by Lee, Judith
“It’s too late Georgia…you need to get a good night’s sleep. You shouldn’t be driving when you’re this upset.” He tried to talk her into staying until morning.
“I’m leaving dad. I’ll call you when I stop for gas. Don’t worry. I’m turning off my phone so I can concentrate on the road. I love you dad.”
Driving through the crazy Vegas traffic while pulling her horse trailer had been a harrowing experience. It took her a little over an hour to get to Mesquite. She cried the whole way. It was a miracle she hadn’t gotten into an accident. Even though it was late, she was worried because a black car had been following her the whole way, never speeding up or slowing down. It was like she was being hunted. Her gas tank was getting near empty so she stopped at Mesquite and got gas. Her eyes were darting around to see if the black car was still following her. If the car reappeared she thought she could lose it in Salt Lake. Maybe she was just imagining things, but her skin felt prickly with worry. Many nights, Georgia had driven home alone without worrying. She usually carried her shot gun under the front seat but had forgotten it with the excitement of her first NFR.
She was exhausted. When she was about half way to Salt Lake City she stopped at Beaver at a gas station to use the restrooms and took a minute to call her dad while picking up some sunflowers that she could munch on and some coffee. Usually the sunflowers kept her from falling asleep.
“Dad, I’m in Beaver. I’m okay, don’t worry about me, I’m fine.”
“Now you’re just making me mad, little girl. It’s a about a twelve hour drive to Casper. I don’t want you driving all night. Pull over and get a hotel room.”
Her shoulders ached and she rubbed the back of her neck. “I promise I’ll pull over if I get too tired and I’ll call you. Love you dad,” and she hung up quickly and turned off her phone. Getting as far away from Vegas was all she thought about, maybe the hurt would go away with distance. Oh God, what have I done? She started crying again.
***
Cameron started looking for Dakota. He knew he’d be at the nearest bar. When he found him, he was so mad he was going to plant his fist in his face. Cody had stayed to have a little talk with Brad before joining in the search. Cody had sent Matt to take Tammy to the hotel room. Matt was going to bunk at the trailer. Jared and Jenny had already gone to their room. Everyone in his family knew what Dakota had seen hadn’t been the whole story. It didn’t take long for him to find him in the first bar as you got off the shuttle. There were three empty shot glasses setting in front of him and he was drinking his fourth shot.
“What’s the matter with you man? We’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
“Shit, you can’t be that stupid. No you aren’t that stupid, I’m that stupid. I thought she was different. Got my signals all screwed up,” he slurred his words.
Cameron threw money on the table and grabbed Dakota up by his shirt and started dragging him out of the bar.
“You didn’t have to pay. Seems if you place in the bull riding competition a lot of people buy you drinks in Vegas. I need to find me a woman.”
“Shut up Dakota.” While Cameron was dragging Dakota up the strip, he called Cody.
“I got him...we’re walking toward Caesars now. He’s already drunk. Did you take care of our problem?”
“Yeah, he’s going to be hurting tomorrow. I’m across the street, I see you. I’ll meet you at the corner at the cross walk,” Cody said.
When Cody stomped up to Dakota he swung at his chin and knocked him to the ground. Then they both picked him up, dragging him between them as they kept walking.
“What a jackass you are Dakota…” Cody yelled at him.
“…but she,” Dakota tried to argue.
“You want me to hit you again. Just shut up.”
In the lobby, Cameron grabbed a pot of coffee off a waiter’s tray, and stuck ten dollars in his hand. “Sorry man, he needs this more than who you are taking it to right now.”
At Dakota’s room, they pulled out his key card. It was a wonder someone hadn’t stolen his wallet as drunk as he had gotten so fast, Cameron thought. They both dragged him in the shower and turned the water on ice cold. It made Dakota start yelling and went a long ways to getting him to quit drunk fighting with them.
They stripped off his clothes and wrapped the hotel bathrobe around him. Cody poured him a cup of coffee, and told him in no uncertain terms to sit and drink.
After his third cup and deadly silence in the room, Dakota slammed the cup on the table. “You satisfied now? I was getting good and drunk. Nothing wrong with that after you discover your whole life has just gone to hell… and damn I believed she was falling in love with me. What a sucker I am,” he put his head in his hands and cried.
That action softened Cody and Cameron up and calmed them down. As mad as they were with their brother, they loved him and couldn’t stand to see him hurting so much. This wasn’t the confident man they had known all their life.
Cody started, “You should have seen the upper cut she gave that shit hole once she tore herself away from him. It broke his nose and knocked him on his ass. You’d have been proud of her. She was one mad lady. John Witting came out and wasn’t too happy with Georgia for breaking the fucker’s nose. I’m not sure if she still will have a job after that.”
Dakota’s head flew up. “I should have stayed and beaten him up myself…why didn’t she tell me what was going on?”
“You dumb ass, you ran off before the fireworks started and left her devastated. She couldn’t quit crying,” Cameron chimed in.
“Anyone who watched her after you left could tell she was in love with you and you blew it,” Cameron took her buckle out of his pocket and threw it at Dakota’s chest. “She said to tell you it wasn’t what you thought, and she was sorry, and she would never forget you.”
That sobered him up. “What?” He reached down and picked her buckle up off the floor where it had landed.
***
“Where is she now?” He looked around the room, realizing he was in his own room. “Damn, she’s not here.”
Cameron looked at him strangely, “What’s her room number? I’ll go look and see if she is okay.”
“You can’t…I had her check out of her room this morning, she was going to stay with me.”
He got up and started throwing on clean clothes, albeit a little clumsily, but still getting the job done. Cody, you go to your room and take care of Tammy. Cameron can go with me to find her?” he looked at Cameron to see if he would.
Cameron said, “Hell yeah, I’ll go.”
Dakota stopped and picked up his phone. “God, let me see if she’ll answer her phone.”
It rang and rang and went to her voice mail. “Where are you Georgia?” He ran his fingers through his hair. He picked up the phone again and asked for her room in case she checked back in and got another room. They told him she had checked out this morning.
Cameron said, “If she checked into another hotel, we’ll never know which one. There were too many hotels in Vegas to check each one.”
Dakota worried that if she had really been followed as Sharon’s text implied, she could be in trouble. Then he thought, “What if Brad goes after her for revenge for busting his nose?”
Cody laughed, “Not to worry, he’s licking his wounds right now. After he left the Mack center, I followed him. I’m pretty sure his nose is now broken in two places and his stomach and body are going to be aching. I told him to stay away from Georgia and if he didn’t all four of us brothers were going to beat the shit out of him. I don’t think he’ll ever get near Georgia again. Never did like that cocky selfish bastard. You need to find out from Georgia the real story about him. There was no way in hell, she wanted him.”
Dakota wanted to rip his hair out. He should have had more faith in her. The memories of the last few days flew through his mind. Why could he now suddenly see things so clearly? She hadn’t been faking her innocence. Her responses to him had been honest.
He had blown it. He believed she had really started to fall in love with him. You can’t fake the feelings that she had shared with him. “You guys just need to beat the shit out of me. I deserve to be smashed to a pulp.”
Cameron took pity on him and put his arm around his brother’s shoulder. “We’ll find her. We can tell she still loves you. We just need to make sure she is safe. Cody and I tried to get her to stay but she runs faster than any girl I know.”
“She’s the real thing,” Dakota mumbled. He gave Cody a brotherly hug and told him to go to Tammy and they all headed out the door.
After checking a few close by casinos and eating areas, they decided that wasn’t going to get them anywhere.
Dakota watched a Vegas police man ride by on his horse. Then it dawned on him, “I know where she is. She must have bunked out in her truck or trailer. Her horse is like a best friend to her and she would have gone to him. They grabbed a taxi and had him take them to the Mack exhibitor’s parking area.
When they got to where her truck and trailer had been parked, Dakota’s heart sunk. She was gone. “Damn it, she took off. She can’t possibly get all the way home tonight. I’m calling her dad. I should have called him first thing. Then I’m getting in my truck and going after her.”
“No you are not going until you sober up a little. You’re going to eat something and give the alcohol a little time to get out of your system. There is no way in damn hell that I’m going to worry about you wrecking your truck. After seeing what happened after Tammy crashed her car when she was drunk, I don’t want to live through that again.
Dakota just shook his head and pulled out his phone. He sat down on a cement post and called her dad.
“Mr. Cooper, sorry to call you so late but I’ve been looking all over for Georgia and she has left with her truck and trailer. Do you know where she is?”
“I want to know one thing, do you love her?”
“God, yes! I haven’t even told her yet, but I will the minute I find her and I won’t quit telling her how I feel. We had a big misunderstanding tonight and sir, it was entirely my fault.”
“Tell me what happened before I tell you where she is.”
“You know where she is…thank God,” he broke down again and started crying. He hated that he was still so drunk he couldn’t control his emotions. He told Justin what had transpired. When he was done he asked her father who Brad Smith was to her.
“Son, that’s for her to tell you, but if you know Brad than you know what an asshole he is. Georgia does not want that man anywhere near her, trust me on this.” Dakota knew in his heart, she hadn’t been with him at least not like he first thought.
“She called about an hour ago and told me she was a couple of hours from Salt Lake City and she was going to get a hotel room there. Her phone is turned off but when she calls me, I’ll tell you where she is staying. As exhausted as she sounds I’m sure she’ll fall asleep the minute her head hits the pillow. When you’re sober enough, you need to go get her.”
“That’s exactly what I’m going to do. I’m going to eat and drink some more coffee, and when Cameron thinks I’m sober enough, he’ll give my truck keys back to me and I’ll go get her, I promise. Just call me when she gets there. I’m worried about someone following her. I’m sure Sharon was just playing mind games with her, but until I see her I won’t quit worrying about her.”
“Get a nap, too. You’ve got a little time. You can be there before she gets up this morning once I know where she has stopped. Don’t let me down, Dakota. That’s my little girl and I love her.”
“I love her too. Thank you.”
They hung up.
Chapter Fifteen
There was a vacancy sign at the Best Western in Salt Lake City. She decided to stop and get a room. She looked back over her shoulder. Was he still following her? She had seen the car lights behind her after she had left Mesquite. Her nerves couldn’t take the stress anymore. At least in a locked hotel room in a big city, she could call the front desk or a police man if she saw his car pull up in front of the hotel. There was not a place to park behind the building and the thought of getting out of her truck in the more secluded area behind the hotel was something she wasn’t stupid enough to do.
After she was in the room with the door locked she threw herself on the bed and had a good cry. She had lost the love of her life and she hadn’t even told him how much she loved him. Her heart hurt. It was like losing her mom all over again. Except then she had been able to get on a horse and ride for miles to relieve just enough of the pressure so that she could breathe again. The ride in the truck had been stressful and she felt so alone. Painfully alone.
She rolled over and pulled her phone out of her pocket. She saw a dozen messages and missed phone calls pop up from Dakota. She couldn’t read or listen to them tonight. She couldn’t stand to hear his accusations, even if they were only partly true. Once he calmed down, and if he still wanted to yell at her, she’d take it like a cowgirl. Tonight, she was too raw and drained. She should have told Dakota about Brad but she had hoped he was through harassing her.
Her father answered the phone. “Darling, are you okay?”
“Yes,” her voice sounded shattered. She was exhausted and her voice was raspy. “I’m in my room at the Best Western in Salt Lake. I fed and gave Damian water before I got in my room. I’m all locked up and I think I’ll sleep ‘til tomorrow afternoon, so don’t call me. I’m okay, dad. I’ll get over this,” I hope. “I love you, Dad.”
He asked her which hotel in Salt Lake she was staying at and if she felt safe and she gave him the address, “Yes, I feel safe now. I think someone in a black car was following me. Maybe it was just my imagination but I thought staying here would be better if I really was being followed.”
“Thank God, you stopped, I’ve been so worried. I’ll call the hotel staff and tell them to keep an eye out for anyone in a black car. Plug in your phone before you go to bed. You get some sleep now and don’t worry. Things are going to be better in the morning.”
“God I’m sorry dad. I didn’t even think about you staying up and worrying about me. I’m such a selfish daughter.”
“No honey, you’re not. You’re the best thing in my life. Get some sleep. Damian will be fine. It’ll do him good to not use his leg. Love you pumpkin. And Georgia, don’t give up hope. Dakota is going to understand.” She smiled as she listened to her always positive-thinking dad and disconnected the phone. She rummaged in her purse and found her charger, but she also found Dakota’s buckle. She held it to her heart. New tears rolled down her cheek. She removed her boots and plugged in her phone to charge. Too exhausted to remove her clothes she dropped to her pillow with Dakota’s buckle resting against her chest.
***
When Dakota opened her door, he found her with his buckle wrapped tightly in her fingers. He relocked the door. Thank God, she is safe. He was also thankful that her father had called the front desk and told him to give Dakota the keys when he got there. Justin had to jump through hoops to prove to the staff that he was her father. He faxed them a copy of his driver’s license and sent a copy of his credit card which was also the card Georgia had used. He even sent a picture of him holding his daughter at her college graduation. He told the desk that Dakota was her fiancé and he had gotten done with his job quicker than they thought and he wanted to join her without waking her up. The front desk clerk was a romantic and liked the idea of her fiancé surprising her.
He had been going on addrelin and driving over a hundred miles an hour. Good thing it was late and he hadn’t gotten a ticket. They might have dragged him to jail at the speed he had been driving. Before he left, Cameron had put him through a sobriety test and felt Dakota had enough control to drive. “Good luck finding your cowgirl. Don’t speed or the highway patrol will pull you over.”
Dakota hadn’t listened to his brother and he made it to Salt Lake City in record time. When he had pulled up and saw her trailer he almost broke down a
gain. He quickly checked to make sure Damian had water and grain. Then he walked to the front desk and showed his id and they gave him the keys, and he called her dad and let him know he was there. He’d call him again when they woke up.
He sat on the bed and lovingly brushed his fingers over her forehead. Her eyes were swollen closed and her pillow was wet. “Oh honey, I’m so sorry.”
She rolled toward his hand and muttered, “Dakota” in her sleep. He knew she was exhausted. Removing his clothes, he realized how exhausted he was, too, but first he removed her clothes. He lifted her cold body up and slid them both under the covers with her pressed against his side. His lips sought out her mouth and he felt her return the kiss although still in a deep sleep. In the morning, he’d apologize and tell her how much he loved her.
Chapter Sixteen
When Georgia started to wake up she realized she wasn’t cold anymore. Her skin felt lusciously warm and it comforted her. She moved her cheek and felt his chest. Oh Dakota. She wanted to wake up every morning with him by her side. Then she remembered and her eyes flew open. She sat up quickly in bed and looked at a naked Dakota still sound asleep. His hands automatically reached for her and pulled her back to him. He moved his chin on top of her head.
How had he gotten here…in her room? She realized she was naked. Looking around the room to see if she was dreaming, she knew she was still in the Best Western hotel room and not their luxury suite in Vegas.
She felt a sliver of hope he’d come because he still loved her. She promised herself she would tell him the truth when he woke up. It felt so good to be back in his arms that she drew her body as close to him as possible before she slipped back to sleep.
Her lips responded to the brush of lips. When she opened her eyes and looked up at Dakota, her hands went to his face, her eyes held his. He moaned and kissed her again.
“Dakota, I thought I was dreaming. I am so sorry. I have so much to tell you…”