Passion In James County XVIII: The Stalker
Chapter twenty-two
Apologies to my readers. Here is the correct Chapter 22
I slept until almost four in the afternoon. I'd have probably slept longer, but the phone woke me up. "Hello," I mumbled after I fumbled the phone off the night stand next to my bed.
"How you doing?" Roscoe asked.
"I was sleeping, trying to recover," I said. "What the hell do you want?"
"Mrs. Wilkins wants us to come over for dinner tonight," he said. "She told me it was her way of thanking us. I told her that we only did what she was paying us to do, but she insisted. You think you're up to it?"
"I'll be there," I said. "What time?"
"Seven o'clock," Roscoe said.
"See you tonight, buddy," I said.
I arrived at Jennifer's house at five minutes of seven. She answered the door looking so stunning that I found myself having trouble breathing. She had on a plum-colored dress made of material with a Jacquard print. It had a wide neckline and long sleeves and reached almost to her ankles, but she'd left some of the buttons in the skirt open, displaying her wonderful legs. The dress was snug and clung lovingly to her wonderfully formed body. She had her hair pulled back and tied with a black ribbon around it, and was wearing understated makeup.
She looked puzzled. "What's the matter?" she asked. "You have a funny look on your face."
"You're beautiful!" I whispered.
She flushed and whispered, "Thank you. Please, come in." She held the door and I walked by her, into the house. The perfume she was wearing smelled spectacular.
"Am I early?" I asked, looking around. Nobody else was there yet. I expected Roscoe and Moose, and the other guys who'd worked on the case."
Her face took on a wonderful red glow. "You're my only guest," she said. "I had Roscoe tell you the dinner was for all of you, but it wasn't. I wasn't sure if you'd come if I asked you."
"Why would you think that?" I asked.
She shrugged. "I guess I was worried that you might still be upset with me after how I ended our relationship," she said.
"Jennifer, I'm not angry," I said. I smiled. "And to be honest with you, I'm kind of glad Roscoe and the others aren't here. Are you going to tell me what you started to tell me the other night?"
She nodded. "Yes...after dinner," she said softly.
Dinner, which she prepared for us herself, was fantastic. I had no idea what a wonderful cook Jennifer was. She served me broiled salmon with BΓ©arnaise sauce, baked potato, and mixed vegetables in a delicious sauce I couldn't quite identify.
"That was an incredible meal," I told her after we finished. "I feel like I'm gonna bust."
My compliment caused Jennifer to blush again. "It's the least I could do, given all you've done for me," she replied. She smiled at me. "I'm glad you liked the meal. Would you like some coffee?"
"I'd love some," I told her. "Black."
"Why don't you go in the living room, I'll get it and bring it in there?" Jennifer said. She got up and headed for the kitchen.
I walked into the living room and made myself comfortable on the sofa. I had no idea what it was she planned to tell me, but I'd come to realize that I felt a lot for her and I had made up my mind that, one way or another, no matter what the consequences, before the night was over, I was going to let her know what my feelings for her were.
Jennifer came in a few minutes later, carrying two cups of coffee on a small silver tray. She set the tray down on the coffee table and sat down near me on the sofa. She reached out and laid her hand on my arm. "I...I can't begin to thank you for all you've done for me," she said softly, her eyes wide.
"I'm just glad you're safe," I said. "And it was luck more than anything. I almost let him get away."
She shook her head. "No...that's not true," she said. "You figured out a way to end this."
"I had to," I said. I picked up one of the cups and sipped the coffee.
"I owe you an explanation," Jennifer said softly. "I want you to understand why I...why I stopped seeing you."
I nodded and sipped more of my coffee.
She took a deep breath and her gorgeous eyes held mine. "Do you recall my telling you that I'd never been in love?" she said.
I nodded.