Page 75 of Hiding Hollywood

That wasn’t a happy bark.

She ran a hand over her hair, pausing when Lacy’s barking switched to a deep growl and a snarl. She rubbed her face, wishing she’d wake-up quicker from the fog of deep sleep. The clock showed it wasn’t seven yet.

“Cameron?” She called out. The barking became muffled like Lacy had ended up outside.

A door closed.

Addie started to crawl from the bed, but she froze when the hallway light flicked on. “Cameron?”

Her stomach dropped. Her instincts told her that it wasn’t him. He would’ve answered her.

Heavy, slow footsteps advanced closer to the bedroom.

Trapped. She searched the room. No way out. She climbed from the bed as Dexter appeared in the doorway.

A shriek squeaked out before her breath froze in her chest. He was here. In the house.

She swallowed over the dry lump in her throat. Screaming was useless. She was in the middle of the woods. The closest neighbors were the Dempseys and Nash. Both lived over two miles away.

He smiled, slow and eerie, like the killer from a bad movie. That didn’t help the situation.

Her skin crawled.

It clicked. It had been him in the video like she suspected. He was here to rob the place.

“This is a pleasant surprise” Dexter’s deadpan voice didn’t help with the creepy, thriller-film image.

Taking a deep breath, she let the numbness wash over her. It was an out of body experience, facing down her worst fear of being found by criminals. Of all things, it wasn’t her criminal but Cameron’s that had shown up.

She’d fight.

Her blood thumped in her temples. Focus. Figure it out.

“I’m sorry I can’t say the same for you, Dexter.” Make it personal. Keep him talking. Someone might spot Lacy and tell Cameron. He’d know something was wrong. Long-shot, but it was all she had to go on.

And get out of the house. Cameron had joked about her only defense being her running ability, but there was no way Dexter could catch her if she got out. Not in those boots or with her speed, even barefoot. With her adrenaline pumping, she’d try to outrun a lion at this point.

“I wasn’t sure that you and the cop were actually dating or if you used that as an excuse to avoid eating with me.”

She motioned around the room, hoping it looked casual. “As you can see, here I am.”

“He came nosing around my grandmother’s place last night. I didn’t appreciate having to lie to her about my late-night activities.” He moved to Cameron’s dresser, picking up a watch before slipping it into his pocket. If he only wanted to steal small items, it was possible that he would leave her unharmed. The idea gave her a shred of hope.

He stepped to the desk. Her laptop sat open, although the screen had gone blank. One small swipe of his finger and the screen lit up, showing a mirror image ofSunflower’sdesktop.

Dammit.

She hadn’t even set it up with a password yet. She’d been so caught up in finally gettingSunflower, she hadn’t even considered it.

“What in the world does the cop do on the side?” He started clicking through screens. This wouldn’t work.

Addie stood. The movement made him swing around, thankfully before he saw anything significant on the computer. “I’ll just be going now—”

“No.” He reached under the jacket and produced a kitchen knife. She recognized it as the same knife she’d seen in the sink. Great, a dirty knife. Cameron really needed to improve his housekeeping skills.

She took another deep breath, refusing to let the panic control her thoughts. “Dexter,” she began, holding up her hands. “You don’t need me here.” She moved in small degrees to get an angle on Cameron’s bedroom door. If she got close enough to sprint past him, she could get out if reasoning didn’t work. “You want the valuables. That’s it, right?”

“That’s all I wanted before you messed it up. What am I going to do with you? You’ll probably go tell your boyfriend, and he’ll arrest me.”

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