Page 48 of Chains
“Autumn,” he said in a low voice, not wanting to freak her out.
She whirled around, and her eyes widened as her face paled. “Who is that?” she asked, a slight tremor in her voice.
“Chains.”
“Chains?You scared the hell out of me.” A nervous laugh reverberated around the garage, bouncing off the concrete walls.
“Sorry. I was on the front porch and then saw you pull in. You didn’t see my bike parked in front of the house?” He offered her a weak smile.
“No, I didn’t. I’ve got so much on my mind that I’m pretty much zoned out after work. It’s freezing in here, let’s go inside.”
Chains followed her and found himself in a bright kitchen with white cupboards, gray and charcoal granite countertops, and graphite slatted blinds. He stood off to the side, watching Autumn put the two canvas bags filled with groceries on the island before bending down and picking up a bluish-gray cat.
His gaze languidly ran over her body, admiring the way her tight skirt hugged her hips and her snug top molded over her breasts. A hint of cleavage had him wanting to lick all the way from her neck to her pussy with a few stops along the way.
“Why’re you here?” Autumn said, her voice slicing through his thoughts.
He glanced up at her face and noticed she was flushed, and the fine line between her brows had deepened a bit.
“I need to talk to you.”
She petted her cat for a second or two before gazing back at Chains. “About what? And how do you know where I live?”
“Can we sit down?” he asked, ignoring her questions.
“I have to feed my cat and put the groceries away.” Autumn placed the cat down on the floor, then gestured to one of the chairs in the family room. “Have a seat.”
“Okay, I’ll wait for you to finish.”
He settled on the multi-colored couch that had a Native American pattern running through the fabric. A large stone fireplace was the focal point in the room, and two cushy chairs in a solid rust fabric sat on either side of the couch. A flat screen TV hung over the fireplace, and books, framed photographs, and knick-knacks filled two built-in bookshelves that were on either side of it.
“You got a nice place here.” Chains stretched out his legs.
“Thanks. I still don’t know what you’re doing here.”
He heard cupboards opening and closing behind him.
“Come on in here when you’re done putting stuff away and I’ll tell you.” He blew out a breath, and his muscles tightened in anticipation of the news he was about to divulge.After I’m done here, I’m gonna find Bret and kick his ass real good. Stupid sonofabitch.
“Do you want something to drink?”
“You got any beer?”A bit of booze will make this go a lot easier.
“No beer—I don’t drink the stuff. I do have tequila and vodka. Will either of those work?”
“Tequila straight is good.”
A few seconds later, Autumn handed him a tumbler, then went over to the fireplace and flipped a switch. Tall orange-yellow flames danced and flickered around logs that looked like the real thing, replete with glowing red embers. A mix of warm air and radiant heat filled the room.
“That’s better.” She crossed the area and sank down into one of the cushy chairs. “You can’t beat the ease of a fire that lights with a flick of a switch. No clean-up either,” she said with a smile.
“It’s cool.” He threw back the clear drink, then ran his index finger up and down the side of the glass.
“So, what did you want to tell me?”
“I need to talk to you about Bret.” His voice came out gruffer than he’d intended.
Autumn clutched the base of her throat. “Is he all right? He got in a bad car accident, didn’t he? That’s why I haven’t heard from him. Oh, God… He’s in the hospital, right? Or is he—”
