by Amanda Renee
Belle had a newfound respect for Molly’s decision to walk away. You hear horrifying stories on the news about parents trying to kill their children. If more of them walked away and left them with a responsible caretaker, maybe there wouldn’t be so many stories.
She also realized for the first time that Harlan hadn’t been completely blameless.
“How would you like to do me a favor?”
“Um, sure.”
“I’m not allowed to drive for a few days. Could you drop me off at the nursing home?”
“Do you need me to wait around?”
“No. Harlan can give me a ride home later. I’ll meet you outside in a minute.”
“Belle,” Molly said from the porch door. “For what it’s worth, I admire the little family you and Harlan have created. I’m glad Ivy has two people who know how to care for her.”
Belle set their mugs in the sink and ran water in them. “Thank you, Molly. That’s one of the best compliments I’ve ever received.”
Chapter Fourteen
It was Saturday morning and Harlan couldn’t believe how calm and peaceful their week had been. Belle’s concussion had kept her on the ranch and out of trouble. She had spent her days between the nursing home and speaking with people in various county offices trying to gather the paperwork for her nonprofit rescue center. Harlan was surprised by how many forms she had to fill out and how many hoops she would need to jump through before she would be able to open her doors. Beckett had even taken an interest in the project and helped Belle understand all the legalities. Her plans, while simple, allowed the operation to grow with provisions for future satellite locations. He gave her a lot of credit. When she wasn’t working to rehabilitate the animals, she was trying to find ways to save them.
Harlan flipped a pancake in the air to Ivy’s enthusiastic applause. Belle had her head buried in her laptop and Molly was still trying to find a connection with their daughter. Ivy had shown some effort, but she had become more bonded with Belle. Molly was leaving on Monday, but Harlan reassured her that she could return anytime and continue to grow her relationship with Ivy. Their family—however unconventional—had begun to function smoothly. There was only one problem. He and Belle were in a perpetual state of limbo. The last time they had really kissed had been almost a week ago. They had become roommates instead of the married couple he wanted them to be. He’d hoped there would have been some improvement by now, but she kept him at arm’s length. The tension had dissipated but it wasn’t enough. Not for him.
After breakfast, Harlan asked Belle to take a walk with him while Molly spent some time alone with Ivy.
“This is a nice surprise.” Belle entwined her fingers in his and rested her head on his shoulder as they strolled down the ranch drive. “We never have any time alone together.”
Harlan looked skyward and shook his head. “Are you saying you want to be alone with me?”
Belle stopped walking and faced him. “I’m saying I want to see where this goes. I’ve spent the last week around you and Molly. I can see there’s no love lost between the two of you. I trust you’re not going to ditch me because of her again. I was going to ask you out on a date once she went back to Billings. But since we’re alone, now’s good.” Belle cupped his face and drew her down to him. “I want to be with you, in every way.”
Harlan gathered her to him and pressed his mouth to hers, feeling the fervent heat of her desire. The love in his heart surged through every ounce of his being. Belle Barnes wanted to be his wife and he had to show her how much she meant to him. He broke their kiss and gazed deep in her eyes. “I need you more than I’ve ever needed anyone. And I need you now.”
Harlan didn’t wait for her to reply. He laced his fingers in hers and began running toward the stables. Once inside and away from prying eyes, he lifted Belle into his arms as her legs wrapped around his waist. She grabbed his face and kissed him, harder, deeper than before.
“Make love to your wife,” she whispered against his mouth.
Harlan groaned, climbing the stairs faster than he thought possible. He set her on the bed and smiled. Belle was meant to be savored, and he planned on enjoying every inch of her.
* * *
MOLLY’S RAUCOUS COUGHING downstairs woke them from their postcoital slumber. Harlan heard voices coming from the outside stable and checked his watch. Crap! They’d forgotten Becky and Beckett were coming over to discuss the possible location of various rescue center buildings.
Harlan quickly dressed and peered down the stable stairs.
“Will you hurry up already!” Molly whispered loudly. “I told them you went out for a ride. Get yourself together and I’ll get them to meet you on the other side of the ranch.”
A half hour later, they’d paced off numerous sites. They were just waiting on Belle’s licenses to come through before he transferred the land to her name. The one drawback to the other side of the ranch was the close proximity to other residences. Belle didn’t want her rescue to lower their property values or impact their lives in any way. That meant changing her plans and running the rescue center deeper into the property instead of across the front as she had originally planned.
There was still a lot of work to be done before she opened her doors, but the happiness and contentment on her face made him want to support Belle in any way possible. The animals weren’t the only ones who deserved a forever home on the ranch.
They had just sat down to dinner when a black SUV pulled down the ranch drive.
“I wonder who that is.” Harlan excused himself from the table and stepped onto the porch. A man climbed out and called to him from the gate.
“Do you have a little girl, around seven or eight years old with brown hair?”
“May I ask what this is about?”
“Yeah, I find it real funny how you’re supposed to uphold the law, yet your daughter stole from me.”
Harlan felt the hair on the back of his neck rise as he descended the stairs and met the man at the gate. “You better have more than words to back up that statement.”
“Harlan, is everything okay?” Belle and Beckett waited on the porch.
He held up his hand and faced the man again. “What are you claiming my daughter took from you?”
“My wife saw her steal our rabbit from the hutch in the backyard.”
“We have animals but we don’t have rabbits,” Harlan said.
“She had to put it somewhere.”
“When did your wife see this happen?”
“Two hours ago. She has been waiting for me to come home so I could discuss it with you.” Harlan didn’t like that timeline. Two hours ago they were on the other side of the ranch, very close to one of the neighbor’s houses.
“Do you mind waiting here while I talk to my daughter?”
The man nodded and leaned against his SUV.
Harlan bounded up the stairs and into the house. Ivy’s frightened stare answered his question before he even questioned her.
“What is going on?” Belle asked.
Ivy slowly pushed her chair away from the table and inched closer to Molly.
“That man out there says two hours ago his wife watched Ivy steal their rabbit out of the hutch in their backyard.”
“She wouldn’t do that, Harlan.” Molly stood, blocking Ivy from his view.
“Molly, with all due respect, I need to talk to my daughter.”
“Our daughter.”
Belle squeezed past them and ran upstairs. The creaking of the floorboards overhead and the sound of doors being opened and closed announced her presence in every room.
“Ivy, will you please return to your seat.”
Ivy slinked back onto her chair and averted her eyes.
“Ivy, where did you put the bunny?” Harlan asked.
Molly threw her hands in the air, clearly exasperated with his choice of words.
“Ivy.”
Belle returned downstairs, out of breath, shaking her head. She tapped Molly on the shoulder. “Excuse me, let me sit there for a second.”
Molly huffed and stood next to Beckett and Becky.
“Ivy, sweetheart.” Belle held Ivy’s hands in hers. “Did you find a hurt bunny?”
Ivy lifted her gaze and met Belle’s.
“Did you put it someplace safe where it wouldn’t get hurt again?”
Ivy slowly nodded.
Molly gasped, and Harlan uttered a muffled expletive.
“Okay, it’s okay.” Belle reassured his daughter. She had more patience than he did at the moment. “Will you show me where the bunny is so I can help make it better?”
Ivy stood and led Belle to the porch door. “Is it in the stables?”
Ivy nodded.
“Okay, let’s go check on the bunny.” Belle turned to face him. “Harlan, can you and my dad pacify that man while I examine this rabbit?”
“Hey! Where are you going?” the man yelled after Belle and Ivy.
“Hey! Don’t yell at my wife and kid.” Harlan’s temper flared. “Don’t you forget for one second that I’m a deputy sheriff. And this man here is a county judge. So zip it until we can sort this out.”
“There’s nothing to sort out,” the man spat.
“My daughter indicated the rabbit was sick or injured.” Harlan ground his back teeth.
“That rabbit’s fine. And it’s not sick or injured. It’s fat because my son feeds it too many cookies. Your daughter stole my kid’s pet.”
Belle emerged from the stables, carrying the rabbit. She met the man at the gate and handed it to him. “I sincerely apologize. She thought because the bunny was in the hutch in the middle of the yard that someone left it there and forgot about it.”
He placed the rabbit in the front seat and closed the door without getting in. “This isn’t an injured cow in the middle of a cattle ranch.”
“How did you—” Belle scoffed. “You were there that night.”
“Yeah, I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Like mother, like daughter. You’re both thieves. No wonder you never go to jail. You got the law in your back pocket.”
Harlan’s body hardened as he clenched his fists. “Get off my land before I arrest you.” Harlan closed the distance between them. “How dare you come onto my ranch and yell at my wife. She has apologized.”
“I take it back.” Anger lit her eyes as she took a step forward. “A rabbit hutch sitting out in the open like that is bait for wolves, coyotes, bear and other predatory animals.”
The man’s face reddened. “There you go sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong again. Someone needs to teach you a lesson.”
“That does it.” Harlan spun the man around and slammed him face forward onto the hood of the SUV. No one was going to threaten his family and get away with it. He twisted the man’s arm behind his back and held him down. “Belle, go get the handcuffs hanging by the back door.”
“You should be handcuffing your wife. She’s the thief.”
Harlan tightened his grip. Belle ran to him and handed him the cuffs. “You have the right to remain silent,” he began as he cuffed and frisked the man before sitting him on the ground. He sent Belle back inside for his badge and keys before tossing the man in the back of his cruiser. Becky offered to drive the bunny and the man’s SUV to his wife and Beckett said he’d inform her of her husband’s unfortunate overnight incarceration before he met up with Harlan at the station. Nothing like having a judge as your star witness.
Truth be told, Harlan was grateful for the distraction. He needed to cool down before he saw Belle again. He had warned her repeatedly that her actions could affect him or his daughter. Now his daughter was mimicking her. People knew who Belle was because of her record. He didn’t want Ivy to suffer the same fate. The situation tonight had been bad enough. Belle made it worse when she verbally attacked the man about his rabbit hutch. Now he had to worry about this guy and his friends coming onto his ranch to teach his wife and kid a lesson. He slammed the steering wheel.
By the time he and Beckett arrived home a few hours later, Molly and Belle were engaged in an earsplitting screaming match. This did not go on in his house. Molly didn’t know how to fight at normal octaves. He always said her goal was to shatter glass.
Harlan bounded up the back stairs and flung open the screen door so hard he knocked it off its hinges. “Enough! We don’t fight like this here. And definitely not in front of my daughter. Where is Ivy?”
“She’s upstairs with Becky,” Belle said.
“Okay, good. Molly, get out. Belle, don’t say another word. I can’t deal with either one of you tonight. The two of you are like teenagers again.”
“Why didn’t you tell me she had a police record a mile long?”
“Because it’s none of your business,” Belle answered.
“You’re living with my daughter. It makes it my business.” Molly spun around to face Harlan. “Do you know what our daughter said after you left? She couldn’t understand why you were so mad since Belle got arrested all the time and nothing bad happened to her. She even said you had to arrest her last week.”
“Oh, dear.” Beckett sighed.
“Was that man right? Is that what’s going on around here? Belle runs amok stealing animals all in the name of compassion, you arrest her and then her father lets her off? You guys have a great thing going on here. Does the county know about this? What about family services? I think they need to know.”
“Whoa, there.” Beckett held up his hands. “There’s no need to get nasty. You don’t have all the facts.”
“My daughter told me she sat in a courtroom and listened while Belle was on trial.”
“I had her removed from the courtroom as soon as Belle brought her presence to my attention.”
“Why was she there?” Molly demanded.
“Because she was spending the day with me at work,” Harlan said.
“How did she get into the courthouse?”
“She walked in.” Harlan huffed. “I don’t appreciate being schooled on parenting by a woman who didn’t give a damn for six years.”
“I guess you let her run around the courthouse the same way you let her run into a neighbor’s yard and steal rabbits. I can’t allow Ivy to remain in this environment.”
“What are you saying?” Harlan didn’t like Molly’s implication.
“I will call family services in the morning and then I’ll petition the court for full custody of Ivy. I walked away from my daughter to protect her from the bad environment I had created around her. Now Belle is creating the bad environment and you two are enabling her. It’s over.”
Harlan stormed onto the back porch before he did or said something he would regret. No one would take his daughter from him. He’d sacrifice the world to keep her safe and by his side.
* * *
“ARE YOU EVER going to come back in the house?” Belle had never seen Harlan so angry or distant. Not even when he had arrested her. He had been sitting on the back porch steps for over three hours after everyone else had left and Ivy had gone to bed. “I think we should talk about what happened.”
“You’re right. We should.”
That was a start. “Would you like me to put on a pot of coffee?”
“What I have to say won’t take that long.” Harlan rubbed his palms against the front of his jeans as he stood. “I don’t want Ivy to hear us, so can you close the door and come out here, please?”
Belle eased the door shut. She hadn’t broken any promises—in fact, she had done everything she could to move forward with her rescue. She was proud o
f the ground she’d covered and the accomplishments she’d made. She didn’t need any more lectures.
“I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
Belle heard the words but they didn’t register. She shook her head, trying to break free from the giant cobweb clouding her brain. “You don’t mean that.”
“I do mean it and I need a divorce sooner than later. I think we’re well past an annulment at this point.”
The cool tone to his voice froze her heart midbeat.
“Why are you doing this? You asked me to move in and I told you no repeatedly. And then you moved me in while I was in the hospital, much to my chagrin I might add. But I went along with it. And just when I finally say yes you want out?”
“I don’t have a choice. On paper, you are a terrible influence on my child. I had to arrest a man on my own property because my daughter was emulating you. And instead of just returning the rabbit and calling it a day, you elevated this situation to the point where this man said you needed to be taught a lesson. A threat against you is a threat against my daughter. Molly was witness to all of it. And to top it off, she can call Beckett as her witness. All of this happened in front of the most credible witness out there. Your dad may have helped you in court before, but he can’t save you from this one. He’s not going to lie under oath for you. I love you, but we’re done.”
“Don’t you dare tell me that you love me for the first time and then follow it with a we’re done.” Belle’s body trembled. “You’re like Lucy with the football. You kept taunting and teasing until you got me where you wanted, and then once I’m finally happy, working hard to create a legal business, you’re throwing me out? I told you I was moving into Lydia’s a week ago and you stopped me. You practically begged me to stay.”
“I have full custody of my daughter and at the very best, now they will probably grant me joint. I stand to lose full custody of my daughter. My. Daughter. She might be ripped from the only place she’s ever lived, because of your recklessness. And it doesn’t matter if you’ve changed. Your actions have severe consequences and all of us are going to pay for it. Depending on how far Molly takes this, your dad can be removed from the bench. I will probably never make sheriff. But worst of all, Ivy might be thrown in foster care until they can sort this out. You’re unbelievable, Belle.”
