by Lori Foster
The gathering was almost at an end, so he’d be able to do that soon.
A thwack to his back took him off guard, sending him stumbling forward. He glared over his shoulder at Morgan. Despite being in his sixties, the man was still a brick wall and didn’t seem to know it.
Morgan laughed. “He hasn’t told her, I can tell.”
“I think you’re right.” Jordan lifted his drink as if in a toast. “I’ve seen that look before.”
Gabe, quieter than the others since this was his daughter they discussed, shook his head. “Do it, and soon.”
Tucker could barely believe their gall. “You’re demanding that I tell her?” He almost laughed. They had some serious misunderstandings about him if they thought they could direct his personal relationship.
But Gabe shook his head. “Trying to save you some misery, actually.” He leaned against a tree, his arms folded over his chest. “I’ve been where you’re at, and let me tell you, denial sucks. Better to lay it on the line and see how it goes. If my daughter loves you back—”
“She does,” Jordan said with confidence.
She did, Tucker silently agreed. He glanced at her again and found her staring up at the darkening sky.
“—then it’ll all work out, right?”
She was so pretty, vivacious, outgoing—and he’d given her a taste of lust. Would she now be content with him, only him, for the rest of her life?
God, he hoped so.
The overcast day kicked up a heavy breeze, rustling the leaves of the trees around them.
The men had sent the women off to relax, and they were quickly gathering up the remains of the grill out.
“Is a storm rolling in?” Tucker asked. The weather had been unpredictable for more than a week, a fact that concerned Kady since it was her responsibility to share the forecast.
In the middle of loading a tray, Morgan looked up. “Damn.”
Staring at the clouds, Jordan asked, “Are you avoiding the question?”
“No.” He’d already lost enough time because of avoidance. He should have pursued her from the beginning, instead of making stupid, and wrong, assumptions. “You’re right that I love her.” He didn’t have a problem admitting it. Hell, there were times when he wanted to shout it. Only consideration for Kady and the newness of their relationship kept him silent. “But it’s a little more complicated than you think.”
The men looked at each other, then barked with laughter.
Asses.
Garrett, Kady’s cousin, approached without Tucker noticing, and he slung an arm over his shoulders. “Course it’s complicated, but I figured you’re smart enough to maneuver through it.”
“And we like you,” Shohn said, joining the others so that they surrounded him.
Tucker rolled his eyes. “Am I getting your collective stamp of approval?”
Gabe stared at him, his expression oddly calm but his blue eyes almost incendiary. “Think you’d be here now otherwise?”
“Probably not.” He shrugged off Garrett’s arm. “This is between Kady and me, so my recommendation is that you all back off.”
“Got you running scared, huh?” Shohn shook his head. “You surprise me, Sheriff.”
“I love her,” Tucker said firmly. “I’m not going anywhere. But I’m handling it my way.”
Morgan’s brows went up and he looked at Gabe. “Damn, I like him.”
Gabe nodded. “I think he’ll do.”
Leaning in, Garrett added, “Just don’t blow it.”
“Don’t plan to.” With that all settled, Tucker excused himself to join Kady. She saw him approaching and gave up her scrutiny of the green-gray sky. Beside her, Lisa and Amber grinned, then moved a few steps away.
When he reached her, Tucker cupped her chin and, in front of one and all—because he knew they were watching—he kissed her softly. It was a claim. A statement. And a promise.
As he drew away, she blinked, then frowned toward the cluster of male relatives. “Did they pressure you?”
That she felt protective of him made Tucker smile. “They approved me, actually.”
Her eyes widened, but quickly narrowed with a scowl. Hands on her hips, she demanded, “How exactly did that come up?”
“They love you, that’s how.” Still holding her chin, he looked into her eyes and smiled with confidence. “I’ve got you now.”
Her lips parted. She started to speak, but her cell phone buzzed, making her jump. “Sorry.” She quickly dug it out of her skirt pocket and glanced at the screen. “It’s Cleets.”
“Weather issue?” He looked at the sky again as it grew darker still, and the clouds became turbulent.
“Probably.”
“I’ll go help with cleanup. Take your time.” Now that he’d somewhat cemented things with her family, it was time to work on Kady.
He’d handle that as soon as they were alone.
CHAPTER SIX
WHAT A WAY to interrupt a day, Kady thought as she drove away from the family gathering. She had a feeling Tucker had something special to say to her, whether prompted by her family or not, she didn’t know. But with the weather taking such a nasty turn, the station wanted her and Cleets to do a live broadcast update to the townspeople.
Because she had ridden with Tucker, she’d borrowed her aunt’s car to leave. Tucker hadn’t liked it, but he respected the responsibilities of her job, just as she respected his. Given the weather, there was a good chance they’d both be busy for the rest of the day.
They’d been on a tornado watch for a few days now, but the skies had gone from sunny to stormy and back again with rapidity.
Now that a promising day had turned dark sooner than expected, she and Cleets would meet up in town for a broadcast. Using the town as a backdrop made sense because many businesses would be impacted.
As she drove, wall clouds loomed on the horizon, low, dark and ominous.
Kady looked at the sky, her worry growing. Not all strong storms spawned tornadoes, but it was definitely a warning. Decision made, she called the station and asked that they interrupt regular news with the suggestion that residents should take cover.
She had a bad feeling that the supercell storm would turn dangerous—possibly deadly—very quickly.
No sooner than she had the thought, the skies opened up in blinding sheets of rain. Hail pounded her windshield so that she could barely see. Her wipers swung wildly across the windshield, unable to keep up.
Slowing her speed, thankful that she didn’t see any other cars on the road to town, she called Cleets. As soon as he answered, she asked, “Where are you?”
“I ducked into the grocery. The storm—”
“Stay there,” she said, cutting him off. “We need a tornado watch to go out ASAP.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Find a basement or a cellar—”
“Kady, I know,” he replied gently. “Where are you?”
“On the road.” She gasped as a large tree branch landed on the road in front of her, barely managing to steer around it. “Will you call Tucker and tell him I’ll be at his house? I’m going to check on the dogs.” She had to believe that Tucker would be safe at Sawyer’s house. They had a basement where everyone could wait for the worst of the weather to pass.
“Kady,” Cleets warned, his voice soft but urgent, “you need to pull over. You need to find shelter.”
She started to reply when the wind suddenly died and an eerie calm settled in the air. “Oh, no.”
“What is it?”
Through the passenger-door window she saw it. One cloud mass stretched a skinny finger down toward the earth, closer and closer.
“Tornado,” she whispered.
“What?”
“There’s a tornado touching down to the west of the main road. Y
ou need to get the warning out now, get people inside, and please, please call Tucker.”
“Will do. Let me know as soon as you’re safe.”
She nodded, cleared her throat and finally found her voice. “Thanks, I will.”
With the call disconnected, she leaned over the wheel, driving fast out of pure necessity. The churning air roared around her. Her heart hammered violently, but finally Tucker’s house came into view. The whole street was dark, quiet, and she gave thanks that his neighbors weren’t on their porches gawking, as people often did.
She parked with jarring speed, and just as she left the car the sirens blared, splitting the air with a loud warning. Kady jumped and was almost blown over. The tornado was behind her now, but debris swirled through the air, more branches cracking off trees. Someone’s car alarm added to the noise.
Thankfully, she now had a key to his house. Her hands shook as she got the door unlocked. The second she stepped inside, the dog came running at her in a frenzy of barking, her brown eyes frantic.
“Good girl,” Kady said, trying not to sound panicked. The windows of the house shuddered, threatening to break. “Come on.”
She ran down the hall, dropping to her knees and grabbing an edge of the blanket that the mama dog used as a bed for her babies. Kady tugged it out, and one puppy rolled off.
“Oh no. No, no, no.” She went flat to her stomach and reached as far as she could. The whimpering puppy stayed just out of reach.
And then the mama dog army-crawled under the bed, caught the scruff of the pup in her mouth and backed out again.
“Oh,” Kady said in wonder, breathing fast to hold back her emotions. “You are such a good, brave mother.” She put the puppy in the blanket with the others and bundled it together like a sack to hold them all. “Let’s go, Mama. Hurry.”
Something thumped against an outside wall, sounding as if a tree had landed against it.
Kady hurried down the hall, holding the puppies as gently as she could. The dog trotted beside her, tongue out, panting in fear.
Just as she reached the basement door, the kitchen window blew out, sending glass everywhere, toppling the table and chairs. Horrified, she turned to the dog, but Mama was right there, still with her.
Kady had to lean into the wind howling through the window until she finally got hold of the door handle. Getting it open wasn’t easy, not while keeping hold of the blanket, but it finally gave way and she stumbled to the first step, holding the door open and urging the dog to follow.
The roar outside grew louder, and Kady lost the battle against tears. They burned down her cheeks as she gulped for air and struggled to get the door closed again.
Mama rushed around her and down the stairs, ears back, tail tucked. Kady slipped down a step, caught herself before she let the blanket drop and hurried the rest of the way to the basement. Through the narrow window behind the washer and dryer, she saw crackling lightning. It illuminated the basement, sending shadows to every corner. She tried the overhead light, but the electricity had already gone out. Kady quickly looked around for the best place to hunker down, and decided on the space between an outer, solid block wall with heavy stacked boxes in front of it. There wasn’t a lot of room there, but she squeezed in, thankful that Mama stuck close—likely because Kady still held the blanket full of puppies.
Shivering more with nerves than cold, she burrowed in as far as she could, then carefully lowered the blanket to the floor next to her, spreading it open. The puppies squirmed, whimpering, and Mama immediately curled around them, licking and nuzzling, so protective that Kady couldn’t help but praise her.
“Oh, baby,” she whispered, hugging the dog. “It’ll be okay. I promise.” It had to be.
Staying as close to the animals as she could get, Kady listened to the storm. Even in the basement, the sound was deafening, though being below ground level muted the shrill wail of the sirens. Hail cracked repeatedly against the small window, threatening to shatter it, and bright lightning created a strobe effect.
It was eerie and alarming, but they were as safe as she could make them. Wishing she could talk to Tucker, if for no other reason than to tell him how much she loved him, Kady pulled out her cell. Of course she didn’t have service in the basement, and she sighed in despair.
Was Tucker safe? Her family?
She could only imagine how Cleets would worry. And her family... Others had been leaving at the same time she had. What if they’d been caught on the road?
Putting her head back, she said a quick prayer that Tucker and her family had gotten to shelter in time, that everyone in the path of the storm was safe, that no farm animals would be hurt. On and on it went. She cared about so many people in Buckhorn. Very few were strangers. Many of them she’d known her whole life.
The floor was cold and clammy beneath her, and she couldn’t calm her worry. Tornadoes could do so much damage.
They could kill.
* * *
THE FAMILY GATHERING ended when Kady left. Apparently if the weather alarmed her, it alarmed everyone else. After a call from a technician, Jordan left for his animal clinic to soothe the frightened animals. He explained that he currently had a full house of pets, so Morgan went along to help. Gabe left for town, Garrett and Noel headed for the fire station.
Everyone seemed to be on alert, him included.
God, he worried for Kady. The weather grew worse by the minute, and it scared him.
I should have told her I love her.
Her family was right. Waiting was a mistake.
That thought tormented him as he drove toward his home, especially after the sirens started, warning one and all to seek shelter. He called Kady but didn’t get an answer.
He needed to check on the dog, but he got sidetracked several times, first in assisting a woman who’d been walking home from the park with her kids when the storm started. They were all sodden, the kids scared, the poor mother shaking. He got them safely home with a warning to go to the basement until the worst of it blew over.
Then he tried Kady again, still without any luck.
He reminded himself that he was known for his calm demeanor, but it didn’t help. He needed to know she was safely out of the storm.
After that, he settled a dispute in a fender bender, while also fielding calls from Kady’s family. They wanted reassurances that she was okay, only he couldn’t give them since he hadn’t yet heard back. He imagined she was as busy as he was, and he didn’t want to distract her, but damn it, he needed to hear her voice.
When he turned down his own street, he found elderly Mr. Cummings on the porch, trying to flag down help.
Tucker got soaked as he ran up to the porch, and he was relieved when he found that Mr. Cummings only needed help in moving his disabled wife downstairs.
The warning sirens, in addition to the fierce wind and the ever-blackening sky, had everyone nervous, him included.
Kady, where are you?
Given the debris on the street, the missing shingles on houses and a few mangled trees, the storm was getting worse instead of better.
Driven by urgency, Tucker was already on his way back out to his car when his phone buzzed. Hoping it would be Kady, he glanced at the screen.
Instead it was Cleets, and damn it, that scared him even more.
He answered by asking, “Is Kady with you? Is she safe?”
“She told me to call,” Cleets said quickly. “She was on the way to your house, but then she spotted a tornado to the west of the main road.”
Standing in the open doorway of Mr. Cummings’s house, Tucker froze. Only one thing mattered. “Is she safe?”
“I was hoping you could tell me. I haven’t heard back from her and—”
The call dropped.
With his heart pounding painfully, it took Tucker a second to realize what had happened. He
stared at the phone.
Until he felt it.
The ground beneath his feet began to tremble, and a roar swelled in the air. The wind tore against him, nearly taking him off his feet.
God, Kady.
Staring at the devastation, he fought the urge to go out anyway. What if she was still on the road? What if...
He closed his eyes. Kady was smart—hadn’t he said so repeatedly? The weather was her area of expertise. She understood the danger better than most, and she knew what to do.
None of those facts made him feel better.
As indecision held him, the wind tore a heavy branch from a tree and sent it whirling down the road where it collided with a parked car.
The wind sucked at him, trying to drag him from the dubious safety of the house, and finally Tucker put his shoulder to the door. It took some effort but he got it closed, then numbly joined Mr. and Mrs. Cummings in the basement.
He’d have to wait, when he’d already waited for far too long.
As soon as he had her with him again—and he would, he had to believe that—he wouldn’t wait a second more.
* * *
HOW LONG THE storm lasted, she couldn’t say, but it suddenly dawned on her that the lightning had stopped and only a gentle rain washed the window. She caught her breath, her head cocked as she listened, but all was quiet—quieter than usual since the electricity was out.
That silence was the most beautiful thing she’d ever heard.
Peering around the boxes, she looked to the window but couldn’t see much.
After only a moment of hesitation, she crept out of her hidey-hole, moving a box to block in the dog so she couldn’t follow yet, not until Kady made sure it was clear. At the bottom of the basement steps, she listened again, but all was calm.
Relief flooded her, and on the heels of that came a desperate need to talk to Tucker. She had to tell him that she loved him. She had to know if he was safe.
“Kady!”
It was almost as if she’d summoned him.
“Kady, damn it, answer me!”