Double Vexation ( A Harper's series. book 11)

In the Wolf's Den

A slight clicking noise followed by a slow and steady hum roused me from a peaceful slumber. But this didn't fully wake me. I was caught somewhere between that place of sleep where the sounds around you are evident but the mind is still not coherent. My first guess was that it was the heat kicking on which made me snuggle deeper into the comfort of the bed. Breathing in deep I caught the scent of a male's delicious cologne which stirred a small tingle in my belly. Then it struck me as odd, my bed shouldn't smell of any man. In fact I can't ever recall inviting a man to my bed in well... A long time. Then another realization hit me. This didn't feel like my bed. No, my mattress was soft and you sunk in. This mattress was form yet still enveloped my form snuggly.

With my eye's still closed and sleep still clouding the better part of my thought process I gently ran my hand over the sheet. Nope, definitely not mine. These sheets felt amazing. Almost like running my hand over nearly melted butter. My sheets were crisp and could be a bit on the scratchy side. No doubt about, I was sleeping on some high dollar material currently. This is what finally triggered my brain and drove me from a somewhat sleep. Pushing my eyelids open with a force that could match slamming prison cell doors I took in my surroundings. At first nothing was in focus. Everything was dark but after several blinks my eye's adjusted and I could make out a bedroom. Slowly I turned my head from side to side taking this strange environment in and trying to familiarize myself or at least recall this place.

That's when it hit me, the snow storm and how I got caught up in it but what made me actually feel the freezing temperatures again was the remembrance of who my rescuer was. None other than Duel Harper. Everything that transpired flashed in slow motion in my mind. I left work in the midst of a snow storm to wind up lost and low and behold I ended up on Duel's apartment building stoop. Fate can be a cruel and deceiving thing sometimes. Slightly groaning I buried my hands in my face as a blush begin to warm up my cheeks over recalling wrapping my arm's around his neck and whispering that little pet name I have him back when I loved him... Trouble.

Trouble was the correct word for the dilemma I was currently in now. I had no clue what side of Duel I may encounter. Will it be the lovey dovey, I'm so sorry Duel or will it be the I should kill you gangster side. Either way I was about to find out because my top concern was getting out of here and into the safe atmosphere of my apartment.

Slipping from the bed I noticed that I was barefoot and only wore a oversized white button up shirt that clearly belonged to him but that was the least of my concerns. My temper piked at the audacity he had. Who was he to undress me and bundle me up in his clothing? This gave me the courage I needed to seek him out and demand to go home. Stomping across the cool marble floor, I jerked the door open and stepped into the equally dark hall. Keeping close to the wall as not to trip up I navigated my way through the apartment. No light could be found anywhere, not even a dim glow from a lamp or nightlight which led me to believe that there must be a power outage due to the storm. Making my way through the kitchen I stopped short in the living room. There was no sign of Duel yet which made me nervous. Rubbing my hands up my arm's an inch of fear creeped over me. I didn't like being in this dark apartment alone not to mention that numerous killer's loved in this building as well. I felt like the girl in a horror film. I thought about making my way back to the bedroom to stay but before I could move I heard a sharp flicking noise directly behind me. Hating myself for letting a short scream rip from my throat I whirled around to come face to face with trouble in it's rarest form.

Duel stood directly in front of me holding a lit match in front of his face which gave him a rather evil, wicked glow. Realizing that the noise that startled me was only the striking of a match in a very quiet space eased my nerves some but I now faced an even bigger fire. A Harper fire.

Trying to redeem myself from screaming out over a mere match being struck I hissed. "You shouldn't sneak up on someone like that".

Duel gave a frightening grin that was illuminated by the flickering flame. "Like what? A killer? A stalker? Or perhaps a hungry wolf that has found his prey in his very on den?"