Saved by the Rancher

by Jennifer Ryan

  “You’ve been scrunched into my closet and small dresser. I thought you might like the antique dresser. The perfume bottles where my great-grandmother’s.”

  “They’re beautiful,” she said and traced a finger over the delicate crystal. She smelled her favorite jasmine perfume. “It’s been a long time since I had something pretty in a room. Most of the time the places I stayed were sparsely decorated, and everything belonged to someone else. Isn’t it funny? I have tons of money and hardly any possessions. What little I managed to keep, I sent to my mother.”

  “Honey, this is your house, too. I thought that, since we are engaged, I’d try to show you this room is ours. It’s not just the bed we share, but everything.”

  “That bed looks really inviting. I’m so tired. You must be too.”

  “You haven’t seen all of your surprise yet. Look inside the cradle.”

  “It’s beautiful. Was it yours when you were a baby?”

  “Mine and my brother’s, Summer’s, and my father’s and his siblings and his father’s. It’s been in the family for several generations. I think it was carved by my great-great-grandfather. There might be one more great in there. Now we’ll bring our babies home and they’ll sleep in it. I’m beginning to really like all these traditions, now that I have you.”

  “I can see that. So, what’s in the cradle?” She walked past the bed and nearly fell to her knees when she saw Sally sleeping on a dog bed on the floor at the foot of the cradle, her midsection wrapped in bandages.

  “Jack, Sally.” She covered her mouth to hold back the happy sob of tears. A puppy jumped up in the cradle, large paws dangling over the side. She let out a happy bark.

  “There’s a puppy in the babies’ cradle.”

  “Sally made a friend at the hospital,” Jack joked.

  “She’s okay.”

  Sally wagged her tail and raised her head to look at them.

  “She will be in a week or so. She needs lots of rest, but she’ll be just fine. Like you.”

  Jenna knelt beside Sally and pat her softly on the head. Jack kneeled behind her and rested his hands on her shoulders.

  The puppy let out a bark and pounced back and forth, trying to get their attention. Sally whined, but lay back down.

  “So, what do you think? She’s four months old and she’s already housebroken.”

  “How did you do all this? You were at the hospital with me.”

  “Busted,” he said and grinned. “Summer helped. I told her what I wanted, and she and Beth took care of the house. Summer picked up Sally this morning and called to tell me about the pup, who needed a home. I wanted something special for you to come home to.”

  “It’s a wonderful surprise. She’s so cute.”

  Jenna scooped up the puppy, who turned into a ball of energy. She licked Jenna’s hand and pawed at her as Jenna tried to keep a good hold and not hurt herself in the process.

  “I think she needs a name.”

  “You didn’t name her?” she asked.

  “I thought you’d like to name her,” Jack said, and gave the fur-ball a pet.

  “Really?”

  “Yes, so what do you think? What are you going to call her?”

  “Anything I want?”

  “That’s kind of a long name for a puppy, but if you want to call her that,” he smiled and shrugged.

  “Funny. Anything-I-Want sounds like a racehorse, actually.”

  “She’s a golden retriever, not a racehorse. So what’s her name?”

  The puppy rolled around on the floor, trying to bite Jack’s boots. She barked at his feet and pounced again. Bored with the boots’ lack of response, she bounded onto the dog bed with Sally, gave her a lick on the nose, plopped down and cuddled up to Sally for a nap.

  “I’m thinking. How about Trixie?”

  “I like that. Trixie will suit her fine. It’s a spunky kind of name, just like her.”

  Jenna went into Jack’s arms. “Thank you, for all of this. It’s wonderful.”

  Jack kissed her softly and tilted her head back, so he could take the kiss deeper. “I’m so glad to have you home.” He kissed her cheeks and her forehead and trailed kisses down her neck. “With you wrapped around me, I finally feel whole again.”

  “I feel the same way. I know it’s the middle of the afternoon, but I really need to lie down.” Jenna rested her head against his chest. “Will you crawl in bed with me? You must be exhausted. You’ve hardly slept for days.”

  “That’s the best offer I’ve had today, but more than I need to sleep, I need a shower and a shave. Why don’t you get in and I’ll join you in a few, once I’m cleaned up.”

  “How about I join you for that shower, and then we both get in bed together. You can shave later. I kind of like you all scruffy looking.”

  “You do, huh?”

  “Oh, yeah.”

  She kissed him again and followed him into the bathroom and a hot shower. Jack helped wash her hair. After drying her with soft strokes, he carried her to the bed, laid her down in the soft sheets and showed her how much he’d missed her. All the emotions he’d held inside, he poured into making slow, sweet love to her. He stroked her softly and kissed her gently. When he entered her it was with slow aching strokes that had him melting into her. He kept his hands gentle on her hips and kissed her with all the passion and love he had in his heart.

  The sweetness of the leisurely rhythm relaxed her and made her feel even closer to him. She clung to his shoulders and pressed her hips to his, taking him deeper. She held him inside her and clung to him with her face buried in his neck. She couldn’t get any closer to him, yet she tried.

  She needed the closeness more than anything. He kept his pace unhurried and rocked his hips harder and deeper into her. Her passion built, her inner muscles squeezed tight, and he increased his speed. He drove home again and again, and they both reached the peak together. He held her close and kissed her long and slow until the flame inside both of them simmered to a smolder. He remained awake, stroking her hair softly until she fell into a dreamless sleep nestled against his chest.

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  * * *

  WITH JACK’S ARM draped over her, his palm covering her breast, she woke a few hours later feeling absolutely wonderful. Her future husband’s soft breath whispered through her hair, her babies lay nestled in her belly, and her new puppy snuggled in at the foot of the bed. Sally rested comfortably on the floor, alive and well on her way to a full recovery. What more could she ask for?

  She didn’t want to wake him. He’d had a rough few days searching for her and keeping watch over her in the hospital. She moved his arm to his side and gently pulled her hair out from under his face. He grumbled something under his breath and rolled over and away from her, drifting back into a deep sleep.

  Once she stirred, the puppy immediately jumped up and followed her into the closet. Trixie had already chewed through a pair of Jack’s sneakers and dragged out one heavy work boot. In addition to his cowboy boots, that made three pairs she’d ruined. Jenna noted all her shoes were intact and patted the puppy on the head, letting her know she was a good girl. Trixie immediately rolled onto her back for a belly rub. Jenna obliged her, and then found an amethyst slip dress to wear. She drew on a cream sweater to cover her shoulders and keep her warm, but it wouldn’t hide the bruises around her neck. It didn’t matter; between that, the cut above her eye, and her still swollen lip, it was quite obvious she’d been through the ringer. The only good thing, she’d survived and the wounds would heal in time.

  The doorbell rang downstairs and, barefoot, she went down to answer. Sam had said he’d be working in the office most of the afternoon, and she wasn’t sure if he was still on the phone.

  Jenna opened the door to a very handsome man. About the same age as Jack and just as tall, he had brown hair cut short and the warmest brown eyes. He wore gray slacks that fit him well and showed off his trim waist and legs along with a very elegant dark blue cash
mere sweater. His appearance signified he might be a businessman or a lawyer. Remembered photographs transformed into the image of the man in front of her.

  “Ben?”

  “Rabbit.” Her name came out on a whoosh of air when she launched herself into his chest and grabbed him around the neck. He dropped his heavy briefcase and held on to her, though not as tight as she held him. “It’s okay, Rabbit,” he soothed.

  “I’m so happy to see you,” she said into his neck.

  “Let go of my future wife,” Jack hollered with a note of teasing and pounded down the stairs behind her. “It’s all right, she’s fine,” he said to the guards standing ominously behind Ben.

  Jenna hugged Ben with everything she had. They’d never met in person, but Ben had been the single most important person in her life while she was on the run.

  Ben tried to step back, but she held fast. “No, don’t let go. I’m not done hugging you. Thank you,” she said and held him tighter. “Thank you for everything you ever did for me. Thank you for always talking to me and helping me to survive and stay sane all these years. Thank you for always being there at every possible inconvenient time I called on you. Thank you for being my friend. Thank you, most of all, for sending me to Jack. I love you more than words can say for all you’ve done.”

  With each expression of thanks, she’d held him tighter, crying all over him.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever been hugged so well, or felt so much love from one person,” Ben said and squeezed her, though not enough to hurt her.

  He turned his head and whispered in her ear, “You’re welcome, Rabbit. I love you, too.

  “I wish we could have met years ago. I’m sorry I sent you to Jack. The lucky sonofabitch had to go and steal your heart before I got a shot at capturing it myself.”

  “And here I thought lawyers were smart,” Jack said.

  “We’re also conniving,” Ben added. “I might steal her back.”

  “Not a chance.”

  Jenna laughed at their antics. Ben was about to let her go, but she held tight.

  “Jenna, honey, at least let him in the door,” Jack said with a smile.

  Jenna stepped back from him, but kept her hands on his shoulders. “I’m so happy to see you.”

  “I’m happy to see you, too, Rabbit. Finally. Are you okay?”

  “I am now.”

  “Then stop crying. It kills me when you cry.” He wiped the tears from her cheeks with a soft brush of his thumb.

  “Jenna, let him come in,” Jack said again and put his hands on her shoulders.

  “Oh, sorry. Come in. Let’s get you settled.”

  Ben and Jack shook hands.

  “You lucky SOB. I knew you’d take care of her if I sent her to you. I never thought you’d keep her.”

  “Yeah, well, tough shit. You got to hug her, now keep your hands to yourself. She’s all mine.”

  “Yeah, he’s already marked his territory,” Sam said and walked out of the office. “He put a ring on her finger and knocked her up with twins.” Sam grinned, the same cocky grin Jack had on his face.

  “Sam!” Jenna scolded, outraged by his audacious comment.

  “Well, it’s true. Hi, Ben, I’m Jack’s brother, Sam. Don’t let the resemblance fool you, we’re exactly alike.”

  “We’ll get along just fine then. Did I hear you say something about twins?”

  The two men shook hands while Jack put his arm around Jenna and pulled her to his side. “Yeah, she’s having identical twins. Imagine that.”

  “See, he’s territorial, too.” Sam pointed to Jack and Jenna. “So does she really own controlling interest in Merrick International?” Sam asked bluntly. “I want to make sure everything is in place in order to carry out Jenna’s plan. I don’t want to walk into a hornet’s nest only to find out we don’t have what we need to take down David.”

  “She does. Jenna, Mike finished the transactions. Between your personal assets and all the corporations both false and real, you now hold the majority share of Merrick.”

  “Excellent. Did you contact Cameron Shaw and request a meeting?”

  “The meeting is set. He’s very interested in what you have to say.”

  “I’ll bet he is. I’m about to make his dreams come true.”

  “You’ll fill us in on the whole plan? You have controlling interest, what are you going to do with it?” Sam asked.

  “That’s a very good question. I’ll answer it after Ben and I do some business and we all have a nice family dinner together. I’ve asked Beth to prepare a lovely family meal of fried chicken and mashed potatoes with all the fixings.”

  “That sounds much better than airline food,” Ben said, unable to take his eyes off her. Her injuries were more devastating to see in person, and Jenna hated to finally meet Ben, only to have him see her looking like this.

  “Okay, where do you want to do this? You have about sixty companies to take back and put into your name. You’ll have carpel tunnel syndrome by the time you finish signing all these papers.”

  “Fifty-eight companies. Let’s go into Jack’s office and get started. Jack and Sam, we’ll see you guys in a little while for dinner.”

  “Come here, honey.” Jack pulled her into his arms and gently wrapped them around her. Looking down into her eyes, he asked, “Are you sure you want to do this? You’re poking at a sleeping lion. Poke too hard and he’ll bite.”

  “I thought you wanted me to end this.”

  “I do. I don’t want you to get hurt anymore. If you do this, he’ll come after you. I don’t want to lose you.”

  “Trust me. We’ll work out a plan for what will happen after I go to the board meeting. We will end this. Together.”

  She put her hands on either side of his face and brought him down to her for a kiss, gentle and loving, promising everything.

  “Do they put you through this often, Sam?” Ben asked.

  Sam smiled and grumbled, “Yeah. They’re in love. It’s really starting to get on my nerves.”

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  * * *

  THEY ENTERED THE office, cozy with an overabundance of books lining the walls, a leather sofa with soft suede pillows in blue, of course, and wood tables with crystal lamps. It invited you to sit and read, or simply enjoy the peaceful setting. She wanted to put all this business behind her, curl up on the sofa, read a good book by the light of a fire in the corner river-rock fireplace.

  “Are you sure you want to do this now? We can keep the bodyguards and protect you around the clock until you’re feeling better. I don’t need to change the companies into your name just yet. We can wait.”

  “It has to be now, Ben. The board is due to meet. David won’t expect me to attend. Not after what happened. We need the element of surprise on our side.”

  To prove how ready she was to end this, she took the seat behind the desk and held out her hand for Ben to pass her the papers. She scrawled her name next to every tab, indicating “Sign Here”. She reviewed each one, noting the name of the company and the transfer of the name back into her own, then signed—one step closer to destroying her nightmare for good.

  “So what’s the plan for the board meeting?”

  “It’s going to be explosive, I can tell you that. The Merricks are very arrogant. They set up the board and the rules that govern them, so whoever holds majority share, namely them, controls the company and the board.

  “I was never able to fight David. Physically, he’s stronger than I am. As you can see by my appearance, he always wins that fight. He won’t give up trying to get me back, even though he’s married. He says the family forced the marriage because the woman comes from a good family and has a lot of money.”

  “She does,” Ben confirmed. “The Merricks have gone through a lot of their liquid funds. Most of their money is tied up in the company. They got wind a few weeks ago someone’s buying up shares. They’ve tried to maintain their majority share by buying more stock themselves. I don’t th
ink they suspect what’s going on, as the shares we bought have been spread out over time and all these companies, but they’re suspicious.”

  “I’m sure they won’t be relieved when they find out there’s a takeover about to happen, and it’s coming from within the company.”

  “So how does Cameron Shaw play into your plan? He holds a seat on the board and is president of Ortel, Inc., but why do you want to meet with him?”

  “Because I’m making him president of Merrick International. I’ll maintain my seat as CEO, but he’ll run the company. I’ll give him power to do what he’s done for Ortel, but on a much larger scale. It’s the deal of a lifetime for him. He’s good, and I have no doubt he’ll make Merrick even better than it is now. He’s been trying to get the Merricks to make some strategic changes that could have made the company millions upon millions over the past several years, but they constantly vetoed him. Now I’m giving him the opportunity he wants and deserves. He’ll be a very rich man, and I’m going to have babies and reap the rewards.”

  “You have it all thought out then.”

  “Not everything. The board is easy. David will be unpredictable. His volatile temper is not something I look forward to facing again. His parents will put up a fuss, but they don’t actually work for Merrick. David’s grandfather plans to retire and turn the company over to David. I hope he’ll see this as the better alternative. He’s a shrewd businessman. He’ll realize Cameron will make him a lot of money. Still, it won’t be a Merrick in charge, and that will piss him off. David, on the other hand, will go off the deep end. I expect he’ll come after me.”

  “What’s your plan to handle David?”

  “I’ll ruin him professionally at Merrick, and then personally in the press. He’s gotten away with hurting me for too long. Everyone will know what he’s done. I may not have gotten the police to do something to help me over the years, but now the world will know.”

  “Is that why you wanted the book?”

  “Yes. Do you have it?”

  “It’s right here in my briefcase. Are you sure you want to look at it? It’s filled with a lot of bad memories. You’ve just been through the latest nightmare, and I don’t think it’s a good idea to compound that by reliving all the others, too.”