Page 56 of Lawton

"This is where it gets good," he said. "They're driving this little SUV and park on that side street over there." He looked toward the far side of my yard, where my fence butted up against the sidewalk. "So what they do, is park on the sidewalk and start crawling out of the car."

"Crawling?"

"Yeah. Because they're coming out through the sunroof. Anyway, before you know it, they're all standing on the roof of the thing, looking all pissed off at the fence, like it's taller than they expected." He chuckled. "And then, they start arguing."

"About what?" I asked.

"About who's gonna be the first one over. Anyway, the answer was none of them, because security got there first."

"Security?" I shook my head. "Ididn't hire any. Did you?"

Bishop grinned. "Nah, but the girls didn't know that."

"Lemme guess," I said. "Security is you?"

He shrugged. "Like I said, it's more entertaining than the stuff inside."

I glanced toward the house. Through the same window as before, I saw raised drinks and bodies gyrating. Through the next window over, past the open bar, I spotted Blake, a buddy I sparred with sometimes. He was dancing with Fiona – an aerobics instructor from somewhere out West. Blake had his hands on her ass and his lips on her neck.

A few weeks ago, that might have been me. Shit, it could be menow. A few beers earlier, Fiona had offered me that and then some. But the thing with Chloe had thrown me. For some reason, I didn't want another girl.

I glanced in the general direction of her house, recalling the douchebag I'd met at the fence. That was how long ago? A couple of weeks?

I'd spent the first week avoiding her – for her sake as much as mine. I'd been too pissed off – at the douchebag, at Chloe, and mostly at myself, because I still didn't know squat about what was going on.

Afterwards, I found myself watching her place more than I should, doing perimeter checks twice a night instead of twice a month. I wore dark clothes and silent sneakers. I lingered at the fence and watched through the trees.

Shit. I was one telescope away from becoming the neighborhood creeper.

Disgusted, I turned back to Bishop. He was watching me with veiled eyes.

"What?" I said, hating that it came out too harsh, too defensive, and maybe a little too drunk. Screw that. It was my party. I was supposed to be drunk.

In my pocket, something buzzed. My cell phone. Ready for a change of topic, I pulled it out and answered without looking. "Yeah?"

It was Amber. "Whereareyou?" she asked. "We've been looking everywhere."

"Getting some air," I said.

"Outside?" She sounded surprised. "But it's totally freezing out there."

Was it? Come to think of it, Icouldsee my breath. So yeah, I guess it was freezing. But I sure as hell wasn't feeling it. I heard myself laugh. "Where areyou?"

"Upstairs." She giggled. "I've got your birthday gift. And trust me, you're gonna love it." Her voice became flirty. "I'll give you a hint. It's nice and warm."

Chapter 27

Upstairs, I found a trail of red rose-petals that led to a giant red bow on the door to my bedroom. The door was shut, but I had a pretty good idea what I'd find inside. The only thing I didn't know was what I'd do about it.

I mean, it wasn't like I hadn't seen this coming.

On my way up the stairs, I'd grabbed another beer and downed it before I hit the top step. I had a good buzz going, but somehow, it didn't feel good enough. When I closed my eyes, I still saw Chloe's face. Sometimes, she was withhim.

The last week had been crazy in more ways than one. After that week of avoidance, I'd started walking with her again. I'd been trying to keep it casual. I’d been trying to act like nothing had changed. But all the while, I'd been trying to figure things out.

I'd failed on all counts.

I'd even asked about her electrical problems, making some vague comment about spotting a service van in the driveway. I'd given her the opening. All she had to do was walk through it.