"I don't know. I'm not really hungry." She stared down into the tan liquid in her cup. "What I'd really like is a shower."
"No problem." Levi set his cup aside. "Let me show you your bedroom and the bathroom, you can shower while I cook."
"You're really stuck on food this morning, aren't you?" She took a drink of her coffee and stood.
"Breakfast is important. If you don't have breakfast you're starting the day on empty, that's not good for you." He carried his own cup with him. "This way."
* * *
Twenty minutes later, Mariah was clean. Her hair was wet and one side of her face an ugly purple, but her clothes were fresh and the idea of talking to the sheriff didn't panic her. It didn't sound like fun, and she didn't really want to do it, but the idea no longer sent waves of terror through her. She took one more look around the bedroom Levi had given her. The furniture was so old it might qualify as antiques, but it was all sturdy and serviceable. On second thought, it might not be antique, but it did look as if it was original to the house, which had to be at least fifty or sixty years old. The room was spotlessly clean, the bed was covered in a quilt that looked handmade and somehow, it all fit. It would look strange in her apartment, but then, her bedroom set in L.A. would be ridiculous here. She shook her head and smiled, realizing that if it were up to her, she wouldn't change a thing. The room worked. The whole house seemed to be that way, at least what she'd seen of it. If someone were to go through and replace everything with modern, updated pieces, it would steal the personality of the place, and she was starting to realize she liked that personality.
Taking care on her ankle, she made her way back to the kitchen where she was pretty sure she'd find Levi. Sure enough, she stopped in the doorway to find him standing in front of the stove, his back to her. Stopping, she leaned quietly against the door frame so she could watch him a moment without his knowledge. She wasn't sure what it was about him. Maybe just his manner and the way he treated her like something precious, but she felt safe around him. Like he would do whatever it took to protect her, even from himself.
Mariah shook her head. That was a silly thought. Protect her from himself? Who did that? She must have made some sound because he turned and spotted her.
"Hey, just in time. The bacon's done and I was just about to start the eggs. You want yours scrambled or fried?" He came and took her coffee cup from her, carried it to the pot and refilled it. She pushed away from the door frame and went to the table, sat and put her foot back up. After standing in the shower, even if she didn't always put weight on it, then the time it took to get dressed, her ankle was starting to ache again.
"Scrambled," she said as he set her cup in front of her. "You don't happen to have any ibuprofen do you?" She sipped the coffee and found it warm but not too hot.
"You're face bothering you?" He went to the counter, stopping in front of the microwave and took down a bottle from on top then brought it to her before going back and going back to cooking.
"No, it's ugly, but unless I press on it, it doesn't hurt. My ankle aches though." She shook two pills out then took them with a swallow of her coffee. That done, Mariah leaned back in her chair and watched Levi move about the old kitchen with a familiar ease she wasn't sure she had, even in her own kitchen.
He set a plate in front of her then set another across the table and sat.
"Eat up. Alan called while you were in the shower. He should be here in twenty minutes or so."
The eggs were fluffy and light, she took a bite and found they tasted as good as they looked.
"Alan?" she asked around her mouth full of food. Yes, it was rude but she was curious.
"Alan's the sheriff, remember I told you he was coming out."
Yes, he had, but he hadn't mentioned his name and she hadn't put the two together.
"All right." She went back to eating, somehow the food didn't taste quite as good as it had a moment before. It was good, just not as good.
Chapter 21
They'd finished eating and Levi had cleared the table and rinsed the dishes when tires on gravel told him someone was here. Probably Alan. He left Mariah in the kitchen and dried his hands on a kitchen towel on his way to check.
"Hey," he stepped out the front door and greeted the sheriff, a man he'd known most of his life.
Alan was about ten years older than Levi, and had hauled Levi home in the back of his patrol car more than once. That had been before Levi took over the ranch, and before Alan had been elected sheriff. They'd long since become friends, each spending time at the other's home.
"How are you?"
"Good, how about yourself."
"Can't complain."
"I understand you've had some trouble out here?" Alan hooked his thumbs on his belt and rocked back on his heels.
"Nothing I couldn't handle, but I wanted to make the report and make sure you know what's going on."
The sheriff lifted one brow as he watched Levi, but didn't say a word.
"Come on in. I've got coffee on and you can talk to Mariah too."
"Mariah?"
"One of my guests, well the only one now, and the victim."
"Victim?" Alan's voice deepened and a scowl formed on his brow. "Let me grab a tablet and I'll be right in."
"No problem. We'll be in the kitchen."
Alan had spent enough time in Levi's house he knew his way around, and knew he was welcome anytime. Levi didn't want to leave Mariah alone too long for fear she'd get nervous, then refuse to speak to Alan.
She was still sitting at the table where she'd been when he left, sprained ankle still propped on the chair, but she was watching the doorway and he didn't miss the look of relief that crossed her face for a split second as he stepped into the kitchen.
"It's Alan, he'll be right in." She sighed and frowned into her cup. He stopped next to her chair and held out one hand. "Want more?"
"That would be great, thanks." Mariah handed him her cup and slouched back down in her chair. Except for the foot propped up, she reminded him of a brooding teenager. Being forced to do something they didn't want to. They'd do it, but they wouldn't be happy about it.
The front door closed and a couple minutes later Alan stepped into the kitchen. He went straight to the coffee pot and fixed himself a cup while Levi finished doctoring Mariah's coffee, delivered it to her and fetched his own cup. Alan made it to the table about the same time he did. They sat down and sipped their coffee for a minute, Alan stared at Mariah a moment, then back to Levi, a scowl marring his face.
"Tell me what's up," Alan broke the silence.
"This is Mariah Stein, she was part of a party of five that came out from Los Angeles. You remember I was opening up the ranch to guests, right?" He waited for Alan to answer, then turned to Mariah. "Mariah, this is Alan Dyer, he's the sheriff of Middleton County. He's a good guy and you can trust him." Levi went through the events of the night before, telling Alan what he knew, both what he witnessed and what he'd been told.
"And where are these guys now?"
Levi glanced at the clock. "They should be in Casper by now. When I found them last night I told the head of the company—"
"Sheppard, right?"
"Yes. I told him they were no longer welcome here that they had to leave this morning, and I had Billy take them back to Casper. I don't know how long they'll be there. I don't know if they changed their plane tickets, I don't care. They can find a place to stay there on their own. I didn't want them here where they could try to bully Mariah."
"That will make things a little more difficult on my side but not impossible." Alan turned to Mariah. "Do you have anything you want to add?"
Mariah shook her head.
"Either way, I have a few questions for you." Alan looked at Levi. "Can we have a few minutes?"
Levi stared back at his friend for a moment, then turned to Mariah. "I can stay if you'd be more comfortable." She stared at him a moment, glanced over at Alan then back to him.
"I'll be all right."
"Then I'll leave the two of you to do your thing. I'll go into the office and take care of a few things." He stood. "If you need me, just holler."
"Will do." She gave him a half-hearted smile as she tilted he head back to look at him. "I'll talk to you again before you leave?" he asked Alan.
"I'll find you before I go," the sheriff said with a nod.
"Tell him what he needs. He'll take care of you too." He squeezed Mariah's shoulders then left them alone. He went into the office, but left the door open in case someone called for him. He fired up the laptop and tackled paperwork. There were orders to be processed and reservations to be reviewed. He hated this part of the ranch and especially the expanded business of hosting people here, but someone had to do it.
Chapter 22
Mariah sat at the table half afraid to unwrap her hands from around her coffee mug for fear the sheriff would see them shaking.
"How long have you known Levi?"
"I met him when we got off of the plane Sunday."
"And today's Tuesday so less than forty-eight hours?"
"Yes, sir."
A frown flashed across Sheriff Dyer's face, but cleared almost immediately.
"And how long have you been employed by Sheppard Entertainment?"
"A little over a year."
The sheriff asked a bunch of invasive questions that Mariah didn't want to answer, but did anyway, things like had she ever had a sexual relationship with any of the men from the trip? Did she know why she'd been sent? And more. She answered everything as completely and honestly as possible, even telling him about the time in the bar before dinner when they'd been making snide comments, since Levi hadn't told him about that. She gave him her contact information and promised to call if she remembered anything else. After thinking about what Levi'd said the night before about how many times had they gotten away with this, she knew she had to press charges.
"I can't just let this go." She shook her head as she stared down into her empty mug. "I can't let him do this to me, or worse, to someone else. I want to file charges." She promised to let him know her plans as they were made, but couldn't yet because right now she didn't have any.
By the time the sheriff stood, Mariah couldn't think of him by his first name like Levi did, she wanted nothing more than to go climb in bed and pull the covers up over her head for the rest of the day. Somehow she didn't think Levi would let her wallow like that. As much as she didn't like it, it was probably a good thing.
"I'll talk to Levi, then I'll get started on this." He patted the back of one shoulder on his way past her. "You're doing the right thing here. It takes a strong woman to stand up not just for herself, but others. You're doing that."
She nodded, but didn't respond. She listened to him make his way out of the kitchen and fought the urge to put her head down on the table and cry. Some strong woman she was.
* * *
Her head was still down when she heard footsteps approach. The soft whisper told her it was Levi and his stocking feet, not the sheriff in his boots.
"That wasn't so bad, was it?" His hand appeared on her back, a spot of warmth she wanted to curl into.
"I survived it." She lifted her head, but didn't turn to look at him, instead she stared at the chair Sheriff Dyer had been sitting in as she thought about the last hour and what it would mean to her life. She was most likely jobless now, or would be once Mr. Sheppard found out about the charges. Hell, right now she wasn't even sure if she had a plane ticket home. Dwelling on it wouldn't change it, and she might as well do what she could to enjoy the time she had left here anyway. The sheriff had asked her to hang around, at least for a few days so he could get the ball rolling. Her plane ticket, assuming it was still good, wasn't until Sunday anyway. "What's on the agenda for today?"
"Well, we were going to take everyone out and show them some of the more menial functions of a ranch, but there's no point in keeping to that schedule, especially since we don't want to put you on a horse for a few days yet." He gave her elevated ankle a pointed look. "Tyler's already dealt with the horses and is checking on cattle. Billy's taking the men to Casper. That reminds me, you want anything while he's there?"
Mariah shook her head. She didn't need anything and she'd be home soon enough anyway.
"All right. I already sent him a list of things we need here, but I'd add anything you want." He looked at her a moment, but she shook her head again.
"Other than that I don't have much planned. I was working on reservations—" the phone rang, interrupting him. He pulled the cell phone from his pocket and looked at the screen. "I need to take this, if you don't mind?"
"Go ahead."
Levi didn't bother leaving the room, just swiped the screen and put it to his ear.
"Hey sis, what's up?"
A wordless scream emitted from the phone catching Mariah's attention.
Levi pulled the phone away from his ear and blinked several times, then tentatively put it back. "Is everything okay?" he was quiet for a moment. "That's great. I'll be there as soon as I can. Need me to bring anything?" he paused again. "Then I'll be there," he glanced at the clock, "in under thirty minutes. I'll see you then." He disconnected the phone, shoved it in his pocket and stood staring blankly at the wall.
"You're sister I assume?" Her words seemed to jar him into movement.
"No. Actually it was Joe, my brother-in-law. Harmony's in labor. They both want me there."
"Labor? Is she pregnant?"
"Yeah." He shoved his one hand through his hair as he looked around as if searching for something. "But she's not due for a couple more months. This isn't good."
"I'm so sorry." A stab of fear went through her. "What are you looking for?"
"I need my shoes."
"You took them off by the couch last night."
He headed into living room, Mariah followed him and watched as he pushed his feet into one then the other. She wondered how long he would be gone. He looked up at her face, then down at her feet.
"You'll need shoes too, get your running shoes."
"No, I'll stay here. I'll just be in the way. You go be with your family."
"I'm not leaving you here alone. Billy won't be back for at least two hours and Tyler's out on the range and probably won't be back until evening. If you don't go. I don't go."
Mariah sighed and headed for the bedroom to grab a pair of socks. She couldn't in good conscience keep him from going to see his sister, especially given the situation.
Chapter 23
There had been a moment when Levi had been afraid Mariah would refuse to go, but when he'd told her if she stayed, he stayed, she'd gotten ready to go without argument. All in all it had taken less than ten minutes for them to be in the truck and on the way to the hospital.
Fear was a heavy knot in his stomach as he steered the truck toward town.
"Is this her first baby?" Mariah asked.
Levi glanced over at her then back to the road.
"No. Harmony and Joe have a two year old. She's been healthy so far, I don't know what could have happened."
"You said you talked to your brother-in-law, that's Joe right?"
"It is."
"How did he sound? Was he panicked? Was he calm?"
Levi was quiet a moment, trying to remember. "He was worried, but not panicked."
"That's good right? If there was real danger, to either your sister or the baby, then he'd have said something, right?"
"Maybe. I don't know." His heart was thundering in his chest at the mere idea of losing Harmony. "From the way she was screaming, it sounded like they were letting her deliver. Preemies have a lot of trouble."
"They do. You said she's not due for a couple months yet, right?"
"Right."
"I don't know exacting numbers, but they're having better success with getting preemies to survive, even thrive, younger and younger. We just need to get there and see what's going on. There's no use worrying un
til you have all the information."
Her voice was calm and soothing, and just what he needed at the moment. She was right. It wouldn't do him, or Harmony, any good to panic. He needed to get to the hospital and find out exactly what was happening.
* * *
He made the trip from the house to the hospital in record time and Levi walked into the main doors of the hospital twenty minutes after he'd stepped out his own front door. Mariah was beside him, eyes wide as she tagged along. He took a deep breath and resisted the urge to grab her hand. Not so she would keep up with him, but because he liked being able to touch her. Holding her hand would calm him, at least a little.
"I'm looking for Harmony Sharp, she's in preterm labor," he said to the older woman manning the information desk. The woman tapped something into the computer in front of her.
"You're right, she's in L&D, that's labor and delivery. Around the corner to the elevators and third floor." She motioned around one end of the large desk. Levi didn't look to see if Mariah was with him, but headed for the elevator. After he hit the up button and stepped back to wait, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, forcing himself to let it out slowly, and wondered for the first time if anyone had called his parents. They should already be here. A warm hand slipped into his. He looked down to find it was Mariah.
"We'll be there in just a minute, then we'll know what's going on." She wove her fingers in between his as if she knew he needed her touch.
"Thank you." He squeezed her hand then relaxed, not letting her go, but not keeping pressure on it. The elevator door opened. They stepped inside together, he hit the button for the third floor and waited while the doors whispered shut. The closer he got to Harmony and finding out what was wrong, to finding out if she was losing the baby or dying. What would he do if something happened to her? Just the idea made pain stab him in the heart. By the time the doors opened again, his heart thundered in his ears until the soft bing of the elevator was barely audible.
The Cowboy Way Page 8