if it wasn't against the rules, the building is locked up tight. Tiff has women who rent the rooms upstairs. Their area is totally off limits to everyone."
Moroad women obeyed members. He would get upstairs. "I need to talk to Tiff, and I'm not going to do that down here. Get me up there."
"Shit," Katie mumbled. "It's going to take me a few minutes. There's only one other person who has a key to the door, and she's not going to let you in."
"Do what you have to do." Jeremy stepped back and put his boot on the bottom step.
Katie's shoulders slumped forward. "Go up there and wait. Hide or something. If anyone catches you, they'll alert Tiff, who'll call the sheriff, and I'll get fired."
He jogged up the steps, taking the stairs three at a time. On the landing, he looked around for somewhere to stand out of the view of anyone coming upstairs. A chair and a fake indoor tree near the recessed window were his only options. Neither one big enough to shield his body from view.
He moved the chair to the middle of the floor and stepped up on the seat to unscrew the light bulb, casting the landing in darkness. After putting the furniture back, he leaned against the wall and kicked the potted tree out in front of him. If no one suspected him lurking in the dark, he'd go unnoticed.
"Why don't you give the shirt to Tiff downstairs?" said a feminine voice.
"She's busy, and I want to get out of here and get home before one of the men try to convince me otherwise," said Katie.
Jeremy squinted into the dark, catching the shadows of the two women and then seeing them move toward the locked door. He pressed his back against the wall and held still. Behind the other woman's back, Katie held up her hand to him. He had no idea what she planned.
The keys rattled, and the door swung open. The other woman turned off the alarm and Katie stepped inside. "Thank you. I can't wait to get home and get off my feet. Tonight was—"
"Sh. The women are sleeping, and we shouldn't disturb them." The woman with Katie tugged her inside, leaving the door wide open.
Jeremy stepped away from the wall, glanced down the stairs and when the coast was clear he peeked inside the door. The women were gone, and the first door on his left was open. He grimaced. The straight hallway gave him no coverage. He strode to the end and took the chance Katie would distract the woman from looking in his direction.
Katie stepped into the hallway, caught sight of him and turned. "I'll get the door. It sticks."
"I forgot you used to rent a room upstairs." The woman stepped around Katie, keeping her back toward Jeremy.
"Yeah. Ages ago." Katie closed the door. "I was working here when Lilly and Ink took over the place from Risa. I loved staying here."
The two women walked to the end of the hallway. Katie glanced over her shoulder at the doorway and smiled, giving him a thumb up. Once the door latched, he walked back to the room they'd exited. He put his hand on the knob and chuckled when his hand turned, and the door swung open. Katie had left Tiff's room unlocked for him.
The aroma inside the suite stopped him. He inhaled deeply. A quiver rocked his upper body, and he braced. He could smell her.
Spicy, yet smelled like grapes.
Almost overpowering hypnotic. The same perfume she ordered off the internet fifteen years ago, because her favorite store stopped carrying it. His skin crawled. He could almost imagine her touching him, rubbing against him, dancing in front of him.
He locked the front door to keep Tiff from becoming alarmed and leaving before he had a chance to talk. Then, he walked into the living room to the bedroom. Lightheaded, he refused to stop inhaling, taking her scent into his body.
A bra hung from the door handle of her closet. He caressed the silky material between his thumb and finger, wishing it was still warm from her body, wanting to be the one who took the bra off her before he laid her down on the bed.
Tonight, she wore a red dress. Short, tight,