Series: Little Cakes Series by Pepper North
Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 44942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Paul licked his lips and leaned in to try to kiss her.
“What? No!” Lark pushed forcefully against his chest, rocking the slight man back on his heels. That gave her just enough room to dash away and flee down the steps.
She could hear the pounding of his footsteps behind her. Paul said nothing. That eerie lack of response ratcheted her panic. Lark had to get away from this man. Her inner voice screamed at her. Precious seconds ticked by as she opened the front door. Finally, Lark burst into the fresh air.
“No!” Lark screamed when he clamped a hand around her arm and yanked her to a stop. Whirling around to face him, she felt his fingers tangle painfully in her hair. To her horror, he lowered his face toward hers once again.
Those drills Wyatt had led the self-defense class through helped her move without conscious thought. She kicked Paul’s shin hard with the point of her fashionable pump, sending a shock wave of impact through her own foot. His reaction followed a second later.
“You bitch!” he howled, trying to pull her back toward him.
Immediately, Lark repeated her kick. This time, she delivered blow after blow to his shins as she wrenched her arm from his hold and tugged her hair free. Like a shot, she ran to her car, jumped inside, and locked the doors.
She was shaking as she tried to get the key in the ignition, nearly dropping it. As she backed out of the long drive, Lark nodded in satisfaction when she saw Paul rolling in pain in the front landscaping. How dare he!
That rush of anger evaporated quickly, and Lark began to shake. She fumbled for her phone and called the person she wanted most.
“Daddy?”
Wyatt’s taped greeting answered her. She disconnected and focused on driving to his house. He’d make everything better. Clamping her fingers around the steering wheel, Lark blinked away the hot tears that threatened to fall from her eyes.
I’m okay. I’m okay. I’m okay.
The shrill ring of her phone made her jump. Seeing her Daddy’s name, Lark fumbled to answer. She heard his apology for missing her call, but it didn’t matter. He was there now. Instantly, she felt safe again. Her fright flashed into anger. Words tumbled from her lips as she told him what had happened.
“He tried to kiss me! That jerk!”
“Are you okay, kitten?”
“I’m fine,” she huffed. “I left him writhing in the flower bed.”
“Slow down. What happened?”
Lark took a deep breath, gripping the steering wheel as she rambled through the events. She was seeing red the entire time.
“Did you call the police, kitten?”
“I just got out of there, Daddy. I ran just like you told me to,” Lark confessed. “I’m so pissed,” she spat into the phone.
“Pull over in a safe area and text me the address of the house. I’ll phone it in and come to you. You call your office and report the incident.”
Several hours later, Wyatt escorted Lark from the police station. A uniformed police officer had picked Paul up from his office. The executive had vacated the property by the time the squad car had checked out the house for sale. Lark filed assault charges against him, knowing the wealthy man’s lawyers would get him off.
“Do you think he’ll try that again with someone else?” she asked.
“I have no doubt. The guys who interviewed him said he was convinced you had asked him to kiss you. Only the bruises on his shins and your hair scattered on the porch of that house attested to what had really happened.”
“Good. I hope his shins hurt like crap tomorrow.” Lark nodded in satisfaction as Wyatt helped her into her car. “My company won’t work with him anymore. I think they’ll warn the other realtors in town, too.”
“I’m glad you stood up for yourself, kitten. Are you okay to drive back to the house?”
“I’m okay, Daddy,” she assured him before reaching up to grab a handful of his T-shirt. “Thanks for teaching me how to react.”
“My pleasure. I want you safe. Let’s go home.”
“I like the sound of that.”
“Home?”
“Yes. Can I stay with you tonight?”
“Try getting out of my sight, kitten.”
Wyatt followed her back to the new house. She smiled at the sight of the pipe he’d dropped on the driveway. There was no doubt her Daddy had hurried to get to her.
“What are the neighbors going to think of the messy new people who moved in next door?” she teased as Wyatt picked up the pipe and grabbed the supplies still in his car.
“Two were here when I got ahold of you. I’ll introduce you later. Come on, kitten. I need to sit down and hold you close.” Wyatt ushered her into the house.
Dropping everything at the door, he pulled her into his arms. “You okay, Little girl?”
Lark thought for a moment. “Yeah, I am. It was scary to have someone come on to me like that. I’m proud of myself for fighting back. I definitely should have listened to that warning voice earlier.”