The Woman Next Door Read Online Free PDF Page A

It’s good to know you have my back.”
    “Anytime, sir.”
    “These homes are beautiful!” Elizabeth commented as they drove into the development and wound around to get to where they were going. “They must be very expensive to afford the gate attendant?”
    “The HOA fees are pretty high, but security is worth the extra each month. When I go to bed at night, I like to close my eyes and sleep, not stay awake worrying if one of the criminals I put behind bars is trying to break in and shoot me. MarWood has judges, doctors, several police officers and some other people who feel a need for security. There is one woman who lives here because she was attacked in her apartment and raped. She refuses to leave her house, and she trusts Wally to keep her safe. If Wally doesn’t know someone, or isn’t expecting them, they don’t get past the gate.”
    “You think I am in serious danger, don’t you?” Elizabeth felt tears sting her eyes and she quickly blinked them away.
    “Now, don’t cry, Lizzy! I promise I will keep you safe.”
    “How could something like this happen? Do you think that someone just got the wrong house?” she asked hopefully. “Like the house number thing… I saw it on television once; the bad guys were to go to 116, but at 119 the nine flipped into a six, and they shot a house full of innocent people thinking they had the correct house!”
    “That could be except for one thing; what is your house number?” Craig asked her.
    “542; oh! The numbers don’t turn into something else, do they?” She was disappointed.
    “No, they don’t, and I checked the street name, too, wondering if there was another Cricket something, like avenue, park, court… Cricket Street is the only Cricket in town.” There went her lower lip, trembling as if she were going to cry. “We’ll figure this out, Lizzy.”
    “I’m scared,” she confessed, bursting into tears.
    “I won’t let anything happen to you,” he promised as he pulled into his garage and parked. Once the car was safely off, he pulled her close to wrap his arms around her and comfort her. “I promise I will keep you safe, Lizzy.”
    “I believe you,” she replied, trying to stop her tears.
    “Good. Let’s go inside and get you settled in.” He put down the garage door and then opened the door that led into the laundry room.
    “This is a nice space for laundry,” Elizabeth told him, noting the brand new red appliances. There was a deep sink for doing hand washables, too, and a spot for folding towels and clothing. There was also a place to hang clothing until it could be put away. This laundry room was the one she longed for in her own home someday.
    “I just had the washer and drier delivered and I haven’t had a chance to do laundry yet,” he admitted. “Do you like the red?” he wanted to know, happy to have something to discuss other than who was trying to hurt Elizabeth.
    “I love the color,” she insisted. “When I imagine redoing my laundry room, I picture it like this,” she told him, smiling. “What have you done with the rest of your house?”
    “I’ll show you around,” he said. “In fact, you are my first visitor who isn’t family. My Mom and sister have been here.”
    “Did they help you decorate?”
    “Nope. Mom would use nothing but antiques and my sister is into contemporary modern, and I hate that. I’m more traditional,” he explained.
    They walked into the kitchen and Elizabeth gasped in pleasure. The cabinets were a rich wood and they went all the way to the ceiling. The countertops were granite, and the backsplash was made of glass. But what truly surprised, and pleased, her were the appliances. They were black and not the stainless steel that most people seemed to want these days. “This is so well done, Craig. Did you redo it?”
    “Yes, I did. The previous owner had stainless steel everywhere—the appliances, the countertops, and the backsplash. It looked sterile, not like a home. And, the