by Cassie Miles
* * *
GABBY HAD BEEN joking about beating Zach back to the Roost, but that was what happened. Her little hatchback had regained its pep after the tune-up and zipped along the mountain roads. She parked in front and went to open the door. She’d be ready for Zach when he showed up with the groceries.
Standing on the porch, she took the key from her pocket and aimed it toward the lock, but the door was already open. She pushed the opening wider and peeked inside. “Charlotte? Are you here? Daniel?”
No need to panic. There could be a simple explanation, like they’d gone to Zach’s or had accidentally left the door open. She didn’t want to be scared, but the adrenaline was already flooding her system. If anything had happened to Charlotte or her brother, she couldn’t stand it. Please, let them be all right. The Universe wouldn’t be so cruel. If they were hurt, it would take more than a pair of Louboutins to make it better.
Daphne raced around the edge of the house. Her loud, frantic bark was a clear warning. Something was wrong, terribly wrong.
Should she go inside? She hadn’t brought the Glock with her while they were doing errands, hadn’t thought she needed her own protection while Zach was with her. All she had was her tiny canister of pepper spray that had proved to be ineffective with Charlotte, who was basically harmless. Against an intruder, the pepper spray was a bad joke.
Daphne continued to bark, and Gabby went down the steps toward her. If only the dog could talk and tell her what happened.
When she saw Zach’s truck coming down the road, she started waving her arms over her head as though signaling an airplane to land. “Hurry, Zach. I need you.”
He must have gotten the message because the truck sped up. When he pulled up to the house, a plume of dust followed in his wake. He leaped from the truck.
As soon as his boots hit the ground, she was in his face, talking fast. “I came home and found the door open. When I yelled for Charlotte or Daniel, nobody answered.”
Beside her, Daphne continued to bark.
If they’d been in the city, this is when they would have called 911, and a police car would pull up with sirens blaring. That wasn’t going to happen here.
Zach got back into his truck, dug into the glove compartment and took out a handgun. “I want you to get in your car, take Daphne and drive to my place. Send Toby and the other men over here.”
“I’m not leaving.”
“There’s no time to argue.”
“Agreed,” she said as firmly as she could without being able to breathe. “I’m coming inside with you. That’s final.”
“Then stay back. Don’t get in the way.”
He ran onto the porch, holding the gun in both hands. She followed Zach inside, staying as close as a shadow. Daphne went as far as the door, but then dropped out. Her barks came less frequently.
Zach checked out the front room and dining room. He went into the kitchen. “Damn it.”
She peeked around his arm and saw Daniel lying on his belly near the sink. His head was bloody. He wasn’t moving.
Gabby rushed to his side and knelt beside him. Her heart felt like it was jumping out of her chest, but she had to be calm and help her brother. Her fingers pressed against his throat, and she easily found the carotid artery. The rhythm of his pulse was strong and steady.
His dark hair was matted around the wound on the back of his skull, but there wasn’t much blood.
“Daniel,” she said, “Daniel, wake up. We’re here now. You’re going to be all right.”
Zach had left her to check out the rest of the house. He returned with his gun still in his hand. “There’s a window broken at the front of the house. That’s how he got in.”
“He has a pulse, but he’s not moving.” She bent down close to his ear. “Daniel, can you hear me?”
He groaned. It was the most beautiful sound she’d ever heard. Then his arm moved and he rolled onto his side. “What the hell happened?”
When she hugged him, he winced, but she was glad for any sign of life. Her brother was going to live. All was right in the Universe.
Chapter Seventeen
At the urgent care clinic, Daniel was being his usual rebellious self. The doctor had told him that he had a concussion and should go to the hospital in Aspen or Glenwood to stay overnight for observation. Daniel wouldn’t cooperate. With his head wound bandaged, he sat on the examination table, fully clothed and refusing to change into a gown.
Gabby stood beside him, fuming.
“I’m ready to go home,” Daniel said. “I’m fine.”
“Is that your studied medical opinion?”
“This is nothing but a whack on the head. They took X-rays. My skull isn’t cracked. I don’t have amnesia.”
The story he’d told them on the frantic drive to the clinic had been simple. He’d been in his bedroom taking a nap when he’d heard a noise from downstairs that sounded like a window breaking. He’d gone to investigate, and someone had hit him from behind. He hadn’t seen the person who attacked him.
“If we were in the city where medical care is easily available,” Gabby said, “I might be more inclined to take you home and watch you myself tonight. But we’re isolated out here. I don’t know how to take care of you if something goes really wrong.”
“Like what?”
“Like you could have a seizure or go into a coma.” The very nice doctor had explained all this. “A concussion means the wiring in your brain is messed up. Anything could happen.”
“And if it does, you bring me back here.”
“It took us half an hour driving like maniacs to bring you to this urgent care facility. It’s another half hour to get to a fully staffed hospital where you can check in overnight. And that’s where you need to be.”
“I can’t pay for it, Gabby. I don’t have insurance.”
She was well aware of his uninsured status. When she checked him in, they required payment, and she’d drained the last few bucks left from her credit card to pay for his X-rays and the bandages. “We’ll find a way to cover the cost.”
“Fine,” he said petulantly. “If you get the money, I’ll go to the hospital.”
Why was his health care her responsibility? She had insurance for herself, even though it was expensive and she would have preferred spending her hard-earned cash on something more important, like shoes. But she’d done the necessary thing and gotten herself signed up. Daniel should have done the same.
She left him in the tiny examination room and went out to the waiting area. Zach wasn’t sitting where she’d left him twenty minutes ago after she’d reported that Daniel was doing well. She looked through the window and saw him pacing back and forth on the sidewalk with his cell phone to his ear.
She could ask Zach to loan her the money, but it wasn’t right for him to shoulder that burden. She didn’t want him to think she was using him. They’d barely started their relationship. How could she ask him for money? She couldn’t. Daniel was her problem, not his.
Since she wasn’t employed, she couldn’t arrange for an advance on her salary. But there was the promise of income in her future. Fox had said that she’d receive a stipend for staying at the Roost. She could call the lawyer. After all, he’d paid for Daniel’s plane ticket, which showed he was willing to invest in the estate.
But Zach hated Fox and suspected him of being behind the break-ins. Asking him for a loan was like making a deal with the Devil. She’d have to be careful and smart. Smarter than a sly attorney?
As soon as she stepped outside, Zach ended his phone call and came toward her. “Is he okay?”
“He’s peachy. He thinks he should go home.”
“And you don’t agree.”
“Whoever said ‘he ain’t heavy, he’s my brother’ didn’t know Daniel.” She slipped her arm through his, needing to draw on his strength to get through this. “Holding a family together is really hard work.”
“Which is one of the reasons I don’t have one,” he said. “What did the
doctor say?”
“A concussion can lead to all kinds of other problems—seizures, strokes, comas, aneurisms or all of the above. The doc advised that Daniel check into a hospital for overnight observation.”
“But Daniel doesn’t think that’s necessary.”
“We’re going to do this my way.” Her brother might be a gambler, but she wasn’t. Risking his life based on nothing more than a hope that he’d be okay wasn’t an option. She had to call Fox. There wasn’t a choice.
“That means the hospital,” he said. “Right?”
“Right. I wish I had my car,” she said. “There’s no reason for you to drive all the way to Aspen and wait with me at the hospital.”
“Already taken care of,” he said. “Charlotte and Toby are driving here in your car as we speak.”
“You’re a genius.”
“A hot genius,” he reminded her.
“I need to make a few phone calls, to arrange the hospital.”
Her cell phone weighed heavy in her hand. Contacting Fox would be one of the most difficult steps she’d ever taken, perhaps one of the most foolish. Seeking privacy for her desperate act, she returned to the clinic and punched in the lawyer’s phone number.
* * *
MAKING A DEAL with the devil had its rewards. After Gabby explained the situation to Fox, he promised to take care of everything, and he did. The hospital admission process was smooth sailing. Instead of being dismissed as an uninsured indigent creep, Daniel was met by a nurse with a wheelchair and taken to a private room where two different doctors paid him a visit.
His attitude had taken a dramatic shift. No longer uncooperative, he reveled in the attention. Sitting up in his bed and wearing his hospital gown, he held out his hand to her. When she grasped it, he pulled her onto the edge of his bed. “Thanks, Gabby. I forgot what it was like to have somebody care about me.”
His sentiment touched her. When they were kids, she and Daniel had been close. “I think this is what families are supposed to do.”
“I care about you, too.”
His X-rays had been taken again, and he was scheduled for a CT brain scan. As the hospital staff ran a series of other tests, Gabby could almost hear a cash register in the background, ringing up one charge after another.
Her brother was worth it.
Later that evening, one of the doctors came to his room to talk with them. “The good news is that we aren’t expecting a negative outcome from the brain trauma. We’ll know more tomorrow.”
“What’s the bad news?” Daniel asked.
“You’re suffering from an upper respiratory infection and exhaustion. The primary treatment for all these conditions is rest. We have you checked in for tonight, but I’d suggest at least one more night in the hospital.”
Gabby felt the blood drain from her face as though she was being suctioned by a vampire vacuum. Her brother’s stay in the hospital was going to cost a small fortune. Somehow, she’d have to find a way to pay Fox back that didn’t mean losing the Roost.
Leaving Daniel to get the rest he needed, she went downstairs to the cafeteria for coffee. The steaming mug sat in front of her on the table, but she couldn’t summon the energy to lift it to her lips. Only a few short hours ago, her future had been rosy. So quickly, everything had changed. The little family she’d been putting together had fallen apart. She’d found her brother on the floor in the kitchen, half-dead. And his life-threatening injury revealed an illness he hadn’t even been aware of. Nothing felt set and orderly. She’d lost control and had willingly given Fox an opportunity to take advantage of her.
Most of all, she worried about Zach. He’d be furious that she’d made contact with Fox and had accepted his help. If he found out that she’d taken a loan from Fox, he’d be angry. From the moment he met the attorney, Zach had been convinced that Fox was bad news. It might be better not to tell him, to keep this loan a secret.
She wasn’t actually lying to Zach. She just wasn’t telling him everything. That rationalization would have to stand. There hadn’t been a choice.
* * *
TOO TIRED TO drive home from the hospital, she’d spent the night sleeping in uncomfortable chairs in waiting rooms. One of the staff doctors would be seeing Daniel at ten in the morning when he’d give her the word about whether or not he could be released. She left the elevator and strolled down the pale blue corridor leading to her brother’s private room. At the door, she saw Daniel propped up in bed talking to a red-haired man in a suit—Fox. She stepped back and eavesdropped on their conversation. The constant hum of hospital noise made it difficult to hear clearly, but she caught the gist of what they were saying. Fox subtly advised Daniel to sell the Roost, and her brother agreed. They both thought her attitude was an obstacle to an otherwise smooth transaction. She heard Fox say, “Gabby means well.” And Daniel kicked in with, “She doesn’t really understand business.”
She clenched her jaw. She hated being patronized and told to step aside. If it was the last thing she ever did, she would show these two jerks that she understood exactly what she was doing.
After loudly clearing her throat, she walked into the room and went directly to Fox. “Thank you for stopping by.”
“I think of you both as family.”
Did foxes eat their young? “How kind you are.”
“Michelle was very special to me,” he said. “I want the best outcome for both of you.”
“And for yourself,” she said.
For a moment, the veneer of civility peeled back to show what he was really thinking. Fox radiated a powerful avarice. He’d do just about anything for money. Gabby despised him.
They smiled pleasantly at each other as the doctor came into the room and warmly shook hands with Fox, who was obviously a big deal at this facility. It came as no surprise when the doctor consulted his charts and advised that Daniel stay for another day so they could continue to monitor his brain activity.
Gabby bit her lower lip to keep from blurting out a comment about how Daniel’s brain hadn’t been active in years.
After the doctor left, she leaned across the bed to kiss her brother’s forehead. “I need to get back to the Roost. I’ll check in from time to time. Give me a call when you’re ready to be released.”
She was halfway down the corridor when Fox caught up to her. The first time she’d met him, she hadn’t noticed that he was a few inches shorter than she was in her platform sandals. She stretched her neck to make herself even taller.
There was something she needed to say, even though she didn’t want to. Her words came through gritted teeth. “Thank you for helping us out with a loan. You made it possible for Daniel to get the very best care.”
“You’re a polite young woman, well brought up.”
“And I’m as stubborn as Michelle. I should tell you that I intend to fulfill the terms of the will and live at the Roost for three years.”
His blue eyes were almost colorless. “I’m sure we can come to a different understanding, and I will forgive your loan.”
“I’ll find a way to pay you back.”
She lengthened her stride and walked away from him, aware that she was only avoiding trouble, not escaping it.
* * *
HE WAS DONE with watching the Roost. Gabby’s idiot brother had almost caught him planting another bugging device in the living room. It was a close call, too close.
When he’d knocked the brother out, he’d hit him too hard. For a couple of minutes, he’d thought the guy was dead. Law enforcement didn’t pay much attention to break-ins, but homicide was something else.
He was glad to leave the Roost in his rearview mirror. Keeping watch had gotten too complicated. All night long, the cowboy security guards were on patrol. Too many people were running in and out during the daylight hours. It was like breaking into Grand Central Station.
He’d have to find another way to deal with Gabby.
Chapter Eighteen
Zach hadn’t known Gabb
y was back at the Roost until he gazed across the grassy land that separated their houses and saw her car parked in front of the porch. He wondered why she hadn’t called him. Having her brother in the hospital had really knocked her sideways. She’d been shattered when they entered the kitchen and found Daniel lying there. As she’d told him many times, her brother was all she had left of her real family.
He’d missed her in bed last night. To be sure, a sick brother took precedence, but she hadn’t called. It was like she’d been avoiding him, which was not an encouraging start for what she insisted on calling a relationship. They might have been too quick to label this attraction.
At the front door to the Roost, he used his key to enter. Upstairs, Charlotte was singing a pop ballad about being crazy in love. He couldn’t remember ever hearing her sing before. That young woman was changing faster than a kaleidoscope, finally allowing herself to shine. He called to her, “Hey, Charlotte.”
She appeared at the top of the staircase with a towel wrapped around her head. “I’m dying my hair. Do you think Toby will like me as a blonde?”
“He’d like you if your hair was green.” The shy, young cowboy who had worked at the ranch for two years needed to be with somebody like Charlotte—a girl who wouldn’t overwhelm him. “I saw Gabby’s car. Where is she?”
“In the studio, working on my new shirt. I told her that she didn’t have to finish it for the rodeo tomorrow. With her brother in the hospital, she doesn’t have time. But she insisted. She wants people to notice her custom embroidery.”
Diving headfirst into her new shirt-making business, that sounded more like the Gabby he knew. He went through the kitchen to the entrance for the studio. Though he hadn’t spent much time in this room with Michelle, he’d always liked the wide, open space and the many windows. And he liked the way Gabby had changed it, draping colorful materials across portions of the walls and turning the tables into work areas. The sewing machine whirred, and Gabby bent over her work, concentrating hard.
He descended the stairs quietly, not wanting to startle her and cause her to make a mistake. When she looked up and lifted her hands from the fabric, he spoke. “Busy?”