Page 85 of Putting Out
Luke turned around to find Reilly behind him.
“I think he’s a fan who had an opportunity to meet you. But I didn’t get the impression he was all that worried about last night’s break-in.”
“Because he doesn’t think there is much to worry about. You heard him. Whoever this is, he’s an amateur.”
“I suppose. He’s the agent,” Luke sighed. “Plus, I trust Bob’s opinion. If he asked Leonard to look into it then he trusts him to do the job right. If we need him, we know how to get in touch.”
Reilly handed the card to Luke. “You hold it. It will give you peace of mind.”
Not really, Luke thought. The idea her face was on television at some point each day where any nut job with an obsession could latch on to her didn’t sit well with him. She’d already attracted one psycho, what if there were more?
He’d been part of the Hollywood crowd with wife number one and number three long enough to know actors took their stalkers seriously. One day the person is a fan, all he wants is a signed picture. Then he’s a fanatic and he starts trying to break into the house to steal mementos.
Then one day he comes back with a knife or a gun. Fan to rapist or murderer in minutes.
“Will you stop,” Reilly said, interpreting his silence. “It’s going to be fine. You heard the man. The likelihood is the guy is nonviolent. The less I respond, the better the chance is he’ll give up. We won’t forget to set the alarm. For now I’ve got to turn my concentration back to training.”
“Will you be able to?”
“I don’t know. But I have to try. It does me no good to think about what might have happened.”
Luke nodded. She was right. The last thing she needed was to be worried about something that she couldn’t control when she had everything to worry about what she could control.
“Let’s go watch some footage. It always calms me down,” she suggested. “Today we get to study how the green breaks on the Sunday hole location on 16.”
“To the left,” Luke answered.
Reilly grumbled. “Blah, blah, blah, I’m a two-time American winner. I know how all the putts break. Show off.”
Luke watched her storm off knowing she was teasing, but it put the thought in his head. There was another way to make sure nothing bad happened to Reilly on the course.
And that was to play with her.
* * *
“Hey,Pierce, I appreciate you doing this. Forget the mark on the wall, I don’t like the idea of being on the veranda anymore, either.”
Reilly had shoved all her clean clothes back into her suitcase and without bothering to close it rolled it down the hall. Luke wasn’t happy about the situation but with no leg to stand on, he had to cave.
There was something she decided she could use to take her mind off last night. His ridiculous assumption she would just set up house in his room like the little lady. What kind of game was he playing? He said he wanted a change. Well, she was beginning to think she wanted one, too. Yes, she’d been harsh when she said she’d obliged him in the past, but the idea of not letting anything happen between them in the future held merit.
It was time to show him she wasn’t going to drop everything and come running whenever he snapped his fingers. She had enough willpower to hold out against any seduction attempt he might throw her way.
She had her pride.
Telling him it was over for good would be smart. It would be mature. It might also help her to move on with her life if she knew he was never going to play the role of occasional lover again.
However, it would also suck.
“Pierce, word of advice. Relationships are complicated and they suck.”
He looked up from his task of emptying his folded clothes from the drawer and transferring them to his suitcase. “Wait. That’s news. Let me stop and write that down.”
“Men are jackasses.”
“Tell me about it,” he muttered. “Last night Doug and I are hot. Today, it’s almost five and no text. What’s up with that?”
“That’s what I’m trying to tell you. Men are jackasses.” Reilly tossed all her clothes on the bed and figured she would get around to sorting them later. Pierce in direct contrast patted down the already-folded clothes and began to zipper the rollaway until something got stuck.
