Daddy's Double Due Date by Belinda Barnes

Author:Belinda Barnes
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2013-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven

After a couple of weeks of twiddling her thumbs and spending her evenings alone, Ashley decided to take action. She glanced at the basement door as she placed her empty glass on the kitchen counter. The roar of a power tool came from below, the pitch higher, more of a whine than the sounds she’d heard earlier.

The noise beckoned her. She walked to the basement door, remembering Hunter’s warning not to venture there, and placed her hand on the wood. The force of the offending screech from downstairs vibrated against her palm. The tingling glided up her arm and curled into the pit of her stomach, making her feel anxious and uneasy, the same way she felt whenever Hunter watched her. She shouldn’t think about him in that way, or any way for that matter, but found herself missing him more with each tick of the clock.

After several weeks of persistent proposals, it now seemed as if Hunter had given up. With him being gone to work all day, she frankly resented his withdrawal at night and wished he would come upstairs. She didn’t know when she’d come to the conclusion he’d avoided her but she couldn’t shake the feeling any more than she could stop the need building inside her to be with him.

Ashley stepped away from the door. She walked to the window above the kitchen sink and studied the new green grass pushing its way through the thawed ground. Should she seek Hunter out or wait for him to surface?

She wet a washcloth and wiped the counter for the tenth time since Hunter had sought the seclusion of the basement. She didn’t understand why his leaving her alone bothered her so much. Considering the many nights she had waited for her ex-husband to come home, she should be used to a solitary life. Only for some reason this wasn’t at all the same.

Her ex had spent his evenings with loose women. At least Hunter stayed home…with his power tools. Between tramps and power tools, she believed Hunter had gotten the better deal.

She had allowed her ex to keep secrets for most of their six-year marriage. That was one mistake she wouldn’t repeat. Another was letting any man tell her what to do. It was time to invade “no man’s land.” Ashley gave the counter a determined swipe before tossing the rag into the sink. She crossed the room and tugged the door open, then winced at the piercing wail that blasted her. She covered her ears and carefully picked her way down the rickety staircase one step at a time. The absence of a handrail made her nervous, and she hugged the wall as she peered down into what appeared to be fog.

The pungent scent of freshly cut wood enveloped Ashley as she carefully descended into the cold dampness until her feet came to rest on the concrete floor. Bent over a table of sorts with his back to her, Hunter stood beneath a lone bulb that gave off a dull glow in the center of the room.

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