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Every Little Thing About You (Yellow Rose Trilogy 1)

Page 15

by Lori Wick


  was more. As seemingly slow as she was about men, Liberty

  now asked herself what godly mother didn't want her

  daughter to meet and marry a wonderful man?

  "I keep praying that God will send the right man to

  help Griff, but so far that hasn't happened/' Kate continued.

  "I pray for the same thing," Duffy added. "Every day."

  Liberty felt as if she'd been hit. She had never once

  asked God to send someone to replace her. Why was that?

  The question gave Liberty pause. She suddenly wasn't sure

  that she wanted to know.

  Amoment later Duffy asked Liberty if she was all right

  Admitting that she didn't know, she was ready to change

  the subject. She double-checked with her mother about

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  Thursday's preparations. They talked of Thanksgiving for

  the next hour. When she finally went to bed, her mind

  immediately moved to Slater, Griffin, and her job. She

  pushed them all away and repositioned her mind to the

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  baking she wanted to get done for Thanksgiving, telling

  herself she didn't want to rush this holiday time away with

  all sorts of other thoughts. It was not a solid reason and

  Liberty knew that, but she just kept justifying it by

  reminding herself that all too soon it would be December,

  with Christmas rushing up on the calendar.

  S' *3r

  "Do you know what happened to me on Sunday?" Tess

  whispered to Griffin in the general store. She had been

  shopping and turned to find him next to her, something

  that never failed to delight her.

  "What?"

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  "A very wonderful man asked me to marry him."

  "No kidding?" Griffin's eyes were impressively large.

  "No kidding," Tess answered, her own eyes alight with

  pleasure as she looked up at him. "I said yes."

  "Did you?" Griffin smiled down at her. "When is the

  big event?"

  "Well," her brow dropped in the way he loved, "I'm

  free tomorrow."

  "Tomorrow is Thanksgiving," he reminded her, feeling

  intoxicated by her nearness.

  "Friday then?" Tess asked hopefully, and Griffin had to

  laugh.

  Tess smiled complacently and then noticed the eyes

  that watched them, mostly older women who should have

  known better.

  "I can tell this is going to be interesting," Tess said as

  she turned to examine a row of shoes and belts.

  "Why is that?" Griffin asked, studying her profile with

  pleasure.

  "You might be the most well-known person in town.

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  It's like courting in a house made of glass."

  Griffin had noticed the attention as well, but there was

  little he could do or say. He opted for a lighter note.

  Every Little Thing About You 141

  "You sound as though you're changing your mind."

  No longer caring who might be watching, Tess' eyes

  met his.

  "Not even close," she said softly.

  Griffin reached for her hand, their fingers entwining for

  several seconds.

  Not long afterward, Griffin went back to work, comforted

  by the fact that in two days he could see her almost

  all day. Nevertheless, he asked God to help him concentrate

  on the job. Remembering Tess' sweet smile and love

  for him, he thought he might endanger someone if he even

  touched his gun.

  fy Q-%f

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  The

  second week in December was cold. Slater had not

  paid much attention to the weather so far, working with

  Price and Hank no matter what. But today his head felt full,

  and every time he bent over the hammer, his forehead and

  cheeks pounded. He told himself he could make it all day/

  but by midaf ternoon, he knew he had to get inside.

  "I don't feel well," Slater wasted no words in telling his boss. "I'm going to head home. I'll try to work tomorrow."

  Hank looked up, a frown on his face, but Slater's glassy

  eyes and red face softened him a little.

  "Just take off till it's gone, or you'll have us all sick.*

  Slater did little more than wave as he turned away.

  "Hey, Slater," Price stepped in, "Miss Amy carries some

  medicine for colds. Stop by for some on your way home.

  Doc Bergram's or something like that"

  "Thanks, Price."

  Slater hadn't really decided to stop, but since he hadn't

  ridden Arrow to the job that day, he felt nearly frozen by

  the time he reached downtown. He stepped into the general

  store just to get his lungs out of the cold. Miss Amy

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  happened to be standing right inside.

  "May I help you?"

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  Every Little Thing About You 143

  "Oh." Slater tried to smile and be polite, his mind fuzzy

  with the headache. "I'm looking for something for colds. I

  think Price said it was Doc Berg's or some name like that."

  "Doc Bergrin's?"

  "Yeah, that must be it."

  "Right this way."

  Slater followed her in something of a daze. She had a

  large selection of tonics and such. He watched as she

  plucked one off the shelf and handed it to him.

  "That one will take all pain away--if s pretty potent

  This one," she said, handing him another bottle, "doesn't

  have any alcohol in it at all, but it's still good stuff. Typically,

  husbands buy the first one and wives buy the second

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  one."

  No contest in Slater's mind. He took the second bottle

  and turned toward the counter, wanting nothing more than

  to get home and climb into bed.

  "Price sent you, didn't he?" Miss Amy asked quietly as

  Slater was fishing for coins.

  "Yes. He said you might have something,"

  "He hasn't been in since he got back," she murmured.

  A note in her voice got through to Slater Working to ignore

  his own discomfort, he looked at the tall, well-built woman

  behind the cash register. She didn't appear to be quite as

  young as Price, but there was no mistaking the interest in

  her eyes.

  "Maybe he doesn't know you'd like him to come in,"

  Slater offered.

  "Well," Miss Amy's gaze dropped, "I hope someone

  tells him." With that, she slid Slater's change across the

  counter, shut the drawer, and turned away. Slater watched

  her take a feather duster to shelves that looked immaculate,

  his heart turning over in compassion. He felt simply awful,

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  but that did not stop him from praying for Price and Miss

  Amy and asking God to open the door if he should tell his

  coworker what this woman had said.

  $-*3r

  -

  "Oh!

  Dakota!" Liberty said when the door was opened,

  "I didn't know you were back."

  Dakota had been called to work just after Thanksgiving

  and hadn't been in town since.

  "I'm just in," he explained. "Come on in."

  "Well, I don't want to be in the way, but Mam thought

  she saw Slater come in and wanted to send this soup for

  him. Is he here?"
r />   "I don't think so, but maybe he is. Come on through

  and I'll check."

  Dakota held the door wide, and Liberty took the pot of

  warm soup straight through to the kitchen. Since her

  brother had gained a housemate, she did not come and go

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  as she pleased through his back door.

  "Let me see if he's here now," Dakota said.

  Liberty put the pot on the stove top and went ahead

  and added a little wood to the fire in the oven. The house

  felt chilly to her.

  "He's sound asleep," Dakota announced when he

  returned from upstairs.

  Liberty nodded. "He mentioned on the weekend that

  he thought he'd caught something. Well, tell him to rest,

  and hopefully the soup will help."

  "All right. Thanks."

  Liberty started back toward the front door, Dakota on

  her heels.

  "Should I take this as a good sign?" Dakota suddenly

  asked, causing Liberty to turn before she reached the doorknob.

  "For what?"

  "Well," Dakota smiled charmingly. "When a lady

  brings a gentleman hot soup, I would say that means she

  cares."

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  254

  Liberty's eyes lit with amusement. "My mother sent the

  soup, and to answer your question, yes, she cares very

  much."

  "Come on, Libby," he coaxed now, "give a guy a

  break."

  "Dakota," Liberty replied, trying not to laugh at his

  pleading look, "I don't know what you want."

  His black eyes narrowed as they always did when he

  was in thought.

  "All right," he finally said, Til play my hand. How do

  you feel about Slater?"

  Liberty's look was remarkably calm. "That, Mr. Rawlngs,

  is a question the gentleman himself will have to ask

  me."

  ""But you could give me a hint."

  "No, I couldn't," Liberty said on a laugh. She thought

  he was so funny. "And while we're on the subject, what is

  it to you?"

  "I'll tell you what. He's going to let you get away if he

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  isn't careful."

  Liberty shook her head. "I don't think I've ever seen the

  like."

  "What's that?"

  "A Texas Ranger with nothing better to do than play

  matchmaker."

  Dakota was opening his mouth in outrage when Liberty

  slipped out the door. She didn't look back or even

  wave, but she smiled to herself all the way back to her own

  front door.

  -S-"

  "Did I hear Liberty's voice?" Slater asked when Dakota

  checked on him about 20 minutes later.

  "Yes. Are you going to marry that lady or not?"

  "This afternoon," Slater said as he rolled over to go

  back to sleep. "Didn't I tell you?"

  Every Little Thing About You 145

  256

  Dakota took compassion when he heard Slater's rough

  voice. Thinking his throat had to be sore, he took himself

  from the room. It didn't look as though anything he could

  say or do would induce Slater back to the Rangers, but

  where Liberty Drake was concerned, he wasn't going to

  leave things so up in the air. He decided that before he left

  town he was going to wring a few promises out of his little

  brother.

  $

  A high-noon bank robbery the day after Christmas was

  not what Griffin and Liberty had been expecting, but that

  was exactly what they got.

  It was a Monday, and Liberty was due to go off duty

  when a terrified Miss Amy came running to tell her what

  she'd witnessed across the street. Liberty knew better than

  to go alone. Thankfully, Griffin was in the mayor's office,

  and within minutes the two of them were making their

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  way to the bank building. The only way in was through the

  front door, so they started to inch their way down the

  boardwalk. They had just gained positions at the window

  when a shot was fired and at least two women screamed.

  Wasting no more time, the Drakes rushed in.

  "Don't do it!" a wild-eyed man screamed, his gun

  pointed right at them. "Get your hands up. I swear I'll

  shoot again."

  Liberty and Griffin did exactly as they were told,

  coming in and leaving the door wide open. The man kept

  turning, moving around so fast that he gave them no time

  to reach for their weapons. At the same time, he didn't

  seem to notice their gun belts. Standing with her hands in

  the air, helpless for die moment, Liberty took in the scene

  and felt very sick.

  Seven people stood against the tellers' windows. One

  of them was three-year-old Josie Frank, who stood frozen

  as she stared at her mother's body. What had compelled

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  258

  this man to shoot Desna Frank was unclear, but the pool of

  blood underneath her and her motionless form did not

  look good.

  Liberty forced her mind back onto the robber just in

  time to see him spot Griffin. It seemed as though he had

  forgotten him.

  "You there!" he screamed. "Get that gun off and shove

  it away from you."

  The robber was so wild-eyed that it was terrifying to

  watch him, but Griffin slowly removed his weapon and

  quietly placed it on the floor. He pushed it away with the

  flick of his boot his calm face seeming to irritate the man

  even more.

  "Now come here! Help him," he ordered, gesturing

  wildly with the gun. "Help him put money in the bag."

  Griffin went slowly forward. Liberty didn't dare move.

  She was small enough not to be seen behind Griffin's back

  if she wanted to pull her gun, but if the robber caught any

  movement, Griffin would be right in the line of fire.

  "What bag do you want me to use?" Griffin asked

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  calmly. The man looked panicky until he remembered and

  pulled a sack from his waistband.

  Griffin had deliberately moved between the gunman

  and the innocent folks against the counter, but now the

  head teller had no choice but to move out of their ranks and

  join Griffin. The gunman started to follow but pulled back.

  Suddenly grabbing Bill Miller, who had come in to withdraw

  some funds, he pulled him close and held the gun to

  his head.

  "Make it fast!" he yeUed.

  Griffin and the teller did just that, taking money from

  the drawers and shoving the bills into the bag. They were

  finished in less than two minutes, but the man was so agitated

  it looked as though he would shoot anyway. He had

  to let go of Bill to grab the money, and when he did, Griffin

  stepped in such a way as to put himself between them. The

  gunman was instantly irate.

  Every Little Thing About You 147

  "What are you doing?"

  260

  "Just waiting on you," Griffin said. He was close

  enough to see that the man was out of his head.

  "I'll shoot him if I want to," he said suddenly and gestured

  with his gun. "Move!"

  "I can't let you shoot him,
" Griffin said calmly, and the

  man lost control. He brought the gun directly in front of

  him and aimed at Griffin, giving Liberty no choice. The

  look of surprise on the man's face as the bullet entered his

  body was pathetic. He froze, dropped everything from

  both hands, and crumpled to the floor.

  In the next instant, Liberty was across the room taking

  Josie in her arms. She scooped the child up--she was stiff

  with shock--and cradled her close. Looking to Griffin, who

  motioned her out with his head, she turned for the door.

  She didn't expect to see Slater and Dakota, who had just

  slipped in the door, both with guns pulled. The look on

  Slater's face shocked Liberty. She had never seen such a

  look of revulsion, and it was directed at her. In an instant

  she was angry.

  "This baby's mother is gone, and Griffin was next," she

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  said quietly. "I suppose you wanted me to slap his hand for

  that."

  This said, Liberty pushed past both men and the crowd

  that had started to gather outside. Questions about what

  happened flew at her, but she ignored them. She had to get

  to the Franks'. She had to find this little girl's father. She

  only hoped that in time the memory would fade. There was

  no chance that Liberty would ever forget, but she prayed

  that Josie would never remember a thing about this day.

  "How are you?" Duffy asked Liberty as he joined her

  in the living room several hours later. Kate had called

  Duffy home as soon as she'd heard. She had given Zach

  and Laura a snack at the table, but Liberty had wanted to

  be alone. She'd opted to grab her Bible and sit in the living

  room where she could hear their voices, but she had yet to

  open the book.

  "I feel bruised all over," she said as she looked at him.

  "I never get used to it, Duffy. Today's not the first time, but

  it might as well be. The shock and hurt are just the same."

  "If you did get used to it, I'd be worried about you."

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  Liberty nodded.

  "Thank you, Ubby," he said now.

  "What for?"

  "For saving our Griffin."

  Liberty cried then. "I had to, Duff, I had to do it. He was

  going to kill Griff!"

  Duffy moved to put an arm around her. She hadn't

  cried yet, and this was what she needed. Not even her mother's arms had provided the needed cathartic, but having Duffy, who loved them as though they were his

  own, thank her for her brother's life had been enough.

  Duffy had yet to go to the Franks', but he was headed

  there next. He left as soon as Liberty fell asleep on the sofa

 

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