A fist slammed
against the front door, startling Terri out of her zone.
“What the—“
She glanced at
the watch on her left wrist. An eyebrow shot up. Why would anyone knock on her
door at eleven ten at night? She wasn’t the type of person who entertained
visitors all hours of the night. Hell, except for her grandfather, cousin and
Wayne, no one dropped by during the day.
“I’m coming,” Terri
called over the pounding on the door. The person had a lot of nerve rushing
her. In fact, she didn’t know what was more irritating – his impatience, the
late hour, or the fact that he interrupted her work.
She slid off her
stool and shuffled towards the door as fast as her stiff joints would let her. The
visitor ceased the racket. The silence, however, did not pacify her.
“What?” Terri yelled
as she snatched opened the door.
The worried line
on Shane’s forward quickly faded. His eyes narrowed in exasperation and she immediately
knew what he was going to say.
“We’re going to
have to work on your safety skills.”
Terri sighed. “You
don’t have to lecture me. I realize it was wrong to open the door without
checking to see who was there first.”
“Yes, it was
wrong, irresponsible and dangerous. That’s something I’d expect from a five
year old, but not a grown woman.”
Terri’s face grew
warm. Though she realized her mistake, she did not appreciate being chastised
like a child. “Are you finished scolding me, Detective Reynolds?”
“Not by a long
shot. But I’ll finish after you invite me in.”
She stepped aside
and he strolled in, carrying a bag from The Swig, the bar and grill owned by
his oldest brother.
“Lesson number
one,” he said. “Lock your door.”
Rolling her eyes,
Terri closed the door and secured the bolt.
“That’s an
impressive lock.” He examined the deadbolt. “But it won’t do you any good if
you don’t use it.”
“I can’t believe your
life’s so boring you’ve nothing better to do than come over here and lecture
me, Detective Reynolds?”
“Shane.”
“What?”
“In the
twenty-four years I’ve known you’ve never called me by my name. It’s always
been sir, Mr. Reynolds and Detective Reynolds, but never Shane.”
Terri’s mouth dropped
open. Was he seriously lecturing her about what she calls him?
“It’s not that
hard. It’s one syllable. The a is long, the e is silent and since I heard you call
Vince a lying piece of shit, I know you don’t have a problem with the sh.”
“You heard that?”
Shane nodded and
Terri’s cheeks grew warmer.
“Now, try
repeating after me. Shane.”
She opened her
mouth. As if he realized she was not going to following his direction, he held
a finger.
“No, Shane,” he
repeated slowly.
She shook her
head. The man was impossible.
He cocked an
eyebrow. His eyes danced as the corners of his mouth turned up into an impish
grin.
Despite the
stress from the past thirty-six hours, she slowly returned his smile.
“Well?”
“Fine,” she
sighed. “Shane.”
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Enjoyed their conversation. Nice snippet.
ReplyDeleteGreat excerpt!
ReplyDeleteWhat an adorable excerpt! And funny. The bit about the "sh" had me laughing out loud! Great job, Ursula.
ReplyDeleteSuper scene! I like his teasing and yet his sincerity in wanting her to get a little more personal.
ReplyDeleteSounded like he was scolding her to me, too. LOL! I am liking this couple.
ReplyDelete