Storm's Interlude

by Vonnie Davis

  “Yes, son, she is.” Storm captured Rachel’s hand in his.

  “Wachel’s my woman, too.” The child nodded with the sage wisdom of children. Gentle adult laughter filled the vehicle.

  Rachel placed her glucometer and insulin pen back in her purse. “You’ve got some stiff competition, cowboy.”

  Once inside the large mall, Rachel encouraged Sunny to use a wheelchair. Sawyer saw it as a ride and insisted on sitting on his mommy’s lap. Sunny, being the doting mother she was, wrapped her arms around him and encouraged his “zoom, zoom” noises. Rachel shook her head and smiled.

  “First, Master Storm is going to buy me an outfit he promised for the barbeque.” Noella shot her boss a challenging look. “We’ll see if his charge card backs up his words. Then, I need some books, so we’ll head to the bookstore. After that, I’ll take Miss Sunny and little Sawyer to the train store.”

  Rachel looked at Storm, who shrugged that uncomfortable shrug men give in shopping malls, grumbling that he hoped Noella wouldn’t take all day making up her mind about that outfit.

  “I want to get my hair cut for Locks of Love. I’ll meet you at the train store.”

  “Go do your noble deed, love.” Storm gave her a quick kiss before manning the handles of the wheelchair.

  Rachel had to admit she had some qualms about cutting so much off the length of her hair. Still, she knew it was for a good cause.

  With the weight of her long hair removed, it bounced into curls around her face. Rachel studied herself in the mirror. She looked younger with all those big, loose curls. Maybe Storm wouldn’t like her hair this short, although it almost reached her shoulders.

  She found the mall directory and looked for the location of the train store. When she was almost there, she saw Storm with his shoulder leaning against a store window, talking to a tall, slender woman with sleek, chin-length auburn hair.

  Storm reached out and tucked the auburn hair behind the woman’s ear. Rachel narrowed her eyes at the intimate gesture. When he ran his hand down the woman’s arm of the very attractive, almost exotic woman, Rachel’s stomach dropped. Who was that? She approached and saw Storm glance her way. His face paled.

  “Storm.” Rachel stood, waiting for him to introduce her to the woman before she belted him a good shot. Anger vibrated in her like a tight string on a cheap guitar.

  He gave her a hard look, and for an instant, she wanted to shrink back. No, she wouldn’t be intimidated by a man. Never again. She angled her chin in defiance and glared at him.

  The woman in an expensive turquoise pantsuit raised a finely waxed eyebrow. “Stormy, who is this?” She ran a manicured hand up his chest as if she had every right to touch him, an engagement diamond glistening under the glare of the overhead lights.

  “Pilar, this is Rachel Dennison, Sunny’s new nurse.” No signs of affection, no touching. In fact, he was downright standoffish. Why was he acting this way? As if she meant nothing to him. Dawning registered. No, dear God, no. He couldn’t have been pretending all this time.

  “And…” Rachel tilted her head to the side. For two cents, she’d kick him. Hadn’t he told her he’d broken up with Pilar? For a jilted fiancée, the woman was acting awfully proprietary. Had he lied to her?

  He glared at her as if trying to convey some silent message. “And she’s staying at the ranch, getting Sunny stronger for her next round of chemo.”

  The impeccably dressed woman gave her the once-over as if she were a nasty bug under a microscope. She wished she’d worn something better than khaki shorts and a navy tank top, but there hadn’t been time to change. No doubt the woman found her lacking. She cut her eyes to Storm. Evidently he did, too, in the presence of tall, tailored, trim Pilar. Fact was, he made her feel like a bump on the underbelly of a pickle.

  Her time with Storm had meant the world to her. Now, feeling as though she’d been duped, the cold, ruthless reality hit her—she’d been lied to and used. The sensation of ice water replacing warm blood in her veins chilled her to her very core. Pain, acute, knifing pain, stabbed her heart repeatedly as if it were a crazed murderer. She struggled to take in air, wondering how she could be so easily deceived—again.

  “I’m going to the train store to see how my patient’s doing.” She never waited for an acknowledgment of her statement, marching down the corridor of the mall, anger mounting in her system. She had to draw on anger, for if she allowed the pain to surface, she’d crumble. This man wouldn’t see her cry.

  She ducked into a little store, feigning interest in the rack of jeans. Her eyes filled with tears. Okay, she’d give herself five minutes to fall apart before she pulled herself together and showed that lying, cheating jerk he was pond scum.

  Lies. It was all a lie. All of it. Storm was not through with Pilar. The woman was still wearing a diamond, a big flashy diamond. She sneered as she shoved hangers of jeans back and forth. He’d lied to her, and she’d fallen right into his arms. She rolled her eyes heavenward. He’d told her he loved her, and she’d believed that, too. What a moron she was! What a sap! What a pitiful…

  “Can I help you? We’re having a great sale today. Clothes have been jumping off the racks.” A cheery, pregnant salesgirl with spiky bleached blonde hair, wearing a nametag that read “LaKeesha” saddled up to her side. “Oh honey, don’t cry. Believe me, I know how hard it is to grow out of your regular clothes, but the baby’s worth it.” She placed a hand on Rachel’s abdomen. “You gotta embrace the bump, girlfriend.”

  “Oh, I’m not pregnant.” She sniffed and rummaged in her purse for a tissue. Her hand stilled. When had she taken her last birth control pill? Not today—yet. Nor yesterday. Oh no, she’d forgotten her pill yesterday with all the drama over Kyle finding out where she was. She’d take one as soon as she got back to the ranch. Missing one pill certainly wouldn’t…

  She swallowed. Last week she’d forgotten one, too. That was the day she and Storm had their sensual interlude on the sofa, the one Noella had walked in on. She’d been so upset that night she’d forgotten her pill. Her stomach clenched. She’d had unprotected sex with that lying, cheating pond scum six times. Dear God.

  “Sorry, I didn’t realize this was a maternity clothing store.” She wiped her eyes, looked at the girl, then started sobbing in earnest.

  The strange salesgirl wrapped her arms around Rachel. “Mercy me!” LaKeesha patted Rachel’s back. “What is it?”

  “He…he lied to me.” More tears flowed. Sobs racked her body.

  “Men. Can’t live with ’em, can’t shoot ’em,” LaKeesha added, with the appropriate amount of female commiseration. “But we can cut their peckers off.”

  “Rachel? Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Storm tugged on her arm. “I saw you come in here.”

  She whirled around to face the man who had shattered her heart. “Liar! You told me you broke off your engagement.”

  “I did, but…”

  “She’s still wearing her diamond.” She swiped angrily at an errant tear.

  He glanced at LaKeesha, who clearly wasn’t going to give them any privacy. “Do you mind?” he barked.

  “I’m here for moral support.” The salesgirl laid a protective arm across Rachel’s shoulders. “I’m not leaving unless my new BFF wants me to.”

  “What the hell is a BFF?”

  LaKeesha sighed as if he were the most stupid man on the face of the earth. “Best friend forever.”

  Rachel leaned into her. “Yeah, LaKeesha knows how I feel, you lying, cheating mass of horse shit.”

  He placed fisted hands on his narrow hips. “Horse shit?”

  “You heard the lady.” LaKeesha pointed a finger at him. Two more pregnant women ambled over, their expressions questioning.

  “Rachel, can we please go someplace private so I can explain?”

  “Explain? You mean explain how it was a lie when you told me this morning, in your bed, I might add, that I was yours and would be yours forever? Or perhaps you could explain to me how y
ou could promise, when we were having hot standing-up-against-the-wall sex last night, you would never allow another woman to touch you? Maybe you want to claim that was a figment of my imagination.” Her voice rose with agitation. She was trembling, trembling and crumbling into a thousand pieces.

  “Hunh,” LaKeesha chimed in. “Don’t see how one could imagine having standing-up-against-the-wall-sex. Fanaticize about it, sure, but you’d definitely know if you were havin’ it or not.” The two pregnant onlookers were joined by another.

  “Then today, I see you all but kissing Pilar here in the mall, tucking her hair behind her ear, running your hand up her arm, and leaning in to whisper to her.”

  “I can explain all that.” His gaze darted to the group of pregnant woman who’d moved a step closer to him, whispering, and sneering.

  Rachel wiped her nose and waved the hand clutching a wadded tissue. “I suppose you can explain how you could introduce me as your sister’s nurse!” There was a collective gasp among the eavesdropping women, as if they’d all sucked in air at the same time. Narrowed eyes swept from Rachel to Storm.

  “Suppose you stop being childish about this!” More sucking air by the pregnant mob. Two called him foul names. One asked if he’d like to sing soprano for the rest of his life.

  “Childish?” Rachel drew a fist and socked him in his rock-hard stomach, nearly breaking her wrist. “I’ll show you childish.”

  He grabbed her by the elbow and looked at LaKeesha. “You got someplace private we can talk? A dressing room, maybe?”

  “Oh no! I’m not letting you use my dressing room. What if you end up having up-against-the-wall—”

  “For God’s sake!” Storm tightened his hold on Rachel’s elbow and all but dragged her out of the store. “I’ll explain everything to you as soon as we get one damn moment alone,” he vowed through clenched teeth.

  She tried to jerk her arm free, but his grip was too tight. “Let go of me! I don’t want you touching me ever again. I can smell her perfume on you. You cheating, low-life pond scum.” She struggled as he led her across the mall corridor to the train store. Strains of Nazareth belting out “Love Hurts” blared from the mall’s loudspeakers. Indeed it did.

  “Yeah, we’ve covered that ground already. I didn’t lie to you, you hell-cat. Now would you just calm down.”

  “Unkie Storm, Unkie Storm! I got two bwidges. One weally big bwidge and one wittle bwidge and a tunnel and two new cars to make my twain bigger.”

  The angry couple turned, their fake smiles in place. Storm squatted in front of the excited boy. “Need help carrying that bag, partner? Looks pretty heavy.” Sawyer nodded and handed the bag to his uncle.

  Rachel walked to the window of a nearby store, pretending to look at the display. She dabbed her eyes and blew her nose. Coming to Texas was the biggest mistake of her life, the biggest error of her heart.

  Sunny stepped up and gently shouldered her. “Don’t yell at me for walking—it’s the first time I’ve been out of that chair all afternoon. You want to tell me what’s going on between you two?”

  “Ask your brother. Or better yet, ask Pilar, the woman he was all over a few minutes ago. Look, I need to be alone. I’ll meet you at the car.” She turned and rushed off.

  By the time everyone else made it to the dark green SUV, Rachel had made four trips around it, working up more steam, digging into a heavy dose of resolve as if it were a quart of Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey. She wouldn’t stay here. She would hire another nurse for Sunny, another nurse for Storm to take on moonlight rides, to watch sunrises with…to lie to.

  Storm walked to her. “Have you calmed down yet?”

  She turned to Noella. “Would you please tell Master Storm to stop barking at me and that I have nothing to say to him. Also, I’d prefer riding in the back with you and Sawyer.”

  “For God’s sake! You wanna act like that? Fine.” He opened the back door and waved a hand for her to get into the vehicle. She was more than happy to oblige.

  The silent ride home took forever. She tried ignoring the many times Storm glanced at her in the rearview mirror. She tried not to remember the silent communication they’d shared on the way to the mall when they’d held hands, shared smiles and spoken volumes with their eyes. Lies, so many lies.

  At least catching Storm with Pilar had gotten her mind off Kyle for a few moments. Which was worse? Worrying over a crazed man finding her or going crazy worrying about the character of another? She had to get out of Texas. Had to.

  When Storm pulled in front of the ranch house, Rachel was the first one to barrel out of the SUV. Before she’d made it a dozen steps, Storm grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder like a bag of grain. “Put me down, you lunatic!”

  “Like hell.” He stormed into the house, his boots echoing off the hardwood floors of the large foyer. “We’re going to have this out right now. I’m tired of you peeling my hide with your accusations.”

  Jackson rushed out of the den into the large hallway. “Storm? What the hell?”

  Storm had one hand on the doorknob to his office. “You got all the security measures in place? Anything that demands my immediate attention?”

  “Put me down this instant, you…you caveman cowboy!” He smacked her bottom. She yelped. Once he put her down, she was going to tear him apart, limb by cheating limb.

  Jackson had a hand over his mouth to hide his laughter. “Have at it, buddy. I’ve done my job.” He took a sleeping Sawyer from Noella. “Sunny and I will put tiger here to bed.”

  Storm opened the door to his office, waiting until the couple had the sleeping boy upstairs before he yelled his announcement so the entire first floor could hear: “Anyone who knocks on this door before Rachel and I have worked things out takes their life in their hands. Is that clear?” He slammed the door shut behind them and turned the lock before setting Rachel down on the floor.

  She was so incensed, so humiliated, so livid she couldn’t speak. She kicked him in the shin with her sneakered foot. Storm winced before stalking over to the liquor cabinet.

  He poured himself two fingers of whiskey, neat, and downed it. He poured another and downed it, too. He hung his head, his hands fisted on the cabinet. “You can make me so damned mad I can’t see straight. No one has ever pushed me over the edge the way you do.”

  She fisted her hands on her hips, hiked her chin, and glared at him. “Yeah, well, I’d like to slap you into next week, you lying, cheating, poor excuse of a man. You told me things. You told me you loved me. I surrendered to you. I had unprotected sex with you.”

  “Would you just listen to me for five damn minutes?” He turned to face her and ran both hands through his hair, a sign of frustration.

  She folded her arms. “Okay, but this better be good.”

  He looked away for a beat and sighed before he spoke. “The night after I told Pilar we really were through—dating, phone calls, texts and all—she took an overdose of pills. She called me and I told her I wouldn’t come. But I did call nine-one-one.”

  She wouldn’t let the nurse part of her surface. Refused it. Better to let the bitch part of her run rampant and rule. She let Bitch Rachel fuel her actions. One eyebrow hiked in question. “This is important, because…?”

  Storm walked to his desk and sat in the large leather chair behind it. “Because it shows how fragile she is emotionally, more so than I ever imagined. Hell, she’d never told her father our engagement was off and had been for weeks. Once she was out of the hospital, old man Fontaine came here and took his displeasure out on my face.”

  He’s lying, Bitch Rachel hissed into her ear as if she were perched on one of her shoulders. The bitch had a good point, she had to admit. How did she know he was being truthful? Although he had mentioned Pilar’s father hitting him. The bruises were still evident.

  “When I ran into her at the mall today, she seemed so delicate.” He ran a hand through his hair again and then placed his forearms on his desk. “See, I never told her w
hy I couldn’t work things out. I said I wasn’t the man for her, that I felt more comfortable on the ranch than in her glitzy, glossy world. I never told her I’d fallen in love with someone else.”

  Bitch Rachel jumped onto her shoulder again and hissed into her ear. See how he treats you? She folded her arms under her breasts again and tapped a foot in annoyance. “And just why not?”

  “I hurt her enough, don’t you think? What good would it do to batter her ego further by telling her I’d given my heart to another woman?”

  She started pacing in front of his desk. “So you were protecting her feelings.” He nodded. “You were protecting her feelings today when you pretended I meant nothing to you, when you introduced me as Sunny’s nurse.”

  “Yes. You are Sunny’s nurse, after all.” The man was clueless. Her temper rose another notch.

  When she stopped pacing, she placed her hands on the edge of his desk and leaned toward him. “So, her feelings mean more to you than mine.”

  “I never said that.”

  “No, you showed me that. You showed me her feelings still mean more to you than mine ever will.” She pointed her finger at him. “Make up with her. Marry her and forget me. I’m outta here. Off the Triple-S, out of your life and out of Texas.”

  He slowly stood, his eyebrows furrowed. “Forget you?” He looked menacing for a minute, but she didn’t care. Her anger was just as strong, if not more so.

  She turned and headed for the door. “That’s right, forget about me, you clueless jerk, just like I’m going to forget about you.”

  In a few long strides, he reached her and swung her around. He slapped both hands against the door on either side of her head. “Forget about you? Suppose you tell me just what I should forget.” He leaned in and smelled her neck. She shivered at his proximity. “Should I forget about the way you smell? That enticing mix of flowers and sensual woman.

  “Or maybe I should forget about the texture of your hair—silk and curls. Sexy haircut, by the way.” He ran his fingers through her hair, his gaze locked on hers. Her stomach quivered.

  He pressed gentle kisses to her face. “Or maybe I should forget about the smattering of freckles that dot your nose. Hmm?”