Corralled (35 page)

Ace dug his fingers into her throat, lifted her head, and smacked it hard enough into the cement that her vision dimmed.

Don’t pass out. Don’t pass out.

“Shut up.” His other hand circled her biceps, pinching the tender skin on the underside of her arm until she whimpered. “You brought this on yourself.”

The door opened and Tanna’s voice drifted in. “Lainie? You in here?”

Ace abruptly released her and stepped back.

Only by sheer will did Lainie stay upright.

“What the fuck is going on here?” Tanna demanded, closing the distance between the door and where Lainie stood.

Ace sidestepped Tanna and booked it from the room.

Lainie closed her eyes. Tears seeped out as she slowly slid down the wall to the floor.

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“Oh, my God, Lainie. Are you all right?” Tanna dropped to her knees beside her.

She couldn’t speak around the sobs gathered in her throat that hadn’t yet burst free.

“Was that . . . Did he try . . . ?” Tanna clasped Lainie’s hand between hers. “Did that son of a bitch attack you?”

She nodded slightly.

“Fuck. Fuck that and fuck him. I’m goin’ after that bastard right fuckin’ now.” Tanna scrambled to her feet.

Somehow Lainie found the strength to grip her hand. “Don’t go.”

“I need to catch him before he gets away.”

“I know him.”

“All the more reason to grab him until the cops get here.”

“No cops,” she rasped.

Tanna’s eyes turned sharp. “Did you hit your head? ’Cause, girl, you ain’t making a lick of sense. What do you mean, no cops?”

“Please. Can we just go? I just want to get out of here. I don’t think I can stand to be in this room another minute.” Lainie started to cry.

“It’s okay. Shh, sugar. We’ll go. Lemme help you up.”

Once Lainie was on her feet, she felt more in control. She shouldered her duffel bag and followed Tanna through the winding and dark corridors. Her body returned to panic mode immediately. The urge to run. To constantly look behind her. Every noise made her jump.

“Almost there. You doin’ okay?”

No.
“I think so.” She was glad she hadn’t run into anyone she knew. Or anyone she didn’t know. She wanted to curl into a ball and cry until she forgot this ever happened.

Inside Tanna’s truck, Lainie leaned forward, hugging her knees LORELEI JAMES 9

against the shakes she was trying to control. They seemed to be driving a long way, so Lainie lifted her head. “Where are we going?”

“I booked a hotel for tonight. But it’s a ways out, since everything else in town was full.”

In the hotel room, Lainie threw her purse on the bed and escaped to the bathroom. She cranked the water to hot. When the tiny space was filled with so much steam she couldn’t see her hand in front of her face, she climbed in the shower. Water beat on her head and streamed down her body. She stayed enclosed in the heat until she’d calmed down. After slipping on her pajamas, she exited the humid space.

Tanna paced, a bottle of Jack Daniel’s dangling from her fingertips. She stopped. Stared. Swigged. And passed the bottle to Lainie.

“No, thanks.”

“Drink up. It’ll help. Trust me.”

Lainie knocked back a slug. Before the first shudder set in, she gulped another mouthful. “That always tastes like shit.”

“I know. But gentleman Jack is one guy who’s exactly as he appears: cheap, potent, trouble if you don’t keep a lid on him, and mean as a snake the morning after.” Tanna pointed to the bed against the wall. “Sit. Talk. I was fixin’ to bust down that damn door if you hadn’t come out.”

“How long was I in there?”

“Forty- nine minutes. Start talkin’.”

Lainie sighed and dropped on the mattress. “Everything is getting more surreal the more I think about it.”

“I’m sure. It’s called shock.”

Another slug of Jack Daniel’s and Lainie poured it all out. She finished with, “If you hadn’t come in, he would’ve raped me.”

There. She’d said the word.

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“You’re being way too calm about this, Lainie.”

“No. I’m not making light of this, but it could’ve been much worse than him shoving and grabbing me.”

“That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t file charges. Jesus. He attacked you. At the very least it’s attempted sexual assault.”

Lainie signaled for her to pass the bottle over. She drank deeply. Once. Twice. “Maybe. I need some time to think. I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

Tanna’s brittle smile relayed her frustration. “God knows I want to get shit- faced, and it didn’t even happen to me.”

She lay flat on the bed and stared at the ceiling.

“So what’s up with you and your guys?”

Another fucked- up situation Lainie didn’t want to discuss, but Tanna could be a real bulldog. “The truth? I’ve fallen in love with Hank Lawson. Completely. Totally. I want to wake up with him every morning and have his babies— that kind of love.”

“Really? Hank?”

“Why is that such a surprise?”

“If you’d asked me early on, I would’ve guessed Kyle was the front- runner in the ‘win Lainie’s heart’ contest.”

Lainie turned her head and looked at Tanna lying on the other bed. “Why?”

“Now, don’t get pissed off, but Kyle had the advantage because he’s a bull rider. Like your father was.”

Lainie scowled. “That has no bearing on it.”

“Plus, Kyle had bedroom tricks up his sleeve that Hank didn’t.”

“At first, but trust me when I say Hank more than made up for lost time and opportunities.”

Tanna bounced up and snatched the bottle from Lainie. “You cannot toss that out there and then pull that silent crap. Spill.”

LORELEI JAMES 9

“You know when you have those defining moments in your life? And everything that seemed so murky suddenly becomes crystal clear? I had one of those.”

“When Hank was injured?”

“Ironically, no. Before that.”

“Does Hank know how you feel about him?”

“I think so.”

Tanna studied her curiously. “While you were in the bathroom did you call Hank?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m fine. I don’t want him to worry. His big tryout with the EBS was this weekend in Tulsa, and there’s nothing he can do about it from there.”

“Maybe you ought to allow Hank the chance to comfort you like you comforted him when
he
was hurting.”

That statement jarred her.

“Think about it. You’d be pissed if it were the other way around and he kept something like this from you.”

True. Quiet seconds ticked into minutes. The booze took effect, filling Lainie’s body with a mellow heat. She blinked sleepily.

Resting her eyes for a bit was a good idea.

An annoying buzz started by her head. Then it finally stopped.

Tanna shook her shoulder. “Lainie? Wake up. Hank wants to talk to you.”

She peeled her eyelids open. “Hank is here?”

“No. He’s on your cell.”

Lainie squinted at her. “Why were you answering my phone?”

“Because it buzzed like four times, so I figured whoever was calling needed to talk to you.”

“Did you tell him?”

Tanna gave her that what- the- fuck- do- you- think look.

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“Give me the goddamned thing.” Lainie held the phone away from her ear in anticipation of Hank yelling at her. “Hey.”

“Baby, are you okay?”

“I’ve been better. How’d your night go?”

“Don’t you pull this subject- changing bullshit on me. Jesus Christ. I cannot believe you were attacked. Why didn’t you call me right away? Do you have any idea how hard it is for me to stay fucking calm?”

“Which is why I didn’t call you. I knew you’d be upset.”

“Upset?” he barked. “I’m beyond upset. When I get my hands on that cocksucker I’m gonna break him in two. Then feed him to the hogs.”

“I’m fine.”

“I’m not. I won’t be fine until I lay eyes on you, Lainie, so fair warning— I’m on my way to River Bend right now.”

Butterflies took wing in her stomach, not from the whiskey.

“Hank—”

“Not another fucking word. I’ll be there in roughly seven and a half hours. We’ll talk about how we’re gonna handle it then.”

“I can’t believe you’re coming here.”

“Lainie. Darlin’. Did you honestly think I’d stay away?” His tone was as soft and sweet and loving as she’d ever heard from him.

“Baby. That ain’t the kind of man I am.”

She teared up. “I know.”

“Good. Rest up. I’ll be there before you know it.”

The tight feeling in her chest that booze couldn’t loosen gave a little. She hung up.

Tanna sat beside her. “Don’t be mad at me.”

“I’m not. God. How could I ever be mad at you? Especially after you—” Her voice caught on a sob.

“Maybe the whiskey wasn’t such a good idea if my tough- as-

LORELEI JAMES 9

nails buddy Lainie is starting that ‘I love you, man’ crap,” Tanna said.

Lainie laughed and sobbed simultaneously. Then exhaustion and Jack Daniel’s overtook her.

9

Hank’s blood absolutely boiled. For the first time in his life, he truly understood what
savage
meant. The thoughts he entertained on the drive turned more bloody and violent with every mile.

When he managed some semblance of control, he called Kyle.

It took Kyle a while to calm down from his burst of rage. Hank waited and watched as the mile markers passed by.

“So what’s your take on this?” Hank asked Kyle. “You’ve competed with him. Do you know him?”

“Bottom line is, Ace Newharth is extremely cocky, with a holier- than- thou attitude and a huge following from hard- core fans who want religion with their bull riding. He’s also the favored son of several prominent sponsors, as well as in tight with the president of the EBS.”

“Which means what, Kyle? He can’t be touched? He’s immune to the law?”

“Yes. No. Fuck. I don’t know what good it’ll do to file charges against him, because they’ll never stick. It fucking sucks.”

Hank counted to ten. “Our only option is to sit around with our thumbs up our asses while that fucking lowlife can get away with attempted rape?”

“Hank. Listen to me. I hate this as much as you do. But it’ll be Lainie’s word against his.”

“Tanna was there. She stopped it.”

“For which I owe that girl a lifetime of thanks. But I’ve watched Ace spin things, charm his way in and out of good and bad situations. He’ll claim it was a misunderstanding. And without pissing

9 CORRALLED

you off and bein’ crude, if Lainie’s clothes weren’t ripped and she didn’t have the typical signs of an assault, they’ll question even what
Tanna
saw. Ace is slick as shit. He’s probably already conned a couple of guys into backing him up with a legitimate reason why he’d shown up in sports med.”

“So we just give up?”

No answer.

“Kyle?”

Kyle’s voice dropped and Hank strained to hear him. “When a woman makes an accusation of attempted sexual assault, the woman’s character is always brought into question, not the man’s. Especially not someone like Ace Newharth. Although we’ve been discreet, it might come out that Lainie’s been traveling with both of us. That’s bound to add more fuel to the fire.”

Fuck. Hank hadn’t thought of that.

“Sure, we can say she’s your girlfriend, but it’ll still cast a shadow on her character, not his. Is it fair? Fuck, no. That’s the way it is. I don’t see that there’s anything we can do for her besides just bein’ there for her.”

“It don’t seem like enough.”

“It ain’t.” He paused. “Look, the only other suggestion I have is to call Dusty. He knows Lainie wouldn’t cry wolf, and Dusty might put pressure on the powers that be in the EBS to bring sanctions against Ace.”

“You know, that’s a damn smart idea. I’ll suggest it to Lainie once she and I hash this out.”

“You’re on your way to River Bend now?” Kyle asked.

“Yeah. She claims she’s fine. I just need to see her. To make sure she’s okay with my own eyes.”

“That’s the best thing for her, havin’ you there. Lainie needs you. Let me know how she’s doin’.”

LORELEI JAMES 9

“For sure.”

“Good enough. Be safe on that blacktop tonight, my friend.”

“I will. You too.”

9

The drive had been a blur after that.

Hours later Hank knocked on the door of room 212. Just as he was thinking Tanna and Lainie were probably both asleep, the safety chain clanked against the metal door before it opened.

Tanna held her finger to her lips and rolled a suitcase out behind her, keeping the door slightly ajar.

“How is she?”

“Sleeping. I encouraged her to drink a little Jack Daniel’s for medicinal reasons and let’s just say she had more than one. She’s stayed asleep since right after you talked to her.”

“What else?”

Her eyes searched his. Tired eyes. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but don’t grill her first thing when she wakes up. I’ve already done that. If we were playing good cop/bad cop, you need to be the good cop.”

“I can handle that. Has she changed her mind about filing charges?”

She shook her head. “The son of a bitch needs to pay. We haven’t lost the window of opportunity, but it did close some when she didn’t take immediate action.”

Hank relayed Kyle’s suggestion about contacting Dusty, and Tanna nodded.

“Makes sense. It might have an effect, but I ain’t holding my breath that it’s gonna change anything.”

He frowned. “Why’d you push her to go to the cops if you didn’t believe they’d take action?”

“You misunderstand. I believe the cops would take action.

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They’d see it as attempted assault, whereas the Lariat and the EBS

guys will agree with Lainie’s ‘don’t rock the boat’ attitude and sweep it under the rug.”

“Bullshit.”

“Look, you’ve been in the world of rodeo for a long time, Hank. So have I. But being a woman in this world is completely different. I’ve lived and dealt with and cried and fought against the discrimination and chauvinism that abound in this sport. Everything from hiring all- male stock contractors, to the all- male event promoters, to the all- male prize awardment committees, to the allmale sports medicine team.”