“Any word on the horse?”
“He was found exactly where JD said he left him. Coop called a friend to go verify his whereabouts. He’s with a horse breeder JD had met. He was far enough away that the drug dealers weren’t going to try to find him and they weren’t really looking for the horse anyway. This really had nothing to do with the beautiful stallion. He’s going to stay where he is until there are proper accommodations for him here.”
After they left to go eat, Jessie found one of the FBI crime scene techs and touched base regarding the collection of evidence. Then she made a call to SAC Ehlinger. There was going to be a press conference, and he wanted her present, but for now, she was to leave the cleanup to the crew that was set up and report back ASAP. He needed her to debrief him in time for the press conference. Both sets of parents were getting a small reprieve, which wasn’t really protocol, but at this point, they really weren’t willing to force the issue. It wasn’t as if any of the four people were going to listen anyway, she thought wryly.
Once she was done with the phone call, she searched for Cole and found him by the horses. King was by him; the two had bonded. He glanced up when she approached, and the look on his face gave her pause. She tried to read him, but Cole was a man that kept his emotions close to the vest. He quietly handed her a bottle of water and an energy bar, knowing that she needed to refuel. The man had managed to figure her out in a short amount of time.
Her mother had been right about so much. She had nailed it when talking about Jessie’s emotions—she wasn’t prone to lose her cool. In all actuality, the last few days had been unusual. Her normal, calm demeanor had been replaced by a hotheaded—and horny—woman. At times she had found herself reacting out of emotion and not logic. Was it because of Cole? It had to be, right? He had made her feel more intensely than she had ever felt. He’d essentially pulled the cork off the bottle of emotions, and they’d started to slide out.
For that, she should be happy, but instead, she was conflicted. Her basically ordinary life had been changed when she took on the undercover job. Nice, neat, and orderly had ceased to exist. Until this assignment, she’d been the agent to investigate cases after the fact. When the damage was already done, she was the one called in to figure out the pieces of the puzzle. She had never wanted to be in the line of fire like she had been; she understood the risks of her job, and after the taste she had gotten, she was ready to go back to the more mundane job she’d been accustomed to. She’d already told her SAC as much, and he told her she had earned her spot wherever she wanted.
“Everything going okay up there?” Cole asked when she didn’t speak.
“As good as it can be.” She braced her arms on top of the fence and watched the horses in the distance as she took a long swallow of the ice-cold water and a bite of the energy bar. The sun was high in the sky. She was shocked at how late it was. When she had talked to her boss, she had to take a moment to figure out how long she had before she had to head out. Time had become a concept, not an actual thing. “Listen, I have to head back to the office. My SAC wants me there for the press conference they’re holding. I need to be debriefed.”
“I understand.” His voice sounded cold to her, but his eyes were sending a different message. But, what?
“I’ll have some time after it’s all said and done.”
“Will you?” he asked.
“I’ve been told that’s the case.”
They both knew the score. Neither of their jobs was easy. In fact, her job was demanding of her time, but his job was hands down more dangerous on a daily basis than hers had ever been. If you excluded the last assignment. It wasn’t like she could blame him, with the jobs they had they weren’t really compatible. Were they?
“I have to go back to my life, too…” he said, his words still frosty, but his eyes were trying to convey something. She was just too damn tired to figure out what that something was.
“Yeah, I suppose you do. I mean, this was supposed to be your vacation and all.”
“Right.”
The man was infuriating with his coded words. Of course, was she any better? I mean, she was being just as obtuse, wasn’t she?
“Right.” She almost winced at the tartness to her voice. Why wasn’t she telling him what she felt for him? Why was she essentially pushing him away? Because they had only known each other for a handful of days, and it wasn’t possible to feel this strongly for someone she had just met. That’s why.
“Listen, I had a great time.” She flinched at the words, and she could have sworn his face softened slightly. “I mean, I could have done without the bloodshed. But, in the end, I got my parents back, and I will forever be grateful to you for that.”
Jessie knew then what it meant when someone said that words could cut like a knife. The words caused her physical pain, and she felt as if she had been punched in the stomach.
“Yeah, um, you’re welcome.” She forced the words out, then spun on her heels and walked briskly, but not too fast so it wouldn’t look like she was running, to her SUV. She didn’t turn around. She couldn’t. But if she had, she would have seen the look of anguish on his face.
23
It had been more days than she wanted to count since she’d seen him. Long, excruciating days where all she could think about was him, what he was doing, who he was with if he was as miserable as she was. Physically she had healed, but mentally she was a mess. Finally, one morning her grandmother, followed closely by her mother—which was still hard to believe—came marching into her bedroom, hands on hips and the all-knowing expression she always wore. Jessie was still in bed, in the same pajamas she wore the day before, and she was not in the mood for the obvious intervention that was about to happen. Not that she had a choice, as was clearly evident when The Honorable Agnes LaBlonde stomped over to the window in her room and opened the opaque curtains with a flourish, allowing the bright sun to stream into the room, nearly blinding Jessie. Well, maybe not nearly blinding her. Maybe Jessie was being a bit melodramatic. Still, she pulled the covers over her face and rolled away from the window to make her point that she didn’t want to be bothered.
“Young lady, it’s time to stop being a dramatic baby and get up out of that blasted bed. I’m starting to worry you might merge with the mattress!”
“Look whose being dramatic now,” she whispered under her breath.
“I heard that. Get up, and for land’s sake, take a shower.”
With a certain amount of bravado, she moved to the bed and pulled the quilt off the bed as Jessie struggled, in vain, to maintain her hold onto the plush fabric. She didn’t care. She could take the sheets and mattress pad too. There was nothing she could do to get her to obey. With a huff, she rolled over and covered her head with her pillow, but before she could complete the process, the pillow was ripped out of her hands. This time by her traitorous but gorgeous and alive mother.
“I see you picked her side.”
“I didn’t pick anyone’s side. What I’m doing is telling you to get over yourself. You’re not behaving like the strong and amazing daughter your father and I raised. That your grandmother raised. You certainly aren’t acting like the competent special agent that took down the biggest drug dealer in the area, maybe even the US. Not to mention how you sniffed out a mole in the bureau. So, tell me something?”
“What?” Jessie snapped.
“Why are you behaving like a maudlin child? No, don’t answer that, get your butt up and out of that bed. Listen to your grandmother and go take a shower…” she said as she started to tug at her arms to get her to a seated position. “Get dressed and go to him. You obviously want to.”
“I slept with him, Mom.”
“So?”
“On the day I met him. Who does that?” She sat up and covered her face with her hands and mumbled through them, “A slut, that’s who. Why would he want to settle down with someone so loose?”
Her grandmother and mother burst out laughing at the same tim
e. Jessie dropped her hands and stared at them aghast. Were they really laughing at her while she was being one hundred percent open and honest and…and…maudlin and dramatic.
“First, baby girl, he slept with you the day you met as well. Why would that make you the slut and not him? I don’t play that game. Men and women are both accountable for what they do in their life,” The Honorable Carpenter said crisply.
“So, we’re both sluts?”
“Good gravy, young lady, get the wax out of your ears.” She rolled her eyes at her granddaughter. “What I’m saying is, it takes two to tango.”
“I don’t know if I can win him back.”
“You never lost him. You’re both stubborn and a bit stupid. Not to mention you both got scared and you ran. Everyone freaks out. Every couple fights as well. Do you think your father and I don’t fight? Especially in the last fourteen years?” Her mom sat down on the bed next to Jessie and wrapped her arm around her daughter. “You’d be wrong. We fought a lot while we tried to figure out how to get out of the mess we were in.”
“I lied to him.”
“Yet he forgave you when you explained why. He’s proud and, because of that, he doesn’t know how to articulate things properly. He is but a man.”
“I didn’t trust him to help me when the time came.”
“Psh, you trusted him. You didn’t trust yourself.” Grandmother sat on the other side of her as she spoke. “You didn’t want his life to be in jeopardy, and you didn’t trust if push came to shove that you could be judgmental enough if he was there. Now that he’s had some time to get over it, he knows what you did was all for him.”
“Not to mention, I was there when you left. I saw how he reacted. Neither of you gave yourselves a chance. You just assumed what his answer was going to be. You know what I saw?” Jessie opened her mouth to speak, but her mother steamrolled over her. “I saw a man that was devastated at the possibility he might have lost you and the parents he thought he had already lost.”
“He almost lost them because of me.”
“He got them back because of you. He knows that. He knows why you did all this. He’s scared of his feelings, and so are you. We all know you’re in love with each other. I have no doubt about that, and you shouldn’t doubt it either.” The mother she had missed more than she had realized patted her knee and smiled at her. “Now, how about that shower?”
Right. A shower. She knew it would make her feel better and maybe while she was in there she could find some guts.
“I hope you have liquid courage in the shampoo.”
Jessie stayed in the shower until the water ran cool and goose bumps formed on her skin, the whole time thinking about what she was going to do. Although she knew exactly what she wanted to do, it took her the whole shower to figure out how to go about it. By the time she was dressed, she had formulated a plan. It wasn’t a very good one, but it was a plan nonetheless. She hugged her parents and grandmother and climbed into her SUV. The good news was she had the whole car ride to perfect what she was going to say when she finally saw Cole.
Cole was brushing down King, lost in his thoughts. They were going to start rebuilding the new barn soon, but before they could begin building, all of the debris had to be removed. It would be labor intensive, but Coop assured him the new barn would be even better. For now, he contented himself in the field with King tethered to the fence. He had forgotten how cathartic it was to brush a horse. He inhaled the air, relishing the scent of horse and hot Kentucky sun. Ignoring the approaching footsteps, he continued to brush King’s flank, until his guilt settled in and he told himself to stop being an ass and to acknowledge his mother standing behind him.
“I know you’re back there.” He patted the horse affectionately, walking around, rubbing his hand along the horse’s strong back until he was at his head unhooking him from his tether. “You’ve been very patient for me. Why don’t you go run and have some fun?” He had no sooner said the words and King took off running.
“I still can’t believe the man you’ve become,” Karen Davenport said over his shoulder. “How long until you leave?” she asked quietly. He couldn’t hide the flinch or the truth.
“I have vacation due to me, and Lord knows I need it. Ironically, I was on vacation when this all came about.”
“How long?” She smiled warmly, even though her eyes were glistening with unshed emotion.
“I can stay for about two weeks. Shortly after the derby, I’ll need to go home.”
“I’m not foolish; I knew you wouldn’t stay here. You made a home somewhere else, and I know you plan to come back here often. Or at least, I hope you will. Coop said you haven’t been home much.”
“That was generous of Coop. I haven’t been home. At all. Since the day we thought you died. Damn, I can’t even tell you what it does to my soul to see you standing there, Mom.” He reached over and covered her hand with his, she grabbed it at the last second and tugged him in for a hug. He didn’t remember being so large around her. She was so small next to his tall frame.
“Both my boys are so grown. All the years we lost… I’m just happy to be home, to see you both again. Sharon and Hank took care of us; don’t ever worry about those fourteen years. Sure, there were some risks we had to take, but they were in our corner the whole time, and because of Ehlinger, they knew the right time to make their move and come home. Jessie would have had it go down another way.”
“I am eternally grateful to their sixth sense. Wait, what do you mean?”
“It was a lot of intuition, but there was some help from Ted Ehlinger. We were already close to here, and then Ted called Hank. Didn’t anyone tell you?” He pulled back and looked his mother in the eyes—eyes that were so like his own.
“I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”
“When she talked to Ted, she asked him to send a message to her parents. The message was a phrase that indicated she was in trouble and to come home. We found out later that Ted intentionally gave the wrong message. Hank had told him the four code words or phrases the family had established when the children were young. Jessie had asked him to use the code that would have indicated we should run. Instead, Ted decided she was in over her head, and he knew we were close enough by to be of help.”
Cole didn’t know what to do with this information. He wasn’t mad at Jessie. Was he? No, he was hurt. Which was stupid. He wasn’t a schoolboy; he was a grown man. How often had he withheld information to protect someone? More times than he could count. Actually, he was touched that even though her life was on the line, she once again was trying to protect her parents…his parents…before herself.
“She’s a pretty remarkable woman; her family is everything to her. Reminds me of a young man I know.”
“She’s pretty special, Mom. It sounds crazy, but I think I’ve fallen in love with her—or if not, I’m pretty close to falling in love with her.”
“Took you long enough to figure it out, didn’t it?” She patted his face. “Honey, anyone with eyes can see how you feel about that girl.”
“Harrison told me not to let her go, yet I did. What a bonehead I am.”
“Not a bonehead, but you’re too stubborn for your own good and maybe a little foolish. Harrison is pretty darn smart though. Although, I suspect he has some of his own demons to tame.”
“That he does. He’s going to be my new partner. He’s as solid as they come.”
“I can see that about him. He’s also a pretty fantastic cook. I was sad to see him leave, but my pants will fit better now that he’s gone home.”
“She played everything close to the vest. Why didn’t she trust me to help her?” He ran his hands through his hair and turned away from his mother, frustrated once again.
“Like I told you, she’s like you. She wants to protect everyone herself, and she finds it almost impossible to ask for help.”
“All those years she kept me in the dark about you.”
“To protect you, to protect u
s. She tried to diffuse the situation so El Diablo wouldn’t sniff you, Coop, or us out. Pretty damn impressive, that one.” His father had come up behind his mother and spoke quietly. “Harrison said when he left to tell you to get your head out of your ass and go get that girl.” His father stared lovingly at him, nodded once, and turned to go back to the house.
“I think he said it all. So, that leaves only one thing.”
“What’s that?” Cole asked his mother, though he thought he already knew the answer.
“What are you going to do about it? Or, rather, her?”
Jessie climbed out of the car and stretched. Her clothes were wrinkled, her hair was a ball of frizz that she hastily tugged into a ponytail, and her body hurt from the long drive on top of the bruises she was still healing from, but it was all worth it because she was so close to seeing Cole again. On the drive, she decided to beg him to give them a chance, to forgive her. She only hoped she managed to keep her dignity.
Not wanting to chance anything, she had called Coop in advance to make sure he would be there. Not only did Coop say he was, but he assured her he would make sure Cole stayed where he was and that everyone else wouldn’t. She had texted after she stopped at a gas station in town and he texted back to tell her they were leaving, and Cole was still at the farm. She walked up to the porch feeling every bit of stress in every muscle. She knocked on the door quietly and waited for him to come let her in. When he didn’t, she knocked again. And again, she waited. After a few minutes, she sent a text to Coop. He responded saying Cole had mentioned taking a shower and heading to bed, then he followed the text with another one which simply said, maybe he needs his back washed? She smiled at the message, which was clearly his attempt to calm her nerves. Somewhere along the way she had come to consider Coop a good friend. She was still standing there when another text came through: just go inside, mi casa es su casa. Mom and Dad say to go for it.
Missing the Stars: Chandler County Page 20