Then she heard it again.
Deciding to opt for caution, she picked up her cell phone, went into the bathroom, and locked the door. She sat on the edge of the tub and waited, her heart pounding dangerously in her ears.
She felt silly. It was probably just the wind blowing something around outside. She couldn’t just stay here in the bathroom.
Her phone beeped and she jumped, nearly falling backwards into the tub.
It was a text message from Adam, Hi honey, do you miss me? I’ll be home in about twenty minutes. Leaving now.
Twenty minutes. She could hide in the bathroom for twenty minutes, but she really wanted to change clothes. And her clothes were not in the bathroom.
Just a little, she texted back. See u soon!
She checked her face in the mirror, added a little powder to her nose.
Checked the clock.
Brushed her teeth.
Listened for any noise. Any signs of chains rattling.
Checked the clock.
She had fifteen minutes before he got home. Then everything would be okay.
Touching up her make-up, she added some gloss. Put on some hand cream.
Listened for chains.
Waited.
Finally, with just five minutes to go, she took a deep breath and opened the door. Steeling herself, she stepped out into the bedroom. Thunder crashed and she nearly jumped out of her shoes.
Chastising herself for being silly, she went to the window and looked out. A blowing rain crashed into the glass and swirled the tree limbs.
Squinting through the storm, she watched for Adam’s car. Checked her watch. He was late. Of course, in this storm, he had needed to slow down.
She quelled the sense of doom that she felt. Blocked out the images of Adam being injured. Refused to think about life without him.
Going to her closet, she pulled out a blue button-down shirt, and after pulling off her t-shirt, slipped it on and started to button it.
Then froze. She wasn’t completely accustomed to the sounds of the big house, but she knew the sound of footsteps on the stairs. She glanced out the window again, where Adam parked his car. He wasn’t home. No one was here, but her.
At least no one was supposed to be here.
Slowly, she inched her way back toward the bathroom, keeping alert to sounds from the stairs, and sounds from the driveway, but only heard silence. And the wind.
She had her hand in her pocket on her cell phone, though she had no idea what she would do with it. Nonetheless, it was a comfort to her.
It was then that she heard the car coming up the driveway. She was so relieved, she turned her head toward the window, her back to the door. She watched the little red sedan driving along until it stopped just below her window.
She turned around, thinking to go meet Adam downstairs.
Bobby stood, leaning against the door frame, his eyes downcast as he watched her. His face was scarred, no doubt from where he had fallen into the fireplace.
Her heart slammed into her chest and she struggled to breathe normally. Adam would be upstairs in a minute and he would know what to do. Unconsciously, she glanced toward the window.
“Don’t worry, he won’t be coming upstairs,” he said.
She had images of Adam coming inside, the door exploding at his touch. What had Bobby done?
“Don’t worry,” he said, as though reading her mind. “I won’t hurt him.”
A moment later, Adam’s car backed out of the drive and started pulling away from the house.
“No,” she said, going to the window, putting her hand in her pocket to pull out her cell phone to call him.
Her pocket was empty.
In confusion, she looked back to Bobby, instinctively knowing he had something to do with all this.
He held her little black iPhone in his hand, with a smug look on his face. She glanced toward the bathroom – the last place she had seen her phone.
“You shouldn’t leave your phone lying around,” he informed her, as though he were talking about the weather.
“What did you tell him?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper.
Bobby looked her straight in the eyes and she fought her instinct to back away from him. He was much more palatable when he was looking down.
“Don’t worry your pretty little head about him. He won’t be coming back for some time. Besides, I didn’t get the chance to give you your Christmas present yet.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Adam slid open his phone and re-read the text from Tabitha.
Change of plans. Meet me at the store. See you soon.
Why would she head to the store when she knew he was coming in? Something must have gone wrong.
“See you soon.”
It was just last week that they had had this conversation. She never texted the word you. She said it was a waste of typing. She said the word was understood.
He dialed her number. It went to voicemail. He pressed redial.
Damn. Something wasn’t right. Tabitha always answered her phone.
He took a deep breath. She’d call back.
Nonetheless, he couldn’t help but feel like he was going in the wrong direction. As he neared the Stanley House, the sense of foreboding became so intense that he pulled their parking lot.
There was a memory tickling the back of his mind. A similar text message that Tabitha had thought he had been sent her.
Knowing he was wasting his time, he dialed her number again and waited for the voicemail. When it picked up, he closed the phone, inhaled sharply, and turned his car around.
He could be back at the house in ten minutes - a little less if he was lucky.
Not caring that it was illegal, he passed a car on the shoulder and sped toward his parents’ house - knowing it could only be one thing - Bobby.
Bobby, it seemed, had exhausted his creativity.
Tabitha watched Bobby, warily. He had never given her much of a Christmas present. In fact, the first year they were married, he gave her a robe and the second year, he gave her a food processor. She couldn’t imagine what he might be so interested in giving her now. She suspected that whatever it was, it wasn’t something she wanted.
In fact, she was certain it wasn’t anything she wanted. All she wanted from Bobby was to be left alone.
“You’re gonna like it,” he said.
She shook her head. “I don’t want it,” she told him.
He laughed. “You always were an ingrate.”
“Give me back my phone,” she said.
He shook his head and lowered his eyes.
“Give it to me now,” she said, feeling the anger well up inside her. This man no longer controlled her life. He no longer had any power over her. In that moment, she felt a true hatred for him.
He took the three steps that separated them and grabbed her arms. She brought her knee up and slammed it into his crotch.
Now she had effectively transferred the anger to him. His face grew red and his features scrunched up. She had seen this look on him before. He was about to hit her. Reflexively, she tried to shield her face, but his hold on her arms was too strong.
He released one of her arms, but her moment of relief was short-lived. He slammed his fist into the side of her face.
She fell back against the bed, her face feeling like it had just exploded. Her hand went to her lips and she felt blood on her fingertips.
“Merry Christmas,” Bobby said.
She turned her head and glared at him. “Go to Hell.”
He laughed and reaching down, grasped her arm, and pulled her to her feet. She kicked at him, but he was stronger. Her other hand entwined in his hair and yanked. He merely shook her off.
Now he had both her wrists and pulled her up on the bed. “This should be fun,” he said. “It’s been, how long?”
“You wouldn’t dare,” she spat.
“I’m your husband, remember? I have rights.”
“You used to
be. You aren’t any more.”
“Until we go to court, you’re all mine.”
“I was never yours!”
“You’ve always been a little too uppity for my taste,” he said, seeming to consider her.
“Then let me go.”
“Oh, I don’t think so. Not just yet. I want you to remember me when you’re kissing your boyfriend.”
She kicked at him, managed to pull one wrist free and slashed at his face with her nails. Unfortunately, she kept them trimmed. She suddenly saw the benefit of having long, lethal nails.
He laughed at her again and grabbed her arm. She cried out from the pain of her arm being wrenched back. She did what she had done in the past - she went limp. Again, it worked.
He let go of her arm and pushed her back on the bed. He didn’t know it, but this time was different. This time she would not let him have his way with her. She wanted him to believe that this time was no different.
He began kissing her - at least what passed for kissing for Bobby. His jammed his tongue in her mouth, pumping it back and forth. She was revolted. After their wedding, it was the only way he’d ever kissed her. And it always led to sex - at least what passed for sex with Bobby.
She turned her face and he didn’t seem to notice that she wanted to throw up.
Then he began to unfasten his belt.
She closed her eyes - just for a second - and mentally shook herself. There was no way in Hell this was going to happen. She braced herself, her thoughts racing.
Then she went with her inclinations, put her hand to her mouth, one finger against the back of her tongue, and threw up all over both of their hands.
“Good God! What’s wrong with you?” Bobby asked, recoiling from her.
Though she genuinely felt ill by now, she wanted to yell with success. Instead, she hung her head, put her hands to her throat, and groaned. “I’m sick,” she said, simply.
“No shit.”
He went into the bathroom, and when he did, she heard tires on the rocks of the driveway. She wanted to look, to see who it was, but she didn’t dare give whoever it was away.
Bobby came back with a wet washcloth which he thrust at her.
“Thank you,” she said, genuinely surprised.
He didn’t say anything, just grunted, and went to look out the window. Holding her breath, she wiped her face. Whoever it was, must have pulled around back because Bobby showed no sign that he had seen anyone. The timing had been uncanny.
“He can’t save you,” he said.
“What?” she asked, lifting her eyes to his face.
“I’ll kill you before I let him have you.”
“You won’t kill me,” she said, then regretted the words.
He came to kneel in front of her, his eyes only inches from hers. There was something there, in his eyes, that she hadn’t seen before.
She shuddered. She had always known that Bobby was not a nice person, but this was the first time she had believed him truly evil.
After pulling his car around back, Adam jumped out, ran to the back door, and quietly opened it, slowly now. His heart hammered in his chest. In his gut, he knew Bobby was the cause of this. He even knew that Bobby was dangerous. What he didn’t know was how to gauge that level of danger. The only weapon he had was upstairs. So, he was defenseless. He would have to rely on his stealth. With that thought, he picked up a purple vase on a little table behind the sofa.
The electricity was out, making every footstep he took echo throughout the house.
He inched his way through the downstairs, and started up the stairs. The house was quiet. Too quiet. It seemed to be on edge. Waiting.
At the upstairs hallway, he inched along next to the wall, the vase heavy in his hand, listening for any sound coming from the bedroom he was now sharing with Tabitha.
Then he heard sounds of a struggle and Tabitha’s voice.
“Stop it!”
He hurried, now, to the door and saw Bobby pull her up onto the bed by her hair.
Then Adam seemed to lose all coherent thought. The vase fell to the floor. He didn’t need it. He acted on instinct. Before Bobby knew he was there, Adam had closed the distance between them, grabbed Bobby by the neck, and pulled him off Tabitha. His fist connected with Bobby’s face. He pulled back and hit him again - in the nose. Blood spewed out splattering all three of them. He was just about to hit Bobby again when Tabitha’s voice penetrated his haze and he looked at her.
“No,” she said, softly, shaking her head.
Adam released Bobby, shoving him back on the floor.
“Are you okay?” He asked, his focus on her now.
She nodded.
He gently touched her cheek. “He hurt you.”
She shook her head. “I’ll be okay.”
He pulled her to him, resting her head against his chest, and wrapping his arms around her. He felt her shudder against him. He continued to hold her to him, rubbing her back and hair until Bobby stirred.
“What do you want to do with him?” He asked.
“Let’s throw him out.”
“I think we should have someone haul him off.”
“Even better.”
While Adam called the local authorities to come and take Bobby away, Tabitha went into the bathroom to wash her face. As she stood staring at her reflection, with the swollen lip and soon to be bruised face, Tabitha realized that Bobby would no longer play a part in her life. She also knew deep in her heart that Adam would never hurt her. Adam had risked his own safety for her. Her would protect her - even after they were married.
He wouldn’t turn bad like Adam had.
She would never compare them to each other again.
She had to tell him. She had to let him know that she would marry him - had to marry him. He was the one man she never wanted to be apart from again.
Going to the door, she watched him with Bobby. Even now, he had handed the man a cloth to wipe up some of the blood. She couldn’t make out what he was saying but his tone was kind. Even now. After all the man had done.
He sensed her watching him, looked up, and smiled at her.
She smiled back and went to him. He held out his hand and pulled her against him. She tilted her head and he kissed her. She was aware that before that point, she would have been too afraid to kiss Adam in front of Bobby.
Bobby no longer held any power over her. She and Adam had won. Together they had defeated the one person who would try to keep them apart.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
July
“I’m really not an outdoorsy kind of girl,” Tabitha said.
“Come on,” Adam said, holding out his hand to pull her up on a boulder. “If you’re gonna live in Colorado, you’ve at least got to have the experience of going on at least one hike.”
“A hike I could live with,” she said, her new hiking boots keeping her steady on the rocks. “But this.” She caught her breath as he pulled her to him. “This is more like a marathon.”
“But look at the view,” he nudged her to look behind him. She held onto him, the brisk mountain hair gusting against her skin.
She gasped. She knew that had been walking for what felt like hours, but she had no idea, they had walked this high in elevation. She could see for miles across the valley to the mountains on the other side. The river looked like no more than a ribbon snaking along the bottom of the valley. They had driven past it this morning on their way up the hill.
“Tabitha.” Adam nudged her attention back to him. “I wanted you to see this, but this isn’t really why I brought you up here?”
“What? You just wanted to torture me?”
“Ha. I promise not to bring you hiking again.”
She exhaled in relief. “Thank goodness. I was starting to rethink this whole relationship.”
“Is that so? I was thinking we could go fly fishing next.”
She groaned. “Really? Fly fishing might not be so bad. At least I can sit on the bank and read.
”
“Oh no, my love,” he said, staring deep into her eyes. “I want you there. In the water with me.”
“Don’t forget,” she said, contentment bubbling up inside. “We have the symphony next weekend.”
“Are you kidding?” He swayed, keeping his arms tightly around her waist. “I’m looking forward to it. I love seeing you all dressed up.”
She laughed and swiped at her ponytail. “Unlike today.”
“You’re always beautiful to me.” He kissed her on the cheek. “And…” He took a step back, sliding his hands along her arms until their fingers were linked. “Since we have this relationship thing down to an art…”
As he got on one knee, her breath caught in her throat. With the cool mountain air whipping her hair around her face, she felt the full effect of the elevation. Or was it the headiness of this man whom she had fallen in love with on his knees in front of her?
“Tabitha Black?”
When she didn’t answer, he tugged at her hand.
“Yes,” she breathed.
“Will you marry me?”
Over the past seven months, they’d talked about staying together. She’d even remained living at his parent’s house. But she’d had her own room, so they weren’t exactly living together.
His parents had even thrown around the word marriage a few times and neither Tabitha nor Adam had put up any kind of opposition.
The past few months had been hectic, with court dates, and rebuilding the store. But with Bobby in prison, things seemed to be settling into place. It was time to move forward. She knew that. She just hadn’t expected him to bring her to the top of the world to propose.
She laughed.
He frowned. “Are you laughing at me or with me?”
She got on her knees with him and went into his arms. “Yes!” She said. “I will marry you Adam Patton.” She pulled back and looked into his eyes. “What took you so long?”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Later that year
Christmas Eve
Tabitha stood at the door to the Library Room at the Stanley Hotel and smoothed her white wedding gown. It was simple for a wedding gown, but she’d known it was the right one for her when she saw it. It was a mermaid gown in white taffeta with a sweetheart bodice. It had a silk belt looped around her waist, then tied in a bow at her hips.
A Very Merry Christmas Gift (Winter Kisses Book 1) Page 14