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Authors: Sherryl Woods
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anticipation at all that attention. As it was, she figured he'd merely been acting on this insane obligation he felt he had to play bodyguard.
But she had sent him packing. She had even watched out of her window to make sure that he'd actually climbed back into his car, started the engine and driven off. Of course, for all she knew he was parked around the corner, but at least he wasn't in her direct line of sight.
Of all the humiliating moments in her life, one of the worst had to be discovering that Sam had allowed some streetwise punk to believe that he and she...that they were...
She couldn't even bear to think about it, especially when the reality couldn't be further from the dirty little innuendos.
Oh, who was she trying to kid? What really ticked her off was that, despite everything that had happened, some genuinely mentally disturbed part of her wanted those innuendos to be true. Sam made her tingle deep inside. Always had. Apparently always would.
Of course, he also made her furious deep inside. Maybe there was a correlation she ought to examine more closely before she ascribed those sensations to lust rather than a particularly violent form of outrage.
While she was trying to give that possibility some rational, objective consideration, the phone rang. Given the hour, she figured it had to be her grandfather or her mother. She debated the wisdom of talking to either one of them considering her present state of mind and allowed her answering machine to pick up.
She immediately recognized Sam's voice and the edge-of-panic tone as he shouted her name.
"Penny, where the hell are you? Dammit, you'd better not have gone back out again."
She sighed heavily and picked up the receiver. "I'm here," she said. "Are you aware that it is nearly midnight?"
"You weren't asleep."
He said it in a way that sounded more like a comment than a question.
"How would you know that?" she demanded.
"Your lights were still on."
That tingling started up again. "Where are you?" she inquired suspiciously, creeping closer to the window to peer outside.
"In my car."
She groaned. "Where?"
"On my way home. I just happened to drive past and saw the lights."
And pigs fly, she thought.
"I just wanted to check and make sure everything was okay," he said. His voice trailed off as if even he recognized how weak the explanation sounded.
"Did it ever occur to you that I might sleep with the lights on?" she asked.
"That's something people do when they're scared. Nothing's happened since I dropped you off, has it?"
She restrained the urge to laugh hysterically. "It wasn't enough that you warned me that my name is high on a list to become a crime victim?"
"I'm sorry," he said softly.
Penny had to admit he sounded genuinely regretful. "I'll survive."
"I didn't mean to frighten you. I just wanted you to be on your guard."
"Isn't that the same thing?"
"Yeah, I suppose it is. I'm sorry. I could hang around outside if that'll help you get to sleep."
Penny suddenly felt the strongest yearning to have him do just that, just so he'd be close, but she couldn't. Not under false pretenses.
"I'll be fine," she told him. "Go on home and get some sleep."
"Are you sure? It's no trouble. I pull a lot of all-nighters in this car when I'm working a case."
"There's no need to on my account," she assured him.
"Okay. If you say so."
"I do."
"Good night, then."
"Sam?"
"Yes?"
"I wasn't scared."
"If you say so, short stuff," he said.
Penny could practically see the smile tugging at his lips. "I wasn't," she repeated adamantly. "I'd just gotten out of the shower. I never go to bed much before one."
He chuckled aloud at that. "You enjoyed that, didn't you?"
"What?" she inquired innocently.
"Taunting me?"
"Now that you mention it, yes. I enjoyed it quite a bit. 'Night, Sam."
"I'll get even, short stuff. That's a promise."
There was that tingling again, Penny thought, smiling as she hung up the phone. This time she knew exactly what it meant.
But she had sent him packing. She had even watched out of her window to make sure that he'd actually climbed back into his car, started the engine and driven off. Of course, for all she knew he was parked around the corner, but at least he wasn't in her direct line of sight.
Of all the humiliating moments in her life, one of the worst had to be discovering that Sam had allowed some streetwise punk to believe that he and she...that they were...
She couldn't even bear to think about it, especially when the reality couldn't be further from the dirty little innuendos.
Oh, who was she trying to kid? What really ticked her off was that, despite everything that had happened, some genuinely mentally disturbed part of her wanted those innuendos to be true. Sam made her tingle deep inside. Always had. Apparently always would.
Of course, he also made her furious deep inside. Maybe there was a correlation she ought to examine more closely before she ascribed those sensations to lust rather than a particularly violent form of outrage.
While she was trying to give that possibility some rational, objective consideration, the phone rang. Given the hour, she figured it had to be her grandfather or her mother. She debated the wisdom of talking to either one of them considering her present state of mind and allowed her answering machine to pick up.
She immediately recognized Sam's voice and the edge-of-panic tone as he shouted her name.
"Penny, where the hell are you? Dammit, you'd better not have gone back out again."
She sighed heavily and picked up the receiver. "I'm here," she said. "Are you aware that it is nearly midnight?"
"You weren't asleep."
He said it in a way that sounded more like a comment than a question.
"How would you know that?" she demanded.
"Your lights were still on."
That tingling started up again. "Where are you?" she inquired suspiciously, creeping closer to the window to peer outside.
"In my car."
She groaned. "Where?"
"On my way home. I just happened to drive past and saw the lights."
And pigs fly, she thought.
"I just wanted to check and make sure everything was okay," he said. His voice trailed off as if even he recognized how weak the explanation sounded.
"Did it ever occur to you that I might sleep with the lights on?" she asked.
"That's something people do when they're scared. Nothing's happened since I dropped you off, has it?"
She restrained the urge to laugh hysterically. "It wasn't enough that you warned me that my name is high on a list to become a crime victim?"
"I'm sorry," he said softly.
Penny had to admit he sounded genuinely regretful. "I'll survive."
"I didn't mean to frighten you. I just wanted you to be on your guard."
"Isn't that the same thing?"
"Yeah, I suppose it is. I'm sorry. I could hang around outside if that'll help you get to sleep."
Penny suddenly felt the strongest yearning to have him do just that, just so he'd be close, but she couldn't. Not under false pretenses.
"I'll be fine," she told him. "Go on home and get some sleep."
"Are you sure? It's no trouble. I pull a lot of all-nighters in this car when I'm working a case."
"There's no need to on my account," she assured him.
"Okay. If you say so."
"I do."
"Good night, then."
"Sam?"
"Yes?"
"I wasn't scared."
"If you say so, short stuff," he said.
Penny could practically see the smile tugging at his lips. "I wasn't," she repeated adamantly. "I'd just gotten out of the shower. I never go to bed much before one."
He chuckled aloud at that. "You enjoyed that, didn't you?"
"What?" she inquired innocently.
"Taunting me?"
"Now that you mention it, yes. I enjoyed it quite a bit. 'Night, Sam."
"I'll get even, short stuff. That's a promise."
There was that tingling again, Penny thought, smiling as she hung up the phone. This time she knew exactly what it meant.
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