I quietly continued my search, but it was fruitless. I began to think it was a dumb idea, the result of a bit too much merlot and too many martinis. Damn those girls for not stopping me. I even pulled Tammy into my wicked web, made her my partner in crime. What the hell am I doing here?
Not wanting to leave any stone unturned, I figured it was in my best interest to leave, but I wanted to check upstairs before I scrambled out. I silently made my way up, and turned the corner to find an office. Hmmm. What secrets could it hold? I chuckled to myself. I flashed my beam around and saw a large desk, with files sitting on top of it. I flipped through a few of them, but there was nothing exciting there, so I rifled through some desk drawers. Suddenly, my fingers glided over a thick document, several pages long and held together with a clip. I picked it up and felt the notary embossing on the back page, so I couldn’t resist giving it a quick read.
I was flabbergasted as I ran my flashlight beam over the Last Will and Testament, and it became evidently clear why Charlie was back in town. He was there for one reason and one reason only, to secure his sizable inheritance, and the one requirement of that was to put a ring on some unfortunate woman’s finger.
“You sneaky son-of-a-bitch,” I whispered as I snapped a few photos of the document with my phone. “Thank you for the juicy material. I’m so taking you down, Mr. Clever Casanova.”
I slipped my phone back in my pocket and put the Will away exactly as I’d found it, then easily slid the drawer shut. Now, all I had to do was leave the house and hop in my getaway car. The only trouble was that Murphy’s Law was not done toying with me yet.
A shadow suddenly flickered on the wall behind the beam of my flashlight, the silhouette of a man either very excited to see me or holding a long blade at his waist level. I swallowed hard as a figure approached me in the darkness, and I dropped my flashlight when I was thrown, quite roughly, up against the closest wall.
“Shit!” I cried, as the wind was almost knocked out of me and a shiver ran up my spine, pimpling my entire body with goosebumps of terror. The mask! He doesn’t recognize me because of the damn ski mask! Breaking into his house wasn’t one of my brightest ideas.
With a dangerous look in his eyes, he held the thin but sharp blade against my throat. “What the fuck!?” he shouted. “Do you think you can just come in my house and rob me blind?”
Busted, entirely screwed, I thought, but I didn’t dare to answer him, fearing my voice would give me away.
He threw me up against the wall once more, and as he did, the beam of light caught his face. This time I got a good look. Charlie was just as handsome as ever, and if the thudding of my body against the paneling hadn’t already stolen my breath away, those blue eyes would have done the trick. His hair was longer now, still as black as a stallion’s mane, wavy and cascading all the way down to his shoulders. Not only that, but somewhere along the lines, Charlie had grown up; he was far more muscular than he was the last time I saw him.
“Asshole!” he shouted.
“Please put the sword down,” I snapped, trying to reach a hand up for the mask, but he knocked it away.
“Maybe I oughtta put it through you instead! Gimme one good reason why I shouldn’t kill you where you stand,” he said, obviously not recognizing my voice.
I’d always been a bit of a sore loser, and this was no exception. I didn’t want to be caught, and I certainly didn’t want him to know who his intruder was. Most of all, I just wanted to bolt so he’d never discover my identity.
“Why, I oughtta...” he ominously threatened, not backing down at all.
I stared up at him and grew angry at myself for being attracted to him in that moment, when he was showing so much backbone. I liked that. Hell, I missed it.
Damn! He’s all grown up now, not the thin, wiry guy I remember. His physique was manly, with a broad, powerful chest. I wanted to reach out and touch his sculpted body, but I didn’t dare. Instead, I muttered, “I-I wasn’t trying to rob you.”
He pushed me up against the wall again. “Really? So you just dress up like a cat burglar for Halloween and break into people’s houses for fun? Maybe I should fuck you up instead of calling the cops. That will teach you a damn lesson, you little punk.”
“May I suggest a fencing match?” I teased. “Then again, I always kicked your ass at those.”
A puzzled look washed over his gorgeous face.
“Charlie, please,” I said sternly. “Just because you have a dick doesn’t mean you can be one. Please let me go.”
He cocked his head, but I wasn’t sure if it was because he recognized my voice or if he was suddenly shocked that I knew his name. He slowly slid the mask off my face and studied me intently. “You’re...a woman?” he slowly asked, putting down the sword he’d been brandishing.
“Hello, Wicked.”
“I haven’t heard that nickname in years.”
“It suits you perfectly, you know.”
“No, not at all! I’d never hurt a woman.”
“That’s a matter of opinion,” I blurted.
“I-I thought you were just some asshole punk breaking into my house.” He shook his head as recognition suddenly struck, and he pushed a few wayward strands of my blonde hair out of my eyes. “Oh my goodness! Shit! Jaime?” he asked in stunned shock.
“Please don’t call the police. If you try, I’ll be forced to kick your ass, like I used to when we were teenagers.”
He let out a long breath. “What the hell? I thought you were a robber. I could’ve seriously hurt you.”