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Tuesday Tales: The Kitten Shows Her Claws

7/27/2015

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Today's prompt is Bloom
Chapter Ten

The fast food bag warmed her legs where it sat as she opened it. An appetizing aroma bloomed from the bag heavy on the spicy sausage with a slight hint of grease. Yeah, breakfast biscuits weren’t the healthiest food around, but she loved them. You could also eat them while driving.

Tonya handed one sandwich to Will, then unwrapped the remaining one. The buttery biscuit exerted a siren song on her, causing her to wolf it down in a half dozen bites. Her eyes cut to Will, who stared straight ahead while driving. Did he witness her gobbling down her food like a protester coming off a hunger strike? If he did, he gave no indication.

A wadded wrapper nestled between his leg and the console indicating he devoured his breakfast too. No doubt too busy to notice any piggish behavior on her part. After all, a woman has to eat. She’d never be one of those rail thin women who picked at their food claiming they were full after a handful of lettuce leaves and a baby carrot. “I’m not normally such a pig. Not sure why I was so hungry this morning.”

 A smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he slowed for the red light. “Yeah, I know. Personally, I love a woman with a hearty appetite. The bigger, the better.” The sudden movement of traffic grabbed his attention as he surged forward with the flow.

The bigger, the better, was that a crack against her weight? Her brow beetled as she analyzed his words. At best, her weight put her in the average category. It would be a stretch to call her Junoesque or voluptuous. Then again, he had seen everything.

Something nudged her leg. A downward glance revealed Will’s right hand warming her knee. He gently squeezed it. “Don’t overthink it. I meant a woman who has a hearty appetite in the kitchen, usually has one in the bedroom too.”

Mmm, never heard that one before. Clint complained she ate like a lumberjack while Brian chowed down the food she prepared so fast she didn’t have a chance at displaying her eating skills, hearty or otherwise. If she got a burger or a single piece of chicken, she considered herself lucky. Hearty appetite in the bedroom, yeah, it fit. Not that it did her any good in the past.

“Why are you driving me to work again?” Tonya wiggled back into the leather upholstery, enjoying the luxury of her chauffeured ride. It was an entirely different story when someone else fought the morning rush hour traffic. Will drove effortlessly, without any of the aggression she’d expect from a lawyer.

A cluster of unique shops sat on her right, including a tattoo parlor, a Mexican restaurant, and a liquor shop named Mr. Thirsty. She missed the scenery when dodging minivans driven by preoccupied mothers on cell phones rushing red lights to get their pampered offspring to their private school. When indulgent parents weren’t almost T-boning her, she kept a wary eye out for late employees running red lights trying to make up for a missed alarm. Now and then, people had to watch for her hot rodding it to work, but only occasionally.

A truck grill dominated the rear view mirror. Someone wasn’t pleased with Will keeping to the speed limit. The oversized truck tore around them, causing cars in the oncoming lane into swerving into the shoulder. Horn blasts and one finger salutes and few shouted remarks announced their annoyance. The truck didn’t even pause as it wove in and out of cars. Tonya glanced over at Will whose demeanor showed no irritation with the narrow escape. Did nothing rattle him?

He used his hand to gesture in the direction the reckless driver went. “We’ll be seeing our friend soon alongside the road.”

“Yeah, I can see him wrecking.” Tonya could imagine the overconfident driver spinning out. The short glimpse she had of him was a tight-jawed man with a thick neck and reflective sunglasses. Yeah, he’d be the type to harass an ex-girlfriend. Before she used to divide into men into potential and non-potential categories. Shame, she’d dropped to possible stalker and non-stalker.

“Possible,” he agreed. “Not what I meant, though. Friggin’ maniac showed his best asshole material in front of an undercover police officer.”

“What?” Her head swiveled peering into the windows of the surrounding cars looking for a uniformed officer.  “I don’t see anyone.”

A siren sounded in the distance confirming Will’s initial assessment. “He’s up a little farther than I thought he would be, but in the general area. Represented his wife, who told me all the speed traps with the encouragement to tell others.”

“A woman scorned is a dangerous thing.” The minute the words left her mouth, Tonya speculated, why she never turned bitter, the way the officer’s ex-wife did, sharing privileged information. Clint had no fear of her. Didn’t think she’d do anything, except lay down and let him walk on her. No reason for him to think otherwise, she never really opposed him. Might not like his lame idea of a motor cross rally as a romantic outing, but it rated higher than the firing range.

“Don’t I know it? Probably know better than any man around. In fact, if I had any sense, I’d avoid women altogether.” His head shook as if admonishing himself.

“Hey, I take offense at that.” She placed her hand on her chest while making a mock threatening face.

Will laughed. “Not you, I’m not worried about you. Apparently, you don’t have a vengeful bone in your body.”

“Yeah.” She added a derisive grunt. “I’m becoming more and more aware of that. It’s not a good thing either.” Instead of being the easy-going one, if she played the bitch card, not only would Clint not want her back, but he certainly wouldn’t make the mistake of crossing her. “I’d like to hurt Clint, make him pay.”

“Whoa, what happen to my mellow kitten?” Will directed a sharp glance her way as he bumped into the work parking lot. “Here, I drove you to work as a protective measure. Without your car in the open, there’s no way Clint can vandalize it. Maybe, we should leave it out as bait, then you’d rip him apart like a hungry bear.”

The image had some appeal. “I’m not that bad. Sure, I’m angry, but I don’t know any way of striking back. Well, legally,” she added with a grin.

“Uh huh, got to keep it legal. First, we have to protect you. I believe that once Clint can no longer get to you, he’ll lose interest. Don’t text back. Don’t email. No contact.” The car stopped in a parking space close to the doors. Will shut off the ignition.

Sure, he made it sound so simple, but she had to know what Clint might do next. “You don’t understand. I could lose my job!” Her hands went up in the air. The temptation to shoot them through her hair in frustration, she overcame knowing she didn’t have time to fix her hair or even continue the conversation.

Her hand depressed the door handle, swung the door wide, letting in the chill of the early morning air. Will’s arm shot past her closing the door. “When you’re with me, I‘ll open your door. Stomping off in anger is no excuse not to let me be the gentleman.”

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Tuesday Tales: Tiger

7/20/2015

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Today's prompt is tiger
Sebastian’s snuffling brought her gradually awake. Her arm hung over the mattress giving her pooch the opportunity he needed. His long tongue tickled her fingers garnering her attention. “Okay, okay. I’ll let you out.”

Odd, her dog was on the floor instead in the bed as usual. A masculine grunt coming from behind her stiffened her spine. What the? Her drowsy mind raced, trying to recall the previous night. Will helped her with her car, cleaned the garage, and called the police. Then there was the shower. Remembered pleasure had her stretching back her leg feeling a hair rough leg behind her. Fell asleep somewhere after the police came. It was Will, behind her wasn’t it? Had to be. Concern about Clint entering her house with ease drew the hairs on her arms to attention. What were the chances of the fool slipping into bed with her?

Fear grabbed her, held her immobile for a few heartbeats. Sebastian’s panting drew her out of her panicked stupor. If Clint were in the bed behind her, would her dog act so normal? Probably not, then again, didn’t he allow the man to root through her closet without much fuss? Images of Clint walking into the house with a bag of dog treats spiked her blood pressure. The man could have been playing a long game, making friends with her dog. What type of man would do that?

The mattress creaked giving her warning before the two arms wrapped around her. Her scream dammed up behind her heart already lodged in her throat. Sebastian’s eyes grew even brighter as he wagged his tail even harder. Was Clint behind her? Had he somehow won her mercurial pup over?

“Good morning, Tiger.” a familiar masculine voice purred into her ear. “I texted last night I’d be taking a personal day, but I assume you’re still heading to work.”

Will. Her held breath hissed out making her sound like a balloon losing air. Her body melted into the mattress. Thank God! She cleared her throat, managing to push her heart back down into place and coughed out the lingering fear.

“Yes, yes, I need to go to work.” Tonya snuggled back into his embrace enjoying the feel of his arms. Safety. For a few seconds, in his arms, she felt protected. An illusion, of course, Clint could blast through her front door. A half roll had her face snuggled against Will’s bare, warm shoulder. It would be hard leaving this. “What did you say you were going to do today?”

“Depends on what you trust me to do.” He dropped a kiss on top of her head. “My plan was to make sure your locks were changed to a key dead bolt. No using credit cards or screwdrivers to shimmy it open. Next on the list is motion sensor lights that will illuminate any tricky stunt Clint might pull. Finally, you need an alarm system. I have a friend who owes me.”

With each item, Tonya mentally calculated the costs. Switching the locks was necessary. “I agree the locks need to be changed, but everything else is too expensive. What’s this stuff about me trusting you? I slept through the night peacefully with you by my side.” It amazed her she hadn’t awakened once during the night. Hard to remember when she slept that well.

His fingers came up under her chin tilting her face upward. His eyes met hers. His still looked sleepy, with the corners of his thick lashes caked with what her mother called fairy dust, but everyone else called crud. His eyes warmed as he spoke. Why women weren’t throwing themselves at his feet was a mystery.

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Tuesday Tales: Worst Case Scenario

7/13/2015

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The forest comes later in the story. I thought about skipping a couple of chapters, but I didn't.
“What—“ She abruptly stopped her question, already knowing the answer. A tiny geyser of excitement erupted, only to have worry and exhaustion tamp it down. Her hand went to her hair, which was a mass of tangled dried curls, similar to Medusa. No, she wasn’t feeling sexy.

Will, sensing her thoughts, or more likely reading her expression, dropped a kiss on top of her head. “No worries. Big day tomorrow. Change locks. Outside lighting to install, new phone number and start work on your new job search.”

New job search. She was doing everything in her power to hold onto this job. “I don’t want a new job.”

“Yes, you do. You hate your current job. Has you walking on eggshells.”

She allowed him to wrap his arm around her shoulders and guide her down the hall. “I do kinda hate my job.”

He chuckled and flipped off the hall light. “I know. Remember prepare your worst case scenario.”

The expression reminded her of a disaster movie scenario. Black leather motorcycle chaps, rifles slung across their backs would fit the image. “It sounds so ominous. Like the end of the world.”

His fingers tightened around her shoulders, pulling her in for a quick hug. “It’s not. Taking away his ammunition. That’s all.”

In the bedroom, he turned down the bedspread. “Crawl in; I’ll go take care of Sebastian.”

Tonya stared up at the ceiling. “I forgot about my dog, I’m so frazzled, but he didn’t.” Her last thought was she needed to stay awake until Will returned.

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Tuesday Tales: Bathrobe, Puggle, & Voodoo?

7/6/2015

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Chris Hemsworth who is standing in for Will
Today's prompt is flexible. . 


A hard knock on the front door threw Sebastian into a barking frenzy. The police had arrived. No time for her to change clothes. No time for Will either, which gave her a small bit of satisfaction. Yep, the city’s finest would naturally assume they’d been doing the mattress dance as opposed to their real activity, planning to withstand a siege from a lunatic ex-boyfriend.

The responding officer treated them both with calculated courtesy, but his irritation still showed he considered the visit a waste. Could be he wanted to solve a real crime considering his youth. Didn’t have the years behind him that made a quiet night desirable.

Somehow, despite the ratty bathrobe and nothing on underneath, Will projected an air of professionalism. He kept steady eye contact with the man as he explained the situation with three mentions of my friend, the chief. The young officer didn’t start writing things down until he said he was a lawyer. Odd, that would impress him more.

They both looked at her. Oh, it was her turn. Great, she wasn’t sure what to say. When in doubt, act. She stood and went to the kitchen to retrieve the doll. A discarded paper napkin kept her fingerprints off it as she carried it. Both hers and Will’s were already on it, but no reason for more. Instead of handing it to him, she placed it on the nearby end table.

“The doll is a threat, as you can see, but even more frightening is that the dress is made from one of my favorite tops. He came into the house and stole it from my closet. Even now, there could be bugs or cameras in the house.” Her eyes went to the corners of the room near the ceiling looking for tiny cameras.

The officer pushed the doll around with his pen. “This isn’t one of those voodoo doll things, is it?”

Black magic, voodoo, did she need one more thing?

Will’s hand wrapped around hers giving it a firm squeeze. He answered for her. “Oh, no, no voodoo. Terroristic threatening, yes. Breaking and entering, yes.”

“Okay.” Clicking his pen, the officer acted more animated as he wrote down a few notes. He asked without glancing up. “When did the break in occur and did you notify the police?”

“I’m not sure.” This is why she didn’t bother calling the police. It made her sound stupid. Another finger squeeze reminded her that Will believed her story. “Didn’t know he’d been in my house until the doll came tonight. I’d missed the top for a couple of weeks. Assumed it was in the laundry or at the bottom of a closet.”

The police officer looked up, pinning her with a dubious stare. “No sign of a break-in? Wouldn’t the dog set up an alarm? Did he have a key?”

“No, he didn’t have a key. Not sure it would matter since he’s a private investigator used to brag about his skills breaking into places to investigate. Called his library card his flexible key.”

The officer murmured a comment under his breath. “Hate PI’s”

“As for the dog, he’s not exactly guard dog material. He barks at everything, including falling leaves. The neighbors tune him out, no doubt. He can also be had for the price of a dog treat.”

Will leaned forward blocking the officer’s view of her. “Don’t forget the vandalized car.”

He made a few more notes. “What’s the name of your ex, who you believe did these things?”

Tonya’s lips twisted to the side, considering the man’s tone. Doubtful, that’s what it was. “I don’t think he did it. I know it. He sends me threatening emails at work and texts.”

“I’ll need a copy of those emails.”

Of course, he would. “I erased them. They were on my work email.” The man stared uncomprehendingly.

“Actually, nothing is ever gone on a computer. You could get an IT guy to find them.”

A moan escaped her lips as she imagined asking Richard to look up the messages. All she had to do was explain it was a police matter. Maybe he might locate them before she got her layoff notice. Will let go of her arm and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

“That’s okay,” he reassured her. “Do you have any the texts on your phone?”

Her initial impulse was to state she’d erased those too, but she hadn’t. Last night, had been a busy night with dinner at Marc and Lynne’s and meeting Will. “I do have some. Along with the number he used too.”

“Good deal,” the officer commented, smiling a little.

Tonya went off in search of her phone, considering how much happier the officer was once he thought there might be a real case. She shook her head as her hand closed around her cell.

After a call back to the station for the procedure, the officer bagged her phone and took it with him with promises she could pick it up on the following day. The two of them stood at the door, rather like a unit, or a couple and bid the police officer goodbye.

Will yawned as she closed the door. The earlier adrenaline drained away leaving exhaustion behind. “I’ll go get your clothes. They should be dry now.”

Intent on draping his pants over a hanger with the crease in place, she didn’t hear his approach. His hand reaching for the hanger startled her, making her yelp. Not like weird things hadn’t been happening around her.

He hooked the hanger on the laundry room doorknob, joining his clean dress shirt. He pulled his boxer briefs out of the laundry basket. ‘This is all I’ll need for tonight.”

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    Morgan K Wyatt

    Secret Cravings author of contemporary and historical romances.

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