Valentine Jones hated her name almost as much as she hated Valentine's Day. The jokes swung around like clockwork--just like the day. "Hey Val, going to send yourself to someone this year?"
It was a stupid taunt. But someone, usually an obnoxious guy, had asked her the same thing every year since she'd been in grade school. It was always followed with a question of whether or not she planned to hook-up with Cupid this year. As if! She was more likely to shoot the little bastard with the gun hidden in her closet than she was to let him within fifty feet of her. And judging from the lack of lovers in her life, she was a far better shot than he was. That little bugger was dead meat.
She wasn't hooking up with Cupid or any other man who might end up on her doorstep.
Val preferred her men digital and far away. She glanced at her computer screen.
Like this one.
Licking the cream from the centre of an Oreo, she surveyed the chat text scrolling across the screen from tonight's on-screen lover. She was the queen of one-night-cyber-stands, but hey, she got off on it and she didn't have to worry about a jerk or an STD in the morning.
But this guy, Master Noah, was an anomaly. He refused to be a one-night stand. She'd met him a month ago and didn't know him by more than his screen moniker, yet he made her hotter than any flesh-and-blood-and-naked in her living room man ever had.
Still, he fit her profile for the ideal man. Although he was an American, he was far away--across the ocean in England. Perfect. The thought of one of her cyber lovers visiting her sent a shudder down her spine. Hermit wasn't her middle name for nothing.
Well, it wasn't. But it should be.
She didn't want any live-and-in-person encounters. She'd been burned once too often by the dating circuit. Burned and hurt...
She wanted digital only. Master Noah was certainly digital. He manipulated computer systems as easily as he manipulated her system. No matter how many times she vowed this was the last night, she wouldn't cyber-screw him again, he enticed her into one more encounter. No matter how many times she'd avoided the places where they'd met, he found her. Over and over, he popped up and made her break her never-again promise.
"How do you keep finding me?" she typed. He'd found her even when she used different user IDs. And today her instant message system popped up with a message from him and she was sure she hadn't turned it on.
"IP address."
Was that possible? She'd never heard of that. What would she know? She wasn't exactly the computer master of the Western World.
"What are you wearing?" he asked.
That was quick. He usually talked more before he dove right into it. Considering tomorrow was Valentines she'd expected more hearts and flowers. Not that she was all that into mush and romance--it was all over-rated. Master Noah seemed to think so too since he wasn't bothering with preliminaries today. A sense of desperation vibrated through their cyber connection.
"Is everything okay?" she asked.
"What are you wearing?" he repeated.
Her breathing quickened as the desperation grabbed her again. She glanced down at her clothes as her belly clenched and her panties grew damp. Damn. How did he do that?
"Red negligee," she lied. "Low cut with tiny straps."
"No you're not."
"What?" she typed in shock.
"You're wearing..."
Biting her lip, she stared at the words, waiting.
"Sweat pants and an over-sized green T-shirt," he finished.
Her heart nearly sailed from her chest. She glanced down at her baggy green tee and grey sweat pants. How could he know that? Completely freaked out, she frantically glanced around, noting that all the windows were covered. Jumping up, she checked the doors, finding them locked.
Maybe it was a lucky guess. He'd never done this before. She'd never felt threatened. She paused at the wild fluttering in her belly. Her arms crossed her middle as she realised she didn't feel terribly threatened now. What kind of idiot are you? You're excited.
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