by Vonnie Davis
“Nothing. The man deserved his pound of flesh, don’t you think?”
“You did the right thing. Noella is proud of her boy. When will you talk to Rachel? You care for her, sí?”
“I love her. Must admit the enormity of it scares me. I never felt this way about Pilar or any woman, for that matter. I plan on staying out of Rachel’s way for a day or two until my face looks a little better. Plus she’s upset with me right now. We both need a little time.”
So, Storm rose early and avoided his family throughout the day, figuring the condition of his face would get back to Rachel if he didn’t. Right now he wanted a bath and the chance to hold the woman he loved in his arms. By his estimation, they’d both had enough time to think things through.
Lightning was bedded down for the night. The horse had been groomed after their long ride earlier. Storm ran a hand down Lightning’s face. “Thanks for the ride, fella. Thanks for listening to my ranting, too. Sure am glad you know how to keep a secret.” Storm turned out the lights in the stable and headed for the house. Battered face or no battered face, the time for talking was now.
Chapter Fifteen
After toeing off his boots in the mudroom, Storm stepped into the kitchen where he heard voices. Sunny and Jackson were talking to Noella. Sunny was holding Sawyer in her arms; the child was sleeping.
“I can’t believe she’s gone. The house feels empty already.” Noella wiped tears from her eyes. “She’d be safer here with us.”
Storm felt a sheet of ice freefall through his body like an elevator snapping its cables. “Who’s gone?” Everyone turned.
Jackson was the first to react. “Holy shit! Whose fist did you run into?”
“Did Kyle find you already?” Sunny held her son closer to her. Her face seemed pinched with worry.
“Someone better answer me. Who’s gone, and who the hell is Kyle?” Storm’s determined glower swept over the three adults in the kitchen.
Sunny was the first to speak. “Sit down, brother. Noella, would you mind making a fresh pot of coffee? I think we’re going to need it.”
Storm pulled out a chair, turned it around and straddled it. He crossed his arms over the back of the chair and emotionally braced himself for what he feared.
“Rachel moved out.” Sunny unconsciously rocked Sawyer just as she had when he was a baby.
The light in the room narrowed to a pinpoint. “What?”
“Rachel left about an hour ago. She says she’ll be back to work with me tomorrow, like always, but she felt it was time for her to move out.”
“Because of me?” First his mother and now Rachel; both women he loved had left him.
“No. Yes. Well, not exactly.” Sunny looked at Jackson. “You tell him.”
“Long story, I’m afraid. You’re not going to like it.”
“I’m not going to like much of anything if Rachel’s gone.” He’d have to bring her back. Once he talked to her and told her how he felt, he’d do whatever it took to convince her to come home, to come back to him.
Jackson leaned forward in his chair. “Seems she was engaged, at one time, to an abusive man.”
“Engaged?” A wave of hot fury flowed through him. She’d loved someone else. Did she still have feelings for this guy? “She mentioned an old boyfriend but never said he’d been abusive. Did you know about this? You did the background check.” His eyes narrowed when the words truly sunk in. “Abusive. You mean he put his hands on her?” Anger rushed in, burning and destroying his hold on composure.
He remembered that day by the pool, when she’d told him she didn’t like abusive men. Now he understood. What stress had his angry outbursts put on that sweet woman? Did she fear him, too?
Noella set a mug of coffee in front of Jackson. “Thanks, Noella.” He took a sip and focused his eyes on Storm. “I found several reports of domestic abuse. But everything I learned about her indicated sterling quality on her part. She was evidently a sweet kid who got mixed up with the wrong kind of man. I saw some pictures of bruises. Emergency room report of a broken wrist.”
“You didn’t think that was important enough to tell me?” He stood and slung the chair against the table. “Bruises!” He clenched his fists. “A broken wrist!” He would kill the bastard. A rage like he’d never known grabbed him by the throat and squeezed with a vengeance.
“Sit!” Noella barked. Sawyer whimpered in his sleep. She glanced at the child and lowered her voice. “Rachel doesn’t need your anger. She needs your protection.”
“Oh, she’ll have my protection all right. Whether she wants it or not!” Storm raged for a few moments, making threats and promises. His anger so strong, so explosive, he trembled. No one. No one would ever put his hands on his woman again. No one would hurt her. He’d protect her with his dying breath.
Noella fisted hands on her hips. “Calm yourself! You haven’t heard it all. You have to calm down.” Storm whirled on her. “I mean it! Save your temper for the man who’s after her. For now, you must settle yourself and listen.”
After her? This man was after his Rachel? Acid rolled in his stomach, burning and cramping. How much worse could this get? He strode to Jackson, rested a fist on the table in front of him, leaned in and met his stare. “Is she in danger?”
Jackson nodded. “In my opinion, yes. This man poses a definite threat. When she broke off the engagement, he slashed her tires. Twice. Broke into her house and cut her clothes to shreds.”
“My God, what she’s been through.” He sank into a chair. Now her remark about clothes being “just things” made sense. Had she gone through all this alone?
“She got a restraining order against Kyle Benson, but he violated it. She went into hiding. The only person who knows she’s here is her best friend, who is also Kyle’s cousin. He broke into his own cousin’s apartment and stole her laptop. He read Rachel’s emails and found out where she was.”
Noella set a steaming mug of coffee and a plate on the table in front of him. “Master Storm, I make a sandwich for you. Eat.”
“Food? I can’t think of food now. I’m going for Rachel.” He started to rise, and Noella placed a firm hand on his shoulder.
“You eat and calm down. Think this through.” Noella had always been the voice of reason to his tempestuous nature. She’d spoken like this to him when he was a child. He hadn’t liked it then. For damn sure, he didn’t like it now.
Her eyebrows shot up. “Your poppa would have used his head. You will use yours, too, sí? Make plans. Take precautions. Bring her home. But first, you eat. You had no dinner.” She folded her arms and glared.
Storm rolled his eyes and took a breath. “Okay. Okay, I’ll eat the damn thing.” He bit into the sandwich and nearly had it devoured when he saw private looks exchanged between Sunny and Jackson. “What?” He drained his coffee.
This time Sunny shared the news. “When Rachel got the call from her best friend tonight, warning her, you should have seen her face.” She shook her head once. “Then…then her phone rang again. When she checked the readout, she just froze.”
Storm went still. “Was it him?”
She nodded. “It was like she was frozen with fear. Jackson snatched the phone, identified himself and warned Kyle not to call her again.” Sunny shot a look at Jackson. “Then she got a text. She tried to hide it from us, but eagle eyed-policeman here noticed.”
Jackson sipped his coffee. “Buddy, the color drained out of her face when she read that text, and she started trembling. I’ve never seen anyone that frightened before in my life. She laid the phone on the counter. When Sunny comforted her, I snuck a peek at her phone and read the text.”
Jackson leaned forward, eyes intent on Storm. “Bastard said he was coming here. That he would either hurt you or snatch Sawyer if she didn’t go back with him. That’s why she left, man. To protect you both.”
Storm’s eyes swept to the child, the child he loved more than life itself. “That’s why you’re holding him.” He looked at S
unny. For the first time this evening, the worry and fear in her eyes registered. So did her protectiveness as she held her child next to her breast. He’d stayed away from his family for the day, and all hell had broken loose. Protecting them was his job. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here, sister.”
She kissed her child’s head. “I needed the feel of him in my arms. Needed to know he was safe. Are you going to tell me about your face?”
“Not much to tell. I told Pilar I never wanted to talk to her again and she overdosed on some drugs. Her father took offense.” He shrugged. “No big deal. Not compared to all this. Where’s Rachel? Do you know?”
“She promised she’d call with her cottage number when she got checked in at the Dew Drop Inn. I’ll have one of my deputies set up surveillance. Make sure she’s safe.”
“No need.” Storm stood and went to his sister. “I’m taking a shower and then going for her.” He kissed his sister on the head and then placed his hand on Jackson’s shoulder. “You staying here with Sunny?”
“Yup. Wild horses couldn’t drag me away. Until this matter is resolved, looks like we’ll both stick close to our women. You gonna finally admit to yourself that you love Rachel?”
“Oh, believe me, I’ve already faced that fact. Now, all I have to do is convince her.” Storm placed a hand on the child’s head.
Sawyer stirred and opened his eyes. His little arms stretched upward. “Unkie Storm.” He took the child in his arms, kissed him and held him tight. Sawyer wrapped his little arms around Storm’s neck and snuggled closer.“I wuv you, Unkie Storm.”
“Love you, too, son. Go back to sleep now.” He carried the child to the window, ran a gentle hand up and down the boy’s back and looked out into the night. A mixture of love and alarm and protectiveness engulfed him so hard and fast he nearly staggered with it. His eyes clasped shut. He would protect the boy. Rachel, too, by damn. He carried Sawyer back to Sunny and laid him in her lap. “I’m going for Rachel. I want us all here while we figure out how to make this man see he has no claim on her.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Lord, this is like something from a movie.”
****
Rachel stepped into her room at the Dew Drop Inn. She’d rented it for the week. Although it didn’t begin to measure up to the room she’d had at the Triple-S, it was clean and the mattress didn’t sag. When she checked in, Nora Mae, the gum-snapping woman with a teased hairdo, claimed Rachel was getting the deluxe suite. Rachel looked around and smiled. Evidently, the velvet portrait of Willie Nelson elevated the small room from regular to deluxe. It couldn’t have been the orange and pink floral bedspread or the tattered aqua drapes.
In all honesty, the condition of the room was the final straw to a trying day. She made sure all the locks were in place, set one suitcase on the floor and the other on a table and flopped across the bed for a good old-fashioned crying jag. What was she going to do? She was in love with a man who avoided her and, conversely, she was being hounded by a man she was avoiding. A very dangerous man. She removed the pistol from her purse and laid it on the pink nightstand.
For all of her careful planning, her life was in a dangerous, depressing state of flux. She was a highly educated person, respected in her field and virtually on the run. How could one man destroy her well-ordered life? Why, oh why, had she ever accepted his advances? He’d been so charming, so attentive, trying to gain her favor.
Until Kyle was no longer in the picture, she couldn’t go back to Yazoo City, her hometown. He might never leave her alone. From the tone of his text, he was still obsessed with her. Would it ever end? Now little Sawyer, a sweet angelic child, and Storm, the man she loved, were in Kyle’s sick crosshairs.
Wiping the tears from her eyes, she pulled her cell from her pants pocket and started composing a text to Kyle. She had to keep him from going after Storm and Sawyer, no matter the cost to her. One way or another, she’d survive; she always survived. The time for running was over. She’d face him and make him see she’d never be his. If he beat her again, she’d heal. She always healed.
She had a handful of underwear ready to place in an old chest of drawers painted bright orange when someone knocked at her door. She froze. Fear danced up her spine. Had Kyle found her already? She glanced at her revolver lying in plain view where she could grab it. “Who…who is it?”
“Rachel, it’s Storm. Let me in, mouse.”
Storm? What was he doing here? She threw her clothes in the drawer. Why would he care if she’d left the house? Maybe he wanted to make sure she would still take care of Sunny. She unhooked the security chain, unbolted the lock and gasped when she saw him. One eye was black and blue and partially swollen shut. His nose was badly bruised and swollen. There was a large goose-egg bruise on his jaw.
“Oh no! Did Kyle find you already? Your face. Your wonderful, handsome face.”
He stepped in her room and closed the door behind him. Her nurse’s training took over. “Is your nose broken?” She placed both hands on his face, feeling, examining. “Oh, I can’t bear it. You’ve been hurt because of me.” She knew she was babbling, but she couldn’t stop herself. “It was always easier for Kyle to hit than to talk things through. The abusive jerk!” She kept feathering her hands over his face. Before she realized what she was doing, she was breathing kisses on his black eye, chin and swollen jaw.
When his arms encircled her like a velvet vice, drawing her close, she began to cry. “I’m sorry you were hurt because of me. I feel awful. Kyle isn’t your problem. He’s mine.”
“Rachel, love, Kyle didn’t do this. Pilar’s father landed a few punches to prove a point. Believe me, my face has nothing to do with Kyle. I’ve come to take you home. Get your gear.”
She shook her head. “No, no, don’t you understand? I have to protect you and Sawyer. I have to keep you safe.”
He cupped her face in his hands. “I’ll take care of everything. Just come back to us where you’ll be safer. You belong on the ranch with the family. I’ll protect you. Sunny needs your care and friendship. Noella needs you. Sawyer will miss you terribly if you aren’t there all the time.” A smile briefly softened his features. “Who will call him Superman Sawyer when he charges through the house in that cape you made him? Come home.” He pressed his lips to hers. Gentle, feather-light kisses that grew more and more demanding. “Come home, Rach.”
He mentioned Sunny and Sawyer needing her. He mentioned Noella, too. What about him? He hadn’t said anything about his needing her. Granted, he said he’d protect her, but as an employee, a friend of his sister’s, not as a woman he cared for. She felt the acute pain of that omission. Why was this man holding her, kissing her, stirring up so many feelings?
“I can’t. No matter how much I want to, I can’t move back onto the ranch.” Couldn’t he see how she felt? Did he think she eagerly went into the arms of every man she met?
“I’m not giving you a choice. Your place is with us.” He brushed hair back from her face. Then he cupped her chin and forced her to look at him. “Why didn’t you tell me about Kyle?”
Rachel shrugged. “No matter what you claim, you’re involved with another woman. I had no business telling you things about my personal life. A woman just doesn’t go up to a man, especially one she’s attracted to, and start talking about her abusive ex-fiancé.”
“You should be able to talk to me about anything, love.”
“We don’t have that kind of relationship.” She wished they did. She wished he loved her. She wished they shared their secrets, their hopes, their fears, but they’d spent so much time and energy fighting their physical attraction to one another, conversations like that rarely happened. He was attracted to her; she didn’t doubt that. However, his attraction was a physical one, not one of the heart or the soul.
He cupped a large hand against her cheek. “I was rough with you a couple times. Did I scare you? I’ll never hurt you, mouse. Never hit you. Never shove you around. Yes, sometimes I’ll yell and rage. That’s how I am. B
ut you can yell and rage in return. I won’t hurt you for it. Jackson told me about the things your old boyfriend did to you. Look at me, honey, I’m not Kyle.”
He splayed his fingers in her hair, smoothing it back from her face, and then locked eyes with hers. “Sometimes passion runs high when a man and woman make love. During those times it can get a little rough. If that makes you uncomfortable, tell me. I’ll keep myself in check. I want you to trust me. I will never hurt you.”
She returned his steady gaze. What was he suggesting? That they make love? He was still seeing Pilar, engaged or not. Did she want to be used by a man just for the few moments of enjoyment and ecstasy he could give her? He didn’t seem like a user, yet appearances could be deceiving. She thought of how he protected Sunny. How he adored Sawyer. How he respected Noella. How he’d been tender with her when she needed it. She did trust him. She loved him and trusted him. She wanted him, wanted to belong to him.
“I know you won’t hurt me. I trust you, and that’s not easy for me to say about a man.”
“Good. I’ll take care of you from now on. Now, let’s get your things and get out of here.” He walked to the open drawer. Reaching in, he grabbed a stack of lingerie and tossed them into her open suitcase sitting on a little round table. A pair of red lace thongs dropped to the floor. Picking them up, he held them out in both hands to study. His gaze swept to hers. “Have you ever worn these around me?”
“Yes. Now kindly stop inspecting my panties.” The warmth of a blush crept up her cheeks. She snatched them from his hands and placed them back in the drawer. Meanwhile, he went to the closet and began yanking clothes off hangers. She methodically removed the lingerie he’d just thrown into her suitcase and placed them neatly back into the drawer.
Storm returned with sundresses and skirts bunched in his hands and glanced into the now empty suitcase. He cocked an eyebrow.
She snatched her clothes from his grasp. “I’m staying here. I refuse to put you and Sawyer in jeopardy. I’ll be at the ranch tomorrow to work with Sunny. Earlier I sent a text to Kyle telling him where I’m staying. If he wants to find me, he knows where to come.”