Safe at Home (Warm Springs Trilogy Book 1) by Christina Kirby

impossible not to get in the truck.
    Sam’s mind reeled as they road in silence toward her house. Here she was with a man that infuriated her, sitting in his truck no less, confused, annoyed and completely aroused. She had never in her life been kissed like that. With Tyler, it had always been sweet, tender, but it never made her feel this sense of need. What was happening to her?
    Spencer turned into her drive and she reached for the handle. She missed the handle the first time and tried again. When she glanced over her shoulder, she saw him suppress a grin and felt her face redden.
    “Thanks for the ride home. And the dance.”
    “No problem, sugar. See you soon.”
    She shut the door and all but ran into the house. Leaning against the door, with her hand pressed to her forehead, she sighed in relief. Her hand slid from her brow and lightly skimmed over her lips. They were still humming from Spencer’s kiss.
    No.
    She pushed away from the door. She had to put a stop to this. But, how was she going to do it? She couldn’t deny it. Not to herself. She liked him, even more than she was willing to admit. She thought about him at work, at home, when she was watching the news or planting flowers. All the time.
    After washing up and changing into her favorite pajama pants and a tank top, Sam climbed into bed. Her fingers twisted the sheet until it wrinkled like a prune. Frustrated, she released it and turned onto her side. Her mind wouldn’t turn off. Shadows danced across her wall and reminded her of her time in Spencer’s arms on the dance floor. She turned to her other side, determined to push him out of her mind. Sleep would erase the feel of him, but not if she couldn’t calm down. What she needed was a girlfriend. Someone to commiserate.
    Denise . She sat up and flipped on her lamp. The phone rang and then went to voicemail. Sam mumbled, “She must be on a date.” They hadn’t talked in two weeks. Turning her light off, she rolled over and played the scene by the truck over and over in her head until she finally fell asleep.
    The following morning, Sam was running behind. She grabbed a piece of toast and flipped on the television in her room for some noise while she finished getting ready. She could hear the broadcaster on the news touch on all the regular highlights, civil unrest, the financial deficit, the weather and then they said something about a person who was still at large for the gruesome murder of a Chicago woman.
    Sam froze, her brush still in her hand. She didn’t know why she was holding her breath. Chicago was a big city after all. But, she couldn’t stop herself from walking out of her bathroom and sitting on the edge of her bed. Come on, come on. Get to it.
    The opening stories seemed to take forever. Then Jerry Master’s face appeared looking serious. “ This morning we bring you a story filled with questions and very few answers. A Chicago woman was murdered in a gruesome manner days ago, but the police have no leads.”
    Sam was holding her breath.
    “ This building was the setting for what has turned out to be . . .”
    Tears sprang to Sam’s eyes as a picture of Denise’s building came onto the screen.
    “We now turn to Dan Avery who is live in Chicago.”
    “Good morning, Jerry. Police were called in to inspect a strange smell coming from one of the condominiums inside this building. Upon arrival, the police got much more than they expected. A woman in her early forties was found mutilated with all of her hair burned off and tied to a chair. Police are not releasing the woman’s name at this time, but it is known she worked at a local bank and was born in the area. We spoke with Detective Martin earlier, and this is what he had to say.”
    The camera cut to a middle-aged man with salt and pepper hair standing behind a podium. “We do not have any leads at this time, but we do believe the victim was known by the attacker. If anyone has seen anything, please get in touch with your