“Then there’s hope, anyway. Good.”
Abby glanced at the back door, expecting Phil to show up any minute. Tonight Jess had gone to a cattleman’s-association meeting in town, and he wouldn’t be home until after the girls’ bedtime, adding to Abby’s usual sense of unease around Phil.
Still, she always had her cell phone. She could handle herself well, should the need arise. And if there was any actual trouble, she wouldn’t hesitate about letting Jess know.
Betty herded the girls to the table just as Abby was taking the biscuits out of the oven.
Sophie’s eyes opened wide when Abby carved the chicken and arranged it on a large platter framed by the veggies. “That looks yummy! Can I have a drumstick?”
“Of course. And Bella can have the other one, if she’d like.”
Phil came in the back door just as they were saying grace. He kicked off his boots and dumped his jacket by the door, then sauntered over to the table. He’d put on a clean shirt and his thin black hair had been slicked back.
Instead of taking his usual chair, he settled where Jess always sat. “I guess the boss isn’t here tonight, so I get to sit next to these pretty little ladies.” He looked at Bella and Sophie a little too long, his mouth pulled back into a faint smile. “He can’t have all the fun now, can he?”
Abby met Betty’s gaze and saw that the concern in the older woman’s eyes echoed her own.
Phil had been subtle until now. He’d made no overt move, had said nothing that was over the edge. But now...had Jess’s absence unleashed his darker side?
She passed the serving platter of chicken to him, followed by the mashed potatoes, broccoli and the basket of hot rolls.
She tried to eat her dinner, but it was as if everything had turned to sawdust. Finally she set her fork aside and dredged up a smile. “So, Bella and Sophie—what was the very best part of your day at school?”
“Story time,” Sophie said in a quiet voice. “On the carpet. It was a story about elephant babies.”
“What about you, Bella?”
“I liked our visitor best. He was a policeman, and he told us about his job.”
“He was probably the sheriff or a deputy, Bella. That’s what we have in this county. Did he say what he liked best?”
“Helping people. He does it every day.”
“Throws them in jail, more like it.” Phil laughed harshly. “And then throws away the key so they have to stay there and rot forever.”
Her eyes wide, Bella shot a furtive glance at him and then looked at Abby. “But the policeman said he likes to help people. Did he tell a lie?”
“Of course not, honey. Phil was just making a joke, and it wasn’t very funny.” She gave Phil a pointed look. “Now, maybe we should all just eat our dinners. Okay?”
He snickered under his breath. “Yes, ma’am.”
When everyone was finished, Abby cleared the table and brought out still-warm homemade chocolate puddings for everyone.
Phil idly twirled his spoon through his dessert, dawdling. He got up to get a coffee refill and sat down again, clearly in no hurry to leave.
Betty frowned at him, then Abby. “I’m taking the girls to their room to get them ready for bed. If you need any help out here, just holler.”
Abby cleared the rest of table and began loading the dishwasher. She could feel Phil’s eyes on her, watching every move as she sealed the leftovers in containers.
She’d tried to be open and fair. She’d tried not to be judgmental. But he’d crossed the line when he leered at the girls at dinner. She felt her anger rise, along with a powerful surge of protectiveness, and if she did nothing else at this ranch, she was going to make sure he left before anything worse happened.
“Are you done yet, Phil?”
Again, that leering smile. “Oh, you bet.”
He sat back in his chair and stretched out his legs as if settling in for a good long while, his gaze riveted on her chest. “You can take everything away.”
She would not be leaning over to take those dishes in front of him, not while he was still there. Waiting. “Dinner is over. It’s time for you to head back to your cabin, Phil.”
He made no move to get up from his chair. “You seem awfully jumpy, ma’am. I just want to enjoy the view a little while longer. No harm in that. There’s lousy TV reception out in my cabin and I got nothing else to do.”
“Please leave. I warn you, Jess is very protective about his family.”
“But you aren’t family. What are you? The nanny? I’m guessing that’s not all you do around here.”
Revulsion crawled up her throat.
She knew the guns were stored under lock and key in Jess’s office, the ammunition stored securely somewhere else. Not very handy if Phil made a move.
There was a knife block on the counter behind her, but the risk that he could wrestle one away from her and make it his own weapon was too great to even try.
“Look, I know Jess pays well. Surely you don’t want to throw that away. Just grab your jacket and go. Please.”
Phil slowly got out of his chair and strolled toward her like a big cat stalking its prey.
“You’re just sooo pretty.” He grabbed her arm roughly and hauled her up against his chest. “It isn’t fair that he has you all to himself.”
She twisted away and backed up, mentally running through the moves she’d learned in her last self-defense class. Closer. Just a little closer...
He reached for her again.
With one fluid motion she grabbed his wrist and used his forward momentum to pull him off balance. Rammed her knee into him with every ounce of energy she possessed. When he doubled over, she swiftly twisted his arm behind his back and slammed him to the floor.
“That must hurt,” she said with satisfaction. “I wonder if I broke your nose?”
Groaning pitifully, he tried to curl into a fetal position but she shoved his wrist higher along his spine until he yelped and fell limp in defeat.
“I have no words to describe how disgusted I am—or how much I’d like to see a deputy walk through that door right now,” she bit out, fishing her cell phone out of her pocket. “But I’m sure I can keep you right here until one does. In fact, I believe I could dislocate your shoulder with just a little more pressure, and I hear that’s really painful. So don’t try anything stupid.”
“It won’t take long for a deputy to arrive, dear. I called 911 the minute I took the girls to their bedroom. Fortunately, one was patrolling in town.” Betty stood in the doorway, her cane in one hand and a rifle in the other, the barrel pointed to the floor.
“Betty!” Abby stared at the rifle, shocked.
“It’s loaded,” she said primly. “I only ever used it on rattlesnakes too close to the house when my boys were young. I was actually a pretty good shot until I started getting cataracts. Now, I’m afraid I might aim for some nonessential part and accidently hit someone—like Phil, here—in a more serious place. I called Jess, too, by the way. He should be here anytime now.”
Five minutes later the back door swung open and Jess strode into the kitchen. His jaw dropped as he swiftly took in Betty’s rifle and the scene on the floor. “What’s going on?”
Abby rose to her feet slowly, relieved to move away from Phil. Even if she’d thought she had him under control, he still far stronger and heavier than her, and he’d already shown himself to be unpredictable.
He moaned and hauled himself up enough to lean against the cupboards, his eyes closed.
“I never had a good feeling about your ranch hand, Jess.” Betty glared down at Phil. “But tonight I saw him leering at Abby and the girls at supper. Leering—like he was planning something vile while you weren’t here to stop him.”
“Not true,” Phil muttered. “She’s lying.”
“I put the girls to bed an
d called you and the sheriff. But then I heard a scuffle. He attacked Abby. But by the time I got my rifle unlocked, she already had him on the floor.”
Jess pulled Abby into his arms and tucked her head beneath his chin. She melted against the warmth of his chest and the strong beat of his heart. “I am so sorry, Abby. I had no idea Phil was capable of this.”
“I’m sorry, too.” She pulled back and looked up at him. “In a way, this was my fault.”
He frowned. “Your fault?”
“I should have spoken up after his first day, but I didn’t think you’d believe me. And I figured I could just handle it. I knew you needed a ranch hand badly.”
He gave her a horrified look. “He assaulted you before this?”
“No. Until tonight it was only subtle innuendo and crowding my space. Sly compliments that were just a little off.” She shuddered. “But tonight, he gave the girls a suggestive look that will haunt me for a long time, then he grabbed me.” She rubbed the tender place on her upper arm where he’d gripped her. “Nothing more than a few bruises. I should have told you earlier.”
“He would have been fired in an instant, I can promise you that.” He dropped a lingering kiss on her lips, sending a shower of sparks through her veins. When the kiss ended, the depth of emotion in his eyes nearly took her breath away.
“I can always look for another hired hand,” he added, his voice low and rough. “But the people you love can never be replaced.”
Chapter Eighteen
Red and blue lights swirled through the kitchen windows when the deputy finally arrived, followed in a few minutes by another patrol car.
He banged on the back door, and when Jess opened it, the burly deputy was standing to one side with his gun drawn.
“Everything is under control, Bill. Come on in.” Jess tipped his head toward Phil, who was still on the floor. “I got tired of keeping an eye on him so I tied him up for you. Early Christmas present.”
Soon three more deputies had crowded into the kitchen. Bill shrugged a shoulder. “All of us showing up probably looks like overkill. But domestic situations are dangerous and we don’t like to take chances. So, what’s going on here?”
By the time Abby finished explaining, Betty had brewed a pot of fresh coffee and plied them all with cookies.
Bill finished writing on his clipboard, then looked between Jess and Abby. “So what we have here is simple assault and an attempted sexual assault. Do you want to press charges?”
“I want him off my property and as far away from here as possible,” Jess ground out. “Just thinking about what he wanted to do makes me—”
Abby put her hand on his arm. “I don’t know if Phil is a sexual predator, but his background check was clear and that gave him a chance to find potential victims on this ranch.” She lifted her chin. “So yes, I want to press charges. I don’t want this to happen to anyone else.”
Long after the deputies hauled Phil outside and Betty went to bed, Jess sat on the sofa with his arm around Abby’s shoulders. The flames flickering in the fireplace sent amber light and dark shadows dancing through the room, adding to the intimacy of the moment.
“When I saw you on the floor, holding that man down, my heart nearly stopped,” he murmured. “I’m still amazed at how you handled the situation.”
“Yet I doubt anything much will happen to Phil, even though he was arrested. Maybe an overnight at the jail, bail and a suspended sentence at most, and then he’ll be on his way.” Abby sighed. “But I couldn’t just let it go. I needed to show him that women aren’t pushovers.”
“He won’t be thinking that anytime soon. He got taken down by my grandma and a nanny who barely weighs a hundred pounds.” Jess gave her shoulders a little squeeze. “That humiliation has to bite.”
“What are you going to do now? With him gone, you’re back to working this ranch on your own. Have there been any other applicants?”
“No, but I’ve handled it all on my own for a long time. With you covering the house and the twins, it won’t be hard. If I can find a ranch hand by calving and foaling season, things will be fine.”
They both fell silent, watching the fire. After a while Abby’s breathing turned slow and even, and he was left to mull over his thoughts...and what he’d said before the patrol cars arrived. I can always look for another hired hand, but the people you love can never be replaced.
In that first split second when he’d walked into the house, he’d only registered two things—Abby was in trouble somehow, and she could already be hurt.
Nothing else had mattered. Not the ranch. Not anything he had strived for all his life.
Just her.
His words had come straight from his heart. A truth he’d been denying since the day she’d walked out of his life when they were both just twenty-one.
He brushed a kiss against her golden hair and she stirred, then settled more deeply against his side as the futility of ever spending their future together struck him.
She had dreams. Big dreams. Far beyond what she could ever accomplish on this isolated Montana ranch. A PhD, then research efforts to help those with autism, where her bright mind and determination might make a real difference.
What right did he have to selfishly keep her away from that bright future? She might be tempted to make the wrong choice and the world would not be a better place for it.
He would be grateful for every single day she was here at the ranch. But in the end, he had to make sure she didn’t stay.
* * *
Abby finished mixing up the herb butter and began working it under the skin of the turkey. She glanced at the recipe she’d printed off the internet. “This really does sound like it’ll be nice and moist, doesn’t it?”
Betty gave the turkey a jaded glance and continued chopping onions, celery and parsley for the dressing. “Spatchcock, cooking bags, deep fryers—all frippery, in my book. I still like what my mother always did. Just a big ole bird, grease that skin up real good and throw it in the oven. Nothing wrong with that.”
Abby hid a smile. “No, of course not.”
Jess had taken the girls out to the barn to ride Lollipops and had taken the puppy with them, so the house was surprisingly quiet. Once the turkey was prepared, Abby put it into the oven and wiped down the counters with sanitizer. “It’s been a while since I’ve heard the girls mention their mom.”
“It’s sad to think of them giving up hope that she’ll come back. Yet if Lindsey shows up and whisks them off to California before Christmas, it will really be hard on everyone—even them.” Betty dropped a couple sticks of butter into a large pan, waited until they melted, then added the onions, parsley and celery. Soon a wonderful aroma filled the kitchen.
Abby consulted the menu list she’d typed up. “Looks like we’re doing really well with everything here. If you’re tired, I can take over the dressing so you can put your feet up awhile. We’re not eating until three.”
Suddenly the house phone rang and Abby’s heart skipped a beat. She exchanged glances with Betty. They’d just been talking about Lindsey. What if this was her?
It took several rings before Abby could spur herself to answer. “The Langfords’ Broken Aspen Ranch. This is Abby.”
“It’s Bill, from the sheriff’s department. I’m sorry to have to call you on Thanksgiving, of all days. But I thought you’d want to know. We had your ranch hand in a holding cell, waiting for transfer up to Billings last night. But...well, he overpowered the deputy, knocked him out and got his key ring while being taken out to the squad car.”
“So he got out of his handcuffs.”
“Yep. We think he’s the one who stole a silver SUV from behind the grocery store. The night stocker says he always left his keys in the ignition.”
“Are you looking for him?”
“We’ve got an APB out on him and the ca
r. Of course, by now he might have switched vehicles or hopped a bus. But now he’s wanted on even more charges, so we’ll get him sooner or later.”
Abby glanced out the windows at the light snow that had been falling since last night. The landscape was pristine white again, so peaceful. But the thought that Phil might be out there somewhere made her shiver. “You’ll call if you hear anything, right?”
“Yes, ma’am. Say hey to Jess and his grandma, okay? And if you can pack up Phil’s things and put them in the front of his pickup, we’ll send someone out to get it. Better to have it in our parking lot than give him a reason to ever come out your way again.”
“Thanks.” Feeling numb, Abby put down the receiver and turned to Betty. “It was Bill. Phil escaped from jail, and they haven’t found him. That’s a cheerful thought.”
Betty took the saucepan of the buttery, fragrant onion mixture off the stove and poured it over a pile of cubed bread in a roaster pan, then began to lightly stir it together. “Those boys should have been a lot more careful. But now Phil knows what kind of man Jess is, and he won’t want to mess with him. And everyone knows ranchers have varmint weapons—if only to protect calves and foals in the spring.”
Abby managed a weak smile. “And their grandmas are armed, too. But still.”
She thought about the massive, curtainless windows in the living room at night. The way someone could find cover between the highway and the house because of all the pine trees.
If Phil was smart, he would have headed like a rocket out of Montana. If he was smart. But she had her doubts.
“I’m going out to the barn to give Jess a heads-up, Betty.” She shrugged into her jacket and pulled on her boots. “I’ll be back in a couple minutes.”
Snow had already blanketed the trees when she stepped outside, turning the world into a fairyland. To the west, the snow-covered pine forest of the foothills looked like a glittery Christmas card. It would be so hard to leave all of this beauty behind.
In the distance she heard the sound of an approaching diesel motor. Phil?
She broke into a jog for the barn. But just as she opened the tack-room door, she looked over her shoulder and recognized the truck as it pulled up next to the barn.
Montana Mistletoe Page 14