A Knight In Cowboy Boots (22 page)

With an offer like that, Maddie suddenly knew she couldn’t refuse. She’d be out of Galveston, and if Jesse cooperated, Zach would be busy watching him, and she’d be free to get rid of the car somewhere where no one knew her.

“Okay, I’ll come. But it doesn’t make any sense for you to drive all the way here just to turn around and head back. Give me directions and I’ll meet you there.”

“I can do better than that. Jake’s skipping classes to come up. If you’ll let him ride along, he knows the way.”

And that quickly, things got more complicated.

“Heck, you could even leave tonight, after you get off. If you’re too tired, Jake can drive.”

Maddie tried to quickly weigh the pros and cons in her mind. Derek would be less likely to be on the streets after dark in a strange city, wouldn’t he? And even though Jake would complicate her plans, she had to admit she’d feel better if she weren’t alone.

“Okay. I can do that.”

“Great!” She could hear Zach’s grin in that single word. Then the timbre of his voice dropped, taking on an intimate quality. “Coz I’m aching to see you again.”

A thrill ran down Maddie’s spine, followed by the unexpected realization that she was going to miss him. How could she have even thought about leaving without seeing him one more time? Suddenly, she wanted nothing more than to be able to curl up in his arms, to let herself wallow in the illusion of safety he wrapped her in.

Her throat closed up with the strength of her longing.

“Maddie?”

She drew a shaky breath. “I miss you, too.”

“You sure you’re okay?”

“I’m just tired. Jesse’s been keeping me up.”

Zach chuckled. “We gotta put a stop to that. Keeping you up all night’s my job.”

“I could say the same thing.”

Zach laughed. “Honey, you do. Even when I’m not there. Just thinking ‘bout you gets me up. The real trick—the part I like best—is the way you take the starch right outta me.”

Already, even the small smile on her face felt strange and foreign. “I’ll do my best, I promise.”

“Hell, honey, you mean I ain’t seen your best work yet? You’re gonna kill me, woman.”

“I promise to wear black to your funeral.”

“Dammit, but you make me wanna drive down there and get you.”

“I’ll be there soon.”

“I’ll rent us a motel room.”

“Where?”

“I’ll let Jake know soon as I figure that out.”

Even as the receiver hit the cradle, Maddie pushed back the emotions Zach had aroused and started making a mental list of the things she needed to take care of before she went to work. The first thing was to put an extra box of bullets in her purse to keep the gun company. She hadn’t acquired much since she’d arrived in Galveston, and most of it she’d leave behind. After she’d stowed what she deemed essential in the car, she called Peggy.

It was unlikely Derek could find her apartment so quickly, but she was too skittish to risk it. A simple story about the toilet backing up had Peggy agreeing to watch Jesse next door. Maddie toted Jesse’s pack and the brandy to Peggy’s, then drove to the storage facility where she’d stashed Vince’s duffel bag with the remains of Laurel’s life insurance. She put a couple of changes of clothes on top of the money. Half-filled, the duffel played into the stereotype of the woman who over-packed for a weekend trip. At a nearby hardware store, she picked up two
For Sale
signs. She filled in the number of her disposable phone, and taped them in the backseat windows, then dropped an envelope addressed to Peggy into the receptacle at the post office. Inside was enough cash to cover what she owed her for babysitting.

She ticked each item off her list, her mind multi-tasking as she’d learned to do since Jesse’d become her sole responsibility. Even as she grieved the necessity of leaving Zach behind, she worried over the unresolved pieces of her escape plan. She seemed to have a weak spot for Texans, but wherever she went next, it would be far from the Lone Star state.

She’d only known him a couple of weeks, so how could she possibly miss Zach as much as she knew she would? But with every molecule of her being aching when she thought of him, it was impossible to deny.

Arriving at work only ten minutes late, she wasted no time asking Claudia for an advance against her first check so she could take Jesse to the doctor. Claudia made sure Maddie had the advance before the office closed. She even commiserated about Maddie having to spend her weekend off contending with a sick child.

The advance wasn’t everything she was due, but it was enough to console Maddie that she hadn’t worked for free, and it nearly covered what Peggy’s babysitting cost her.

Maddie was grateful when the bar stayed busy all night; it kept the general purpose fear gnawing at her gut somewhat at bay. What it didn’t help were the spikes of anxiety every time someone walked into the bar. She tried to tell herself that her fears were irrational. The odds of Derek staying at this hotel and walking into this bar just hours before she planned to leave were, if not infinitesimal, at least slim.

But the superstitious part of her brain, the part that recognized Murphy’s Law wasn’t just some cute but trite bumper sticker or book title, was terrified. People were killed every day because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

She knew firsthand that even five minutes could change your life forever. If she had made Vince eat lunch at home the day Laurel died, instead of letting him grab something at McDonald’s; if Vince hadn’t volunteered to help Laurel paint her kitchen; if he had stopped to talk to a friend; if anything had delayed him for half an hour, he wouldn’t have gotten to Laurel’s while Derek was still there, and Derek wouldn’t have killed him.

Or if he’d gotten there half an hour earlier, maybe neither of them would have died. The what-ifs of that day still haunted her.

About eleven-thirty, Jake walked in. He swung a soft-sided bag onto a barstool then sat on the same stool he’d occupied just nights before. Seeing Zach’s brother gave Maddie an attack of bittersweet emotion.

She sucked it up. She couldn’t afford this sort of sentimentality. Zach already read her too well. If she let it get a hold on her, something in her eyes, or her kisses, or in her love-making would tip him off. From here on out, she needed complete control over her emotions, especially if she was going to instigate a fight Saturday as she planned.

When she went to set Jake’s long neck beer in front of him, it slipped through her fingers. Only Jake’s quick reflexes saved it from toppling.

“Sorry,” Maddie said. So much for total control.

“No harm done.”

Maddie choose not to mention she’d already broken three glasses, one of which had contained a frozen Margarita.

She closed the bar when it emptied out a little after midnight. Almost the last thing she did was drop another glass.

“Hope those don’t come outta your pay,” Jake said.

“No, thank God. I’ve been a little butter-fingered tonight.” She grabbed the broom and dustpan that were still out from her earlier mishaps.

“Don’t surprise me. Your mind’s been somewheres else the whole time I been here.” Jake tilted the bottle in front of him so she could see the Coors label on it.

Maddie sighed and bent over to sweep up the shards, gripping the dustpan so hard her knuckles turned white. She had to get herself under control before she saw Zach.

“Probably goes against some sacred rule of brothers for me to tell you that you ain’t outta Zach’s thoughts for long neither.” He tilted the bottle to drain the last drops. As he set it on the bar, he said, “So I guess I won’t.”

Of course he’d misinterpret the cause of her distraction, Maddie thought. He had no clue that there were other things going on in her life.

She pulled the iron gate across the bar’s entry as they left. Her hands shook so badly that, after an odd look from Jake, he took the keys away to lock it for her. Idle for few moments, Maddie glanced around the lobby. Her gaze passed over the solitary man checking in. The flash of red hair as he tipped his head to sign in pulled her eyes back to him. Lean and wiry, his stance was as familiar as it was arrogant. Maddie’s heart beat wildly with panic. It couldn’t be Derek. After the stress of the day, her imagination was just in overdrive. But she couldn’t shake the fear. The man checking in cocked his head as he made some comment to the girl behind the desk. Their voices didn’t carry across the lobby but his body language was flirtatious. When the girl said something back that made him laugh, any doubt Maddie had disappeared.

She spun around, her heart beating so hard she thought she was about to have a coronary. The gate locked, Jake turned just as she spun. She almost ran into his chest.

“Steady there.” His hands on her shoulders caught her.

“Let’s go,” Maddie said, distressed at how shaky her voice was. The gate keys should have gone back to the checkin desk, but she dropped them into her bag instead.

“Sure.” But Jake lifted his eyes to take in the lobby behind her. Maddie stepped around him, putting him between herself and Derek, and slipped her hand into the crook of his arm.

Jake’s gaze came back to her, his eyebrows raised at the quaint gesture. He didn’t hesitate further. Maddie wasn’t sure she’d ever draw a steady breath again. The adrenaline dump she’d gotten didn’t slake even when they reached the employee’s parking lot. She dug into her bag for her keys but couldn’t hang onto them with her shaking fingers.

Without a word, Jake took her bag from her. With a meaningful look, he set the gun on the roof of the car before he reached deep inside to feel around for the elusive keys.

“Want me to drive?” he asked when he pulled them out.

“If you don’t mind,” Maddie said, trying to pretend nothing was out of the ordinary.

Jake held the passenger door for her, just as his brother always did. She tried to stop her hands from shaking as she gave him directions to pick up Jesse. The shaking was almost unnoticeable by the time she stood in front of Peggy’s door. Pull yourself together, she commanded herself. It was a close call, but you’re on your way out of town. She took a deep breath and knocked on Peggy’s door.

“Was he terribly cranky?” Maddie asked when she saw Jesse sleeping limply in Peggy’s arms.

“It didn’t start out so good,” Peggy said. “But he’s been an angel for the last couple of hours.” She caught Maddie’s hand and guided it to Jesse’s mouth. “Here. Feel.”

Under her finger, Maddie felt a sharp ridge on Jesse’s lower gums. She peeled back his lower lip and peered into his mouth. The thin edge of two small white teeth crested his gums.

His first teeth. Pride and awe pushed her fear down. Jesse’s small triumph gave her courage.

“I think you’ve got a reprieve,” Peggy said.

“I think so, too,” Maddie said. So Zach wouldn’t be tied up watching Jesse while he fussed. It didn’t matter. She’d find a way to slip away from him anyway.

“Great, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it is.” She hoisted Jesse’s limp body onto her shoulder and gave Peggy a one-armed hug. “Thanks. Thanks for everything.”

“No problem.” Peggy hugged her back. “See you tomorrow.”

“Actually, you won’t. I’m off for a couple of days, so Zach and I are going to drive down the coast.”

“Oh, is that him in your car?” Peggy waved a greeting at the car. From the driver’s seat, Jake waved tentatively back. “Have a fun time.”

“We will.”

“Friendly neighbor,” Jake said as Maddie strapped Jesse into his car seat.

“Yes, she is. Where exactly are we going, by the way?”