The Ivy House - By Drea Stein Page 0,48

was still around her and she could smell him, a mix of soap and spicy aftershave, melding together in a heady combination that made her knees feel just slightly wobbly.

His hand grasped her wrist and pulled her closer to him. She met his eyes, could see that they were dark, liquid, as if consumed by something. His nostrils flared and he leaned in, smelling her hair.

“You smell amazing,” he said, his voice a hoarse, ragged whisper. She felt any last inhibitions melt away, and she wasn’t quite sure who moved first so that they were facing each other and she was encircled in the strong span of his arms.

It seemed as if time stood still, and Phoebe was aware of everything, from the fresh breath of air that wafted in from the window that was propped open to the sound of a bird singing and the whisper of the new green leaves in the trees. And then she heard the sound of her own heart beating and could hear Chase’s ragged breath as his gaze roamed over her, taking her in, his blue eyes dark.

“What was that?” They sprang apart, and Phoebe’s eyes traveled up to the ceiling. Dust trickled down and the hanging light fixture swung slightly. Her heart was thumping, and she had clutched her hands to her chest, no longer in the strong confines of Chase’s arms.

It came again, another crash and then a scurrying sound. Chase’s head was cocked up and he watched the ceiling. A slow smile came over his face.

“Squirrels, a raccoon maybe, in the attic.”

“Yuck.” Phoebe wasn’t crazy about animals. Sure, dogs were fine and cats OK, but anything else…especially in her house, was just too off-putting to think about. Somehow, she hadn’t thought about that aspect of living in the country when she’d been dreaming of Ivy House.

“Where are the stairs?” Chase asked. He was still looking up, completely oblivious to her, and it was with supreme disappointment that she realized he was not going to kiss her after all.

“Stairs?”

“To the attic.” There was a touch of impatience in his voice. “They could be getting away.”

“You’re going to go up there?”

“Sure. How else are we going to get rid of them?” he said.

Call an exterminator, Phoebe thought, but didn’t voice it. “What about rabies?” she said instead.

“I’m not going to catch them. I just need to find out where they’re coming in from. And then we can set traps and get them out.”

“Kill them?” All of a sudden, Phoebe didn’t relish the thought of killing innocent animals. After all, in their minds, they had been there first.

“No, of course not. We’ll set special no-kill traps, catch them and then release them. But we need to find out how they’re getting in so they don’t get right back in. So, the stairs?” he said again, his impatience marked with a smile.

Phoebe thought for a moment. “In the hallway.”

She led the way out of the bedroom towards the door that led to a closet. It was big for one, an odd-shaped room above the stairs, and it had a round window in it. “Up there.”

There was a trap door in the ceiling, with a rope hanging from it.

“You might want to stand back,” Chase said.

“Are you sure we shouldn’t call someone?” Phoebe asked. Chase had pulled a small flashlight from his pocket and was already pulling on the rope. It was stuck and he handed the flashlight to Phoebe as he put both hands on the rope, tugging hard.

With a squeak and a groan, the door came free and a cloud of dust fell down. Chase was quick, and he sidestepped the dust storm easily, pushing Phoebe out of the way so she was spared the worst of it. Still, grime swirled in the air, and she could feel it settling in her hair.

There was a ladder folded up against the underside of the door and Chase reached up and swung it down. It gave another protesting squeak and then there was silence. In agreement, the two of them paused and listened. The rustling had stopped, Phoebe noted with relief.

Chase put his foot on the bottom rung, tested his weight, turned, took the flashlight from Phoebe, and shot her a wink.

“If I’m not back in five, call in the cavalry.”

Phoebe was about to protest, but then she remembered it was just an attic. She watched his amazingly cute backside disappear into the gloom above. There was a pause, silence and she half-expected to hear