The Trouble With Snowmen by Dorlana Vann Read Free Book Online

As his ache for her escalated to unbearable, he knew he actually belonged to her.

Chapter 10
    “Hello? Larry?”
    Larry heard something rattling and opened his eyes to a dark room. “Yeah?”
    “You left these in the door.”
    He squinted toward the bedroom door where Brenda stood holding his keys.
    “I’m sorry,” he said and then yanked his head over to see next to him. The bed was empty. Where did Haley go? Bathroom? Kitchen? He swallowed and wanted to jump out of bed to find her before Brenda did, but he didn’t have any clothes on. “What time is it?”
    “A little after ten. I’ll put these on the table and let you sleep. See you in the morning.” She shut the door, causing the darkness to return.
    “Oh shit.” Larry waited a second to hear the commotion of when Brenda found Haley in her kitchen. He and Brenda weren’t ‘together,’ but she could be territorial with her apartment and with him. They were each other’s in-betweeners. Even though they discussed their relationships about other lovers, they never double-dated or anything like that. And he never ever brought a girl to Brenda’s home.
    When Larry didn’t hear anything, he jumped up and put his pants on that had been discarded at the foot of the bed. He smiled at the memory of taking them off.
    He turned on the light and scanned the guest room. At least Haley wasn’t roaming around naked, her skirt and panties were not where he had taken them off of her. He grinned again. But before opening the door, he did spot Haley’s high heels on the floor next to the bed. She was still there . . . somewhere.
    He peeked out the door before walking down the short hallway to the living room area. Haley’s shirt and bra were not on the floor, but neither was his shirt. He spotted his shirt on the couch.
    After hearing noises coming from the kitchen, he headed there.
    “What are you doing up?” Brenda’s blond hair was in a long, sleek ponytail and her cat eyeglasses, edged almost to the tip of her nose. “Sorry I woke you.”
    The bathroom . “No problem. I’ll be right back.” He hurried to the only shower in the apartment, the one in Brenda’s bedroom. He figured that’s where Haley had to be. But the bathroom was empty. Where the hell was she?
    She didn’t seem to be in the house at all. As he walked back to the kitchen, he wondered if Brenda had already kicked her out. He wouldn’t have put it past her.
    “Why are you looking at me like that?” Brenda removed a take-out container from the microwave and carried it to the dining room table.
    Larry followed. “Was someone here when you got home?”
    “Here? No, only the keys in the door and your shirt on the floor, and what happened to my picture?”
    “Sorry about that.” Larry scratched his head and sat at the table. “Hmmm.”
    “Okay. What’s going on? You’re acting really strange.”
    “Nothing. I just . . . I thought you weren’t supposed to be back until next week.”
    “The meeting was canceled, but don’t change the subject.”
    Brenda was pretty, stylish, classy, vigilant. He tried not to make any type of face.
    “Something is going on,” she said as she took a tiny bite of her pasta. “Who was supposed to be here? Wait a minute. You didn’t bring a girl to my house, did you?”
    He stood up. “Why would you ask that?”
    “You look guiltier than my client, and his nickname around the office is CEO B.O.”
    “I’ll be right back.” Larry went back to the empty guest room. Had Haley left without saying goodbye?
    “Aha!” Brenda was at the doorway. “People of the jury, please examine Exhibit A,” she said as she walked in and picked up Haley’s heels. “And what have we here? Hooker shoes?”
    “Uh . . . nope.” Shit. He had paused! Even before Brenda had her law degree she didn’t miss much.
    “You’re kidding me?” Brenda said, all traces of her humorous sarcasm gone. “You brought a hooker into my home? Shit, Larry, I let you stay at my house