Free Call On Me by Angela Verdenius Page B

outside in a thin nightgown. A very thin
nightgown. The light behind her showed the outline of her lush
curves in tantalising peeks.
    Good God, the
woman shouldn’t be outside dressed like that! In fact, she
shouldn’t be out at all, not alone at this time of the morning. Who
knew what perverts lurked around? Not that anyone had ever actually
come to any harm in the small town, but still, a woman dressed in
nothing but a thin nightgown shouldn’t be parading around in it in
her backyard.
    Bounding out of
the chair, Ghost ran down the stairs, across the hall and into the
kitchen, flinging open the back door and running down into the back
yard. Crossing to the fence, he placed his hands on the top of it
and pulled himself up, bracing his hands on the fence as he looked
around at the now empty Mackay yard. Ali had gone inside, the click
of the door lock audible on the night air, the back light switched
off, leaving him hanging onto the fence in the dark.
    Dropping back
onto the ground, Ghost shook his head. He’d have to have a chat to
her about her safety, and he’d have to include Lori in that talk if
she did the same thing. Odd, he’d never noticed it before, mainly
because both sisters usually went out together if it was a late
night, this was the first time he’d ever seen one of them out there
alone and it wasn’t something he liked. True, they lived in a small
town, but anything could happen, especially when strangers came and
went.
    Like Chris
Smith, who no doubt knew exactly where Ali lived.
    Yep, he was
going to have a chat to her this afternoon when they’d all be out
of bed.
    Turning around,
he went back into the house.
    ~*~
    Matt was coming
over at five to watch the footy game and bringing the pizzas with
him. Ghost checked the ‘fridge. Light beers and Coke were nice and
cold and everything was ready. The furry horde were scoffing down
‘roo meat and all was right with the world.
    Time to have
that little chat with Ali. No doubt she wouldn’t welcome it, but he
was sure he could do it diplomatically.
    Going out the
back, he easily jumped the fence and crossed the grass to the
veranda. Up the steps, a quick knock on the door and he opened it
and walked inside. The kitchen was empty. “Ali? Lori? You girls up
yet?”
    Ali walked in
seconds later. “I’m here. What’s wrong?”
    His gaze
skimmed over her. Good God, the woman was dressed in the same thin
nightgown. The light behind her from the hallway outlined those
same lush curves and if the material had been a little thinner,
he’d have seen a lot more than just curves outlined. “Ali!” He
almost barked her name.
    “What?” Drawing
on an equally thin dressing gown, she yawned.
    “This.” He
waved his hand at her then the door. “That.”
    Brows raised,
she looked from him to the door and back.
    “You’re in your
nightie with the door unlocked,” he stated, more than a little
annoyed.
    “So?”
    “Look, I wasn’t
going to be so blunt about it but obviously you need it. I saw you
in the early hours of this morning.”
    “So?” Puzzled,
she crossed to the sink, picking up a glass and placing it under
the tap as she turned it on. “We were out at the pond. Of course
you saw me.”
    “I mean out in
the yard.”
    “You were
spying on me?”
    “No. I got a
glimpse of you and…” He took a deep breath, not sure why he was so
annoyed. “Look, I could see right through your nightie.”
    For several
seconds she stared at him. “So?”
    “Ali, I could
see through your nightie.”
    Her cheeks
flushed a little but she refused to look away. “That bothers you?
So don’t look.”
    This was harder
than he’d thought. “It didn’t bother me, but-”
    “So what’s the
point?” Taking a sip of water, she watched him closely over the rim
of the glass. Her green eyes had darkened a little, a sure
indication that she, in turn, was getting a little annoyed.
    “Look, you were
alone in the backyard in the early hours of the morning, no