To Wed and Protect (14 page)

“And I was so afraid that something had happened to you and the kids.” He held her tightly for a moment, thanking the forces that had kept her safe through the long night.

She finally raised her head and gazed at him. “What happened, Luke? I was going to call the sheriff the minute the social worker left.”

The social worker. In all the chaos, Luke had forgotten that Sonya Watkins was scheduled to do a home study that morning. He guessed she had been in the car that had passed him as he'd turned into the driveway.

“I'm sorry. How did it go with Mrs. Watkins?”

“I think it went okay, but what about you? Tell me what happened.”

“Come on, let's go inside and I'll tell you what happened,” he said. With his arm still around her shoulders, the two of them headed for the front door.

As they reached the door, she turned to him again, her nose wrinkled. “You stink,” she exclaimed.

“Trust me, there's definitely more booze on me than there is in me. In fact, before I do anything, I want to take a shower.”

“And while you shower, I'll make a pot of strong, hot coffee,” Abby replied.

They parted in the living room, Luke heading for the bathroom and Abby for the kitchen. As Luke went into the bathroom he heard the sound of Jason and Jessica's laughter and Peaches' excited barking. No sound had ever sounded so good to his ears.

In the bathroom he stripped off his stinking clothes and jumped beneath the hot spray of water. What was Justin up to? Initially, Luke had thought the man had drugged him in order to gain access to Abby and the children. But Abby and the children appeared to be fine. So, what had been the point of drugging Luke? What had been the point of pouring alcohol all over him?

Almost as soon as the question zipped through his mind, the most logical answer followed. Luke knew the town of Inferno well enough to know that if one person had seen him in that alley, then most everyone in town would know he'd tied on a drunk and slept it off through the night.

He also knew that nobody in town would doubt the story. After all, a leopard didn't change its spots, and Luke had been known to drink too much before. But never before had it bothered him…what the town thought of him.

And now, Justin would be able to use where Luke had spent the night last night in the custody trial. All he'd have to do was call anyone in town who'd known that Luke had passed out.

That would certainly make an impression on a judge. And how devious and smart Justin had been to even think of such a thing. And how stupid Luke had been to be caught so off guard.

When he was dressed in clean clothes, he went into the kitchen where Abby had a mug of hot coffee waiting for him.

How on earth was he going to convince Abby he hadn't gotten stinking drunk and passed out? Given his reputation and the fact that he'd confessed to her
that he was a recovering alcoholic, how was he going to convince anyone what really happened?

“You want to know where I've been all night?” he asked as he sat down next to her at the table. “I passed out and spent the night in the alley behind the Honky Tonk.”

Her forehead wrinkled as she stared at him. “What do you mean, you passed out? I don't believe that for a minute,” she said flatly.

He looked at her in surprise. “You don't believe me? Why not?”

“You aren't telling me everything,” she said, her gaze holding his intently. “Something else happened. You didn't just get drunk and pass out.”

“What makes you think that?”

She smiled and reached across the table to take his hand in hers. “Because I know you, Luke. Because you knew how important it was that you be here this morning for the home study…because you thought I might be in danger last night. And because I know you aren't the kind of man to blow off those things and just get drunk.”

If he didn't believe her words, then he would have found it impossible to discount the light of belief that shone from her eyes. She believed him. She believed in him.

He pulled his hand from hers as emotion clogged his throat, making it impossible for him to speak. The idea that this woman who hadn't known him so very long, who'd heard all the rumors about his character yet believed in him filled him with a sense of awe he'd never before experienced.

He took a drink of his coffee, swallowed against the unfamiliar emotions, then explained to her what had happened. He told her about his meeting with Justin, the fact that Justin had had an opportunity to put something in his drink, and the moment he'd awakened remembering nothing after attempting to leave the Honky Tonk and get home to her.

“He came here. Last night Justin came here.”

Luke sat up straighter in the chair. “What happened?” he asked as his blood began a familiar boil, the boil that had begun as he'd driven home.

“Nothing, really. I called Sheriff Broder, and he arrived just after Justin left.” Although she looked perfectly calm and collected, there was a slight tremor to her voice that let him know she must have been terrified.

This time it was Luke who reached for her hand. Her hand felt small and vulnerable in his, and a wave of fierce protectiveness welled inside him.

“He didn't try to get in? He didn't try to hurt you?”

“No, nothing like that.” She drew a deep breath. “He just frightened me,” she confessed in a small voice.

Luke rose and pulled her into his arms, wanting…needing to shelter her, even though it was after the fact. She pressed against him in comfortable familiarity, and as always, her very nearness stirred Luke's senses.

Suddenly he was glad the custody suit would be resolved in ten days. The simple marriage agreement he'd entered into for the sake of the children all of a sudden didn't seem so simple anymore.

“H
ow about we go over to the ranch and take a trail ride?” Luke suggested the evening before the custody hearing. “The ranch went dark today, so we'll have the trails all to ourselves.”

“Yeah, let's do that,” Jason said with excitement. Jessica nodded eagerly.

“Even if I said no, it appears I would be outvoted,” Abby said with a tired smile. “Go put on your jeans,” she said to Jason and Jessica, who flew out of the room almost before the words were out of her mouth.

“Would you rather not go?” Luke asked.

“No, it sounds like fun. Anything to keep my mind occupied is welcome.”

Luke fought the impulse to go to her, to pull her into his arms and assure her that everything would be all right. He hated seeing the tiny stress lines across
her forehead, the lackluster of her eyes that indicated too little sleep.

Things had been tense since the night Justin had come here and Luke had been drugged. They had contacted Johnna and told her what had happened. Luke wasn't sure his sister had believed him, but she'd believed Abby that Justin had come to the house.

Johnna had filed for a restraining order against Justin, and since that day none of them had seen the dark-haired man whose appearance in Inferno had so dramatically changed their lives.

Within minutes the children were in the living room and ready to leave. They got into Abby's car and headed for the Delaney Dude Ranch.

Abby was quiet on the drive. She'd grown increasingly quiet and distant over the past week, and it was a distance Luke didn't know how to breach.

If he'd been a real husband, he would have held her through the darkness of the nights, forced her to talk about the fear and anxiety he knew filled her up. He would have shouldered as much of her burden as he could…if he'd been a real husband.

He'd already decided that if by some cruel trick of fate she lost the children tomorrow, he'd stick around her place for a couple of days to see that she was going to be okay. If she got custody, he'd pack up his things and move out tomorrow afternoon. Then in six months he'd leave Inferno and head to Nashville.

He waited for the burst of adrenaline he always felt when he thought of his future, but it was slow in coming. He chalked up his lack of enthusiasm to too much on his mind.

Tension had ripped through him, as well, for the past couple of days. He didn't trust Justin Cahill, kept waiting for the man to do something evil or underhanded.

Just as Luke had suspected, it hadn't taken long for the news of Luke's fall off the wagon to make the rounds of gossip.

Still, Johnna was optimistic about the hearing the next day, but Luke was worried what Justin might do if he lost. When he'd looked into Justin's eyes that night at the Honky Tonk, he'd sensed a man who would do anything…anything to get what he desired. And he wanted the children. Not because he loved them. Not because he wanted to make their lives better. But because he wanted the two million bucks that parental rights would put in his hands.

Even if Abby won custody, Luke decided he'd better hang out at the house for a couple more days to make certain that everything was all right.

He pulled into the ranch and parked near the stables. As the kids tumbled from the back seat, Luke reached across and grabbed Abby's arm to halt her exit from the car.

“Abby, we've done everything we can. There is absolutely nothing more we can do but try to enjoy today, all of us together.”

Those green eyes of hers gazed at him, and in their depths he thought he saw an emotion that shouldn't be there. He thought he saw love.

He turned from her and exited the car, disturbed by what he thought he'd seen. Love had never been a part
of this bargain. Love was the last thing that was supposed to happen.

As Abby climbed out of the car and the kids danced with excitement, Luke dismissed the craziness he thought he'd seen. He had to be mistaken. Abby was grateful to him. She loved what he had done for her. But she certainly didn't love him. Hell, even his own father, his own siblings had never really loved him.

Matthew, who was in the process of saddling up his horse, Thunder, met them outside the stables. He greeted them with his usual curt restraint.

“I thought I'd take Abby and the kids for a little trail ride,” Luke explained.

“I'm getting ready to ride the fence lines and see what work needs to be done in the next month while we're dark,” Matthew replied. He climbed on the back of the tall, spirited horse. “I understand tomorrow is an important day for you and your family. Good luck.” With these words, he rode off.

Luke stared after his brother, wondering if any of them would ever be able to feel close to Matthew. Matthew seemed to be so tightly wound, so isolated.

It took thirty minutes for Luke to get everyone's horses saddled and ready to go. They'd ridden once before, earlier in the week, so the kids had overcome their fear of that first ride and were eager to get started.

It had been another perfect day, and the warmth of the sun had lingered into the evening hours, but it was not uncomfortably warm. There was just enough of a breeze to stir the air, kicking up the scents of earth and flowers and clean air.

They rode with Luke in the lead, then Jason, then
Jessica, then Abby bringing up the rear. When they hit open pasture, the kids rode side by side, and Luke fell back to join Abby.

She shot him a warm smile. “Thank you. This is just what I needed. The warmth of the sun, the sound of the kids laughing and a good and steady horse beneath me.”

He returned her smile, feeling some of the tension that had gripped him in the past week easing. “I think we all needed this,” he said. “It's been a long couple of weeks.”

“And in some ways it's been the best couple of weeks in my whole life,” she said.

He looked at her in surprise. “Why?”

She raised a hand from the reins and threaded it through her hair, and her beauty ached inside Luke's chest. “Three times in the last week I heard Jessica speak out loud to Peaches. Jason hasn't had a single nightmare in the last two weeks.”

She frowned thoughtfully and returned her hand to the reins. “I don't really know quite how to explain it, but everything has seemed sweeter, more intense these last weeks.” She sighed. “Maybe it's because I know there's a possibility that I'll lose everything tomorrow.” She flashed him a bright smile. “But I'm not going to think about that today.”

They rode for a few minutes in silence. It was a pleasant silence, broken only by Jason's chattering and an occasional burst of giggles from Jessica.

Tails switching, the horses plodded along the familiar trails at a sedate walk. The horses used for the guests were sweet-tempered and rarely spirited.

When they had been riding for about forty-five minutes, Luke insisted they stop and take a break. He knew that people who were unaccustomed to riding found muscles they didn't know they had after a brief time on the back of a horse.

They stopped at the same place where they had enjoyed their picnic the week before. The two children instantly began a game of tag while Abby and Luke sat in the shaded area beneath the trees. Luke allowed the horses to roam free, knowing they wouldn't go far and would return to him when he whistled.

As he stretched out his legs, Luke watched Abby watching Jason and Jessica as they played. The expression of joy that lit her face, the love she so obviously felt for the two, made her appear even more beautiful.

Luke knew he wouldn't make love to her again, that it wouldn't be right at this point in time. She was consumed with the custody fight, frightened about the future, and he had no intentions of being a part of that future.

He had two beautiful memories of the two of them making love together, memories that stirred him to distraction whenever he thought of those moments of passion. And he had a feeling making love to her one more time would only make their parting more difficult.

For the first time, he wondered what her life would be like after he was gone. “So, what are your plans once the custody issue is behind you?” he asked.

She pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her
arms around them. “It depends on what the outcome is of the custody fight.”

He smiled. “I'll rephrase the question. After you win custody of the kids tomorrow, what are your plans?”

She returned his smile, then frowned thoughtfully. “To be honest, I haven't given it a lot of thought. I've been so focused on tomorrow.”

“Are you going to stay here in Inferno? Now that you can access your funds, you could live anywhere you want.”

“We'll stay here,” she said immediately. Her gaze shot to the two children playing tag. “Jason and Jessica love it here, and I must confess, I've fallen in love with Inferno.”

She stretched her legs out before her. “I'll probably spend the next year while Jessica is in kindergarten not working. I'll get the rest of the house in order, then when she's in school full-time, I'll see about taking a teaching position.”

“Sounds like a good life,” he said softly.

“We're going to have a wonderful life.” She said the words fervently, ferociously, as if she was less concerned in him believing them as believing them herself.

“I know you will,” he replied, fighting a tiny bit of sorrow that he wouldn't be here to share it with her.

He stood and reached a hand out to pull her up. “We'd better get started back. The sun has started to go down.”

She nodded and put her hand in his. He pulled her up, and for just a moment their bodies came together,
her breasts against his chest, her thighs against his. An instantaneous burst of heat swept through him, and he wondered if he'd ever again find a woman who stirred him on such a primal level.

She stepped quickly away from him, as if she'd felt the same flame of heat he had. Once again he thought he saw something flicker in the depths of her eyes, something tender, something that unsettled him.

“Jason, Jessica, come on, we're heading back,” he called to the kids who were playing hide-and-seek nearby. It took ten minutes to get the kids settled on their horses and ready to head to the stables.

They had only ridden a short distance from the grove of trees when the sound of a gunshot split the air. Jessica and Jason screamed as adrenaline exploded inside Luke.

“Get off the horses! Get down on the ground,” he yelled as another shot cracked resoundingly.

He slid off his horse and pulled the two kids down, keeping the horses between them and the area where he thought the shots had come from.

“Abby…Abby, get down,” he commanded. She appeared to be in a daze, as if he wasn't making sense. Still holding the horses, with the terrified kids clinging to him, he grabbed Abby's arm to pull her down.

She slid off the horse and to the ground, and it was then Luke saw the red stain spreading out to take over the white of her T-shirt.

“Abby!” he cried in horror as she slumped to the ground.

“Mommy! Mommy!” Jason wailed, and Jessica screamed as Luke tried to calm the kids and assess
Abby's wound, all the while trying to keep behind the shelter of the horses.

“I'm all right,” Abby said. “It's just my arm.”

“Are you sure you're okay?” Luke asked urgently.

She nodded, her lower lip caught in her teeth.

“Stay here behind the horses. I'll be right back.”

“No, Luke. Wait,” she exclaimed as the children huddled by her side.

But he didn't listen to her. He left the cover of the horses and raced for the nearest grove of trees, a deadly rage rising inside him. Somebody had attacked his family. Somebody had shot his wife, and Luke knew who that somebody was. He wasn't about to let Justin Cahill get away.

He knew the general area where the shots had come from, and he raced swiftly, as silently as possible through the woods. He'd only run a few seconds before he heard the noise of somebody crashing through the underbrush, racing through the trees.

Cahill. The name pounded in his head and stoked the fires of anger to a fever pitch. He stopped long enough to listen, then followed the noise of running footsteps.

A figure ahead of him spurred him faster, and with a roar of rage, he hit Cahill in the back, tumbling both men to the ground. As Justin smashed down, the shotgun he'd been carrying flew out of reach.

Justin rolled to his back, and Luke jumped on top of him. “You son of a bitch. I'll kill you,” Luke thundered as he smashed a fist into Justin's jaw.

Justin bucked and kicked in an attempt to escape,
but Luke straddled his prone body and delivered another blow, and another, and another.

“Luke…Luke, stop, you're going to kill him.” Matthew's voice pierced the red haze that had descended in Luke's head.

Matthew grabbed Luke's arm as he reared back to deliver another hit. Luke stared up at his elder brother, his vision blurred by tears. “He attacked my family. Matthew…he shot Abby.”

“I know, and you need to get Abby medical help. Go on. I'll take care of this scumbag,” Matthew said, and for the first time Luke noticed he had a revolver in his hand.

Luke stood and Justin sat up, his eyes burning with hatred. “I hope I killed the bitch,” he said. “She talked my wife into leaving me. She ruined my life.”

Luke would have smashed the man's face again if Matthew hadn't cocked his gun. “Keep your mouth shut, you piece of dirt, and I'll try my best not to accidentally shoot you,” Matthew said. “Go, Luke. Your family needs you.”

His family needed him. Yes.

Abby. As he raced to where he'd left Abby and the children, his heartbeat frantic, the thudding rhythm of rage being replaced with the anxious beat of fear.

When he reached them, his fear grew overwhelming. A white pall had stolen the color from Abby's face, and her eyes were dull.