Page 57 of Coty

“Only if you promise to remember it this time.”

I smile against his lips. “Every glorious moment of it.”

Chapter 27

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Coty

Four am is not a time to be startled awake, especially when you fell asleep less than an hour ago. My horrible day and stressful evening turned into a wonderful night. A night neither of us will forget anytime soon.

My eyes quickly adjust to the darkness. Kayla is sleeping peacefully next to me. I hate to move and leave the warmth of her body. Something has the neighborhood dogs riled up. It’s probably nothing, but I need to check it out just in case. I softly press my lips to her forehead and slide out of bed. I grab my jeans and t-shirt from the floor and quickly slide them on.

Kayla’s apartment complex has three rows of one-story buildings. She lives in the last row. Houses sit on each side with a row of trees separating the yards from the apartment property. A wooden fence is along the back to hide the subdivision on the other side.

I peek through the blinds in the bedroom. The street lights are on, but I don’t see anything moving. I slip to the living room and kitchen to look from those windows. Nothing. It can’t be normal for this many dogs to be barking this time of morning.

I slowly open the front door. With one foot out on the concrete slab, I lean back against the doorframe. The barking is louder. Dogs inside the apartment next door and across from us bark, and probably even more. Plus, the ones at the houses on both sides of the apartments and some from the subdivision are acting up, too. These animals aren’t happy. This can’t be normal.

“Coty?” Kayla walks out of the bedroom, rubbing her eyes.

“Does this happen often?”

Half asleep, she slides under my arm and lays her head against my chest. “Sometimes, but I’ve never heard this many at the same time.”

I ease us back inside, close the door, and lock it. “Grab your phone. Check online to see if something happened in the area. I’ll look out the back door. Whatever it is, it probably happened in the subdivision.”

“I’m sure it’s nothing. Just crazy dogs or maybe one of their puppies is missing, and the parents called for help.”

Haha. Very funny. This is not a Disney movie about Dalmatians. My little sisters loved that movie. Mary knew every bark. Our parents had to hide it at times just to get some peace.

She stands next to the bedroom doorway and smiles sleepily. She’s beautiful standing there with her messy hair, and the look, if I dare say it, of love in her eyes. I drink in every inch of her from head to toe as I flip the outside back light on.

My favorite image of her changes to wide eyes and horror. Her blood-curdling scream pierces my soul as she drops to the floor. My head snaps toward the back door. Like the front one, it has a window in the top half. Nothing’s there. I rush to her side and lift her off the floor.

“What happened?” I carry her to the bed.

She sits on the side. Her hand shakes as she points toward the kitchen. “A…man…outside the door.”

That changes things. I quickly shove my feet into my boots and grab my Colt from under my cut on the chair.

“You sure?”

She nods wildly. “Yeah.”

I point to the nightstand on her side of the bed. “Call for help and grab your gun.”

She springs from the bed and grabs my arm. “Please don’t go out there. Wait for help.”

As much as I want to go after this guy, I grant her wish. “I won’t go out unless I have to.” I give her a quick kiss. “Now, get your gun.”

She opens the drawer and sucks in a breath. “Coty, it’s not here.”

“Check the other nightstand.”

She hurries around the bed and opens the drawer. She straightens and slowly turns to face me. “It’s not here.” She covers her mouth with her hand. “This is bad.”

This is beyond bad. I don’t know where she got the gun. If it was by legal means, she’ll have to report it stolen.

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