Josh's Justice, Cowboy Romance (Bad in Boots, Book 4)

by Michelle, Patrice

  His eyes narrowed on Jackson, his voice full of steel. “Not nearly enough.” Returning his gaze to her, Josh gathered her closer. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if I had lost you, Brina.”

  She wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him back. As she breathed in the scents that were all Josh, tears welled and she whispered back, “I’m sorry I thought for even one second you were the one who attacked me.”

  “There’s no reason to apologize. Colt told me about your call to Nan. That note looked pretty damning. She was worried for you until Colt set her straight. Apparently Jackson had someone working for him at the insurance company, helping him set Colt up. Jackson surprised us all at how well he’d manipulated us.”

  She hugged him tighter. “I still feel bad, but my biggest regret while laying there tied up by Jackson was worrying that I wouldn’t get a chance to tell you how I felt about you. I love the man you are, Josh Kelly, and I’m looking forward to learning everything there is to know about you, inside and out. I’m going to stay.”

  When she finished speaking, Josh quickly pulled back. His gaze full of love, he cupped her face, then winced as his hands connected with her skin.

  She grabbed his hands and gasped when she saw the reddened flesh on the tips of his fingers. “Oh, no, your fingers.”

  “I’ve had worse. They’ll heal.” He shrugged the pain away, serious eyes locking with hers. “We’ve got what matters most. The rest we’ll figure out, okay?”

  The last he’d said with a reassuring smile. She knew he referred to his firefighting. She smiled back, nodding in agreement, then snuggled close and rubbed her nose against his chest, thankful to be in his arms once more.

  * * *

  Three days later, Elise finished combing through Sabrina’s wet hair, then separated a hank and held the scissors to it. “You ready?” she asked, her green eyes glassy with unshed tears.

  Elise had done nothing but shower her with attention since Josh brought her to the Lonestar after he and Colt had rescued her from Jackson. So far she’d taken her shopping, to the movies, out to Rockin’ Joes, and out to dinner two nights in a row. She’d wanted to take Sabrina to a salon to have her hair done, but Sabrina just pulled it into a bun refusing the offer. She’d finally let Elise convince her to part with the damaged locks. Sabrina came back to the present and exhaled the breath she’d been holding. “Yes.”

  When Elise snipped off four inches, tears started falling down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry, Sabrina.”

  “Stop crying, Elise. It’s okay.”

  Elise shook her head, tears streaming faster now. “This is all my fault.”

  “It’s not your fault. It’s Jackson’s.” Sabrina grabbed her hand. “And, seriously. I want you to stop crying. Otherwise, you won’t cut in a straight line.”

  Elise met her gaze and snickered. “Oh. Good point.” Brushing away her tears with the back of her hand, she squared her shoulders, then lifted another wet hank and took a deep breath. “Let’s get back to it.”

  While Elise cut the burned ends of her hair, she said, “Colt called and said the police have caught and arrested the woman from the insurance agency.”

  “That’s great!” Sabrina met Elise’s gaze in the mirror, smiling.

  Elise nodded and combed through her hair to get to the next section. “Now if they could just find and arrest May Winston, I’ll be ecstatic.”

  Sabrina frowned. “I can’t believe this woman did this to get back at Colt for firing her.”

  Elise pursed her lips in annoyance. “I didn’t tell you the whole story. Beyond the fact that she’s an unhappy ex-employee of Colt’s rodeo, May believes Colt jilted her too.”

  Sabrina’s eyebrows shot up. “Jilted? As in she and Colt were lovers?”

  Elise nodded. “It was over a long time ago, way before Colt and I met. But May always held out hope they’d get back together.”

  “Ah, then Colt laid eyes on you…” Sabrina filled in the missing pieces.

  “Yep, and that was the end of May’s hopes to be the future Mrs. Colt Tanner.” Elise grinned her satisfaction as she snipped the last burned strand, evening up her hair.

  As she began to blow dry Sabrina’s hair, Nan poked her head in the bathroom doorway. “Josh just called. He said, ‘Tell Elise I’m picking Sabrina up in two hours.”

  Josh was coming to pick her up? Sabrina’s heart raced in excitement.

  Elise waved the hairbrush in the air. “Why did Josh tell you to tell me?” She frowned in confusion. “For that matter, why didn’t he ask Sabrina if she wanted to go?”

  “Sabrina wants to go!” Sabrina said quickly, giving her a wide grin. She’d missed Josh terribly these past few days, but she’d also needed to spend some quality time with her friend.

  After Nan left, Elise pursed her lips, eyeing her. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  Sabrina nodded. “Yes. If you could help me style my hair, I have a couple phone calls to make before he gets here.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Nervous butterflies danced in Sabrina’s stomach when a knock sounded at the front door.

  Elise glanced up from her mug of coffee, eyebrow arched. “Well, aren’t you going to answer it?”

  Sabrina gave her a big hug, then practically ran to the front door, Elise’s laughter floating behind her. “Hush,” she hissed toward the kitchen, before she straightened her button down shirt over her belted jeans, then opened the door.

  She barely had a chance to soak in Josh’s sexy five o’clock shadow, his forest green button down shirt or dark Wranglers before he immediately pulled her against his chest and wrapped his arms around her.

  “Three days was all I could handle,” he whispered huskily against her temple, his cowboy hat shielding her face from the afternoon sun.

  Sabrina hugged his waist and pressed her nose into his chest, inhaling his masculine scent of leather and all male. “I’ve missed you too, especially the way you smell.”

  His hand slid down her back, resting at the base of her spine. “Are you ready to go?”

  She nodded.

  Once they got in his truck, Sabrina turned to Josh and flipped her shoulder-length hair. “What do you think? Elise cried as she cut off the burned ends. Tomorrow she’s going to take me to a salon so they can shape it properly.”

  Josh removed his hat and set it on the seat. His teal gaze shifted to the color of a churning ocean as he threaded his fingers through the shorter strands. “Every time I think about how close I came to losing you…” he paused, his jaw muscle jumping before he continued in a controlled voice, “It’s a good thing Jackson’s in jail and out of my reach.”

  Charmed by his protective tone and gentle touch, she grabbed his wrist and laced her fingers with his. Tracing the pads of her fingers over the mostly healed burns on his fingers, she kissed the ones that still looked a bit pink. “I’m fine. My very own hero was there to save me.”

  “About that…” Josh laid his wrist on the steering wheel and let his gaze scan the open prairie for a second. When his gaze met hers once more, the heat and love behind it made her heart melt. “I’ve decided to change my firefighting status.”

  Surprised by his announcement, she squeezed his hand but couldn’t help the guilt that washed over her. “How have you changed it? You’re not quitting are you, Josh?”

  “Is that what you want?”

  She shook her head, her stomach churning. “Not for me. Never for me.”

  He released her hand and traced a finger down the side of her face. “I saved you from a fire once. That was hard enough when you were a beautiful stranger I’d just met. But when I saw those flames come close to the woman I deeply love the other day, I realized exactly how you felt when you thought I might not come home from fighting that fire. It terrified the shit out of me.”

  “So you’re quitting.” She looked down and the tears fell, her shoulders slumping. One day he’d resent her for being the reason he stopped fighting fires. Tha
t’s the last thing she wanted.

  Josh touched her chin, lifting it until she had to meet his gaze. “When it comes to you, I’m not willing to take as many risks, but no, I’m not quitting, I’m just shifting direction. Following the investigation with Renee really interested me, so I’ve decided to get my fire investigator certification and work on cases for the fire department on a part-time basis. And yes, my name will still be on the emergency call list as a last resort firefighter.”

  She felt a slight twinge that he’d still be fighting fires, even rarely, but if he could try to find a middle ground, so could she. She took a deep breath and smiled. “I’m glad you’ll still be involved in something you feel so strongly about, but,” she paused, confused. “Why are you only going part-time as an investigator?”

  His expression turned serious. “Every time I investigate or fight a fire, I’ll still be fighting for Nick, but now I want to fight for my own happiness. I’ve put off what I’ve always wanted to do for too long. Those empty stalls you saw in my stables? They’ll soon be full. My father’s jumping up and down with glee that I’m finally joining the family business of raising horses. He’s already bushwhacked a clean path from the Double K up to my house.”

  She sniffed back her tears and clasped his hand, needing to know his decision was his and his alone, “What you’ve always wanted to do?”

  He nodded. “Yeah.”

  When she smiled, he reached into his back pocket. “Speaking of something I want…” He lifted her right hand in the air. “Hold your hand there for a sec.”

  Sabrina did as he asked, dying of curiosity.

  Josh slid a thin, tan string around the bottom of her third finger on her right hand, saying, “I might not always give you what you want—”

  “Josh wait!” She curled her fingers around the string, stopping him. The look of hurt in his eyes made her heart beat faster. She quickly replaced her right hand with her left, laying it over the string still hanging between his fingers. “It needs to be the right hand.”

  Tender heat swirled in Josh’s eyes as he slid the string around the third finger on her left hand and tied it in a bow, saying, “But I promise to always give you what you need.”

  Sabrina had never felt so much love. Josh was making a promise about their relationship, but the string also reminded her how deeply he’d looked. He knew what made her happy or sad, knew what turned her on, and most importantly he never let her shy away from the fact they were meant to be. Jeremy had squandered their time together, proving quantity didn’t count for much, but Josh had made the most of their stolen moments, showing her that quality mattered more than anything.

  Josh’s warm fingers clasped her hand and he pressed a kiss to the bow on her finger. “I love you, Sabrina.”

  She folded her hand around his, emotion clogging her throat. “I love you, too Josh. I think I have from the moment you said, ‘Elise who?’”

  When Josh barked out a laugh, she snickered, then sobered. “I have something for you too. But it’s at your house.”

  “My house is your house.” Grinning, Josh started his truck.

  As he turned onto the cut out path his dad had made from the Double K up to his house, Josh asked, “Do you think your boss would let you work from home?”

  She pulled her gaze away from the gorgeous woods streaming by, eyebrows raised. There’s no way he could’ve known that she’d hinted at this idea with her boss when she called and asked to take a couple extra days off. After her boss heard what happened to her, he was more than willing to let her take the time she needed. “I think my boss would go for a proposal for me to telecommute so long as I came back to Arizona a few times a year for meetings and such. It’ll probably take me a week or so to relocate my office,” she mused, thinking about everything she’d need to do to move.

  “That’s great.” Josh nodded, his brow furrowed in concentration. “We can get any office equipment you’ll need.”

  “Once I get it set up in my new apartment—”

  “Your apartment?” Josh shot her a frown. “I was sincere about my place being yours, Brina. I want you with me. I promise you’ll have the space you need to get your work done from home.”

  The man was pure temptation. “Josh…let’s talk about that later.”

  Glancing at her with serious eyes, he grumbled, “These past three days have been pure torture. Colt told me to stow it every time I tried to call.”

  She couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face. “You called?”

  “Hell yeah, I called. Everyday, but he kept blocking me.” Josh let out a dark, satisfied laugh. “Then he came by the Double K last night, looking as surly as I’ve felt since I had to leave you with them and said, “I want my wife back. You can call Sabrina tomorrow.”

  Sabrina laughed. “You tough cowboys sure can’t seem to live without your women.”

  Josh stopped the truck in front of his house and cut the engine, flashing a wide smile. “Damn straight!” Once she followed him out of his truck, he put his arm around her shoulders and said, “When a cowboy finds his woman, he never let’s her go, sweetheart. Not even for a few days.” His amusement settled as they mounted the steps. “So what did you have to give me?”

  Sabrina grabbed the box wrapped in brown paper leaning against his front door and tucked it under her arm. “Go on in and stand in the living room, facing the kitchen.”

  He glanced at the box, brow furrowed. “Where’d that come from? It wasn’t there when I left.”

  She shooed him on. “Go on and just do as I ask.”

  Josh shrugged and entered the living room. Turning to face the kitchen, he folded his arms. Sabrina was right behind him, but as she started to pull off the paper, he turned his shoulder.

  “Uh, Josh. It’s a surprise! Turn around. And close your eyes this time.”

  With a heavy sigh, he grinned, then turned and closed his eyes. “Shut now.”

  Sabrina ripped off the paper and smiled at the large shadow box frame. Nan’s sister had done a fantastic job with the framing, and so had all the other people she’d enlisted to help her with this project.

  She carefully lifted it up and set it on the mantel. Moving a horse statue to the left and a clock to the right, she placed the shadow box in the middle of the mantel and stood back, suddenly nervous. What if Josh hated it? It had seemed like such a good idea at the time. Biting her lip, she moved to stand beside Josh and took a deep breath. “You can turn around now.”

  Josh didn’t say anything as he turned and stared at the shadow box. His throat worked and emotions flickered across his face so quickly, she wasn’t sure what he was thinking. When he walked right up to the frame, his steps fast, his stance tense, she followed and twisted her hands together, worried she’d royally screwed up. “You hate it, don’t you?”

  Sabrina had taken that old picture of he and Nick and put it in its own small frame inside a shadow box. The fact she’d taken the time to do this floored him. All kinds of emotions rolled through him; sadness for Nick’s death, regret for the man he’d never become, happiness that he’d met Sabrina, and thankfulness that she knew just how to burrow straight through to his heavy heart and set it free.

  The picture frame was set back in the left half of the shadow box. His Colt 45 rested upright in a stand in front of the picture frame but centered in the shadow box. The gun’s metal was shined up and new looking. No more dust. Wait? Was it my gun? He strode up to the frame and tilted his head to see. No, it was Nick’s gun. When he straightened, his gaze landed on the engraving on the silver plaque in the back right half of the box. The title read: Future Heroes. Underneath the title in smaller script, it read: Sabrina Gentry and a date. His eyes watered a little when he recognized the date Sabrina had engraved. It was three days ago.

  Sabrina’s small hand on his arm drew him back to his surroundings. “Do you hate me?” she asked, lips trembling slightly, gorgeous green eyes wide with worry. “I wanted you to know, and Nick too,
that he did become the hero he’d always wanted to be. It might’ve been your shooting skills that saved me, but it was his gun, Josh. Nick’s gun.”

  Josh’s chest ached and he found it hard to breathe. He pulled the woman he loved into his arms, gathering her close. She’d become so precious to him, he couldn’t imagine his life without her. His voice was hoarse with emotion, but he managed to get the words out, “Nick would’ve loved you, Sabrina.”

  Relief flooded through her that Josh seemed happy with his gift. She wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest. “Your gun is clean and in its holster where it belongs.”

  Josh cupped her face and looked into her eyes. “I love the shadow box. I can’t even put into words what it means to me. Thank you,” he finished, pressing his lips to hers in a tender kiss.

  When she started to kiss him back, Josh quickly stepped back, a broad smile on his lips. “I’ll be right back. Sit down on the couch and wait for me.”

  Perplexed, Sabrina did as he asked, sinking into the soft cushions.

  When Josh returned, he sat down beside her and clasped her hand in his. Goose bumps formed on her arms as he ran his thumb along the string he’d tied earlier. Then he surprised her by sliding a two-carat sapphire flanked by trillion cut diamonds on her finger. “I guessed at your size…will you marry me, Brina? You don’t have to say yes right away, but I can’t stand another day going by without asking you to spend the rest of your life with me.”

  Her chest hurt with the love she felt for this amazing man. Big tears welled and she nodded. “Yes, I’ll marry you.” Josh flashed a wide smile and started to untie the string, but she yanked her hand back. “No, I want it to wear off. Once it’s gone, we’ll set a date. That should be long enough to convince my mom that I’m not crazy for marrying a man I just met.”

  “Fine,” Josh said grudgingly as he pulled her back against his chest and settled her ring hand on his thigh.

  A quiet settled between them while he fiddled with her ring, pushing it back and forth along her finger. She snuggled deeper into his warm embrace. “What are you thinking?”