Free Big Girls Don't Cry by Taylor Lee

stack. She closed her eyes, shuddering, resisting the reality. Someone had been in her room. And it sure as hell wasn’t room service, she thought with a grimace.
    She felt in her purse for Jake’s card. Even as she searched for it, she knew she couldn’t call him. She’d seen his anger, felt his disappointment. No, she was in this alone. Just as she’d said she wanted to be. Taking a deep breath, she worked the heavy dresser from side to side until it rested against the flimsy door. Self consciously, looking in the shadows, as though someone might jump out, she undressed. Slipping on an exercise bra and skimpy workout shorts, she went out on the balcony to begin her practice. She was unwilling to stay in the depressing room a minute longer.
    After a long intense practice that did nothing to quiet her jangling nerves and chaotic emotions, she peered through the dirty glass on the sliding door. Looking at the empty room with its spooky shadows, the balcony seemed a safer place to sleep than the bedroom. She knew she was being foolish, but she could feel the intruder. She felt violated, compromised. She’d have to find a new place in the morning. She couldn’t stay here another night. Wrapped in the cleanest blanket she could find, she snuggled against the plaster wall on the balcony. She hugged the Glock that Anthony gave her next to her chest. She comforted herself with the thought that if nothing else, she‘d have the advantage of hearing anyone who tried to get by the dresser wedged against the door.
    She closed her eyes, knowing how unlikely sleep was. She finally drifted off, caught in the dream of flying through the starlit night holding onto Jake’s strong back. In her dream, he held her tight, protecting her from the wind. She was warm, safe.

 
     
    Chapter 8
     
    The big man hiding in the shadows below watched her fierce movements. It wasn’t quite as good as the peep shows at the Senora Traviesa . She was wearing too many clothes, he thought with a lascivious grunt. But hell, what a body. She was doing some kind of martial arts. The more he watched, the more entranced he became. Every kick and strike showed off her long legs and tight ass. He’d never thought that he’d get turned on by a fighter, but just the thought of her writhing over him perked up his dormant prick. He grimaced thinking how much better it would be if Blondie got it on with Bella. Yeah, now that was a fight he’d like to see. He liked to watch.
    Safely hidden in the tangle of the overgrown bougainvillea and oleanders he laughed at the undercover guy lounging by the empty swimming pool. Like everything else in this dump, the pool was filthy, filled with years of dirt, weeds, and trash that had blown its way. The undercover guy looked like he belonged. His shaggy hair, and unkempt clothes, the familiar tattered garb of the homeless men who skulked in the shadows, made him blend in. He couldn’t remember his name, but he knew he’d seen the sneaky fucker around, at the station.
    Furious anger washed over him at the thought of the mighty Jake Gardner coming in to solve the big case. He snarled thinking about the tall, blue-eyed soldier who rode in on his Electra Glide like he ruled the world. His blood boiled at the way Jake had plopped that gorgeous girl on the back like she belonged to him. The big guys, the important ones, the ones everyone noticed and admired, didn’t see men like him, even when they saw him every day. He was part of the background. Invisible. Not worth a second thought. Even when the invisible ones reared up and threatened the big guys’ worlds, the assholes ignored them. They never thought that the indistinguishable ones could screw them over. How could they? Why would they? He growled. Oh, yeah, they recognized the threat and they were out to get to the source. But they’d never catch him. They didn’t know he existed. They never dreamed who it was in the shadows, taking them down one by one.
    Remembering