“Point taken,” Samuel snapped. “You don’t need to be an asshole about it, Logan.”
Logan took a minute and just waited while Samuel let out a hard breath. Logan had obviously pushed his buttons, but he never hesitated to call his brothers out. He may have overreacted, but he was on edge. He didn’t much like the things Samuel had implied about Julia. He didn’t know her kindness, her good heart, her honesty…or how much Logan loved her.
“Look, I don’t know this lady,” Samuel began. “I’m just giving you advice based on what I’ve seen coming through the office and how these family cases usually turn out. I guess I should know that you, of all people, wouldn’t be one to walk away. So what’s her ex-husband’s reason for doing this?”
Logan flattened the documents Julia had been served with, reading the words
Unfit parent
again. He couldn’t believe Kevin had used Trinity’s abduction as a reason to take the girls away. “He’s said she’s an unfit parent,” Logan snapped. “I can’t believe I’m even reading this. He said she brought a dangerous man around his children, but that’s not true. I met Julia here in McKay when I started as sheriff. She owns a small café, and I…” He stopped himself before he could explain how he had spooked her during a PTSD flashback by shooting out her coffee machine. He couldn’t share that with Samuel, even though Ben knew and had forced him to get help. He was now seeing a shrink over in Arco, a retired military doc who specialized in helping soldiers suffering from PTSD, but he wasn’t planning to share that information with anyone else. Even Julia didn’t know, but he also knew he would need to tell her at some point.
“I’m still here, Logan. So you met her, and then what?” Samuel said.
“Well, there was a new math teacher here in town. No one knew about his past, and the school didn’t do much of a background check, either. This guy took her out on one date, and then he set his sights on her, but Julia and him weren’t going to happen, so he abducted Trinity. I found her, and the guy’s now in jail, but Julia’s ex is apparently blaming her as if she would knowingly have let a scumbag around her children. He was their math teacher, for God’s sake, and Trinity was taken right from school. It’s just a whole bunch of garbage. Kevin was angry, and he lashed out at Julia with all kinds of accusations. He said that the school isn’t good enough for the girls, this backwoods town has no security…you know, that kind of bullshit.”
“Hmm” was all Samuel said.
“She’s an amazing mother, Samuel. She doesn’t deserve this. This ex of hers, he’s not all that great of a guy. He cheated on her the entire time they were married”—Logan could hear papers rustling in the background—“with the same woman he’s now married to.”
“Well, Logan, I hate to tell you this, but being a dirty dog isn’t a crime, and being remarried, for him, actually looks better. It looks stable, and judges rarely take cheating into account on custodial matters. Things can be twisted, Logan, so you need to stop and think about whether any truth can be found in what he’s said. Be objective, Logan, because you can’t help Julia if you’re not.”
“There’s not a shred of truth there,” Logan said. “The girls walk home from school like every kid in this small town. Julia owns and runs a small lunch café. She works hard, she’s there for her girls. They’re her whole life! She’s been the sole parent, so she worries, and when Trinity didn’t show up that day, Julia was on top of it right away. I found Trinity, and when her ex showed up here, I had words with him when he was about to start trouble. I can’t believe that cowardly bastard is pulling this.”
“Logan, anyone with any sense would have run the other direction when you got in his face. No one likes to go up against you, not to your face. From his point of view, he probably thought this was way safer. Hell, you’re my brother and I’m smart enough not to take you on.”
“What the hell, Samuel? That’s bullshit. Since when have you ever been a coward? You’re always mouthing off to me.”
“Look, maybe so, but I never really took a minute to think it through before I opened my mouth with you. You’re a hard man to stand up to, Logan. I know you and how far I can push you before I’m likely to get your fist in my face, but other people…I’m just telling you the effect you have.”
Logan still couldn’t get his head around Kevin pulling this, and listening to Samuel tell him how he was…well, he didn’t much like it. “Listen, Julia and I are getting married in a week,” he said. “I don’t want this hanging over her head.”
“I hope you’re not rushing to marry her because of this custodial problem,” Samuel said. “That’s not a great basis for a marriage.”
Logan pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it, shaking his head. “You’ve sure become cynical,” he said. “And no, we’ve been planning to get married for a while. Actually, we were supposed to get married this weekend, but Julia was in an accident this morning.”
“Is she okay?” Samuel interrupted. “Wait, what? Were you getting married without telling us? We’re family, Logan.”
“No, I would have let you all know,” Logan said. “Julia’s fine. It’s just been a hell of a day. She got served by her ex tonight. Look, I just want to know how to handle this.”
“Who’s his lawyer?”
Logan glanced at the papers. “Hamilton Reid,” he said. There was silence on the other end, and something about the silence didn’t sit right with him. He always knew trouble, and this felt like trouble. “What do you know about him?”
“Enough to know you may have a problem. He’s good, one of the best in family law in Idaho. Her ex did his homework. I’ve seen this guy. I shouldn’t be saying this, but he took a case for this client who was a total scumbag with tons of money, and Reid spun things so the guy came out smelling like a rose. He got custody of his kids even though they did
not
want to go with him. I interned on that case, and it never sat right with me,” he said. “My advice to you, Logan? Whatever Julia or you have in your pasts, this guy will find it and use it to his advantage. Get a better lawyer.” Samuel paused, and Logan could hear him muttering in the background. “I’ll see who I can find for you,” he said.
“So what do we do in the meantime?”
“Have a talk with Julia. Find out if there’s anything on either of you that could be used to this guy’s advantage,” Samuel said. “And congratulations on the wedding. You’re going to let me know when you set a date, right? ’Cause I wouldn’t miss it. First Joe, now you!” Samuel started laughing again.
“Hey, Samuel?” Logan leaned against the counter, rubbing his head.
“Yeah?” Samuel muttered.
“Thank you.”
His brother let out a rough chuckle. “You’re welcome, big brother.”
Logan put the phone down. He took a breath and let it out, thinking for a moment of his own past and what this lawyer would find. He folded the papers, tucking them in the drawer when he heard a whimper from down the hall. He hadn’t taken more than one step before Trinity shrieked.
He ran.
Chapter 6
“I
t’s okay, he can’t hurt you. You’re safe. I’ve got you,” Logan murmured. He was holding Trinity in his arms, and she slid onto his lap, trembling as if she couldn’t get close enough. She pressed her face into his chest.
“Trinity!” Julia called breathlessly. She paused in the doorway and then sank onto the bed beside Logan, running her hand up her daughter’s back. “She had a nightmare?”
“Yeah,” he replied. He was rocking her daughter, holding her just like he had when her nightmares first started. She tucked her head under his chin.
“Hey, baby, did you have another nightmare?” Julia said.
“Mom, what happened? Did Trinity have a nightmare?” Dawn was in the doorway now, her blue nightshirt draped to her knees. She rubbed her eyes sleepily.
“He was here in the doorway! I saw him, and he started rubbing my back. He was going to take me away,” Trinity cried out, bawling against Logan.
Julia looked at Logan, who was so calm, holding her daughter in a way that let her know she was safe.
“No one’s here, honey,” he said. “It was a dream. No one will take you away. Do you want me to walk you through the house and show you how everything is locked tight? I promised you no one can sneak past me, and Mister Maloney is locked up. He can never hurt you again.”
Julia reached for Dawn, and they all huddled together on the bed—a family.
“It’s okay,” Logan whispered to Trinity, but his gaze met Julia. Maybe he was trying to reassure her, as well, that everything would be fine.
“It wasn’t Mister Maloney, it was Dad! He’s going to take me away, isn’t he?” she cried. She pulled away from Logan. Her eyes were red rimmed as she looked to him and then Julia.
“Your dad is not taking you,” Logan said before Julia could respond, but he couldn’t make promises like that, and it made her furious that he would.
“You promise?” Trinity sniffled. “I love Dad, but I don’t know him. I don’t want to live in California with him and Angie.”
“Your mom and I are getting married next weekend. I’ll talk to your dad, and everything will be fine,” Logan said.
“Logan…” Julia started, but he shook his head and directed a sharp glance to the girls, so she shut her mouth. “Do you want me to stay until you go to sleep?” she asked Trinity, prepared to climb into the single bed with her daughter even though her back was stiffening up and her shoulder still ached.
“I can do it, Mom,” Dawn said. Trinity turned to her sister, and they both crawled under the covers together and held hands as Logan pulled the comforter up.
Logan followed Julia to the doorway, sliding his arm around her and pulling her against him. “I’ll leave the door open, and I’ll check on you girls again before bed. No one’s getting in here. No one is getting past me,” he repeated, and Julia watched Trinity, who seemed to consider what he was saying and then nodded.
“Okay, but you’ll check the doors again, make sure everything’s locked?”
“I’ll check everything again.”
“Thanks, Logan,” she added more calmly, and Julia realized she really did look to Logan to keep her safe.
“Come on back to bed,” Logan said, following Julia into their bedroom.
“She hasn’t had a nightmare for a while,” Julia said. “Now Kevin is stirring things up right when she was just beginning to settle and get back to normal. We’re right back where we started, aren’t we?” She fisted her hands as she sat on the edge of the bed, her pink nightshirt riding up to her thighs.
Logan sat on the bed beside her and slid his arm around her. “We need to have a talk about that. She’s not fine, Julia. Coming through what she did, being kidnapped by Maloney and stuffed in a trunk…she needs help. She suffered a trauma, and I’m probably just as guilty as you for not seeing that she needs to talk to someone.”
Julia slid away and turned so she could look up at Logan, feeling as if she’d been slapped. Maybe he hadn’t meant it that way, but to her if felt as if she’d forgotten to care for her own child and get her the help she so desperately needed.
“I’ve been seeing someone,” Logan said in the next breath.
It was instant: the fury, the fear, the panic. She was off the bed, instantly recalling the betrayal by her ex-husband.
“Not like that,” he said quickly. “I’m talking about a counselor.” He was touching her, and she was still reeling from the unexpected shock of where her mind had gone.
Her hand was shaking as she touched her chest. “Oh,” she said. “I don’t understand?”
“For my PTSD. There’s a retired military doctor over in Arco who I see Tuesday afternoons. I don’t ever want to scare you again—or for something to trigger me.”
Julia watched the range of emotions on Logan’s face in the dim light. She leaned down and flicked on the bedside lamp. “You’re just telling me this now? How long have you been seeing this doctor?”
He didn’t say anything for the longest time. He just watched her, his gaze softening. “Since I found Trinity.” He didn’t add anything else.
“Is this how our marriage is going to start, with secrets, with you doing what you want whenever you want and maybe mentioning it to me down the road? Logan, I’ve been there and done that, and it’s not something I ever want to go through again.” Her chest ached as she fought not to cry. How could she have been wrong about Logan? Maybe all men were the same. Logan’s expression darkened. Maybe she should have been worried about pushing him, but all she could think about was how angry she was. “You know what, Logan? I can’t do this.” She was off the bed, putting her hand to her back when she felt it tighten. He went to touch her, but she brushed his hand away. She stepped back and circled around him.
“Julia, come on, baby. Calm down. You’re distraught. You’ve had a rough day, and you’re just not thinking clearly.”
“Don’t you dare say one more word, because if the next words out of your mouth are that I’m pregnant and overreacting—”
He stepped in and touched her. “Stop it,” he growled. “You are overreacting, so don’t put words in my mouth. I’m not the bad guy here, so don’t take this out on me, Julia.”
“You lied to me. This isn’t an overreaction, Logan. I’ve been through this, and I’m not doing it again.”
“What are you saying?” he asked.
Julia wanted to cry, but she firmed her expression and said, “The wedding’s off.”
Chapter 7
L
ogan was stiff from the little sleep he’d managed to get. Then again, he had slept on the sofa, which was way too short for him, and he had spent the entire night reliving how Julia had reacted to him getting help, going so far as to call off the wedding. He couldn’t believe how she had lost it—and all because he didn’t tell her about that damn shrink his brother insisted he start seeing.
He glanced over at the hallway when he heard rustling, then footsteps coming down the hall. He could tell it was Julia by the slight shuffle she did in the morning. There was a hesitation in her step, and any fool could feel the anxiety and stressful energy that filled the house. He listened to the bathroom door close. So she was hiding from him now.
Logan tossed back the blanket and went to stand, but his leg, the one that had been pieced back together after a roadside bomb ended his career in the marines, reminded him with a sharp burning that it was far from all right. He took a deep breath and massaged his thigh muscle through his jeans before standing and stretching. Finally, the ache passed. He stopped in the hallway and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his bare chest just as the bathroom door opened.