even before he could see what he expected to see he could hear the voice . she could feel his breath on her neck as she studied the letter opener on his desk ; she could reach it with her free hand . it was a question of how far he wanted to go . i nodded and then she got up and headed toward the kitchen . and when i get there , i always wonder about everything that could be going on on the other side of that cracked door . `` but what do i do about lucas ? '' 