Gone South (Southern Hospitality Book 2)

by C. M. Steele

  Everyone looked on in surprise and I suppose leaving was going to be a bit harder to pull off. Alex’s face turned to stone, almost completely absent of expression, if it wasn’t for the tick in his jaw.

  I grabbed my cell phone from my back pocket and called my boss.

  “Sir, I have Ricardo Sanchez in temporary custody. We’re waiting on the ambulance. I shot him in the middle of an attempted sexual assault.”

  “Agent Brody, stay calm and inform the local authorities that we’ll be flying in tonight to take custody of him assuming he doesn’t die of his wounds,” he said. “I guess it’s good you hadn’t left yet.”

  “Yes, but now my cover has been blown,” I muttered, forgetting that Alex was standing next to me. He gave me a look then walked right out the front door, leaving the gun on the stairs. I stood and put the safety on before going back to Rico. As much as I wanted to deal with Alex, I had to do what I could to keep Rico alive long enough for him to be held accountable for his crimes.

  A few minutes later, two medics arrived at the house. “He has a minor GSW to the shoulder. It’s a through and through.

  “We’ll be transporting him to the local hospital.”

  “Not unless he’s accompanied by an officer. Mr. Sanchez is under arrest.”

  “Yes, ma’am. Do you want to ride with us into the ambulance?” The one medic who hadn’t been treating the injury asked.

  “Sure, but I need to get some shoes on.”

  “Hello,” a voice behind me said. I turned around to see the local sheriff and two deputies.

  “I’m Special Agent Diana Brody,” I said, extending my hand.

  The sheriff did the same, followed by the men with him. “Hello, ma’am. I’m Sheriff Colby Jones and these are Officers Mitchell and Gaines. Can you give us a rundown of what happened?”

  “I was just getting ready to head back to Arizona when I overhead yelling. I came down and saw Rico starting to corner Ms. Davidson. I retrieved my sidearm and came to handle the situation. Before I could, he attacked her and that was when I shot him.” Again, I stuck my foot in my mouth. Alex’s arms were crossed as he stood there looking directly at me. I didn’t see or hear him come back in. I was totally fucked and that was clearly written on his face.

  “We’ll follow in the ambulance. Diana, go upstairs and put some God damn clothes on,” Alex ordered. It was funny, but it was clear to me that he was mad about the lies, not that I shot Rico. The command didn’t even seem to move people into saying a word. I had just shot Alex’s cousin in his home. He had every right to have me tossed out as fast as possible, but he just demanded I put some clothes on. I didn’t have a bra on and that was clearly visible through my thin shirt, but I’d had no time to get fully dressed and protect Maggie.

  Chapter 9

  Alex

  I felt my whole world just fucking crumble around me. She was fucking leaving me. What had I done wrong? Why didn’t she just tell me? She knew the distain I had for the man I thought was my cousin. I had just received fabulous news that Rico in fact wasn’t and had been in cahoots with his father to rip off the Davidson ranch. The thought that I’d never see that fucker again left me mentally jumping for joy. I was eager to get home and nail Diana on the nearest wall to celebrate. Instead, I was greeted with a fucking nightmare of a scene and a woman I didn’t even know.

  The whole federal agent thing wasn’t that bad. The fact that she was bailing on me, on us, tore up my insides. I didn’t say a word after she followed the ambulance in the police car and I trailed them in my truck. The noise running through my brain totally made me forget the true victim in the mess—Maggie. Who knows what my cousin would have done if he had a chance. If the feds were looking for a way to get him, they had more than some petty crime on him.

  Had she played me to see if I would reveal anything about Rico? No. I’d been very upfront in my displeasure with him, even more so with her. She could have asked me anything about him and if I knew the answer I would have spit it out. So lost in my thoughts, I arrived at the hospital faster than I realized.

  I parked in the lot, hoping I wouldn’t lose sight of them, but they were hard to miss. Rico was rushed along with one of the deputies who rode in the ambulance. The sheriff led Diana into the hospital with his hand on the small of her back. Yes, that may be a gentlemanly thing to do, but she was my woman and no man should put his hands anywhere on her. I took a deep breath because I couldn’t up and pick a fight with the most decorated sheriff in the county who has been happily married to the same woman for longer than I’ve been alive. It still irked the fuck out of me the way he treated her because at this moment I should be at her side. I heard that after a shooting, the person lived with a lot of regret, although since he’s a piece a shit I don’t think Diana will lose a wink of sleep if he died.

  I stormed through the automatic doors that nearly didn’t part before I got there.

  “Calm down, Alex. Your cousin is going to pull through just fine.”

  “I don’t give two fucks about him. I need a word with that one right there,” I said, pointedly looking at Diana who was talking to the sheriff and the local district attorney. Now if this guy got an inch closer I might have to break his jaw. He was only thirty-two and good looking according to all the rumors in town. It pissed me off the way he leaned in when she spoke and the look of understanding he gave her. She rewarded that sympathy with a million-dollar smile. Immediately I wanted to inform the staff they were going to have a new patient on their hands.

  Having had enough of the way he was edging closer and closer to her, I stepped up and interrupted the flirtatious way the interview was leading. “Hello, gentlemen. Agent Brody, may I have a word with you?”

  “I’m sorry, Alex, but I can’t let you two speak at the moment. I still have a few more questions.”

  “I’ll be waiting right over here,” I informed all of them. Fuck if I was going to be ignored or bypassed. I was about to walk away when the doctor came up to us.

  “Hello, I wanted to let you know Mr. Ricardo Sanchez will make a strong recovery. He’s asking for you, Mr. Sanchez.”

  “Well, that’s tough shit. He’s not even my cousin. And therefore, I don’t want anything to do with him.” I turned back to Diana. “I’ll be over there.” I walked away and sat down at the seats nearest the door. While there, I saw her run her hands together nervously, then her eyes stole a glance at me. Suddenly, I felt irrationally mad., and being mad at her just seemed too fucked up. Another five minutes passed by, but it felt like thirty. She shook their hands, then cautiously approached me.

  I stood because there was a lot to say and we couldn’t have this conversation here. I took her hand and led her from the main hospital. “I can’t leave. I’m waiting for my boss.”

  “We’re not, but I don’t want everyone to hear what I have to say.” I led her to my truck and helped her into the backseat, then climbed in with her. I pulled her onto my lap. “I don’t know what the fuck is going on up here,” I accused, pointing to her head. “But I know what the fuck is going on in here,” pointing to my heart. “Did taking down my cousin seem like not enough thrill, you wanted to destroy me too?”

  “Fuck, Alex, don’t say that. It’s not true at all. I didn’t want to do anything to hurt you.”

  “Tell me what the fuck is going on.”

  “I don’t know. I didn’t want to leave, but they pulled the plug on the undercover operation.”

  “What was your operation? Did you involve Maggie to help you get the job?”

  “No, but the more I think about it, I could see why it was planned this way. Since I wasn’t your cousin’s type, I was sent out to get into the ranch and find out more about him. We didn’t have a way to get to him. He cleaned up his mess too well. Your neighbor is just the kind of woman he goes for. When she got the job before we could get it, adding me to the mix was in hope to deflect and perhaps keep her out of danger. None of this had to do with you. From the moment I met you,
I knew the mission had gone south.”

  “Well, you got him now.” I rubbed her back, hating that I was more than ready to move past this.

  She softly gasped. “No, we got him on the attack on Maggie, but the other cases still aren’t solid enough to take to trial.”

  “So he’ll get a slap on the wrist?”

  “This should be enough to get a search warrant for his place. Maybe the evidence we need will be there.”

  “I don’t want to talk about him anymore. I want to talk about us,” I said, brushing my fingers down her spine.

  “Alex…” she started, but the knock on the window interrupted us. She jumped off my lap and opened the door. “Sir?” she asked in surprise before stepping out of the truck and trying to fix her clothes.

  “Brody, I see you’re okay,” he remarked, eyeing me suspiciously.

  “Hello, I’m Alejandro Sanchez.”

  “Mr. Sanchez, yes. I have some questions for you, but right now, I need to know your relationship.” He pointed at us. I pulled her to my side.

  “We’re together. I’ve been pursuing her since she stepped on my property, but until last night she’s been avoiding me. Now I understand why.”

  “Yes, well, that can be a problem.”

  “How so? She shot my cousin. If anything she’d be covering for him and protecting my family, but she didn’t. In fact, she planned on leaving like you ordered her. If my supposed cousin didn’t try to attack my neighbor, then she would have been gone already. And just so you know, she’s done working for you.”

  “What?” she screeched.

  “I believe you heard me just fine. I made it damn clear last night what was going on between us. You’re marrying me, so moving away is damn well out of the question.”

  “You want me to marry you?”

  “What the fuck did you think I meant about not letting you leave? I know you cook like a food goddess, but so does Maggie. And fuck if I like sharing your cooking with my crew.”

  Her boss smirked. “Agent Brody, you know that you’ll still have to come down and do the necessary exit interviews and paperwork before that.”

  “I didn’t say I was quitting,” she argued, which was cute. I was about to take her hardheaded ass over my knee. She gave herself to me, but she acts like I was playing with my words. If it wasn’t illegal, I’d consider hog-tying her ass up until she understood a job wasn’t worth losing what we had. Fuck, I could try and get her a position with the sheriff’s department if it made her happy. Not that it would make me that at all, but I’d have to deal with it.

  “You didn’t have to. It’s written on your face,” her boss said, his smile stretching.

  “What if you change your mind?” she countered, turning her body slightly in my arms.

  I looked down at her wonderfully perfect yet unsure face and said, “Not going to happen. So get that through that beautiful head of yours.” Not giving a fuck that her boss was there, I pulled her tight and kissed her, staking my claim. I wanted him to see. I wanted everyone to see. She was the only one for me from the moment she crept into my life.

  “Let’s get this show on the road. I’m tired and there’s still a lot of work to do, since someone gave me more paperwork to fill out.”

  “Hey, at least he’s not dead. It would have been double.”

  “I’ve been issued a search warrant on his apartment in town and we’ll be making the rounds tomorrow. Because of your involvement in his shooting you’re to stay completely away from the search.”

  “Hey, if it helps, we have a shared family property that’s thirty miles from here. Since I’m part owner, I can let you search there too.”

  “Really?”

  “You know he’s up for murder charges, right?”

  “Now I do, but that doesn’t change shit. Have at it. In fact, make sure to get the keys from me tomorrow. As it is, let’s get this done so I can take Diana home to rest. She’s been through a lot.”

  “Wow, Brody. You’ve got yourself a good man. Go home and do as he says. The sheriff already has your statement and we can talk tomorrow.”

  “Goodnight, sir.” I looked up at the stars and thanked God. I was too damn worn out for another argument. I wanted to go back to the house and wrap her up in my arms.

  Chapter 10

  Diana

  I didn’t know how to take him. My life has been lonely throughout the past few years. “Tell me something about you. I feel like I know even less than I already did. Did you really lose your family?” he asked, kissing my hand as he drove back to his ranch.

  The feel of his strong hand, protecting me in such a simple but meaningful way made it easy for me to begin. “I lost my family in a murder-suicide. My sister’s ex-boyfriend had gone batshit crazy and went to my parents’ house and killed them all. I’d been away at school which was the only reason I was spared. It was the most grueling and painful thing I’d ever been through. Initially, I’d wanted to become a veterinarian, but their deaths forced me into criminal justice.”

  “I’m sorry, Diana.” He brushed his thumb over my pulse, soothing the sting of the memory. I’d been so wrapped up in getting justice, that I never considered what would happen once I actually had to shoot someone. It’s been on my mind since I pulled the trigger though. I thought I could handle the feelings, but it wasn’t that easy. With Rico the threat wasn’t for me so shooting him hadn’t been hard, but what would have happened if the next guy had a gun too. “Diana, are you okay?” he asked.

  I felt him squeeze my hand and give me a look of sympathy. I wanted him to hold me, but we were in the truck. “Um, sorry. Did you say something?”

  “I asked if you were hungry.”

  “Oh, no. Thanks. I’m really just tired.” He looked at me, nodded, then pulled into the ranch drive.

  “Let’s get you to bed.”

  “It’s only seven.”

  “You said you were tired. I want you to rest. I’m going to follow up with the Davidsons.”

  “Why don’t we go together? I want to know how she’s doing.”

  Epilogue

  Diana

  “Diana, here. I stopped at the store after I picked up the feed.” Alex dropped a large box at my feet. It was as long as the recliner I’d plopped my butt on while reading a new romance on my Kindle.

  “You got me something?” I asked like it was a surprise. Anytime he got a chance in the past two months he got me something. We married right after we left Arizona with a trip to Vegas. His parents met us there and now have moved back to the ranch on the small house on the opposite side of the bunkhouse. His mother and father wanted to spend time with their future grandchild. I was two months pregnant. Alex was an expert marksman it seemed.

  “Open it, babe,” he said, anxiously.

  I knelt on the floor and opened the box. Inside was bunch of notebooks, pens, and a cute bookbag in my favorite color, purple. “What’s this for?”

  “Um…this came in the mail today.” He handed me a large envelope.

  “OMG! It came in already.” It was the letter for veterinarian school. Alex demanded that I fill out the application. They did accept late ones and of course, with the help of my husbands’ connections, I was able to submit it late. I never expected them to accept me. I wonder how large of a donation Alex made.

  “Did you give them a new wing for the building?”

  “Not at all. They could use someone as amazing as you.” He picked me up and spun me around as I laughed. I was going to school soon.

  “Thank you for it all. Oh goodness, put me down,” I called out. He set me on my feet and I dashed out of the room. My body didn’t like that one bit. There went my entire lunch. Alex picked me up and put me on the counter, handing me a rag and a cup of water.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t think.” He looked like he broke me. His shoulders slumped and his eyes were sad.

  “Don’t freak out, cowboy. It’s normal. I feel like it didn’t even happen now. I’m just glad I did
n’t chuck it all up on my school goodies. I have to read the letter so I can get myself all situated.” I hopped of the counter and went back to my box of supplies.

  I opened the large envelope full of information. I had to register for classes this week and they start in two.

  ****

  I had been running behind. In a rush, I went to grab my things and accidentally knocked them onto the floor. When I bent down to get them, I felt a pain in my thighs. Mr. Johnson walked up to me and leaned down to help. As he picked it up he grazed my leg. I thought nothing of it, but then he cupped my legs and kissed my inner thigh. I pushed him by the shoulders then tried to kick him, but he was rough with me. Alex walked into the room, searching for me. I saw him and his look of pure rage. He pulled the professor off me and knocked him into the desks on the side of us. He continued to pound him and the noise attracted security.

  “Mr. Sanchez, let him go,” Tom, the head security guard, ordered while tugging on Alex.

  “I’m going to kill him,” he roared as the guards pulled him off the beaten son of a bitch.

  “Don’t, Alex. Please, don’t do it. Think of the baby,” I said. He slowly relaxed and pulled me into his arms.

  “I’m going to sue you,” Johnson sputtered, wiping blood with his sleeve.

  “If I let you live to see it,” Alex growled.

  The security guards pulled us to the side. “What happened?” Tom asked.

  “I dropped my books and he came over to help. He brushed my thigh and I thought it was an accident. Then he gripped them and kissed one.” Alex let go of me and tried to go after him but the two guards stood in the way.

  “Calm down, Mr. Sanchez.”

  “I tried to push him away, but he got more forceful and then Alex walked into the room,” I said, running my hands over my ponytail.