How To Pleasure A Playboy(21)

She ran out and gingerly picked it up, arm extended from her body as  though a wave of insects might come scuttling out from underneath. There  was nothing she could see. No scuttling movements. But now her heart  was jumping, and she felt utterly vulnerable. Naked with bare feet: what  was she thinking? But she had to go and check the hall too, in case  Bronson had missed any horrors lurking near the front door.

Tiptoeing over the damp carpet, she crept forward. This was like being  in a horror movie, and she was the soon-to-be-victim creeping around the  serial killer's house, knowing he was somewhere inside. The hall was  much darker than the living room, and she had to steel herself to get  close enough to peek around the living room door. But there was nothing  there either. No bugs or rats. Had Patrick not been able to get any  after all?

"Looking for something?" Bronson's voice came from right behind her.

She let out a shriek of surprise and whirled to face him. Her heart was beating hard.

"Bronson-" She broke off, staring at what he held.

"Look what I found." He held up a large white-and-brown rat, one hand  cradling its body while the other supported its rear. It seemed happy  enough to be held, though its nose twitched and it looked curiously  around.         

     



 

"Cute little guy," said Bronson. "There are two more in the kitchen. Not  sure how somebody's pet rats got in here though." He raised his  eyebrows at her. "Do you have any idea?"

Lacey swallowed. Patrick must have had difficulty capturing wild rats,  because this one had clearly come from a pet store. "Um." She could feel  her face turning red. "It's a mystery."

"I'm guessing this was what the noise at the door was about? You thought some rats running around might make me move out?"

"They weren't supposed to be pets." She gave up all pretense. "And there  should be cockroaches too. Only I can't see any of those, so maybe the  pest control guy couldn't get them either. If you see any lady bugs or  walking stick insects wandering around instead, we'll know where they  came from."

He laughed. "Well, it was a good try. Now we'd better find a box for  them, and something for them to eat. They can go back to the pet store  in the morning."

Lacey sighed. "I'll put some clothes on, and borrow Crystal's dog carrier."

"Or we could put them in the fish tank with your invisible turtle."

"What are you talking about? Myrtle's not invisible." Shaking her head,  she went into the bathroom to wash. Then she dressed, and managed to  avoid having to explain everything to Crystal, only because her neighbor  was about to get into bed. By the time the rats were collected and  settled in the dog carrier with an old towel and some food and water,  she was almost ready to see the funny side. If it weren't for the fact  that she was going to lose her home because all her plans had failed so  dismally, the whole rat debacle might even raise a chuckle.

Bronson eyed her over the rat cage, then pulled her into his arms to  kiss her. "What's next?" he asked. "Are you planning to bring in bed  bugs?"

"That would have been a good idea, if I'd thought of it."

"How about spiders?"

She shuddered. "I don't mind rats, but spiders have way too many legs. I'd have to move out."

"Not spiders then." His arms tightened around her. "Any other ideas to get me out?"

"Not yet." She chewed her lip. Surely there had to be something that  would spook him. "What if I scattered some dead bodies around? Would  that make you run for the door?"

"Depends who you kill." He put one finger under her chin and tilted her  face up to his. "I'm enjoying myself too much to leave, Lacey. Being  here with you has been far more fun than I could have imagined."

Her stomach suddenly felt all fluttery. The way he was looking at her  made her bones melt. "It's not supposed to be fun." It came out a little  hoarse.

"So far I've liked every minute, rats and all."

"Don't get too comfortable. There's only one way for this week together  to end, and that's badly. One of us is going to lose, and it can't be  me." She swallowed, her stomach churning. "Sleeping together was a  mistake. It's going to make things more complicated."

"No, it won't." His hand went to her cheek and he stroked back her  curls, tucking them behind her ear. "We're adults who have our eyes wide  open. We both know what's going to happen, and we won't kid ourselves  that what's happened between us will make any difference. I like you,  Lace, but at the end of the week, I'm still going to pull the Baxter  down and go back to my life."

"Renovate the Baxter and go back to your life," she corrected. But that  didn't make her feel any better. It was the ‘go back to your life' part  that was making her stomach go funny. The thought of him walking out of  here forever.

Gazing into his eyes, her heart was beating too fast. She was starting  to think she'd made a worse mistake than she'd realized. What if at the  end of the week, she didn't want to let him go at all?





Fifteen





The next day, Bronson found himself in Crystal's apartment, helping her  unhook her hanging decorations and take her photos off the wall. She'd  all but dragged him over, but now he was enjoying himself. Of course, he  had more than enough of his own work piled up. Lots of documents to  read and figures to review. But still, he found himself whistling as he  wrestled with ancient hooks that had rusted into place years ago.

"You sound happy." Crystal wiped dust off one of the photos he'd managed to work free from its rusty fastenings.

"I suppose I am." His mind went back to his night with Lacey. They'd  made love so many times he wouldn't have thought he'd be able to do it  again. But this morning, he'd proven that belief wrong. Lacey had  finally left the apartment late for an appointment, but with a light  step and a contented smile on her face.         

     



 

"She's a peach, isn't she?" Crystal wrapped the photo and tucked it into  one of her moving boxes. "I'm going to miss that girl so much, you have  no idea."

"She'll miss you too."

Crystal put a candle into the box. "We can still see each other, but it  won't be the same as having her next door." She shot him a sideways  look. "Good luck getting her out of here, by the way. Day the wrecking  ball comes, before they start swinging you'd better check she hasn't  barricaded herself inside."

"Surely once everyone else has moved out, there'll be no reason for her to stay on."

Wolf let out a bark as though to disagree, and Crystal shook her head.  "Wishful thinking, I'm afraid. Lacey's been on plenty of protest  marches, and she knows how to stand up for herself. When she's got an  idea in her head, she won't let anything stop her."

Bronson reached up to unfasten another picture from the wall, and flakes  of rust floated down with it. It had to have been damp in here for  years for the metal hooks to have deteriorated so badly. It was a  miracle all the tenants weren't long-dead from pneumonia.

"Look," said Crystal. She'd wandered over to the window, and he put the  picture down to move beside her. "Saturday morning," she said. "See  everyone going to the Glebe Market?"

Sure enough, there was a stream of people headed toward the other end of  Glebe Point Road. Families, teenagers, and older people alike. Though  it was still cold, the sun was out and some of the teens were in  T-shirts.

"I'm going to miss it," Crystal said. "Best market in Sydney by far. Have you been?"

"Never."

"The music starts at twelve. Lacey can show you around. She's been going since before she could walk, and everyone knows her."

The last thing he'd ever thought of doing was going to a Saturday market  to hunt through boxes of musty old books or chipped trinkets. But  watching a group of twenty-somethings talking companionably as they  ambled toward it made him wonder if he might actually be missing out on  something. At this time on a Saturday morning, he was usually tired from  a long night at his club, and easing into the day's work. The people  below him looked like they were having a lot more fun. He could picture  Lacey walking along with them, laughing and calling out to all the  people she knew.

Around here, it was very different to where he lived in Vaucluse. His  apartment looked out over the water, but this view of the bustling  street was growing on him. Glebe did have a kind of charm.

His phone rang, and he stepped away from the window to answer the call. It was Carla.

"I wanted to let you know that the payment to the demolition team went  out last night," she said. "They've confirmed the Baxter will come down  at the end of the month."

"Good."

"Are you sure you're going to win this bet? It's non refundable if you  have to cancel. And losing that much money would really sting."