Her Texas Ranger Hero (18 page)

“Surely by now you must know you're the top man on the FBI's most-wanted list, Bobo. Or shall I call you Momo? Perhaps your greatest act will be to face the death penalty for your crimes against humanity. Thousands of families of female victims will cheer.”

His skin grew mottled with rage. He lunged for her and knocked her against the wall. Just before she blacked out, Rangers swarmed the room. She cried out Luckey's name before everything went dark.

* * *

T
HE
PARAMEDIC
IN
the ambulance finished putting in the IV. “She's coming to, sir.”

Luckey hunkered next to her, holding her free hand. He kissed it. “Ally, sweetheart? I'm right here.”

Her head moved back and forth before her eyes opened. “Luckey...” Her voice broke with emotion. Tears streamed out of the corners of her eyes.

“It's all over. You're going to be fine, thank God. Do you know you captured Robert Martin single-handedly? Everyone from the warehouse is in custody.” Luckey had so much to tell her, he didn't know where to start, but right now she needed rest and quiet.

“You got all my messages?”

“Every one of them. But I didn't hear from you again after I reached the massage parlor, and I couldn't figure out where you'd gone. By then the Rangers had taken over and had followed your leads. All I could do was obey my instinct and meet the guys at the warehouse.

“When I saw your car and heard you baiting Martin, I couldn't get to you fast enough. You're the smartest, bravest woman I ever met, but if you ever do this to me again, I swear I'll die of a heart attack.”

“Please don't do that. Now we can get married, right?”

He sucked in his breath. “Right, but I'd like to live long enough to enjoy the honeymoon.”

“Where shall we go?”

“I don't know yet. I can't think.”

“Wherever we go, let's take the horses.”

“You're a girl after my own heart. Now try to rest. We'll be at the hospital in a minute. I've already notified your parents. They'll meet us there.”

“I don't want to go to the hospital. Just take me back to your house.”

The paramedic grinned. “You're one lucky dude,” he said.

“You can say that again,” Luckey whispered back, before squeezing Ally's hand. After kissing her cheek, he told her, “You need to be checked out by a doctor first. You took a big risk confronting Martin on your own.”

“When I thought of what he did to Yu Tan, something inside me snapped.”

“It certainly did.” Luckey smiled through his tears, so proud of what she'd done he was ready to burst. “I'm sure he's never been taken on by a woman like you in his whole evil life.”

“I was thrown in a back room with one of the young girls. She gave me a lot of information.”

“I'll get it from you later. You probably have a concussion and need to stop talking. Tonight Cy told me he thinks you're in the wrong profession and need to come work with us. But I told him I prefer calling you Dr. Duncan. You're the only woman I want.”

“All that matters to me is to be your wife.”

The ambulance pulled into the hospital entrance and she was rushed inside the emergency room. Luckey hung back while Beatrice and Larry ran over to her, before she was wheeled into a cubicle so the doctor could examine her. Her father lifted his head and the two men exchanged glances.

“Your daughter is one in a million. She brought Robert Martin down and deserves all the praise in the world.”

“Our daughter has always seized the moment. That's her nature, to go where angels fear to tread. But it takes two to pull off this kind of a coup. She's more than met her match in you, Ranger Davis. I don't know how to thank you enough for saving her life.” Larry walked over and hugged Luckey. The moment turned out to be an emotional one for both of them.

Beatrice came out from behind the curtain and threw her arms around Luckey. “You wonderful man.” Her quiet sobs warmed his heart.

“If you'd seen and heard her stand up to Martin, you'd know where the definition of
wonderful
comes from.” He eyed both Ally's parents. “I know it's only been two weeks, but do I have your permission to marry her when she's all better?”

“Do you even have to ask?” Larry murmured.

Luckey breathed a sigh of relief. “Just making sure.”

His three best buddies walked into the emergency room with smiles, and headed for them. There were more hugs all around. When her parents left to go join Ally, Kit pulled Luckey aside with the guys.

“I don't think you know what you've done. We went into the grandmother's house with a search warrant. That killer has a whole porn site set up for his base of operations, to the tune of twenty-five thousand clients.”

Luckey whistled.

“So far we've discovered he owns a dozen spas and massage parlors from here to Houston,” Vic interjected. “The one off Lamar Boulevard is being closed down as we speak. Twenty girls have been given their freedom.”

“That's where he gets the money to keep funding his operations,” Cy theorized. “His poor grandmother had no idea. This is the biggest ring ever to be brought down. TJ is higher than a kite over what you've done.”

“Ally's the one who led us to him, but there are two people who deserve the greatest credit.” The guys stared at him. “Dr. Wolff and Stan. I swear that our forensics experts help us get our man every time. Dr. Wolff found the DMSO cream on the girl's sleeves. Stan found where it was manufactured. Those two deserve a medal.”

Vic eyed Luckey with a gleam in his black eyes. “Before this whole business is finished and put to bed, I suspect a whole lot of medals are going to be given out.”

Luckey got a lump in his throat. “Thanks, guys.”

Kit smiled. “We'll get out of your way. Let us know when you decide to tie the knot. We want to be there. Unless you pull a Cy and get a judge to marry you on the sly.”

Luckey's brows lifted. “I'm all for it, but that's up to Ally.”

“TJ said for you to take off all the time you need.”

“Thanks, Kit. I'll call him after the doctor lets me talk to Ally.”

He watched them walk out of the emergency room. No man ever had better friends.

In a few minutes Ally's parents hurried toward him. “The doctor is sending her to room 312,” Beatrice explained. “You can see her up there. He'll keep her in the hospital through tomorrow night for observation. She has a light concussion, but he's certain she'll recover without complications. Larry and I are going home, but we'll be back tomorrow.”

The good news helped him to relax. Luckey gave Ally's mom another hug before they left the emergency room. While Ally's parents headed for the parking lot, he found the bank of elevators and pressed the button for the third floor. When he reached the nursing station, he asked if housekeeping could bring a cot to room 312. He had no intention of leaving Ally for any reason.

She still hadn't arrived when he entered the room. Deciding to take advantage of the time, he texted TJ to let him know he was at the hospital with Ally and all was well. It was 5:30 a.m. His boss had to be asleep, but he'd see the message when he woke up.

Next, Luckey texted his parents and Randy to let them know the case he'd been working on had been solved and he'd get back to them later in the day with all the news. There was no point telling them about Ally. They'd hear everything later.

Finally, he fired off a text to Art, the teenager next door, asking him to take care of Persey until further notice. Luckey had barely finished it when Ally was wheeled into the room.

“Luckey...” Her smile lit up his universe.

It didn't matter that she had a cut lip. She was so breathtaking he would always marvel.

“Sweetheart.”

“I have to stay here until tomorrow. Please don't leave me.”

“As if I would.” No sooner had he spoken than his cot was delivered. While he set it aside, a nurse came in to make Ally comfortable and take her vital signs and check the IV put in during the ambulance ride. After typing the information into the computer, she left them alone.

Luckey drew the chair over to Ally's side and clasped her free hand, kissing the palm. “I just spoke to your parents. They've gone home to get some sleep, but they'll be back later.”

“I know. I'm glad we're alone. If you don't mind, I want to talk to you about something very serious.”

His heart lurched. “What is it? Did that monster do something else to you I don't know about?”

“No...” She shook her head. “This has to do with you and me. Please hear me out.”

Ally...
“Tell me.”

“Tonight I realized how fast a life can be snuffed out. In an instant anything can go wrong. That girl at the warehouse. One minute she was walking home from school. The next minute she was kidnapped and her world turned upside down.” Ally squeezed his hand hard. “Every moment is so precious I don't want to waste a second. If you really want to marry me, would you be willing for us to get married here in the hospital?”

His mind reeled back to Kit's earlier comment about Cy getting married to Kellie on the sly because they couldn't wait.

“What if you and I only have a few days together before something happens to one of us?” She lifted her head off the pillow and turned to him with urgency. “What if we only have a week or a month? I don't want to plan a big wedding that takes forever. The important thing is to be your wife right now. When the doctor releases me, I want to go home with you to your house, belonging to you in every way. We can use the nurses for witnesses. That way no one in our families, on either side, gets hurt because we didn't include them.”

Ally was deadly serious. He felt it and saw it. They were soul mates. The joy her words brought left him close to speechless.

“Tell you what. If you'll go to sleep now, I'll see what I can do to arrange it.”

“Promise?”

“What do you think?” He leaned over to kiss one side of her mouth.

Before long he could tell she'd fallen asleep. He pulled out his cell and called information for his friend Judge Montoya. Good old Montoya always helped out in a crisis. This was Luckey's biggest one to date.

His call rang through to the judge's office voice mail. Luckey identified himself and asked him to phone back ASAP about performing a quick marriage for him and Ally at the hospital. He knew it would be on a Tuesday, but would he do it? That would get his attention in a big hurry.

After clicking off, Luckey opened the cot and pulled off his boots. He whipped the pillow into shape, then stretched out with a deep sigh, facing Ally.

The judge called back late the next day, while Luckey and Ally were eating dinner with Ally's parents. After he explained his dilemma, the Judge said he could arrange for a special license for them. But the ceremony would have to take place tomorrow morning at eight before he went out of town. Luckey thanked him and clicked off before letting out a whoop of excitement.

“Will he do it?” she cried.

“Eight o'clock in the morning.”

“You're serious.”

“It's too late to take back what you asked for.”

“I can't believe it!”

“Ally—while your parents are still here, I'm going to leave to do some errands and run home to shower. I'll be back tonight.”

“Okay. But hurry!”

He brushed her lips gently with his own before he left the hospital. His world was about to change forever.

Chapter Twelve

By six in the morning Ally was wide-awake. This was her wedding day! She felt fantastic. The bump on the back of her head was disappearing. Her IV had been removed. She looked over at Luckey, who lay sleeping on the cot.

Her clean-shaven Ranger had come back to the hospital late last night. He was wearing a cream-colored shirt and black pants she hadn't seen before. They'd said only a few words and kissed before they'd both fallen asleep.

One of the nurses came in with a new flower arrangement and handed Ally the card. It was written in Luckey's hand.
“For my beautiful bride on our wedding day.”
She buried her face in the flowers and shed tears of joy before the nurse put them on one of the carts.

Ally's parents arrived. Her mother had brought a fresh change of clothes for her to wear home from the hospital. A clean pair of jeans and a print blouse would be her wedding attire. With the other woman's help, she went to the restroom and showered. When she came out, they ate breakfast. They arranged that Luckey would take her home from the hospital.

Ally told the nurse that a circuit court judge would be arriving soon, because she and Luckey were getting married within the hour. Would she please find another nurse and both stand as witnesses for the ceremony?

At twenty to eight Luckey woke up. He sat up with a jerk, as if disoriented. Ally's parents smiled.

“Good morning, my love. The judge will be here any minute.”

“I can't believe I slept this long.”

“You're exhausted, that's why.”

Luckey stood up and folded the cot, rolling it against the wall.

“Come sit by me and eat. We've all eaten.”

He kissed her cheek before pulling up a chair to tuck in. “You look radiant. How are you feeling?”

“Wonderful. I'm ready to go home with you. Last night the doctor said he'd release me during his morning rounds.”

“I'm still pinching myself that this dream of mine is about to happen.”

“And it's too late to change your mind,” a distinctive male voice declared from the doorway. The judge was followed by two nurses.

Luckey smiled. “That couldn't happen. Allison Duncan, meet Judge Carlos Montoya, the man who has been kind enough to drop everything in order to marry us, on a Wednesday no less.”

“We're so thankful, Judge.” Her voice shook.

His eyes lit up when he looked at Ally. “I can see why your husband-to-be is in such a terrible hurry.”

“Actually, I'm the one who begged him to marry me before I left the hospital. You're doing us such a great favor. One day soon we'll find a way to repay you.”

“It's my pleasure to see that Luckey has finally found himself the right woman. He's the best of the best, but you already know that, right?” The older man winked at Ally.

“That's exactly who he is.”

“All right. Let's get started. Do you need to stay in bed? Or can you stand up long enough for the short ceremony I'm about to perform?”

“I can stand.” She slid off the mattress.

“Luckey? Take her hand.”

He grasped it and could probably feel her heart beating throughout his body. Her parents also stood.

“Dearly beloved, what a glorious day is about to begin for you. Two people joined as one to be friends, comforters and lovers throughout this life and the next. Man wasn't meant to go through life alone. Cherish the families who have helped make you who you are. Treasure this gift of marriage that has been given to you. Bless it with children. Honor it with your fidelity. Strive to make the other happy and you will have joy. Now repeat after me...”

They exchanged their vows.

“I now pronounce you man and wife in the eyes of God, these witnesses and the laws of Travis County, Texas. Do you have rings to exchange?”

Ally had forgotten about that, but not her amazing husband-to-be. He pulled two rings out of his pocket and put them on the ring finger of her left hand. She gasped at the large purple solitaire diamond set in gold sitting next to the gold wedding band.

“You can kiss her now.”

Luckey gave her a peck on one side of her mouth. “I would have given her a longer one, but she has a cut lip. If I were to kiss her the way I need to...”

The judge chuckled. “I hear you.” He pulled a form out of his briefcase and placed it on the table extending over the bed. “If you ladies will put your signatures here...” he said to the nurses. Once the papers were signed, the older man thanked the two women for their participation.

After they left, Ally took her turn signing the wedding certificate. Then Luckey placed his signature on the document, while she shook the judge's hand. “Those words were simple and beautiful. We'll never forget this day. Thank you so much.”

“It was the perfect ceremony,” Luckey told him.

“So...the deed is done. Congratulations. I hope you'll be very happy.”

“We already are,” Ally rushed to assure him.

Luckey shook the older man's hand and walked him out to the corridor with Ally's parents.

She looked at the document they'd just signed. It was official. As soon as she was released, she was going home with the man she adored.

Luckey strode back in with fire in those dark brown eyes and drew her into his arms. “The doctor will be right in to check you over one last time, Mrs. Davis.”

Mrs. Davis.
What beautiful words.

Ally clung to him, burying her face against his neck and shoulder. “I didn't know I could be this happy.”

“Just wait till I get you home.”

* * *

L
UCKEY
PULLED
ALONGSIDE
the house. He would have driven into the garage, but he wanted to carry his new bride over the threshold. With his heart pumping like crazy, he opened the passenger door and picked her up.

“Welcome home, sweetheart.” In a few steps he reached the front door and used his remote to let them inside. “I'll bring our things in a minute.” He shut the door and carried her down the hall to his bedroom.

Ally let out a small cry. “Oh, Luckey—so many flowers! How did you have time to do all this?”

“I asked my cleaning lady, Ruth, to get things ready for us. New sheets on the bed, new towels in the bathroom. All the food we'd want to eat in the fridge. For the next forty-eight hours there's a big Do Not Disturb sign at the Davis residence.” He laid her down gently on the bed. “I'll be right back.”

“Luckey?” she murmured. “I'm not made of glass, you know.”

“But you've just come home from the hospital.” He kissed her forehead and hurried out to the car to bring in her overnight bag and the flowers. When he walked back into the bedroom he found his wife texting someone.

She looked up. “I just told Mom and Dad that you've brought me home. In a few days we'll come by the ranch.”

“While the doctor gave you a last checkup, I texted my folks.”

“Oh, good.”

“Great minds think alike.” He put her overnight bag on a chair and opened it for her. “While you get ready for bed, I'll bring in some food. Ruth makes wonderful fajitas. All I have to do is warm them up.”

If Ally said anything, he didn't hear her as he went out to the kitchen, nervous as hell. This wasn't the way he'd planned for their honeymoon to start out, but the doctor had warned him to treat her carefully. Once he'd prepared a tray, he took their meal into the bedroom and set it on the dresser.

He shouldn't have been surprised that she'd already gotten under the covers. Recovering from a concussion, even if it had been a light one, meant bed still felt good to her. But there was something different about Ally. An energy radiating from her. With her black hair splayed on the pillow, she looked like a princess in a fairy tale. Her purple-blue eyes shone like rare jewels.

“You were very sweet to bring our meal in here, but to be honest, I'm not hungry. Don't you know I'm about to have the experience I've been waiting for all my life with my husband? Come to bed.”

His lungs froze. “But your doctor sai—”

“Luckey, he was just teasing you.”

“What?”

Her smile lit up his world. “The whole wing of the hospital knew about our wedding ceremony. I guess it's a man thing for him to give you a hard time.” She sat up against the headboard. The sight of her bare arms and shoulders let him know she hadn't put on a nightgown. He could hardly swallow.

“When he asked me if I'd thought about protection, I told him I wanted a baby right away. He said I'd better check with you first. I have to tell you I'm hoping I'm pregnant by May, when we take our long honeymoon to the Grand Canyon with the horses. But if I'm not, we'll just keep trying, because from what I understand, that's the best part. I hope you won't be too shocked when I tell you I've never been to bed with a man before.”

He blinked. “You're serious.”

“Very. If that frightens you, I'm sorry, but I promise to be a good student.”

Luckey couldn't take any more and headed for the bathroom. He showered in record time and hitched a towel around his hips before joining his new wife, who was absolutely the most amazing, astounding, surprising, luscious female he'd ever known.

Once under the covers, he came close to going up in smoke as she welcomed him into her arms. He forgot the world as they began to give each other the kind of divine pleasure that was beyond description. Luckey felt sorry for every man who would never know what it was like to have a loving, giving, passionate wife like Ally.

“Sweetheart...you're so beautiful, it hurts.”

“I feel that same pain just thinking about you. Don't stop loving me. Don't ever stop.”

“Never, Ally. Never.”

They made love until afternoon, and then stopped long enough to eat before beginning the whole process of loving each other all over again. Late the next morning Luckey woke first and watched her sleep. One arm lay folded against his chest, with her face resting on his shoulder.

Since joining her in bed, he'd forgotten she'd just come out of the hospital. He hoped to heaven their hungry lovemaking hadn't done anything to set her back. Luckey traced the line of the mouth that had sent him into ecstasy with every touch. His index finger found the little cut, which was almost healed.

For the first time, the sight he'd had of Martin knocking her against the wall replayed in his mind. He moaned in pain and gathered her in his arms, bringing her awake.

“Darling?” she murmured.

“Forgive me. I love you so much, I'm depriving you of sleep.”

“I was only pretending. For the last half hour I've been lying here wondering if you'd think I was terrible to kiss you awake.”

He kissed both her eyelids. “Let's clear something up right now. You never need permission to show me your love.”

“That's good, because I'm out of control and always will be. You have that effect on me.”

Luckey pulled her on top of him. “I've been wondering what we should call our child if it's a boy.”

“I'm way ahead of you, even if it's a girl.”

A chuckle escaped. “I knew it. Give me a clue.”

“The boy's first initial will be a
D
.”

Luckey's chuckle turned into full-bodied laughter that shook the bed. “And the girl's?”

“A
D
, too.”

He kissed her throat. “You really were obsessed with the Lone Ranger when you were little.”

“Yup. I knew when I grew up I wanted my first boy to be Daniel, named for his older brother, who was killed.”

“That means if we have a girl, we're calling her Danielle.”

Ally looked down at him. “Do you mind? I'd like to keep it all in the family.”

“How could I possibly mind that my wife has been in love with the masked man forever?”

“Oh, good. Now that I've married my own Texas Ranger hero, everything's going to be perfect!”

“What if we have a second child?” he teased, so crazily in love with his wife he never wanted to move from this spot.

“We could go with Reid, their last name, or...”

“Or what? I put my foot down at calling one of our children
Kemo Sabe
.”

“How about we give that name to our toy horse?”

He cupped her face. “What toy horse?”

“The one I want us to buy for Persey and Silver. It'll make them feel like a family, too. Did you see how cute Comet was with Daken?”

Yes. He saw how cute. He saw how cute his wife was with Jeremy's horses. He saw how cute she'd be with children of her own.
Their
own. Life couldn't get better than this.

* * * * *

Keep reading for a sneak peek of
SUNRISE CROSSING
,
the latest captivating novel in the acclaimed
RANSOM CANYON
series by
New York Times
bestselling author
Jodi Thomas!

Get rewarded every time you buy a Harlequin ebook!
Click here to Join Harlequin My Rewards
http://www.harlequin.com/myrewards.html?mt=loyalty&cmpid=EBOOBPBPA201602010003