Page 1 of Cuddling Carly

Chapter One

Carly Thedford knew she wasn’t alone.

She could feel eyes on her as she went about her tasks in the kitchen, mixing the batter for her latest batch of cupcakes.

Trying not to panic, she remained calm, still humming to herself as she inched closer to the block of knives that rested nearby on the countertop.

The thought of grabbing one of the sharp blades and actually threatening another human soured her stomach. She didn’t want to hurt anyone, even if they had broken into her home. But she couldn’t just roll over and be a defenseless victim, either.

It was moments like these when she hated living alone.

She wasn’t right in the center of town, either—not that Valley Spring was much of one. Still, it had a Main Street, a couple of neighborhoods—if one could call those clusters of houses that—and some businesses.

In other words, people were there. Only a few. But still—people.

But out in the rural country where she lived, nope. No one would hear her scream.

That’s why she had to reach for that knife, no matter how badly the thought of it made her skin crawl.

There were some noises behind her. Nothing too loud. Just a little clicking. But those eyes…she felt those eyes on her! Someone was sizing her up. Just watching. Waiting.

The block of knives rested by a ceramic jack-o-lantern, and Carly had the grim realization that it was fitting such a scary thing would be happening around Halloween.

It was one of her favorite holidays. But this went beyond spooky fun.

This was awful.

With goosebumps covering her arms, Carly moved quickly now, fearing she was running out of time. Grabbing the biggest knife in the block, she turned around quickly and held it out, ready to strike.

The cute big eyes of a cow stared back at her while the animal lazily chewed on a piece of straw, the end hanging out its mouth.

“Oh. Uh, hello.” Carly sat the knife down, walked around the island, and approached the animal.

Looking at the open back door, she saw that there weren’t more cows waiting to stream inside. This one had wandered in alone and there would be no more bovine intruders.

“Honey, where did you come from?”

The cow just kept chewing on the hay.

Laughing, Carly slowly reached out and began to pet it between its ears. This was a small animal—clearly young and not anywhere close to full-size.

“Where’s your cow family?” she asked. Giggling, she added, “Did you follow the aroma of yummy cupcakes here?”

Carly’s mind raced. She couldn’t just let the cow stay in the house. But how would she get her out?

And where would it go once it left? Would the animal know how to get back to wherever she came from?

This was quite a conundrum. But it sure beat a crazy killer coming into her house!

“Okay, what are we going to do, honey?”

Carly’s eyes darted back to the tray of cupcakes she’d just frosted. Hmm. Do cows like cupcakes? Could she lure her new friend outside with one of those?

Dogs would eat almost anything. Some cats liked people food, too. But Carly didn’t know anything about cows, she realized.

But even if the cow would follow the cupcake, that still didn’t answer the question as to what they’d do then. Carly supposed just getting her out of the house was a good start, though.

One problem at a time. That was sort of Carly’s motto, and it usually served her well.