The Divine Creek Ranch Collection Volume 3

by Heather Rainier

  Patrick looked at Summer in inquiry, and she said, “I’m not going anywhere, sir. If you’d like, I’d be happy to watch him for you.” She patted Patrick Jr.’s back, and his father nodded and smiled in thanks.

  He turned to Rosemary, and sadness filled his features. “It was really good to see you, Rosemary. You look gorgeous as ever.” His last word seemed to break a little, and Summer looked away, not wanting to intrude on a moment that appeared to cause him pain. “I’ll be right back, ma’am.”

  Summer nodded and said, “Take your time.” She had a feeling there were more painful revelations coming for this kind man. She doubted he had the slightest clue what had been going on.

  Grace asked, “Rosemary, do you know him?”

  Rosemary had a sad smile on her face as she replied, “Yeah. I dated him for a while, long before Wes and Evan and I finally got back together. We got along well together and I enjoyed his company, but I knew it wasn’t what I really wanted. I didn’t realize until after I’d told him I needed to break up that he was in love with me. It was awful. I felt like such a heel because he’s a real sweetheart.”

  “But the heart wants what the heart wants, right?” Grace replied, softly patting Rosemary’s shoulder as she swiped tears from her cheeks.

  “Elizabeth! Elizabeth! Oh God, where are you, Elizabeth!” The desperate, shouted plea drew the attention of the entire assemblage as a hulking, blond-haired man dressed in a mechanic’s uniform ran through the front doors.

  Summer turned in the direction of the trio consisting of Ace, Patrick Owen, and Elizabeth Owen as they looked in the man’s direction. Summer grimaced as she watched Elizabeth Owen’s face. The woman looked like she wanted to go hide under a rock somewhere.

  Kemp murmured, “Darlin’, excuse me. I need to talk with this guy.”

  “Elizabeth!”

  Summer said, “Sure, honey. I’ll be right here.”

  Grace whispered so no one else could hear, “I think we have front row seats for the shit that’s fixing to hit the fan. I need to write this stuff down. So Mr. Owen was your boyfriend, Rosemary?”

  “For about three months, yeah. The Owens are a big family, so that’s a common name around here. Elizabeth has always been snippy toward me, but I never made the connection until the last time I saw Patrick. It was that night at O’Reilley’s. Remember, Grace? That was the night you and I met.”

  “Oh, yeah. How can I forget? The ‘gold necklace’ incident. Oh, boy.”

  Summer observed the man who had just entered the store as Kemp approached him. Patrick Jr. sniffled and lifted his head to watch the policemen as they lifted the handcuffed shooter from the floor and dragged him shouting and screaming from the store.

  Two police officers had assisted Leah to one of the benches in the shoe department, and one of the cops handed her a glass of water as the other squatted in front of her and rubbed her shoulder. It was a casual gesture for such a situation, and Leah smiled at him tremulously and nodded. She looked up at the other man and smiled at him in thanks as she took the paper cup he offered her with both hands.

  “Boom,” the little boy whispered as he looked at Summer and put his pudgy little hands to his ears and said, “Scare me.”

  She looked into his cornflower-blue eyes and patted his back comfortingly. “Don’t worry, baby. You’re all safe now. You stay with Mommy and Daddy and no more running around in the store, okay?”

  He nodded, looking completely convinced, and said, “Okay.”

  She looked at the man Kemp spoke with and then back at Patrick. Then looked at the man again. “Grace? Rosemary? Anybody else notice a familial resemblance between that man and a certain member of this group?” she asked, pointing at the top of little Patrick’s head.

  Grace pressed her lips together and made big, surprised eyes, and Rosemary whispered, “Dang, Grace, I hope you’re taking notes with all this drama going on.”

  Grace replied, “It’s like I always say. The frozen chosen get on their high horses, but they are usually hiding bigger secrets of their own when they do. That little sinner,” she whispered, looking Elizabeth’s way. The woman looked nearly broken as she watched her husband begin to draw the same conclusions from across the room. He gazed at his son and then at the man Kemp spoke with quietly.

  Sheriff Hank Stinson joined Kemp’s conversation, and things grew heated judging by the blond man’s tone. His face turned red, and he pointed at Elizabeth and started crying. Summer had to look away from his display of emotion. This whole situation had morphed from incredibly scary to just plain sad.

  She glanced at Mr. Owen and knew he’d drawn the same conclusion as she had. That man speaking with Kemp was Patrick’s father. The resemblance was too clear.

  A sudden convergence of male bodies occurred.

  Jack Warner, Ethan Grant, and Adam Davis bore down on Grace from one side. Jack reached her first and wrapped her in his arms.

  “Darlin’! I was so worried!” In turn, Ethan and Adam both hugged and kissed her as she reassured them she was fine. Summer thought she still looked a little pale, and one of the men voiced the same opinion.

  Approaching from the front of the store, Wes and Evan Garner descended on Rosemary.

  She reached for them happily, and Evan wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her to him. “Baby. You okay?” She kissed him and nodded.

  Wes got hold of her next and lifted her off her feet as he hugged her to him gently. He whispered against her shiny, black curls and kissed the side of her head.

  Checking on her own men, Summer noted that Hank was leading the blond-headed stranger from the store and Kemp was making his way back to their little group. He looked satisfied.

  He slid his arm around Summer’s waist and said, “His name is Leroy Paggs. He confessed to setting the fire, the break-in and assault on you, and to harassing you and Grace on the road. The black SUV is parked outside by the sidewalk. He said Elizabeth promised to leave her husband for him if he helped her. He took the picture of us on the front porch and assisted her in taking pictures last night. He made a full confession to Hank just a minute ago. He said he’s the biological father.” He indicated with a nod of his head toward little Patrick, whom he was referring to.

  Summer looked over at Ace and noted the serious look on his face. Elizabeth’s husband was speaking to her in soft but certainly irate tones, solidifying Summer’s belief that he was a true gentleman for not revealing her sins to the crowd that was milling around.

  A policeman joined their group and ascertained whom he needed to take statements from and got an idea from them of what had happened.

  Rosemary groaned when Summer mentioned her part in the takedown of the shooter. Evan and Wes reacted noticeably and both turned to her simultaneously. Evan’s eyes blazed as he turned to look at Rosemary.

  She smiled lamely at him and patted his chest. “Not here. Okay?” Summer tried to hide her snicker when Rosemary smiled at Evan. It was visibly difficult for him to frown darkly at her and hide the trace of a smile in his eyes at the same time, but he tried anyway.

  “Woman, what are we gonna do with you?”

  Rosemary looked up at him with love obvious in her gaze and shrugged. “I dunno. You’ll figure it out.”

  EMTs arrived on the scene, and one of them approached Grace and her men. At his direction and her men’s insistence, she allowed them to lead her to a chair that must’ve been brought from one of the offices. She sat down and allowed him to check her vitals. She made eye contact with Summer and rolled her eyes but then nodded at one of her men and kissed him when he leaned down to whisper in her ear.

  Ace and Patrick Owen rejoined their group as well, and Summer turned curiously and watched as Elizabeth Owen was escorted by Hank Stinson from the store.

  Patrick Jr. went happily into his daddy’s arms, which gave Kemp and Ace the opportunity to hug Summer again. Patrick hugged his son and said, “Who’s my buggabear?” Emotion clogged Summer’s throat at the turm
oil she saw in Patrick Sr.’s eyes. He’d just discovered that the son he loved wasn’t biologically his.

  The toddler playfully replied, “I yer boogerbear!”

  Patrick Sr. turned to Ace and said, “I’m going to take him home now. We both need a little quiet time. I’ll be around the house whenever you want to come by.” Holding out his hand, he said, “Thank you, Mr. Webster. It’s a helluva lot to take in at once. I’m sorry for what Elizabeth and Paggs did to you and your friends. I promise you can have full access to her laptop to take down the blogsite if you need it.”

  Ace looked down as if he were listening to something and then said, “Thanks, but it’s already been handled. The laptop was sitting on the front seat of her car. Hope you don’t mind.” He left unsaid that her car had been opened and the laptop confiscated, at least temporarily. Patrick shrugged as if it was of little concern.

  “I knew she was unhappy, but I attributed it to baby blues and exhaustion from chasing Patrick. He’s a handful as you can tell.”

  Ace nodded and said, “I’ll make sure the laptop is returned. The police will want to take a look at it. Our only concern is the defaming materials she’s posted on the Internet. Any evidence won’t be tampered with. Can I talk to you privately?”

  The two men stepped away a few feet and spoke briefly. Patrick shook his head and hugged his son. He seemed sadder. They returned, and he thanked the girls for their part in saving his son, shook Ace and Kemp’s hands, and then left.

  Summer raised an inquiring brow, and Ace softly said, “I told him our main concern was the injury Elizabeth and Paggs had caused you girls and that we would’ve been happy to leave the authorities out of it if the harassment stopped. With Paggs’s confession, it’s gone too far for that. He’s pointing the finger at her for dragging him into this. I told him the last thing we wanted was to drag his family through the media. He said he’d deal with whatever came his way. His main worry right now is retaining custody of his son. I feel for him. His wife and her lover have made quite a mess. We’re going to help him.”

  “Did you know the baby belonged to Paggs?”

  Ace nodded. “Duke had a feeling there was a link between these two seemingly innocuous people all along. He caught her sneaking out of Paggs’s house one evening and knew they had to be up to something together. Duke was the first one to notice the family resemblance. He got creative in obtaining DNA samples.”

  Summer asked, “How creative?”

  Ace replied, “It involved Dumpster diving and a new pair of shoes and clothes for Duke. He went above and beyond the call of duty, even for him.”

  “Dumpster diving? Ew. Say no more.”

  Ace laughed at her expression and continued, “So Duke had the tests run and proved without question little Patrick’s paternity.”

  “What will he do about his little boy?”

  Ace shook his head and bit his lips thoughtfully. “I don’t know, but I’m going to take the laptop back to him in a few minutes and visit with him about it. He obviously loves that little boy. He said Elizabeth’s family might be a problem.”

  “How can you help?”

  “Do a little digging. Same as we did for Teresa Martinez when she was concerned about the same sorts of issues with Michael.”

  Summer had heard this story and nodded, remembering Teresa telling her that Ace and Kemp had been very persuasive and that she’d not heard a word from Michael’s monstrous grandparents since.

  A police officer approached them and said, “Excuse me, Ms. Heston? I need to take your statement if you don’t mind.”

  It was one of the officers who had been caring for Leah earlier, and Summer made a mental note to check in on Leah and get the scoop about her two attentive policemen.

  She nodded at him and caught Rosemary’s eye as she went with him. Rosemary winked and put her thumb and pinky to her ear and chin and mouthed, “I’ll call you.”

  Rosemary turned to her men and announced, “I want to check in on Leah while I wait my turn to give a statement.” The men nodded, and she made a beeline for the store manager. Summer had to give Rosemary credit because she worked fast.

  The other officer was already talking to Grace where she still sat in the chair stroking her abdomen. She nodded and answered his questions calmly, and her color definitely looked better.

  The officer asked, “Were you in the vicinity of the armed man while he was in control of the store?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Can you show me where you were?”

  She led him to the baby department and showed him the path they had taken, while trying to stay out of the shooter’s line of sight.

  After she showed him, the officer seated her at a bench in the shoe department and then got out his notepad and pencil. “In your own words, can you tell me what happened, Miss Heston?”

  Summer described to him exactly what had happened.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Summer walked with Kemp out to the Escalade after paying for the shoes. When he’d seen what had happened to the pretty shoe she’d been forced to ruin, he insisted on buying her a replacement pair, so her shopping bag contained two pair. If she could repair the damaged one then she’d own them in yellow and hot pink. It was surreal to think on what a great deal they’d been in light of the morning’s events.

  Ace was on his way to the Owens’ house to return the laptop and have a chat with Patrick. She sincerely hoped Mr. Owen would be able to keep his little boy. It was obvious he loved him.

  Kemp opened the door on the Escalade and helped her in. Ace had taken her car since his Hummer was back at the house. Duke had picked him up there shortly after his call to Kemp earlier that day.

  He started the vehicle and was buckling his seat belt when Summer said, “I’m glad we’re riding together because I wanted to ask you about what happened this morning. In all the drama and excitement I forgot to ask about Kathleen.”

  Kemp caressed her knee and clasped her fingers with his. “What do you want to know?”

  “Why did she show up out of the blue today?”

  “She wanted to explain why she disappeared so suddenly.”

  Knowing he was collecting his thoughts as he gazed out the windshield, Summer sat quietly and waited.

  “Kathleen had a very difficult decision to make. She had a prior relationship that Ace didn’t know about with a very powerful man in Europe. She met him while working as a translator. He was considerably older than her, but they fell in love. Long story made short, she found out through a friend that he had a wife tucked away in his home country. The wife didn’t care what he did as long as he didn’t embarrass her or try to divorce her. Kathleen couldn’t abide feeling like an adulteress, whether the wife cared or not, and left him. She said he had some powerful, not totally legitimate connections, but she never feared for her life.

  “What is her connection to Divine?”

  “She had family here. She came back and started a new life and met Ace. That was a little over two years ago. Like I’d told you before, they dated for several months and I was beginning to feel this connection with her, too.” He turned his gaze on her and said, “Sorry, darlin’. It’s kind of uncomfortable telling you about my feelings for another woman.”

  She imagined that it did and squeezed his hand reassuringly. “I appreciate you being honest, Kemp. I know you love me, so go ahead.”

  “So, one day two years ago, she shows up at the house while we’re working. It was obvious she was upset. Kathleen said she had to leave and that she was really sorry she couldn’t explain. When Ace asked what had happened all she would say was that she was needed elsewhere and that she had to leave immediately. She begged us not to look for her and said that she would get in contact when she could. I didn’t like seeing her so upset but didn’t get the impression she was in danger.” He caressed Summer’s palm and said, “Kathleen broke his heart, darlin’. She broke mine, a little, too. Without even kissing him good-bye she ran out of
the house and drove away. That was the last we saw or heard of her until today.”

  “Did you look for her?”

  “I did. Ace said to respect her wishes, but I couldn’t let it go. I hated seeing him so torn up. She dropped totally off the grid. I never found a trace of her, so I stopped looking. Her apartment had been stripped clean, and she’d left no forwarding address.”

  “Was it the man she’d had the relationship with?”

  Kemp nodded. “Yeah. He wanted her back in his life, but it’s probably not what you’re thinking. He was powerful and had a lot of money and connections. He knew where she was the whole time.”

  “Did he threaten her if she didn’t come back?”

  “No, he didn’t threaten her, but he made her an offer she couldn’t refuse. He was still in love with her, and I seriously doubt that he would’ve harmed her if she refused, but he held us over her head. He threatened to harm us if she didn’t return.”

  “How awful of him.”

  Kemp shook his head and chuckled wryly. “I thought that, too, until I realized I’d do just about anything to get you back.”

  “Oh. Okay.” Maybe there was a reason the man resorted to such dark tactics.

  “He sent two men to visit her. They told her what he wanted, and she refused, telling them she was in love with us. This was the first time I ever heard her say that in front of me. Finding that out after all this time was really messing with my head earlier while I was waiting for you on the deck.” She remembered seeing him out there and thinking that he’d had a lot on his mind.

  “They told her they had orders to do permanent, bodily harm to us if she refused. They said their employer was terminally ill and that he was not expected to live more than three months. He knew how Kathleen felt about being with him knowing he was married, and he didn’t expect sex. All he wanted was her companionship because he was already sexually incapacitated. His wife had refused to come to him, and he just needed Kathleen’s companionship.”

  Summer’s heart went out to Kathleen for the first time, wondering how she’d feel if she’d been put in the same situation.