Out for Justice
Page 19
And that’s when Kelly had her answer. No more mooning around and waiting for Wade to call. No more sleepless nights wishing she was back in his bed. She was going to act and act boldly. After all, it was in her genes.
She kissed each of her friends on the cheek. “Thanks. You are the best. Wish me luck.” She stood from the table, suddenly sure of herself.
“Where are you going?” Cara grumbled. “You didn’t even taste your dessert.”
“You go ahead.” Kelly hurried out the door. “I’m going shopping.”
“Of course she is.” Cara placed a forkful of cheesecake into her mouth and grinned at Lindsey. “Have you ever noticed that after Kelly goes shopping, there’s always fireworks afterward in Mustang Valley?”
“WADE LANSING, you open this door right now,” Kelly demanded in a voice that he couldn’t fail to recognize.
“Okay. Okay. Don’t break down the damn door.” Grumpy after a late night at the Hit ’Em Again, grumpier still from missing Kelly and several sleepless nights, Wade padded to his front door barefoot, knowing that another encounter with her would set back his recovery for days.
What was she doing here? He didn’t want a reminder of how good she looked first thing in the morning. Or how sweet she smelled after her shower. Or what that smile of hers did to heat him to a fever pitch.
What was she doing here so early in the morning? It figured that she’d wake him up ten minutes after he’d finally fallen asleep. But then nothing about Kelly was convenient. Not the fact that she was Andrew’s sister. Most definitely not the fact that even when he closed his eyes he saw her in his dreams. Certainly not the fact that she probably wanted to be around him because it made her feel closer to the brother she had lost. And absolutely not the fact that he wanted her more than he’d ever wanted any woman in his life.
For the first time he admitted to himself the real reason for pushing her away. He was scared. Scared that she would abandon him or die on him, just like every other person who he’d ever counted on. That might not be fair or rational but it was the way he felt.
However, just because he loved her didn’t necessarily mean he wanted the torture of seeing her in the flesh. His dreams and memories were vivid enough, thank you very much. Nevertheless, he unlocked his door and kicked it open.
And got the shock of his life.
Kelly stood there in a creamy white lace wedding dress. Her lush breasts filled the bodice, and the early-morning sunlight accentuated a glistening blush on her cheeks and a tantalizing blush in the hollows. Not even the shotgun cocked at her side could dispel the image of her loveliness that made his mouth go dry.
“You…are wearing…a wedding gown.”
“How observant of you.” Kelly’s rich laughter woke him right up and convinced him that he wasn’t dreaming. Not even his dreams were this imaginative. Or vivid.
She brushed by him, close enough for him to take in the fascinating scent of spiced lemons with a hint of strawberry. The view from the back was as enticing as her front. The dress swooped low in back, emphasizing her smooth skin, and his breath hitched in his chest.
He didn’t want to react to her, but who was he kidding? He had no choice, and his tone came out much huskier than he would have liked. “What do you want?”
“You.” She planted the gun handle on the floor and steadied herself with the barrel, cocking one hip at a sexy angle that reminded him of Charlie’s Angels. “So we can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
“You can’t just barge into my house—”
“You let me in,” she said so reasonably that he just knew she was up to one of her tricks.
“—and brandish a weapon.”
“I’m not brandishing, I’m leaning.”
“And the difference is…?”
“Doesn’t matter—except in a court of law.”
He raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Isn’t it a little late to be worried about the law?”
“Huh?” For the first time she seemed confused.
And he had to admit just to himself that sparring with her was much more fun than sleeping and dreaming about her. He allowed a glimmer of appreciation to show on his face. “The way you’re dressed you could be arrested for all kinds of things.”
“Oh, really?”
“Like getting married without a license.”
“I’d like to see you tell that to a judge.”
“Okay.”
He frowned at her. She’d just given in way too easily. “What do you mean, okay?”
“Okay, as in yes. Let’s go talk to the judge.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You’re impossible. I want to get married.”
Uh-oh. He’d walked right into that one. He could tell she’d set him up by the pleased gleam of satisfaction in her eyes.
“Where’s the groom?” he teased, his pulse racing, because he suddenly knew that he could do this. When Kelly set her mind to something, she didn’t change it. When she said forever, she meant it. She wouldn’t change her mind or leave him and his mind suddenly cleared like a defroster evaporating fog from a window. He could have her. All he had to do was take the biggest leap of faith in his life.
“I’m looking at the groom.”
She wanted to marry him—not have a summer fling. She couldn’t have shocked him more if she’d claimed she wanted to enter a convent.
She wanted to marry him. That meant he could have her for a lifetime, not just a few lousy weeks of the summer. That meant she never planned to leave him. Marriage was permanent.
She wanted to marry him, and his heart hummed with joy.
He folded his arms across his chest, thinking hard. “Well, it takes the consent of both parties to get married.”
“That’s why I brought the gun.”
He didn’t want to ask if it was loaded. He didn’t want to know.
His legs seemed to have gone to jelly and he slid onto the sofa. “We can’t get married.”
“Sure we can. I got the license yesterday.” She sauntered over to him, her hips swaying due to those too-sexy heels. She reached into her bra, removed a piece of folded paper and offered it to him. “After patching you up, Doc already had a sample of your blood.”
He marveled at her ingenuity, stunned, shocked and almost stupefied. “And?”
“And nothing.” She nudged him with the rifle. “Let’s go elope.”
Damn, he loved her. When she got all sexy and vulnerable and mad at the same time, she was the most adorable woman. Of course, he had no intention of telling her that—not with her caressing that gun barrel as if it were her best friend. He could think of much better things to do than die of a gunshot wound.
“I can’t elope right now,” he teased her, but pretended to be deadly serious.
“Why not?”
“My slacks are too tight.”
She glanced down at him and chuckled. “I suppose we could take care of that big problem first.”
He grabbed her hand and yanked her down beside him. “Good. But we have a few other things to work out.” He planted a kiss by her ear. “If we get married, you aren’t giving up law school for me.”
“If I give up law school, it won’t be for you. But I’ve been considering a career in real estate. I just haven’t decided yet.”
“And no babies until you finish school.”
“You want kids?” she smoothed her hands over his chest and let them dip below his waist.
“Yeah, but not yet.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, tugged her close and then tipped up her chin to claim her lips. “First, I’m going to let you spoil me in the manner to which I’ve become accustomed.”
“Yes, sir,” she teased. “I can tell exactly who is going to be in charge of this marriage.”
“You?”
She kissed him and then pulled back. “Oh, did I happen to mention that my wedding veil and your suit are in the car and that the judge is expecting us at noon. The plane leaves
for our honeymoon in Hawaii at three. So quit wasting time. Unless you have a better idea?”
He kissed her lips. “Well, there seems to be one important thing you forgot.”
“Hmm?”
“You didn’t give me time to say I love you.”
“That’s perfectly okay.” She grinned at him. “I already knew that.”
Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Susan Kearney for her contribution to the Shotgun Sallys series.
ISBN: 978-1-4592-3766-7
OUT FOR JUSTICE
Copyright © 2004 by Harlequin Books S.A.
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* The Sutton Babies
† Hide and Seek
** The Crown Affair
†† Heroes, Inc.