Distracted

  Distracted

  By Rita Hestand

  Published by Smashwords.com

  Copyright © 2010 Rita Hestand

  Smashwords Edition

  License Note

  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or given away to other people. Please purchase an additional copy for each person you share with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.

  And now…Distracted, a novella

  Chapter One

  Jake entered the Turner house with precaution. The 911 call was from a hysterical woman. However, there wasn't a sound in the old two-story house now. The door creaked as he closed it, and pulled his gun. Something had been amiss surely or the woman wouldn't have sounded so desperate. Nevertheless, where was she?

  He cocked the gun and waited. Nothing.

  "Hello…anyone home?" He called, not knowing who else might be there.

  "I'm up here, please…come quickly…," she gasped loudly.

  Jake ran quickly up the stairs, but he couldn't tell where the voice had come from.

  "Ma'am? Where are you?" Jake called.

  "I'm in the bathroom, please hurry," she sounded scared.

  Jake heard the voice coming from his left and saw the door barely cracked. He pushed the door open with the tip of his gun and it swung open.

  The woman was in the bathtub. Jake scanned the room, until his eyes landed on the villain with a jolt. No matter how many calls he had during his term as Deputy Sheriff he hadn't had one like this before. A rattlesnake bigger than Texas hissed, as it slid about the bathtub fixture.

  Reacting with lightning speed Jake spoke firmly, but softly, "Don't scream, or move…ma'am."

  In a flash he fired his gun and the snake slithered into the tub with the woman, along with a splattering of blood, faucet, and water.

  She let out a horrid scream and tried to move away from the blood oozing toward her, the snakehead floated on top the water.

  "Oh my God…" she wailed. She looked at the snake, then the man leering at her from the doorway. She moved away from the snakehead and blood, but she'd scooted herself up in the tub until the man could see her breast. She'd lost her washrag in her rush to move away from the snakehead, there was nowhere to hide. What was she supposed to do now? He'd already seen half of her, but she still crimsoned."Oh…please, could you throw me the towel and my robe behind you?"

  "Yes ma'am," he smiled and moved to pull the towel and robe from the hook behind the door. In one swift toss, he threw it toward her and started backing out of the bathroom, but not before he got an eyeful of beautiful pouting breast, and hair the color of chocolate flowing over ivory shoulders.

  "Thank you," she called as he closed the door behind him.

  Jake hadn't seen a naked woman that pretty in a long time and although he knew he shouldn't be thinking along those lines, he was sorely tempted to join her in the tub. However, considering the circumstances he was almost positive she wouldn't appreciate it.

  He waited till she came out. Her long brown hair cascaded over the white robe like a soft wide ribbon. Her brown eyes spoke her discomfiture.

  "I'm…sorry…about the circumstances. Can you tell me what happened? I mean I've had some weird calls before, but this one takes the cake."

  "Well, yes, I came home from work, I'm a nurse at the hospital, and I was tired and weary and thought a bath might make me feel better. So I climbed in my tub. But I wasn't there long before that snake stared me down as it crawled under the doorway. Do snakes come in the house all the time?"

  "No ma'am, they don't. Especially rattlesnakes." Jake assured her. "Go on, what happened?"

  "Well I stood up and reached over to get my cell phone and dialed 911 as fast as I could. The snake scared me silly. He just stood there staring at me for a long while, and then after I hung up, he began moving towards the tub. I knew I was in trouble, but I didn't know what to do. He moved very slowly at first. He coiled a couple of times before he got up to the tub and the faucets. I've never been so scared in my life…how could this have happened?"

  "I don't know ma'am. How long have you lived out here, I thought the Turner place was vacant."

  "It was, but Mr. Turner rented it to me for the summer." She replied, batting her ultra long lashes as she thought about it.

  "I see, how long ago?"

  "Oh not long, about two weeks, I guess. I moved here because of my job and couldn't find a place to stay in town. I needed a big yard, for my dogs. When someone at work told me that this place was empty I quickly called around to find out who owned it and if it was for rent. The elder Mr. Turner didn't hesitate, but the younger one seemed distraught when I picked up the key a few days later."

  "I see. And you are?"

  "Oh I'm sorry, I'm Tara Simmons," she offered her hand for a shake.

  He took it gently into his, noting the difference in the sizes and then he looked at her, trying not to remember how beautiful she looked in that tub.

  "Tara, I'm Jake Quinton, the Deputy Sheriff of Sweetwater." He smiled at her, holding her hand a little longer than was expected.

  She smiled, used to being flirted with, she walked down the stairs with him right behind her.

  "I'm sorry to have called you, but I honestly didn't know what to do. I've never had a snake in my bath before…I thought about animal control but I have no idea what their number is."

  Jake snickered, "No ma'am. I've never seen a rattler in a bathtub before either. If I had, I would have called 911 too, I'm sure. Do you always keep your cell so close in the bathroom?"

  She glanced at him with a frown, "Well, no…not really, but I was expecting Judy to call and tell me I had to come back to work tonight. We're a little short handed right now."

  He nodded.

  "Well…I'll go get that out of your tub for you and be on my way, then…" he tipped his hat to her.

  "I'm really sorry," she began as he brushed by her.

  He turned to look at her, his glance sliding all over her "I'm not…" and he smiled."Nicest thing that's happened to me all week."

  He went back to the bathroom and after throwing the snake out the window; he cleaned the tub and wiped up the floor and wall with a dirty towel. Returning to her in the kitchen he cleared his throat to announce himself and ask her where to put the towel. She took it out of his hands and took it to the washing machine behind the kitchen.

  "Oh…could I offer you a cup of coffee?" she asked as she saw he was about to leave.

  "I'd love to take you up on that, but I've got to get on over to check on something." Jake stared down into her beautiful wide brown eyes.

  "Well thank you for taking care of that for me. Now I know who to call, don't I?"

  "I hope so…" he smiled.

  "I have to admit I really am a little shaken about this…I mean, a snake in my bathroom?" she gulped the first sip of coffee and it was too hot, she choked and nearly spit it out. It was much hotter than normal. She glanced at the cup as though it were against her too.

  "Are you all right?" Jake came closer.

  "Oh…oh, yes, I'm fine; it's just that the coffee is scorching hot…." She coughed.

  "Let me see," he took the cup from her hand and put his finger to the edge. "That is boiling hot. Did you just make this?"

  "Yes, in the coffee pot. It's mine, but it's never been this hot."

  She wiped her mouth on a paper towel then stared up into Jake's eyes, "I'm sorry, I guess you must think I’m deranged or something…"

  Jake frowned down into her face, "Not at all…just some bad luck I'd say…"

  "Must have been an electrical surge or something…" she glanced at the electric coffee maker.

  "You're kind of unnerved aren't you?" Jake asked, his hands going to her shoulders as he realized the woman was spooked.

  "A little, I guess. I mean, ever since I moved in, strange things have been happening…," she said. "Well, maybe not strange, but things I cannot explain."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Oh, the fence gate being unlocked when I know I locked it. The creaking sounds at night and the garage door locked when I don't even own a key to it.

  Jake's investigative mind snapped to, taking him away from the beautiful woman to the prospect of something going wrong around the place. "You are a little out in the country."

  "Oh well, I have to be…" she glanced up at him, not realizing how close he was.

  "Why?"

  "I raise German Sheppard's. That's why I rented this place, it was so perfect." She smiled again, and made him forget about problems. He was drowning in those big brown pools of whiskey colored eyes.

  "German Sheppard's. Well…that's interesting. I didn't hear any barking when I drove up."

  "Oh…that's because they haven't arrived yet. My sister is bringing them on Sunday."

  Jake nodded, "Ah…well, that explains that, I guess. Why do you raise them?"

  "To sell, but my sister who is moving in with me trains them and then we sell them to clients."

  "Police training?"

  "Sometimes. Guard dogs, police dogs, or just protection."

  "Well you probably wouldn't have had that snake around with those kinds of dogs," he chuckled.

  "Yes, that's for sure. I only wish they were here now. Thanks again for your help, even though it was a little embarrassing."

  "It was all m
y pleasure…" Jake couldn't help but smile.

  "I hope your wife doesn't mind you flirting so," she chuckled.

  "I don't have one of those," he replied. "Yet…"

  She smiled, "Well, thanks again…"

  "Anytime…" Jake added as he headed reluctantly for the door.

  However, she had an advantage, and he couldn't just walk away without finding out, "Uh…I only hope your husband will understand…"

  "Oh…I don't have one of those, either…Yet." She said softly, her eyes giving him a once over.

  "Good," he winked. "I'll take you up on the coffee at a later time…"

  "I'll look forward to it…"

  Chapter Two

  Two days later, Jake was telling Lori about the lady he'd met when the phone rang. Naturally he'd left out the part that he'd seen much more of her anatomy than he had a right to. Nevertheless, some things you just didn't share with secretaries with big mouths in small towns. "Sheriff's office, how can I help you?" Lori glanced at Jake and shrugged.

  "Calm down ma'am. Yes ma'am. Now just calm down and tell me what happened?" Lori shot Jake a puzzled frown.

  Jake recognized trouble just by the way Lori was talking to the caller. He was poised for it as he waited for her to finish the call.

  Lori laid down the phone, "You better get back out there, Jake. Something is going on out there. That was your new friend Ms. Simmons, is it? Someone's been in her house and left muddy foot prints all over the place."

  "Did they take anything?"

  "Not as far as she can tell."

  "I'll check it out." Jake didn't hesitate to take the call. For one he wanted to see Tara again, and all the weird things happening out there puzzled him. He'd never been out there before her calls.

  If there was some problem, he wanted to make sure she was all right, and he wanted to get to the bottom of it before things got out of hand. Rattlesnakes didn't go inside like that, and if they had they would have sought a cool dark place to hide, not a bathroom. He'd lived here in Sweetwater a long time, been raised on a ranch so he knew all about snakes and predators.

  He wished her sister would hurry up and show up with those dogs. He wouldn't feel so uneasy about her being there alone.

  When he got there Tara was filling a sink so she could mop the floor, "Hi Jake, I’m so glad you are here. Would you look at this?"

  The footprints were obvious and led to nowhere in particular, it looked as though someone had come in and purposely done this. Was it to spook her, or was it some practical joker? Jake didn't know, but he felt uneasiness about it.

  "Put the mop down, honey, I want to examine this and then we'll worry about cleaning up the mess." Jake instructed.

  He hadn't been aware of calling her honey, but it sure came natural to him, around her.

  She looked at him with those deep whiskey eyes and Jake felt like picking her up in his arms and carrying her to the nearest bedroom. She was still virtually a stranger though and he knew better than to jump into a relationship blindly. He had to remember that.

  "They don't lead anywhere. There's no purpose to this. It's like someone's trying to scare me or something…but why? What have I done?"

  "Been running around with married men, drug dealers…or the like?" Jake teased as she brought the mop into the living room. Jake was on the floor, comparing the size of the print to his own foot. Then he followed the track to the hall and nothing. Whoever it was took their shoes off from there.

  "Did they take anything?"

  "Not that I know of. I rented the house furnished, so I'm not sure. I suppose I should contact Mr. Turner and have him come over to see if anything is missing."

  "Yes, but I'm glad you called me first, so I could examine it."

  However, she wasn't smiling.

  "Oh Jake this scares me." she said and went into his waiting arms as though she belonged there from the start. Jake didn't object but he knew she wasn't faking either for she trembled against him.

  Jake cradled her as she shook from her own fears. She felt so right in his arms; he almost forgot why he was there.

  Jake pulled away from her and smiled down into her lovely face, "You keep this up, and we won't be investigating anything but each other."

  "I'm sorry…" she cried, and he couldn't resist pulling her back into his arms. "I wish my sister was here."

  "I do too, honey. I do too. I'm beginning to worry about you. If I had my way, I'd take you to my house and keep you there till Sunday." Jake smiled down into her face. "But I'm not sure you'd be out of harms way."

  "I think we should have a cup of coffee together first," she said as she pulled out of his arms.

  "Seriously Tara, why don't you move into town for a few days? Just until things begin to settle down." Jake suggested.

  "I can't afford that…" she shook her head and headed for the coffee pot again. "Funny, the coffee pot hasn't boiled over since you were here."

  "That really could have just been an electrical surge with bad timing," Jake smiled.

  She made coffee and gestured for the kitchen table. Jake heard his radio going off and answered it. It was Lori; she had a call about vandalism down at the high school. He glanced at Tara and shrugged. "Guess that coffee will have to wait again…"

  "Anytime…and thanks for coming out. I noticed you measuring the footsteps. Any clue as to who could have been here?"

  "Not really, obviously a man, it's a big print. In addition, the mud is dark, not sandy like the dirt in the front yard. Like maybe he walked out by the road and came in. Where were you today?"

  "Oh, I went to the hardware store to buy some things for the gate, a better lock, and some dog food supplies. Selena will be here soon and I wanted to get started in my spare time fixing the back yard up."

  "Good idea, did you lock the door when you left?"

  "Yes…yes…I did. I locked it when I left. And there is no sign of entry anywhere but the front room. It makes little sense to me…"

  Jake listened and made a few mental notes.

  "Got any ideas?"

  "Maybe, but I'll keep them to myself until I've checked things out. Since I’m off tomorrow evening do you think we could have that coffee and maybe take in a movie or something?"

  She smiled, "You are a fast worker aren't you?"

  "Moving slow around a pretty woman out here makes for more bachelors." He smiled.

  "Okay, coffee it is, and yes, you can take me to a movie too. I'd like to get out of here for a while. I'm off at two tomorrow, that will give me time to clean up and make your coffee."

  "Great…see ya then..." he called over his shoulder.

  She smiled and closed the door. She turned to the prints on the floor, and then yelled out the door, "Hey, can I mop up now?"

  "Yeah, sure…go ahead," he yelled back.

  She waved and went to work.

  Chapter Three

  The next afternoon, Jake showed up just a bit early, and since Tara was busy in the kitchen he told her he wanted to look around the house. A few minutes later he came inside.

  Tara was wearing a pretty summer dress that showed off her beautifully tanned legs and Jake couldn't take his eyes off her. The neckline of her dress softly draped over her breast and Jake was mesmerized by the site of her.

  "Did you find out anything?" she asked as she poured the coffee in their cups and sat down at the table.

  "Yeah, who ever it was came down the road and up the drive and into the house. They either realized their tracks or just wanted to scare you with them. Since they didn't break in I have a suspicion that I know who did this…"

  "Oh…who?" Tara's eyes were round as saucers.

  "Mr. Turner's son."

  "Mr.…but what makes you think it's him…"

  Jake sighed. "Because you said Mr. Turner's son didn't want his father renting this place, and Mike Turner is well…a little strange… and he would have a key, so it all ads up."

  "What do you mean…strange?" Tara gulped.

  "Oh…noting to worry over. But Mike…well, he's not totally right in the head….He may just want to scare you off the place…"

  "But…I paid the rent…"

  "Honey, Mike doesn't care about the money. For some reason he doesn't want you out here, in his head. And it could be that he just wants you to leave…" Jake stared into her beautiful eyes again. "Come to think of it, Old man Turner tried to rent it before and didn't because of Mike. I guess he needed the money this time."