Cowboy on the Run (25 page)

“I see you found Greenwood,” Alan stated, releasing an unearthly laugh. “We had a deal, but Jimmy there blew it when he couldn’t manage to kill your lover with his truck.”

She followed the direction of his finger pointed toward the ground and tried to focus, her sight as blurry as his last admittance. It took a moment before the meaning of his words sank in.

Jimmy Greenwood lay before her, his face contorted in a painful expression.

Alan’s arm tightened on her throat, stifling the scream lodged there. He dragged her out of the cooler, and she was paralyzed, unable to fight him anymore. Not with Jimmy’s body less than two feet away from her. She blinked away the image, but the agony frozen on the dead man’s face would be forever imprinted in her memory.

Once inside the storeroom, Alan hauled her to a far corner away from the door and dumped her onto the floor like she was a bag of garbage. He began to pace again, and she pictured her family. Jade laughing. Gage and his gentle way of calming the animals. Her father sitting on the porch swing. Nate. If she wanted to see any of them ever again, she had to pull herself together.

Alan stopped for a minute to glare at her. One of his hands touched the wound on his cheek, while the other clenched into a tight, balled fist.

Her time was running out.

“The cut is deep,” she said, attempting to reason with him. “You need a doctor.” She rose unsteadily, her shaky legs not willing to hold her weight. “At least let me bandage it for you. I’m sure we can find some kind of first aid kit in here.”

Bravely, she took a step closer. The wrath in his stare stopped her heart. He wasn’t taking the bait. She was out of time. Out of options. And completely out of hope.

Alan was going to kill her...the same as he had killed Jimmy Greenwood.

Chapter 31

Jessie
.

He needed to get to Jessie.

Nate kept the motor at an even eighty. Before long, he pulled into the parking lot of the Lucky Horseshoe Bar, although it had taken an eternity to reach the county line.

Stretching his aching limbs, he scoured the parking lot, thankful to see her car still there. He cast another quick glance around the rest of the empty lot, unable to shake the ominous feeling of urgency and apprehension.

Nate walked to the door, not too concerned when he found it was locked. Of course they locked the bar while cleaning up. He would just have to wait for her to finish.

Glancing at the hours posted, he checked the time. It was only coming up on 11:00 pm, still an hour before closing.

Ed rarely closed the bar early. Hell, the man would keep the bar open twenty-four hours a day if he could.

Nate shook his head. Something was wrong. Ed was a notorious miser, not one to walk away from a possible buck or two. He checked the door again, walking around to the back of the bar.

That door was also locked. About to return to the front of the building, he heard muffled voices and listened intently, inching his way to the metal roll up door used to unload supplies. Stepping closer to the steel door, he could distinguish two voices, one male and angry. The other one female.

Jessie.

His heart lurched in his chest. Forcing himself to remain level headed, he placed his ear firm against the cold metal to hear what they were saying.

There was conversation, the speech muffled and unclear but distinctly feminine, in a soothing manner, one a mother would use to calm an upset child. He’d heard the tone before. It was the same way he’d heard Jessie console Jade about her grandfather on the night of the stampede.

Nate realized he was a fool. Everything he experienced tonight hitting him full force. The angry voice of a man, Jessie smoothing over the hurt...had he interrupted a lover’s quarrel?

The steel door, once cold, now burned hot against his skin, and he stepped away. His imagination took control, concocting wild images. In a moment, the two would be making up as their bodies entwined, Alan’s mouth on hers, Jessie returning the passionate kiss.

The picture brought him to his knees, and he sank down to the ground, his back braced against the door. He’d been an idiot to think she would wait for him. And hadn’t Alan made it more than clear he and Jessie were a couple? Perhaps it explained all of the push and pull, all of the doubts he saw when he stared into her eyes.

He was too late. Everything began to make sense...until the scream came.

The shrill sound stabbed like a knife through the night, shaking him to his very core. Never had he heard such a haunting sound before, the alarming shriek depicting fear, followed by the breaking of glass and indeterminate rustling.

That wasn’t the sound of two lovers arguing.

Nate was on his feet, testing the lock on the steel door before he had time to think twice. The door gave an inch, and with one swift sweep of his arm, he threw it open.

Alan’s head came up and Jessie’s eyes widened from where he held her against him, his arm squeezing her neck. Her shirt, split nearly in half, was torn open. Blood covered her exposed flesh and both hands clutched her captor’s arm as she struggled for breath.

In a blur of black and rage, Nate barreled into the storeroom, rushing the shocked man. As Alan released his grip on Jessie, Nate knocked him to the ground in a flurried frenzy. He no longer attempted to cage his control. Relentless with his fists, he pounded the man with uncontained fury.

“
Nate
.”

Jessie’s panicked voice drew his attention. His name escaped her lips again in a soft whisper before she collapsed.

He caught her before her head hit the floor.

****

Everything happened so fast. From the moment she opened her eyes to find Nate holding her and the ambulance’s arrival soon after, every second had shot by in a brisk pace. Even the speed of the gurney seemed accelerated, Jessie thought, as she was whisked by people and hospital rooms. And why had they strapped her in? She spared a confused gaze at Nate, who raced alongside, his hand squeezing hers in a death grip.

Jessie strained to see his face, the florescent lights above making her head hurt worse. He smiled down at her, but a worried expression furrowed his brow and she felt the need to comfort him. She attempted to raise her hand, but the strap held her arms firm, and a curse slipped out. At least the medics hadn’t strapped shut her mouth.

Jessie heard Nate’s chuckle, and his lips moved, but she couldn’t decipher his words.

They turned a sharp corner and the gurney was wheeled into a large room, finally rolling to an abrupt stop. Before she could say another word, she was surrounded by medical personnel, and Nate disappeared into the background.

Frantic, she searched for his face until she saw him push his way in. The determined expression on his features told her he would not leave her side. Faintly, she heard his voice raise. The medic he spoke to held up his hands, and then shook his head in apparent exasperation. After a minute, the room cleared, granting them a moment of privacy.

“They said you’re stable,” Nate said, releasing a breath of relief.

He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it with a tender brush of his lips. Everything had been such a blur, she hadn’t noticed her arms were now free from the straps.

“They still have to run some more tests and the doc should be in soon, but you’re stable.”

His fingers softly grazed her cheek, and she smiled up at him, ignoring the pain the slight movement caused.

“I’ve got to ask you something.” Nate kneeled beside the bed. “I know the timing is all wrong, but Jessie I can’t risk waiting another minute.” He stood nervously, then went back down on bended knee. “Can you...would you... Oh, hell Jessie, will you marry me?”

“M-marry you?” Jessie questioned in disbelief, sitting up so quick her head spun. Mere seconds ago, she was being whisked down the sterile hall of the hospital, blinded by lights and affronted by the smell of bleach. And now, the man she loved, her hero, was on one knee asking for her hand in marriage. She had to be dreaming.

Jessie reached for Nate’s hand, releasing a surprised gasp as his bruised and bloody knuckles. Thrown back to reality, she relived every moment of the horrible ordeal she was trying so hard to forget.

This night had been a rollercoaster of emotions. She’d never before been so scared, still trying to shake away the lingering, frightening images of Alan. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw his lecherous sneer. She could still feel his hardened grip on her skin.

Jessie took a quick inventory, searching Nate’s face and his body for more blood. He shook off her concern, reaching for her hand again.

“Stop it. I’m fine,” he reassured her with a light squeeze. “You’re not making this easy. I asked you to marry me. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. The least you can do is answer me.” An impatient smile spread across his face. The smile she had fallen in love with, the one which never failed to sweep her off her feet.

When he presented a small, black velvet box, she was rendered speechless. She couldn’t answer him, even if she wanted to. He opened the box and slipped an illuminated diamond on her third finger. Shocked, she stared at the ring.

“This one’s mine. I think you’ll agree it’s appropriate.” He held up his left hand and showcasing a ropelike band around his finger. She didn’t have the heart to tell him he was supposed to wear his ring
after
they got married. Instead, she laughed, tracing the engraved lassos adorning the sides of the white gold band.

This was so like her cowboy. So Nate-like...unpredictable...unexpected. And despite her traditional upbringing, she wouldn’t have wanted him to ask her to marry him in any other way.

Jessie slid off the bed, answering him with an urgent kiss. A loud round of applause filled the air and reawakened the painful throbbing in her head. Dizzy, she pulled her attention away from him long enough to realize the audience of doctors and nurses filling the room.

Nate guided her chin so she faced him again, whispering so only she could hear. “This wasn’t how I planned to ask you. I wanted the kids to be with me, and your family...our family. After tonight...when I saw...” His voice cracked, the words choked with emotion. “The truth is Jess...I saw red. To think he hurt you...”

He pulled her so tight to his chest, she struggled for breath. She inhaled deeply, the familiar leather of his scent comforting, making it easy to forget the terrifying nightmare for a moment.

“If I hadn’t heard you calling my name...I don’t know what would’ve happened. I can’t lose you. Not now.” His confession was interrupted by the same doctor who had treated her father.

“Unfortunately, you will have to lose your future bride...for now.” Dr. Grayson stepped forward, guiding her back to a sitting position on the bed. “At least until I get her all checked out.” The doctor tossed Nate a challenging look over his shoulder.

He withdrew a black, medical tool and began his examination with a small light he flashed into her eyes. Satisfied with the result, the doctor put the instrument back into his pocket. He then unwound the stethoscope from around his neck and proceeded to listen to her breathing.

Jessie endured the interruptions while Nate hovered close. A worried expression altered his handsome face, and she couldn’t keep her gaze off of him.

The doctor continued with his exam, poking and prodding at the painful cuts on her head, but she kept her focus on the man she loved.

Finished, Dr. Grayson arched a thin eyebrow. “So, congratulations are in order?”

“They would be,” Nate growled in the background, “if you let her answer me.”

The doctor ignored him, directing another question only to her. “Are you sure you want to marry him?” the physician inquired.

She nodded, unable to imagine marrying anyone other than the ill-tempered, impatient man she’d never stopped loving. The doctor barely had time to step to the side before Nate swept her into his arms.

“I love you. I’ll always love you,” she whispered into his ear. She was his. Her heart would always belong to him. “I should have had faith you’d come for me. I should’ve never given up hope. I should’ve—”

The heat of his kiss swallowed the rest of her words.

Chapter 32

“Mama, we’re getting married,” Jade announced, rushing into Jessie’s bedroom for the third time this morning. She couldn’t help but smile. If her family demanded she be on bed rest then she was going to make the best of it, at least, for one day, interruptions and all.

The first time, she had been awoken with a large plateful of pancakes. By the looks of her daughter’s shirt, she’d worn most of the batter. And then there was the glass of orange juice Gage spilled on the bed. Not to mention, the second plate of pancakes Jade had presented her with even though she had barely made a dent in the first one.

And now, the third interruption. Jade had changed into her Sunday best, a ruffled yellow dress reminding Jessie of a small princess.

“We’re getting married!” the loud lady of royalty, shouted at the top of her lungs.

“Today?” Jessie giggled at her precocious daughter.

“Not today silly,” the child retorted, pausing in thought. “Yes...today.” And with that, she rushed out of the room in a blur of yellow.

Not fifteen minutes later, Jade was back with her grandfather and Gage in tow, both gentlemen also dressed in their Sunday best. Jessie shook her head in disbelief the minute she saw her foreman’s tall shadow bringing up the rear. Of course her child would’ve convinced her father and Gage to dress up, but William, too? Would miracles never cease?

“This is...” Jade paused, pursing her lips. She glanced up at her grandfather. “What is this, grandpa?”

“The rehearsal...like a practice...remember?” Jessie’s father explained transferring the large bag he held to his other hand so he could extend his arm to Jade. He smiled patiently down at the child, and Jessie couldn’t help but think he’d already explained this once or twice.

“That’s right. C’mon, Gage. We’re getting married.”

Jade pulled her brother up to the side of the bed, and he presented Jessie with a handful of wilted yellow flowers. She smiled—her son would’ve thought of flowers. Last year when they had attended her neighbor’s small wedding, Gage had been in charge of holding the bouquet.