as he was gone, Maggie broke into a smile. She might not trust men and was wary of Marcus, but he could still get a grin out of her.
****
He showed the ladies how to set the code they agreed upon and walked each one of them through the steps to arm and disarm the alarm. Marcus stood a little bit closer to Maggie than the others when it was her turn. He breathed deep, enjoying the light floral scent of her soap and the musky scent of a woman. He heard the catch in her breath a second before she took a step to the side, putting some space between them.
Marcus grinned. It was a sign that he affected Maggie as much as she got to him. Why the woman so adamantly resisted him was a mystery. One that he planned to solve and soon.
“Go ahead, punch in the code,” he urged. She did as he asked. The alarm beeped, and the green light came on.
She glanced at him with the tropical lagoon colored eyes he wanted to drown in and grinned. “That’s all there is to it?”
“Yep, it’s ready. Don’t forget to set it every time you leave the house. The best alarm will do no good if it’s not set and ready to do its job. I strongly suggest y’all arm it once everyone’s in for the night as well.”
Maggie shivered. “You think whoever it was might come back while we’re here?” Her voice trembled with fear.
The negative emotion hit Marcus like a punch to the gut. He shrugged, trying to downplay things a little. He wanted them alert enough to take the appropriate precautions, not too scared to sleep at night. “Can’t say for sure, but it’s certainly possible. Why take any chances?”
“Ain’t that the truth!” Lily exclaimed. “My stomach’s been tied in knots since last night.”
“For sure,” Holly agreed.
“Me too,” Maggie added her fears. “The whole thing seems much more insidious than a robbery. At least then you know what the invaders want.”
Her ragged voice was so unlike the silky-smooth sound Marcus was used to. He rubbed his face to hide a wince from her and the other ladies.
“If whoever it was had just stolen something, we’d have a motive. As it is, we don’t have a clue why we have an uninvited guest, and that makes it so much worse.” She shuddered.
All the women were silent, lost in thought. The sad expressions they wore told Marcus they were probably thinking about Rose’s stalker and the close call their friend had with death. It was a possibility that could not be ignored. He would remember to mention it to Jeremy as soon as he left the duplex.
Holly was the first one in the group to move. She entwined her arm with Lily’s. “Well, we’ve got somewhere to be. See y’all later.”
“We do?” Lily glanced at Holly. “Oh, yeah, that’s right, we do!” She disarmed the alarm. “Bye!”
Both ladies waved and shot out the door. They giggled all the way to Holly’s car.
Marcus shook his head. They could have been a little less obvious in their matchmaking attempt, but it suited him just fine. Unfortunately, he could not take advantage of the opportunity they provided for him. He glanced at his watch and leaned against the open door. “I’ve gotta run myself, mandatory meeting at headquarters about Ben.”
Maggie touched his arm a second before she snatched her hand back her side. He watched as a flush crept across her cheeks. “I should have asked about Ben earlier.”
“Obviously, y’all have got a lot going on.” He looked from her to the newly installed alarm system.
She nodded her agreement. “How’s he doing?” She chewed on her bottom lip, which made him want to kiss her even more than he already wanted to. “I hope he’s gonna be all right.”
“Slight improvement overnight. Jeremy’s arranged for him to be transported to a local hospital as soon as he’s stable enough to travel.”
A sigh of relief sounded, drawing his attention back to her lush and very kissable lips. His heart pounded, and his body tingled. He wanted to taste her bad. He leaned in, brushed his lips across hers. It was quick, just enough for him to know he wanted more.
“An appetizer, we’ll try the encore later,” Marcus promised. He winked and walked out the door. He paused about six feet away and glanced over his shoulder.
Maggie stared at him with wide eyes and an open mouth. “Don’t forget to set the alarm,” Marcus warned before he jogged to his SUV. His lips twitched upward to form a wide grin. With any luck, an encore would lead to dessert.
FOUR
Maggie touched her lips. They were still warm from Marcus’s kiss. She took a deep breath and slowly released the air from her lungs. The fluttering butterflies in her belly calmed, and her heart rate dropped to normal.
She tapped her foot against the tile floor. Nervous energy jolted through her. Maggie was too keyed up to stay inside the apartment. Blue skies and golden sunlight beckoned her outside. She grabbed her keys, stuffed them in the pocket of her shorts, set the alarm, and locked the door.
A large lagoon was located in the center of the neighborhood. It was surrounded by trees, flowers, and several benches. Maggie headed that way. She loved water. Fountains, lakes, rivers, the ocean, lagoons, it did not matter. The sound of rushing water, crashing waves, and babbling brooks soothed her soul and centered her feelings.
Thoughts of Marcus crowded out all others as she trekked to the lagoon and fountain. Her favorite bench, the one under the shade of a huge weeping willow tree was empty. She plopped down on the wrought iron bench and sighed.
Maggie did not want to like Marcus. She had plenty of personal reasons not to. Still, he made her smile, and the attraction was undeniable. Her body tingled, and her heart raced whenever he was near her. It was the intense attraction she did not trust. It led her into trouble before, and she was not about to let such a thing happen again.
Her eyes drifted shut. Dark, troubling images from the past pushed their way to the forefront of her memory, wiping away the heated thoughts of Marcus and his kiss. She shivered despite the sun-warmed metal she sat on. Maggie wrapped her arms around her body and did her best to shove the unpleasant memories back into the deepest recesses of her brain. Her eyes flew open, and she jumped up from the bench.
Her unsettling thoughts ruined the moment. She turned away from the lagoon to go home. Maybe she would be able to lose herself in music. It worked for her when everything else failed. Music never failed her.
Maggie took about five steps away from the bench when she caught a flash of bright red out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head and changed direction. The crimson object summoned her closer. She cautiously ambled to the edge of the white and pink flowering shrubs and knelt to investigate.
Two small garden gnome statues stared back at her. Their white beards, rounded bellies, short arms and legs, friendly smiles, and red conical hats were a cheerful sight. Her gloomy mood instantly lifted, and Maggie grinned. The statues were a new addition, and she could not hel
p but wonder who left them behind.
She slipped her phone from her pocket and leaned down so that she was eye-level with the statues. She snapped a photo and uploaded it to her social media accounts with a quirky caption. The gnomes brightened her day, maybe they would do the same for someone else.
Straightening from her crouched position, Maggie strolled home. Her steps were much lighter than before. Her mouth curved upward into a smile. The kernel of an idea planted itself inside her head, sprouted, unfurled, and blossomed as she walked.
Her grandmother collected fairies. Maggie and Savannah found dozens of the enchanting creatures in a cedar trunk in their grandmother’s attic. They each picked their favorite fairy as a memento of their grandmother and left the others in the attic until they figured out what to do with the beloved treasures.
Maggie yanked her phone out of her pocket and hit speed dial number one. Her sister answered on the third ring. She sounded out of breath but cheerful.
“Hey! I was packing boxes upstairs and had to make a mad dash for the phone, which I, of course, left downstairs,” Savannah told her. “Glad I did since it’s you!”
“Figures! That’s the way it usually works. And I’m glad you did too, I’ve got something I wanna run by you.”
The two women laughed.
“Go for it!” her sister exclaimed. “I wasn’t expecting to hear from you until our usual Sunday night phone call. Everything all right?” her sister wanted to know. Maggie could hear the worry in Savannah’s voice.
She sucked in her bottom lip. Maggie thought about the intruder. She decided not to mention it to her sister since nothing was missing or vandalized, and they had a topnotch security system thanks to Barrett Security and Marcus Easton. No need to worry her sister when she was still in New York. She certainly could not do anything from way up there.
“Everything’s good,” she finally replied. Maggie stopped walking and leaned against the trunk of a palm tree. “You remember all those fairies we found in Granny’s attic?”
