by Linda Warren
The door opened and Tom came in. “Ready to go?” he asked Myra.
“I suppose,” she replied.
“She’s ready.” Stu nodded. “Any news on the two guys from Mexico?”
“They’re about thirty minutes out of Houston, so we have to go.” Tom gave her a sharp look and she got to her feet.
She hugged Stu. “Take care of yourself and I’ll call once I reach Willow Creek.”
“You better. I’ll worry until these guys are behind bars. And I won’t rest until Marco Mortez pays for what he did to my daughter.”
She picked up her suitcase and followed Tom out the door.
“You’re being rather docile,” Tom said as they got into the car.
“Don’t get used to it.”
He glanced at her. “You know, you’re not too bad. Most of the time I think of you as a tight-ass bitch.”
“Thank you,” she replied drily. “You’re not too bad, either. And in case you’re wondering, I think of you as a macho asshole all the time.”
Tom laughed and she settled into her seat and rested her head back. In no time, she was sound asleep. The night had finally caught up with her.
* * *
WHEN LEVI HEARD the car, he put Daniel in the Pack ’N Play. The baby protested at first until Levi gave him his pacifier. Then he sat down and played with his teddy bear.
Pop looked at him. “Valerie doesn’t know about the baby, does she?”
“No. Could you watch Daniel while I talk to her?”
“Do I look like a babysitter?”
“No, you look like my grandfather, who is known to help me whenever I need it.”
“You’re going to need more help than I can give you.”
“Pop...”
“Okay. I’ll watch the little booger.”
“Thanks.”
His grandfather stared at him. “You’re nervous. I’ve never seen you like this. What else have you done?”
He took a long breath, unable to lie to his grandfather. “Something I’m not proud of.”
Henry held up a hand. “That’s between you and Valerie.”
“Thanks, Pop.” Levi hurried to the window to make sure it was Valerie. He watched her get out of her car, her long blond hair swirling in the wind. She was beautiful, sweet, compassionate, loving, everything he wanted in a woman. But she wasn’t Myra. The thought hit him like a sucker punch and he struggled with the revelation.
The knock at the door brought him out of his stupor. He opened the door and she rushed in with a casserole in her hands. She stood on tiptoes to kiss him.
“You’re home. Why didn’t you call me?”
“I was just about to.”
“Hi, Pop. I brought supper. I’ll put it in the kitchen and...” She stopped when she saw the baby in the Pack ’N Play.
He took the casserole from her. “I’ll put it on the stove.”
“Where did the baby come from?”
He stepped back into the living room. “This is Daniel, the little boy I rescued.”
“The drug lord’s son?”
“Yes.”
“Why is he here?”
“Let’s sit on the porch and I’ll explain.” He looked at his grandfather and Pop winked. Levi ignored him.
He held the screen door open as they went out.
“Why did you bring that Mexican baby into your home?”
Levi was getting a little tired of her tone. Before this case, he’d never seen this side of Valerie. As a nurse, she worked with all nationalities, but only a few were obviously included in her close-knit circle.
He sat on the swing and she sat beside him. “He’s just a baby and I’ve agreed to protect him until it’s safe for him to return to his grandfather.”
“You mean those drug dealers could come here?”
“Val, I agreed to protect this baby and I will.”
“I didn’t realize that was part of your job.” She flipped back her hair in an angry gesture.
“Not usually, but this is a special circumstance.”
She scooted closer to him. “Why are we arguing? I haven’t seen you in days.”
“I’m wondering that myself.”
“It was just such a shock seeing that baby.”
“You say ‘that baby’ like he’s contaminated or something. His mother is white. His father’s Mexican. Do you have a problem with biracial children?”
“Of course not.”
But he could see she did and that surprised him. He thought he knew her and her heart, but it seemed he didn’t know her at all and he was beginning to wonder what was real and what wasn’t.
She curled into his side. “I’ve missed you. Let’s have a quiet dinner at my apartment tonight.”
“I’m not going anywhere until the situation with the baby and his safety is resolved.”
She raised her head. “You mean you have to stay here all the time?”
“Yes.”
“Can’t the police handle this?”
He looked into her blue eyes. “We have to talk. I thought we had something special, but the vibes I’m getting from you about a half-Mexican baby are bothering me.”
She stroked his chest. “You know I didn’t mean anything.”
“It’s not only that. Something happened while I was away and I need to tell you about it.”
She shifted away from him. “It’s about that woman, isn’t it?”
“If you mean Myra, yes.”
“You slept with her.”
He took a deep breath and never realized it would be so easy to admit. “Yes.”
“I could see there was something between you the day she came into the barn. The tension was so thick I had to leave because I knew she was someone from your past. Someone you had known before me. Someone you had loved.”
“Yeah.”
“Was it a one-time thing?”
Ever since he had woken up this morning, he had been feeling like a cad, the worst kind of man because it felt like he’d cheated on a woman who loved him. After his confession, he was expecting tears, anger, hurt and disillusionment, but what he was seeing was someone almost detached from the situation. Her reaction was not normal, he was almost positive.
He told her about Natalie’s death and how upset Myra was.
“So you were just consoling her?”
Where was the anger? The betrayal?
“It was more than that.” He had to be honest.
“But you’re not going to see her anymore?”
“She’ll be coming here, and I’ll protect her and the baby until it’s safe for them to return to Houston.”
Valerie drew away. “Isn’t that lovely?” she said sarcastically, and got to her feet. “You know, Levi, you’re not the only one who has been tempted.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means men hit on me all the time, but I love you and―”
He stood. “I’m sorry, Valerie.”
“How could you do this to us?”
He exhaled deeply. “I don’t have an explanation. It just happened. Since it did, maybe it’s best if we took a break.”
Her eyes opened wide. “No, we can get through this.”
He was taken aback for a minute by his own words. This was not what he was expecting and now he had to carry it through. “Valerie...”
Almost as if she knew what he was going to say, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest. “You do your job and I’ll call you later.”
“Val...”
She placed her fingers over his lips. “Get her out of your life, Levi.” After saying that, she ran to her car.
He wa
s thirty-four years old and he’d dated, been serious more than once, but he’d never encountered anything like this. Valerie was willing to forgive him. Why? He couldn’t forgive himself. His investigator instincts told him something was not quite right. He always heard that love was about forgiveness and knowing when to compromise. Still, something about this was too easy.
He walked back into the house. Pop had Daniel in his lap and Daniel was sticking his hands into the pockets of Pop’s western shirt.
“He was fussy so I got him out,” Pop explained.
“That’s okay.” Levi sat on the sofa across from his grandfather. “I don’t understand women.”
“Really? Well, join the rest of us sorry bastards. No man understands a woman. It just don’t come natural. We just learn to cohabitate because the benefits are pretty damn good.”
Levi rubbed his hands together, needing to talk to someone. Usually he kept things bottled up inside, but this was eating at him. He told his grandfather what had happened.
“Lordy, boy, you got yourself in a mess. You young guys don’t know how to keep your pants zipped.”
Daniel grew tired of playing with Pop’s pockets and climbed down to the floor, crawling to Levi. The baby played around his feet.
“I don’t need a lecture.”
Pop eased to the edge of his chair. “Valerie didn’t get angry?”
“Not until it interfered with our time together.”
“Hell, your grandma would’ve slapped me, kicked me and ripped off my balls if I had told her something like that.”
“I don’t understand her reaction. She said she’d call me later, but I don’t think we have anything left to discuss.”
“Give it some time. She may be more upset than you think.”
“I don’t know, Pop. Things just aren’t right between us now.”
Pop shook his head. “It’ll kill you trying to please two women.”
“I don’t have two women,” he snapped.
“Really?”
Daniel wedged himself between Levi’s knees and Levi picked them up. “Hey, buddy.”
“You said Myra’s coming here, too?” Pop asked.
“Yeah. Later today.” Levi thought about his grandfather’s safety. “It might be best if you spend a couple of days with Walt.”
“I’m not leaving this house. Besides, Walt would drive me crazy.”
“If Mortez’s men locate Myra and the baby, I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Well, I got my shotgun and I can take care of myself. Besides, I’m not leaving you and Myra alone. You’ve gotten yourself into enough trouble—womanwise.”
“Do you ever listen to what I say?”
“Sometimes.” Pop got up and headed for the kitchen. “I wonder what kind of casserole girlfriend number one brought.”
“Pop...”
“What?”
“This is not a joke.”
“Seems kind of funny to me. I mean, girlfriend number two is on her way and we’re going to have a casserole for supper that girlfriend number one made.”
Levi got up and put Daniel back in his playpen, which wasn’t exactly what Daniel wanted. He let out a howl. Levi gave him his Binky but big fat tears still rolled down his cheeks. Levi reached for some kind of melt-in-your-mouth cereal puffs out of Daniel’s supply of food and gave them to him. That made him happy. He sat down to poke them in his mouth, which he did rather rapidly.
Levi heard the sound of the car and hurried to the window. Myra was here. Against every sane thought in his head, his heart raced like a stupid teenager’s and he knew he was in big trouble. Pop was right. His life was a mess.
* * *
MYRA STRAIGHTENED IN her seat. “Sorry. I didn’t realize I was that tired.”
“No problem,” Tom said.
She glanced around and saw the ranch land, the barn and the Coyote house. “We’re here.”
“Yes. We made good time.”
Tom stopped at the chain-link fence. “This really is small-town Texas. Are you ready for country life?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
“This really is best, Myra,” Tom said as if he needed to reassure her, and she wanted to laugh. Tom was not considerate or caring. Not like Levi.
John Wayne barked from the front porch and they got out. Levi opened the door and came onto the porch. His tall, lean frame and rugged good looks squeezed her heart until she wanted to cry. So many years of loving that man and all she’d managed to do was hurt him. And it wasn’t over.
“Hey, Levi. We made it,” Tom called, opening the gate on the fence. “You really do live in Hicksville.”
“The best place in the world,” Levi replied.
As they walked up the steps, Tom’s cell rang. “Hold on.” He stepped aside.
There was a tense moment as they waited. There really was nothing left to say. They’d reached an impasse and Myra didn’t relish the next few days of tense silence and awkward moments.
Tom swung back. “That was Steve. Mortez’s men stopped at a Mexican nightclub and had drinks and a meal. They are now parked outside Myra’s apartment, waiting.”
Goose bumps popped up on her skin and she rubbed her arms, really grateful she wasn’t there.
“I spoke with the constable here, Carson Corbett, and he said he would patrol the road. He knows Willow Creek and the vehicles and he would know if a strange car was hanging about.”
“I talked to Carson a while ago,” Levi said. “He’ll be on top of things.”
“That’s good to know.” Tom slipped his phone in his pocket. “The only people who know Myra and the baby are here are Stu and myself, so any chance of a leak is impossible.”
“What’s the plan concerning Marco’s guys?” Levi asked. “Is the FBI just going to watch them?”
“Steve feels sure that later tonight they’ll break into Myra’s apartment and then they can grab them. He also feels they’re not planning to hang around. They’re here to do a job and they’ll do it as quickly as possible.” Tom glanced at his watch. “I have to go. If they bring the men in, I want to be at the station.”
Levi and Tom shook hands. “I’ll be in contact,” Tom said, and glanced at Myra. “Don’t give the man too much flak.”
Myra lifted an eyebrow at him. She didn’t have enough energy to do anything else. Tiredness clung to her like a day-old hangover.
Tom walked away to his car, and she and Levi were alone. “I’m sorry,” he said in a soft tone, completely blowing her stance to be as cool as possible. “I was way out of line this morning.”
“It was my fault. I take full responsibility.”
“Will you stop taking the blame for everything,” he said, his voice changing in an instant.
She held up a hand. “Please, can we not do this tonight? I’m tired, sad and completely spent.”
He stared into her eyes and a weakness assailed her when she wanted to be strong. When she needed to be strong. But what she felt was a heartache that encompassed every part of her and she had no idea where to go from here.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
THE MOVE-IN WENT smoothly. Levi showed Myra to her room. She was quiet and looked incredibly sad, which made him want to hold her.
“How’s Stu?” he asked instead.
“Coping as best as he can.” She glanced around the room and he was aware how drab the iron bed and bare hardwood floor must look compared to her fancy digs. He wished he’d had time to wash the sheets, but honestly he hadn’t even thought of it until now. The house had three bedrooms and the spare bedroom was rarely used.
“I can wash the sheets if you’d like,” he offered.
She laid her bag on the patchwork quilt his grandmother had made. “Why? Are they dirty?”
“No, but probably not too fresh.”
“They’ll be fine.” She kicked off her heels and placed them by the nightstand. Removing the pins from her hair, she shook her head and the long waves of her hair fell down around her shoulders. His muscles tensed as he remembered running his fingers through it last night. “I’m going to play with Daniel for a little while.”
“Okay.” He blew out a breath. “The bathroom is at the end of the hall.”
She stopped at the door and faced him. “I can find my way around, and you don’t have to wait on me.”
“And you can lose the attitude. I’m only trying to help.”
She swallowed. “Okay, truce?”
“We’re going to be spending a lot of time together so a truce would be nice.”
“Good.” She walked off down the hall to the living room. Seeing her, Daniel bounced up and down in the Pack ’N Play and she picked him up. She sat on the floor and Daniel crawled all over her. She seemed to have a need to touch him.
“Supper’s ready,” Pop said from behind him.
The meal was quiet except for Daniel jabbering in his high chair. Myra fed him his food while eating hers. Pop didn’t mention girlfriend number one or two and he was grateful for that. Afterward, they gave Daniel a bath in the bathtub and put him down for the night.
“I put his bed in my room so if someone tried to take him they’d have to go through me,” he told her.
“If he cries during the night, I’ll get him,” she said.
“Okay, but I’ll probably hear him first. Try to get a good night’s rest.”
She ran a hand through her hair. “I’ll take a quick shower and go to bed, then.”
Levi walked into the den. Pop was watching TV. Levi sank onto the sofa, feeling drained and wondering if he and Myra could ever find some sort of middle ground. They were talking and acting like strangers when they were really so much more. How much more was yet to be seen.
God, he had two women he needed to talk to and he wasn’t sure who to talk to first. But he knew which one was tearing him up inside.
“She go to bed?” Pop asked.
