by Addison Fox
He’d come so close to losing her. Just when he’d found her and discovered the depth of his feelings.
“Do you know who she is?” Darby’s voice was hoarse but steady.
His town crazy woman, Lydia, had been removed a few minutes earlier. The medics had moved her, dealing with the bruise she’d sustained when Penny had knocked her over. Surprisingly, Penny had avoided biting the woman, using her strength to hold her still until Lotte and Lucy had added their support.
“Her name’s Lydia. She lives in town and is a nuisance. Always calling the precinct for something or other. I never imagined she was dangerous.”
“She’s been sending the gifts?”
Finn nodded, confirming the details one of his deputies had managed to get from her. “I had no idea. I never would have suspected her.”
“How could you?” Darby turned to him. “How would you ever know she was so dangerous? Or so deranged.”
He couldn’t. That was the simple fact. But it had been his choice to drag Darby into this mess in the first place. “There wasn’t a way of knowing. But I should have thought before bringing you into this. Before parading you around town as my girlfriend and making everyone think we were a serious couple. Instead all I did was show you off in the face of a deranged woman with an agenda.”
“I entered this with open eyes.”
“And you’ve more than kept up your side of things. But I can’t believe I almost lost you.”
She squeezed his hand, drawing his gaze to hers. “I can’t believe I almost lost you, too. Which is why I have to tell you I love you. I don’t care if you don’t feel the same, I just need you to know.”
The haze of pain that muddled his mind cleared in the face of her news. “It’s funny you mention that. Something dawned on me just before I got bashed over the head outside.”
“What’s that?”
“I love you, too.”
Joy filled the pretty blue of her eyes, a match for the warm, welcome smile that painted her face. “What are we going to do about it?”
Finn looked at their joined hands, their assembled huddle of dogs and the team of people that tromped through his condo. His life was crazy and complicated and he still had a killer to catch.
But none of it seemed impossible with Darby beside him.
“I say we keep being in love and figure out the rest as we go.”
Finn wasn’t sure who moved first—the room had begun spinning again—but it didn’t matter the moment their lips met.
She was here. She was safe. And she loved him.
Best Finn Colton could tell, life didn’t get a whole lot better than that.
Epilogue
“The rabbit died.”
Finn’s eyes widened, his shock clear as he stopped midway to tucking his napkin on his lap. “We’re having a baby?”
Darby glanced at the dog that even now lay next to the stove, her gaze pointed upward at the meat loaf sitting in a pan on top. “I meant Lucy, silly. We had a successful breeding. The vet confirmed it today.”
“Wow. Of course. That’s great.”
Something flickered deep in his gorgeous blue eyes.
Did he think she was pregnant?
Darby wondered if she should say something, nearly discarding the words before she admonished herself. That was the old Darby. The woman who held back or felt like she couldn’t express her true self.
All that had changed since Finn had come into her life. It had been reinforced again a month ago when that deranged woman had attacked her in Finn’s apartment.
Life was meant to be lived. And part of living was saying what you wanted and what mattered to you.
Finn mattered to her.
Their future mattered to her.
“Would you like to have a baby?” she asked.
“Wouldn’t you?”
“Of course—” Darby broke off, trying to find the right words. “I mean, for a long time I’d put it out of my mind. I wasn’t with anyone and dwelling on it wasn’t going to get me very far. But now? With you? With how I feel about you?” She nodded. “I think about it.”
“I think about it, too. I see the way you are with Lora and all I can imagine is you holding our baby.”
“I imagine it, too.”
Finn laid his napkin down and got up out of his chair. He came around the side of the table, dropping to his knee. Something dropped out of the bottom of her stomach as the gesture registered.
Something delicious and exciting, like the first dip of a roller coaster.
“I love you, Darby Gage. I love being with you and I love imagining a future with you.”
“I do, too.”
“Then let’s make that future real. I want to be with you. I want to marry you. And I want to make a heap of babies with you.”
She leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his lips, that roller coaster starting its next big ascent. Oh, how she wanted that future, too. More than she could have ever imagined.
But no matter how much she loved him, some things hadn’t changed. “There’s still a killer on the loose.”
He nodded. “I know. But I’m not going to stop living my life. Living our life.”
“I don’t mean that. But we already drew the attention of one crazy person. Maybe we can keep our future to ourselves for a while?”
“A secret engagement?” He wiggled his eyebrows, his smile going bright. “Like a covert op?”
“Something like that.”
“I like going under covers with you.”
She laughed at the innuendo and kissed him once more. “Me, too.”
“So, it’s settled? You will marry me?”
The roller coaster crept higher. “Yes.”
“And you’ll have babies with me?”
It ascended a few more notches, reaching the peak. “Yes.”
“Can we do that under covers thing?”
Darby laughed and stood, pulling him to his feet as the bottom dropped away once more. “I can’t see any reason why we can’t get started right now.”
Finn tugged on her hand and nearly had her out the door when she pulled him back.
“What’s wrong?”
She pointed to their plates. “If we leave that meat loaf on the table, it won’t be there when we get back.”
Finn shot a stern look at the dogs. “Lotte’s well trained. She won’t touch it. And Penny and Lucy are equally good.”
“Lucy’s eating for seven now,” Darby reminded him. “It’s hardly fair to tempt her like that.”
Finn had the plates back on the counter and his hand around hers quick as a flash, dragging her toward the bedroom.
“You don’t waste time.”
“Not when I see what I want.”
“And what’s that?”
“You, my secret fiancée.” Finn pulled her into the bedroom before stopping to pick her up. He whirled her around in his arms before pulling her against him, his lips pressed to her ear. “Only you.”
Darby pulled him close and knew she’d received far more than she ever could have imagined. In two short months her life had changed in ways she’d only dreamed of. As she pulled Finn close, she reveled in their secret. And in the future that spread out before her as she waited to become Mrs. Finn Colton.
A future that was bright and shiny and sure to be absolutely wonderful.
* * * * *
If you enjoyed this suspenseful story, don’t miss
the first COLTONS OF RED RIDGE book,
COLTON BABY RESCUE by Marie Ferrarella.
And don’t miss the next book,
COLTON K-9 BODYGUARD by Lara Lacombe,
available in March 2018 from
Harlequin Romantic Suspense!
Keep reading for an excerpt from GUARDIAN COWBOY by Car
la Cassidy.
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Guardian Cowboy
by Carla Cassidy
Chapter 1
“If one of those cowboys from the Humes’s ranch strokes my butt one more time, I’m going to toss a drink over somebody’s head,” Janis Little exclaimed to fellow Watering Hole waitress, Annie Holbrook, as they both reached the polished bar that stretched almost wall-to-wall along the side of the popular nightspot.
Annie grinned at her. “I double-dog dare you,” she said, her dark eyes snapping with mischief. “Stroking butts is the only way those men can convince themselves they have any kind of a romantic relationship with a woman. I triple-dog dare you.”
Janis laughed as the bartender, Tanner Woodson, approached them. “Ladies, talk to me,” he said.
“Three draft beers,” Annie said.
Janis gave him the orders for her tables and he stepped away to prepare the drinks.
“He is so hot,” Annie whispered to Janis.
Tanner was not only new to the town of Bitterroot, Oklahoma, but tonight was only his third night on the job.
So far, as manager of the bar, Janis was impressed with him. He was friendly with the patrons but not overly so. He was quick and efficient, and when he had a moment to rest, he didn’t. Instead he wiped down the bar, cleaned glasses and restocked the lemons and limes and olives that topped the drinks.
“Janis, did you hear what I said?” Annie poked Janis in the rib with her elbow.
“Yeah, he’s okay,” she replied.
“Okay? He’s got the dreamiest blue eyes and that beautiful dark hair, and enough chest muscles to make a girl feel safe if she was in his arms.”
“You’re practically on the verge of drooling,” Janis said dryly.
“You’d drool, too, if you weren’t already hung up on that sexy Holiday Ranch cowboy who can’t hold his drinks.”
“I’m not hung up on anyone,” Janis replied even as she felt her cheeks warm with a blush.
Thankfully, at that moment, Tanner returned with their drinks. The Watering Hole was the place for singles and dating couples to hang out and this evening it was hopping with the usual Saturday night crowd.
There was definitely one of the Holiday Ranch cowboys who made Janis’s heart lift just a little bit whenever she saw him, but those men had yet to arrive for their ritual Saturday night of drinking and blowing off steam.
Right now she was stuck serving the Humes’s ranch men, who seemed to live for the chance to make everyone else’s life miserable. “Here we are,” she said as she reached their table. She’d never met a group of more odious men.
“About time,” Zeke Osmond said and then offered up a smarmy smile. “But I’ll forgive you for taking so long if you give me a little kiss.”
“Sorry, Zeke, I’m not allowed to kiss the customers.”
It took her only a minute to serve the beers to Shep Harmon and Ace Sanders. Lloyd Green, the oldest of them all, got a Scotch on the rocks. As she bent over to place the drink in front of him, Zeke grabbed her butt.
She whirled around to face him, grabbed his beer from her tray and, with a pretend trip, poured every single drop into his lap.
“What the hell!” he shouted and jumped up out of his chair.
“Oh, I’m so sorry,” she replied.
Lloyd guffawed. “Looks like you done peed your pants, Zeke.” The rest of the men at the table hooted with laughter.
“You did that on purpose.” Zeke’s dark eyes glittered with anger.
“It was an accident,” she replied. “I’ll go get you a bar towel so you can clean yourself up. I’ll be right back.”
As she headed to the bar, she shot a quick glance across the room. Annie grinned at her and flashed a quick thumbs-up sign.
It had been a highly unprofessional thing to do, but she wasn’t sorry. She would do it again in a minute. She was tired of the Humes’s men, and Zeke Osmond in particular, acting like it was their right to touch her body intimately.
“Tanner, can I get a clean towel?” she asked the bartender.
He reached down to a shelf under the bar and handed one to her. “Was that an accidentally-on-purpose move?” His blue eyes twinkled knowingly.
“I plead the fifth,” she replied with a laugh.
She returned to the table and handed Zeke the towel. He was still standing, cursing and raving about her spilling the drink on purpose.
“Sit down and shut up already,” Lloyd growled at him. “You’re starting to give me a damned headache.”
Zeke obeyed, settling back into his chair with the towel in his lap and a glare at Janis. She ignored him and moved on to check on her other patrons.
At seven thirty the band began to play and people hit the wooden dance floor. The Croakin’ Frogs, a local band, played every Saturday night. The rest of the nights the jukebox kept peoples’ toes tapping.
It was just before eight when the men from the Holiday Ranch arrived. Although about a dozen worked on the ranch, only six came in the door, and one in particular made Janis’s heart beat just a little bit faster.
Sawyer Quincy. He had ginger-colored hair and copper-hued eyes. His shoulders were broad enough to carry a woman into happily-ever-after and his jeans rode a little low on his slim hips. She’d had a silly crush on him for years.
The men greeted people as they wove their way through the crowded bar and settled in at one of the large booths in her section. As usual, Sawyer took the position in the corner of the booth where, before the night was over, he would slump down in a beer-induced unconsciousness. That man definitely shouldn’t be drinking.
She approached the booth with her usual smile and her order pad ready.
“Ah, if it isn’t our favorite waitress,” Sawyer said. Although his smile made her feel like they shared something special, that was just the warmth he offered everyone with his gorgeous grins.
“And if it isn’t my favorite group of men to wait on,” she replied.
The Watering Hole served the usual bar fare like deep-fried pickles and mozzarella sticks, but the menu also offered up a variety of burgers and sandwiches. Within minutes, Janis had their drink and food orders and was headed to the kitchen to turn in her ticket.
She then served their drinks and returned to the kitchen to pick up their food.
“Busy night,” Charlie Williams, the head cook, said to her.
“Saturday nights are always busy,” she replied. “Maybe it would cut down on traffic if you didn’t serve
your famous pulled pork every Saturday.”
“But then I wouldn’t be worshipped as the barbecue king of Bitterroot,” he joked and then sobered. “Still, tonight it seems like everyone in the place wants to eat.” He looked over his shoulder. “Hey, Rusty, don’t burn those fries.” Charlie rolled his eyes at Janis and disappeared from the pass-through window.
As she waited, her gaze went across the room to Sawyer. He was laughing at something somebody had said. Even though right now she was too far away to actually hear him, she knew his laughter sounded like a deep, sexy melody.
She released a sigh. It was a silly crush because it was obvious Sawyer didn’t look at her that way. She was Janis the waitress, just like Larry the mailman or Betty the bank clerk. He didn’t really see her beyond her working role here in the bar.
“Janis, order up,” Charlie called.
She grabbed one of the bigger food trays, loaded it with the cowboys’ orders, and then went back to the booth to serve them.
The rest of the night passed like they all did. She served drinks and food, made lively chatter when necessary and pocketed the tips to add to the stash she hoped would one day be enough for a down payment on a nice little house.
For more years than she could count, she’d been living in the bar’s back room. When Gary Runyon, the owner of the bar, had offered her not only a job but the opportunity to live rent-free in the bar’s back room, she’d been thrilled. Before that, she’d been bunking with friends whenever possible and far too often sleeping in her car.
But she was soon going to be thirty years old and, while she loved what she did, she definitely wanted to make some changes in her life.
It was almost one in the morning when the place began to empty out, although the official closing time was two. As she approached the booth with the men from the Holiday Ranch, she saw that Sawyer was in his usual slumped position and totally out to the world.
She handed Flint McCay the tab for the table and shook her head ruefully. “I don’t know why that man drinks.”
“He’s definitely a lightweight,” Clay Madison said, his blond hair gleaming in the light overhead.