by Marla Monroe
What was she going to do? She knew if the guys saw her they would be upset. Then when she told them what the bastard had said, they would blame themselves. She ran a shaking hand over the unharmed side of her face and tried to think. What if she moved out and back into Brian’s house? Would that help? She doubted it. The guys would come get her and then see her injured face. It wouldn’t thwart the stranger from using her anyway.
The ringing of her cell phone interrupted her thoughts. She looked at the display and sighed. It was Lamar. She didn’t answer it. She could tell him that she had been driving and couldn’t answer it. It bought her a little time, but no matter how hard she thought, she couldn’t come up with an answer to her dilemma.
Caitlyn pulled the tissues away from her aching head and was relieved to see that it had stopped bleeding. She surveyed herself and found that she had smeared blood on her forehead and down her cheek where it had dripped to her T-shirt. Her cheek was bruised and throbbing, and her clothes had blood on them. She could run to the house and clean up, but it wouldn’t hide the injuries. Still, it would lessen the shock of them seeing her covered in blood.
Her mind made up, she started the SUV and pulled away from the curb. If the light traffic would cooperate, she should have plenty of time to make it to the house and shower and change clothes before they arrived.
To her dismay, both of their trucks were already parked in the garage. After parking and shutting off the engine, she sat there a few seconds, trying to get up the nerve to go inside. As it was, she didn’t have to. Lamar and Brody walked out with grins on their faces. She watched those grins fade to frowns and then to outright rage by the time they reached her.
Brody jerked open the door and pulled her out of the vehicle. Lamar was right there with him. They searched her for further injuries without saying a word. That didn’t last long, though.
“What happened? Who did this to you?” Brody demanded.
“Brody, let’s get her inside and get some ice on her face.”
“Fuck, that’s right. I’m sorry, baby. How in the hell did this happen?”
“Can I tell you after I get something for a headache?”
Lamar hurried ahead of them. By the time they made it inside, he had a glass of water and two pain pills for her in the living room. He returned a few seconds later with a bath cloth and began cleaning her hands and dabbing at the blood on her face with a gentle touch. Brody was vibrating with anger but waited while his brother took care of her.
“Tell me what happened.”
“I locked up the store and walked over to my car, but there was a man leaning on the door. I started to go back to the store, but someone else walked up behind me and kept me from moving. Then the first guy came over and put his hand around my throat. He threatened me.”
“Why? What did he say?” Lamar had finished cleaning her face and was holding a bag of ice to the side of her face.
“He said to tell you to stay away from government jobs. They were his domain, and you were getting in his way. You’re supposed to drop the state one you have now.”
“Or what?” Brody’s expression looked sick to her.
“He said you would do it because you wouldn’t want anything to happen to me.” She ended in a near whisper. Her voice had grown hoarse.
“Fuck!” Brody started to punch the wall, but Lamar stopped him.
“Don’t do it. You might break your hand and we’ll need that hand later.”
Brody pulled away from him and turned back to Caitlyn. He gently cupped her face. Then he kissed her other cheek and wrapped his arms around her waist.
“Baby, I’m so sorry. I’ll get him. He won’t hurt you again. I promise.”
Chapter Seventeen
“Lamar, call Sheriff Tidwell. As much as I want to break that guy’s neck with my own two hands, we’ve got to follow the rules.” Brody wanted to pound out his anger on the man’s face but knew that wasn’t the way to go.
“Do you know who he is?” Caitlyn’s hands held a slight tremor as she held the bag of ice to her cheek.
“No. We’ve been having some problems but didn’t know who was responsible. I think we can find out now that we know why they are fucking with us.”
Lamar walked back over to them, holding the phone to his chest.
“He wants us to come down to the station and fill out a report. He’s going to personally handle the paperwork.”
“Why can’t he come out here?”
“His secretary is gone for the day and the other deputies are all out on calls. Someone has to man the phones in the meantime.” Lamar shrugged.
“Okay. Tell him we’ll be there in a few minutes.” Brody pulled Caitlyn into his arms and held her.
He hated knowing that she was hurting, and the fact that it was because of them made it even harder to swallow. They were supposed to keep their woman safe, not be the reason behind her getting beat up. Anger washed through his veins like venom. He glanced over at Lamar and could tell his brother was just as pissed. You didn’t expect something like this in Riverbend. For the most part, it was a quiet little town where everyone looked out for everyone else. Lately there had been some unusual activities that had everyone a little on edge, but the sheriff had kept things on an even keel. Now this had happened.
“Caity, do you feel like going and talking to the sheriff? He’s a good man.”
“I need to tell him while it’s still fresh in my head. If I wait, I might forget something important. I want him caught before he can do anything to your business.”
“Forget about the business,” Lamar began. “All we are worried about is you. Anyone who would threaten a woman will cause trouble for everyone and won’t have a sense of fair play. He could change his mind and come after you anyway. I want him caught.”
“That goes double for me.” Brody slowly released her from his grip and checked her face once again. “Let’s go so we can get you settled down for the evening.”
Lamar held the door for her as they filed out of the house. Brody didn’t let her any farther than arm’s reach from him until they got to the truck, then he let Lamar take over and get her settled inside. Once they were all loaded up, Brody drove them back into town toward the sheriff’s office. He paid close attention to Caitlyn, worried that she might have a slight concussion and second-guessing himself about making her go to the hospital to be evaluated.
After parking, Lamar helped Caitlyn down. He walked around the truck to join them as they headed up the walkway toward the front door of the sheriff’s office.
It was cool inside compared to the heat still lingering outside. Brody checked his watch and found that it was already approaching seven. The sheriff was working late. He had a wife at home waiting on him, too. Beth was a pretty little thing who edited romance books. Sheriff Tidwell and his brother were married to her.
When they didn’t see anyone in the front part of the office, Brody led them toward the back where the sound of a voice led them to the sheriff’s office. The blinds were open, but the door was closed. The sheriff sat leaned back in his desk chair with one hand thrown over his eyes talking to someone about something to do with a bail skipper and the need to be more aware of where their parolees were at all times.
He finally moved his hand after squeezing the bridge of his nose and looked up. He stared right though Caitlyn and into Brody’s face. Then he stood up and quickly wrapped the call up. Tidwell was across the room in two long strides. He opened the door and held out his hand to greet them.
“I’m Mack Tidwell. Pleased to meet you, ma’am.” They shook hands, and he turned to greet both Brody and Lamar. “Let’s get settled and we can get to the bottom of the problem. Do you want coffee or a soft drink?” After everyone settled down in a chair, he sat back behind the desk and pulled out a folder.
Brody could tell Caity was nervous by the way she clasped and unclasped her hands in her lap. She kept her gaze averted from the sheriff’s as if she were ashamed of the way
she looked with the beginnings of a knot on her head and the blossoming bruise.
“Ma’am, I’m sorry this happened to you in Riverbend. We try to keep this place as safe as possible to assure families they can live here without being harassed or shot at.”
“I haven’t been shot at yet.”
“I don’t trust that it won’t be next, though.” The sheriff opened the folder and pulled out a form.
He fed it in the printer then pulled up a program on his computer. He typed in a few commands, and then he started asking about getting up and who left first. By the time they got to what actually happened after work, she was much more relaxed and was able to walk through it again with a good bit of detail that he pulled from her. It amazed her when he read it back to her just how much she had remembered.
“Does that sound about right?”
“Yes, it sounds exactly right. I can’t believe how much I actually remembered. I’m sorry I didn’t see the other man to give you a description of him.”
“You’ve given me plenty to work with. We’ll get to the bottom of this. In the meantime, you don’t need to be alone at any time. Someone has to be with you. I don’t trust this guy to play by the rules that he’s set.”
Brody had already come to that conclusion. They would take turns staying with her at the store when she had to be there and keep her at the shop with them when she didn’t.
“Are you planning to drop the state project he was talking about?” the sheriff asked Brody.
“As long as we can keep Caitlyn safe I don’t plan on giving in to the bastard. What do you suggest?”
“Play it normal with the exception of keeping her with you at all times. I’m going to work from this end at finding out who he is and everything I can on him. You keep Caitlyn safe and call me if he shows up or makes a move.”
Brody felt Caitlyn stiffen next to him. She shouldn’t have to worry about someone wanting to hurt her. He never dreamed anyone would ever give a rat’s ass about what he and Lamar did. They were machinists, for heaven’s sake. They weren’t politicians or bankers or some bigwigs. The entire town would be at risk as long as this guy and his goons were around.
Sheriff Tidwell closed the folder after adding a few pages from the printer to the small stack. Then he stood up and escorted them to the front of the building. There he opened the door and reminded them to call him if anything happened or the man showed up again.
Lamar helped her up into the truck as Brody climbed into the driver’s side. The sheriff had warned him that it sounded like they were dealing with a small town’s version of the mafia or that one of the bigger families had moved deeper into the west. He personally didn’t see a family like that paying attention to the small community of Riverbend. No, the bastard was some wannabe gang leader of some kind. Tidwell would get to the bottom of it. If not, Brody was willing to step in and handle it himself. No one was going to hurt Caitlyn again.
* * * *
The numbness had worn off by the time they had returned from the sheriff’s office. Now Caitlyn was shaking all over and couldn’t get warm. Her face ached as did her head despite the painkillers she’d taken earlier. It was too soon for more. She needed to calm down, because it was upsetting the men to see her like that.
Brody fixed them something to eat while Lamar held her on the couch. He’d wrapped her in a blanket in an effort to warm her up and stop the shaking. A blanket wasn’t going to warm her when it was her bones that had gone cold. It would take something else to eradicate the gut-wrenching cold that had settled there at the realization that she could have been killed.
Somehow, it hadn’t really dawned on her until they were at the sheriff’s office that she was lucky to be alive. She had a lot to be thankful for. When everything was over, she planned to sit down and count her blessings. It had made her realize that life was short and she needed to take every opportunity she had to enjoy it.
They ate in silence, each in their own thoughts. Brody’s brooding stare off into nothing worried her more than Lamar’s quiet contemplation of the situation. All she could think about was the many different ways there were to die based on her knowledge of old movies about the mob.
Finally, she snapped out of it, realizing that by letting it paralyze her, she was feeding the men’s anger. They needed to calm down, and she needed to think logically. She stood up to carry her plate to the sink. As long as she stayed with the men, nothing would happen to her. She had faith that they would protect her. The enormity of that realization hit her, and she sat back down with a plop. They really did care about her that strongly. Did that mean love?
“Caity? Are you okay?” Lamar reached over and took her hand.
“I’m fine. I just got up too fast and got a little dizzy.”
“We should have taken you to the hospital and let them check you out.” Brody turned her to face him.
“No, really, guys. I’m fine.” She pulled away from Brody and stood up slower this time before carrying her plate to the sink.
“I think I’m going to take a bath and go to bed early. I’m tired.”
“I’ll run your bathwater for you, baby.” Lamar stacked his and Brody’s plates on top of hers.
“Thanks, I appreciate it.” She hugged Lamar then slipped out of his arms and slid into Brody’s.
She could tell he was surprised by that. More than likely, he thought she blamed him for the attack. She couldn’t blame him any more than she could blame Lamar. She wasn’t sure why she needed to feel his arms around her unless it was because she was in love with them and was tired of fighting it. Sure, she would be leaving soon, but until then, she could enjoy the warmth of the two men. She had been honest with them about leaving. She still felt like it was the right thing to do.
Now she wondered if they were in love with her. They hadn’t said so in as many words, but their actions pointed toward it. How did she feel about that? Did it change anything? Caitlyn followed Lamar up the stairs to the bedroom. She pulled off her clothes, tossing them in a pile to be washed. When she walked into the bathroom, it was to find Lamar turning the water off.
“Your bath awaits you, my lady.” He grinned and then let his hungry eyes roam down her body.
She felt her face heat at his obvious perusal of her body. When he looked back into her eyes, his had darkened with desire. Then they rested on her blackened eye and he winced.
“That really looks like it hurts. I’m sorry, Caity.”
“Wasn’t yours or Brody’s fault. It will go away soon.”
“Not soon enough. It just never entered our minds that someone would deliberately hurt you. Not in Riverbend.”
“It’s done now. Let’s drop it.” She didn’t want them dwelling on it even though she knew the sight of her bruised face would keep it fresh in their memories.
“Better get into the tub before the water turns cold.” Lamar held out his hand to help her step into the tub.
She took his hand and let him help. She carefully knelt then sat back into the wonderfully warm water. It was just this side of scalding. Closing her eyes, she let the sensation of drifting help her relax. She knew when Lamar left because of the slight breeze that floated across her face when he closed the door. Other than that, she felt nothing but the steaming hot water as it soothed away some of her tenseness.
After a while, the water began to cool. She debated adding more hot water and staying a little longer, but decided she would end up falling asleep in the tub if she did. That would earn her wet hair and a nose full of water. Lamar had left a towel out for her, so she quickly dried off and let the water out of the tub. When she turned around to head toward the bedroom, she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror.
The purplish bruise around her eye was heaviest on her cheekbone. She also had a nasty looking cut and bruise on her forehead just above her eyebrow. She really was lucky they hadn’t hurt her worse. There hadn’t been anyone around when she walked out to her SUV. She made a face at herself
in the mirror and turned off the light.
She was surprised to see both Lamar and Brody sitting on the edge of the bed waiting on her. They had stripped, and she realized they were going to go to bed with her so she wouldn’t be alone. As sleepy as she was, she doubted she would have been scared, but she wasn’t going to say anything. She would feel better cuddled between them.
Lamar climbed in and scooted over to the other side. Brody kissed her lightly on the lips and helped her up before slipping into the bed next to her. He pulled up the covers as she curled up around Lamar. With the bruises being on her left side, she had to lay on her right. That meant Lamar was her pillow and Brody would keep her ass warm. Just knowing that they were there for her would help keep the dreams away.
“Are you comfortable, Caity?” Brody’s warm breath tickled her ear.
“I’m good. I’ve got the best pillow and butt warmer in the world.”
“Somehow I’m not offended by that.”
“Go to sleep, Caity,” Lamar said with a yawn.
She almost said I love you as she drifted off, but she caught herself. She couldn’t tell them and then leave them. Did she really have to leave them?
Chapter Eighteen
Caitlyn looked over her shoulder at where Lamar was sitting in the back of the store. He was reading a trade magazine while she finished printing off labels to package up the sales from the website for mailing. There were only two things today. She was glad. Her arms were sore from wrapping and boxing up the six from the day before.
Despite her tender muscles, she was a little less stressed having found out that she wasn’t pregnant. Even though a part of her had almost wished that it were true, she knew it was for the best. She had too much going on in her life right now to handle being pregnant. It would have further complicated an already complicated situation. The men had taken the news in stride though she thought Lamar might have been a little disappointed.
