by Sandra Brown
“Wasn’t it sweet of Jace to fix this old thing for me? All I had to do was mention that it was broken and nothing would do but for him to come out here and have a look at it.”
“I’ll just bet,” Katherine mocked, but her sarcasm was lost on the unsuspecting Happy. Didn’t she wonder what Jace’s reason for coming around was in the first place?
Jace answered that question for her. “The roughnecks are doing some preliminary land clearing on the site where we want to drill, so I’m free for a few days. Isn’t that fortunate?” His smile was beguiling and deliberately aggravating.
“Extremely,” Katherine smiled back with matched brilliance, hoping to provoke him. But he only laughed. He was the most infuriating man!
The next few days fell into the same pattern. He was everywhere. Every time Katherine turned around, Jace was there. He helped Happy with odd jobs; he took her car to be serviced; he sat with Allison one afternoon so Happy could attend a woman’s social at the church. He offered to help Katherine in her apartment, but she summarily refused his smallest gesture of kindness. She wasn’t going to be swayed by this hypocritical charade.
By Friday afternoon her nerves were frayed to shreds. With the fall semester starting, her office had been unusually busy. She wasn’t able to keep up the writing of the press releases and promotional material that was required of her. Jace and his activities had weighed heavily on her mind all week, and she found it hard to concentrate while sitting at her typewriter.
“Katherine.” She jumped as Ronald Welsh spoke at her shoulder. He had an annoying habit of sneaking up on her and then profusely apologizing for it. His comforting pats on the arm disturbed her.
It had been necessary to continue the lie about her being a widow when she applied for the job. He had been moved by her tragic story, and Katherine thought his immediate concern for a total stranger had been suspiciously effusive.
“Did I startle you? I’m sorry.” As she placed the plastic cover over her typewriter, he came around to face her. “Are you in a hurry to leave tonight? Thought maybe we could start celebrating the long weekend early with a drink?”
Katherine shrank from the large, beefy hand that had settled on her shoulder and pinned her to the chair. She tried not to panic or jump to the wrong conclusion, but suddenly she felt uneasy in the close intimacy of the office.
“Oh, thank you, Mr. Welsh—”
“Ronald.”
“R-Ronald, but I really do need to get home. My goodness, look how late it is,” she cried, making a cursory check on her wristwatch, and not even noting or caring about the time. She only wanted to leave the confines of the small office.
She managed to extricate herself from the chair, but as she moved toward the door, he grasped her arm. “Everyone else is gone, Katherine. They were all so anxious to clear out and get a start on the Labor Day holiday. We can have the building all to ourselves and enjoy our own celebration.” To her increasing horror, he crossed to the door and locked it.
“I know you don’t want to disappoint me. You like working here, don’t you? I hope so. It’s so important that you keep a stable job like this one. I mean, you’re a widow with a little girl, you know,” he cooed unctuously.
Katherine’s throat constricted in fear as he stared at her with glinting, fevered eyes. She swallowed convulsively and decided that her best defense was bluffing him into thinking she was agreeable to his tête-à-tête.
“On second thought, Ronald. A drink sounds nice,” she said brightly through frozen lips. Her whole face had become stiff. She had to get to that door!
“I knew you’d go along, Katherine.” His short, thick body moved toward her, and he reached out and stroked her cheek with sausagelike fingers.
Katherine nearly choked on the bile that rose up in the back of her throat, but she managed a caricature of a smile. Her mouth was so dry that her lips stuck to her teeth.
“What do you like to drink, my dear? Did you know that I had this little liquor cabinet hidden here for occasions such as this?”
He winked at her before he turned around to lean over a desk drawer. Katherine took one hesitant step toward the door. To cover her movement she said, “Anything is fine with me. Whatever you’re having.”
“I love an uncomplicated woman.” He straightened, holding a bottle of cheap liquor in one hand and two dusty glasses in the other. Katherine recognized them as those that were used in the campus cafeteria and wanted to laugh hysterically. Mr. Ronald Welsh didn’t waste any money on his seductions.
“Come over here and sit beside me, Katherine. I want you to relax.” He settled his bulky frame on the small sofa and patted the cushion.
Other than making a mad dash for the door which was across the room, Katherine had no choice. She would have to bide her time until she saw an opportunity for escape. But would such an opportunity come before it was too late? On shaky knees she went to the sofa and sat down beside him.
The sweet odor of the thick hair oil, his sweat, and the reeking liquor he was extending toward her almost made her retch. But she smiled and raised the glass to her lips. Her drinking habits were limited to wine or drinks that camouflaged the taste of liquor. She could barely swallow her tentative sip of the raw, burning rye.
“I like girls who wear dresses. You’ve never come to work in anything but a skirt or a dress.” He placed his sweaty palm on her knee and began inching it up by small degrees. This couldn’t be happening to her!
“A lot of men don’t like panty hose, but I do. I find panty hose incredibly sexy, Katherine.” His hand was under her skirt now, sliding higher and pressing harder. Beads of perspiration dotted his upper lip.
“Please, Mr.… Ronald—” Her voice came out high and squeaky. His next move took her completely by surprise.
He lunged at her, forcing her backward on the sofa. He fell on top of her, knocking the breath out of her. His heavy hand reached for the front of her silk shirt, and the breast pocket came away in his fist as she jerked out of his grasp.
“You can’t fool me, Katherine. You want this as much as I do,” he grunted. “Go ahead and scream if you want to. No one will hear you.”
He was panting, or was that her own ragged breath that echoed in her head as she struggled under his crushing weight. “No… oh, God… you’re mad… please, no.”
He grabbed the front of her shirt and ripped it apart, sending buttons flying. He tried vainly to open the front clasp of her bra, but when his frantic fingers couldn’t manage that, he impatiently broke the plastic fastener.
His mouth crashed down on hers. His thick lips pulled at hers, and, when she bit them, he raised one hand and slapped a stinging blow across her cheek.
Her tender breasts were exposed to his rough handling. Katherine cried out in pain as he scratched them and kneaded them with bruising pinches.
When his lips left hers to bury themselves in her neck, she screamed with her last ounce of strength. The piercing sound was joined with that of breaking glass and splintering wood.
Over Ronald Welsh’s bulky shoulder, she saw Jace’s booted foot give one final kick, and the door swung open under the impact. He was on Ronald in three long strides.
Grabbing the other man by the collar of his coat, Jace pulled him off Katherine and flung him into the opposite wall.
“You bastard!” Jace growled as he crammed his fist into Ronald’s stupefied face. Katherine heard the sickening crunch of a nose breaking and saw blood spurt out of the smashed feature.
She sobbed hysterically as Jace continued to pummel Ronald’s sagging body. He was no longer coherent and slowly slumped against the wall, supported only by Jace’s grip on the front of his blood-splattered shirt.
Jace shoved his fist into Ronald’s belly one last time and then let him go. With a deep, animal moan, Ronald collapsed into a heap on the floor.
Jace stood over the still form, his chest and shoulders heaving in exertion. He raked one sleeve across his forehead and then slowly tu
rned toward Katherine.
She managed to sit upright, but felt that at any moment she was going to start screaming and never stop.
Jace knelt down in front of her and smoothed back the tangled hair from her white face. “Katherine?” he asked softly. “Katherine, are you all right?” His face was filled with such anxious concern that when she saw it, she was unable to contain the tears that flooded her eyes, and they spilled down her cheeks.
“Y-yes,” she nodded. He wiped the tears away with his fingers and rested his palm against the red mark on her face. His lips formed a hard, grim line.
“I’ll be right back. I want to get—” He made a motion to get up, but she clutched his shoulders with desperate hands.
“No! Please, Jace, don’t leave me alone in here with him. I can’t stand it. Please.” She was becoming hysterical and couldn’t stem the flow of words.
Jace pulled her to him and cradled her head against his shoulder. He stroked the back of her head reassuringly.
“Hush, hush. It’s okay. I won’t leave you, Katherine. I promise. Hush now. I was only going to find something to write on. The president of this august institution is going to hear about this tonight. But I guess a telephone call will be even better.”
Jace maintained his hold on her as he drew her up. He balanced the trembling body against his as he picked up her purse on the desk, then swept her into his arms and carried her out of the building into the quiet evening. It was already dark and the campus of Van Buren College was deserted.
When he had her settled in the jeep, he fumbled through the myriad articles stashed in the back of it until he found what he was looking for.
“Here, Katherine, put this on.” She recoiled from the hands that reached toward her ripped blouse which she clutched together in an effort to cover herself.
Patiently he stated his motive. “Katherine, if Happy sees you like that, you’ll have to make a lot of painful explanations. Slip into this T-shirt and maybe we can get you into the house without attracting her attention. If she comments on the shirt, I’ll tell her you spilled ink or threw up or something. Okay?”
She nodded and didn’t resist when he gently eased her out of the torn, ruined blouse. He tossed it to the floor of the jeep. Although cocooned as she was in apathy, Katherine blushed with embarrassment when he slid the straps of her bra from her arms.
“Goddamn him,” he murmured when he saw the welts and bruises on the smooth breasts. With infinite tenderness, he touched one of the deeper scratches with his fingertip.
Katherine watched his face, incredulous that she should see such emotion there. The warmth of his hand was transmitted to her and his touch seemed to heal her from the physical pain of the assault and the emotional upheaval of the trauma.
Jace’s teeth clenched and he hissed harshly, “I ought to go back and kill that sonofabitch!” Trying his best not to cause her more pain, he slipped the T-shirt over her head. It was far too large for her, but the soft cloth felt good.
When he was assured that she was comfortable, Jace straightened in his seat and started the jeep. He drove without undue speed, and, when they reached Katherine’s yard, he cut the motor and got out of the jeep without speaking. Katherine noted with relief that Happy’s car wasn’t parked in its usual spot.
He didn’t allow her any time to protest but carried her up the stairs. He looked at her inquiringly, and she indicated Allison’s room.
He deposited her on the twin-size day bed that she slept on.
“What can I do to help?” he asked. “And don’t give me that crap about not needing my help.”
She looked up at him and her lips trembled as she gulped, “Th-thank you, Jace. He was going to… I don’t know if I could have fought him much longer. It was terrible.” She shuddered and folded her arms across her chest, holding herself tightly and rocking back and forth.
“God, Katherine, I can’t even imagine how horrifying it was for you. When I went through that door and saw—”
“What were you doing there?” it suddenly occurred to her to ask.
He didn’t meet her eyes as he answered in a mutter, “I… uh… ever since I met that… him at the dance, I’ve felt like something wasn’t right. Intuition. The way he looked at you bothered me. I’ve been keeping my eye on him. When the building got dark and everyone left but the two of you, I got suspicious. I tried the door and found it locked. That’s when you screamed.”
“Thank you,” she whispered and shyly reached for his hand. He grasped her small one in his and stared deeply into her eyes as his thumb traced a hypnotizing circle in her palm. The combination of his caress and his penetrating stare made Katherine uncomfortably warm and she forced herself to pull her hand from his. He released it immediately.
“I would like to take a bath,” Katherine said.
“All right. You do that while I make some telephone calls.” He went out and shut the door behind him.
The warm water stung the fresh scratches, but she felt cleansed of Ronald’s smell and touch by the time she left the bathroom. She put on a cotton nightgown and climbed into the bed beside the crib.
“Coming through,” Jace called before he eased into the room backward, using his bottom to open the door. He was carrying a tray with both hands. “Room service,” he said cheerfully. Katherine laughed to see a tea towel tucked into the waistband of his jeans. He gingerly placed the tray on her lap and stood up, proudly inspecting his labors.
“I thought you might like some tea and toast. If you want an omelet or anything else, I’ll fix it for you. I didn’t think you’d want a heavy meal.”
“This is perfect,” she said taking a sip of the scalding tea.
Casually and without any hesitation, he sat down on the end of the bed and leaned back over her feet, supporting himself on his elbows.
“For your information, Mr. Ronald Welsh is no longer employed at Van Buren College. I called the president, interrupted a barbecue supper at his house, and told him the whole story. I threatened newspaper headlines and petitions against sexual harassment on the job if he didn’t cooperate. He was easily convinced.” He smiled at Katherine, but there was no humor lighting the blue eyes.
“Mr. Welsh?” she asked timidly, remembering his crumpled body on the office floor.
“I called an ambulance for him,” Jace said grudgingly.
Katherine nodded absently. “He has a family. I wonder what will happen to them when he loses his job,” she mused.
“They’ll be taken care of along with the hospital bill.”
Katherine looked at him in surprise. “What do you mean?”
He picked up one of Allison’s stuffed animals and studied its ears. “Never mind,” he answered vaguely, then said quickly, “Someone from the college will bring your car home.”
Before Katherine could question him any further, they heard Happy’s cheerful call as she came through the front door in the living room. “Katherine, Jace, are you in here? Allison and I had an errand to run and I…” Her voice trailed off as her huge bulk filled the doorway.
Jace made no attempt to get up off the bed, and Happy’s eyes opened in shock when she saw the two of them on the small bed and Katherine tucked in for the night.
“What—”
Jace didn’t let her finish but stood up and relieved her of Allison.
“Katherine’s tummy got a little upset at work. She called and asked me to come drive her home. I insisted that she get right into bed and get a good night’s sleep.”
He lied so glibly, Katherine thought.
“Oh, my dear, are you feeling all right? Maybe we should call a doctor,” suggested Happy, and Katherine reacted instantly.
“No. No, I’m fine. I think I ate something at lunch that didn’t agree with me.”
“Jace is right. You stay right in that bed and don’t worry about a thing. I’ll take Allison back to my house for the night.”
“No, Happy. I want her here with me,” Katherine said. Some
how Allison’s small body provided a sense of security and stability to her shattered nerves.
“But what if you have a contagious virus? The baby—”
“No, it’s nothing like that.” Jace interrupted Happy’s objections. “I’ve decided to stay here tonight. If Katherine needs any help or starts feeling worse, I’ll call for you.”
Katherine and Happy both looked at him in astonishment. Happy was the first to recover. “But, Jace, are you sure that’s proper. I mean—”
“Of course. I’ll stay in the living room. I was going to be up all night going over some graphs and doing some charting anyway, so I’d just as well do it here.”
Happy was reluctant to agree, but Jace’s manner was so disarming that she stifled any further protests.
“I think we’d better let Katherine get to sleep,” he hinted, and Happy quickly responded. She said a hurried good night, patted Allison on the back, and left.
Jace laid Allison in her crib and said, “Don’t go away, princess, I’ll be right back.” He turned in the narrow space between the crib and the bed and asked, “Are you finished?” Katherine nodded affirmatively. “Want anything else?” She nodded negatively. He took the tray and went out of the room.
When he returned, he rubbed his hands together briskly and leaned over the crib. “I’ve never done this, Allison, but you can talk me through it, okay?”
Katherine laughed as his big hands grappled with the tiny buttons on Allison’s playsuit. He finally got her out of it and changed her diaper, putting on a more absorbent disposable for the night. When she was properly creamed, powdered, snapped, and buttoned into pajamas, he lifted her out of the crib and carried her into the kitchen to get her bottle. Katherine could hear him talking to the baby the whole while.
He came back with the bottle of milk in one hand. He sat down in the wicker rocking chair and winced when he heard it crackling under his weight.
“Is this damn thing going to hold me?” he asked and Katherine laughed.