The Texas Lawman's Woman

by Cathy Gillen Thacker

  It hadn’t turned out that way, however.

  Shelley’s son turned his head and buried it in Shelley’s shoulder. The action shifted the scooped neckline of her T-shirt, baring a hint of lace and silky smooth skin. Noticing, Colt felt himself stir.

  Not good. Not good at all. The last thing they needed was their former chemistry sparking to life. The two of them were just too different. He hadn’t ever completely thawed her in the past.

  He sure wasn’t going to do it now.

  Her son was much more welcoming. The little boy proudly showed Colt his truck and said, “Mine. My truck.”

  “It sure is your truck,” he agreed.

  Satisfied that Colt understood the import of what he was holding, Austin turned back to Shelley. “Down, Momma. Want down.”

  Shelley looked at Buddy, who was sitting next to where Colt was standing in a perfect sit-stay.

  Although it wasn’t necessary, Colt took his dog over to a cushioned wicker chair that had also been there for years. He pointed to the section of the porch beside it, and Buddy obediently lay down. Paws stretched out in front of them, he waited.

  Colt sat down next to Buddy, and then Shelley set her son on the other end of the wide front porch.

  Oblivious to the tension between the adults, Austin walked over to a wicker basket full of toys. He pulled a wooden cube from the pile, opened the lid and dumped the shaped blocks out onto the painted floor. Grinning, he plopped down beside it, shut the lid and began fitting a piece into the similarly shaped slots, while Shelley looked on happily.

  “I hear you are going to be teaching dance classes at the community center full-time now,” Colt said.

  Shelley smiled. “Classes start tomorrow afternoon.”

  Colt recalled her on the dance line for the marching band, in that short skirt, skimpier top and boots. She’d been the captain of the group, and man, she had been able to move—to the point that no one could take their eyes off her. Especially him. Not that he needed to be remembering that.

  “I hear you’re in law enforcement.”

  Colt nodded. “I’m a deputy with the sheriff’s department.”

  Shelley shook her head, clearly perplexed. “I never thought you’d go through with that.”

  “Why not?” Colt returned, holding her gaze.

  She lifted her slender shoulder in an elegant shrug. “You were never the hall monitor type.”

  The truth was, he did have the softest heart in the department. But not about to admit that, Colt pointed out instead, “You said you always wanted to be rich and live in the big city...yet here you are, back in Laramie, moving into the house you grew up in.”

  A mixture of regret and disappointment flickered across her face. “I guess that’s what the saying ‘Life happens while you are making other plans’ means.”

  Abruptly, she looked so sad and disillusioned Colt’s heart went out to her. “What happened to you?” he asked gently.

  She didn’t take her eyes off his. “I got divorced.”

  There it was. Another link between them. Something else they unexpectedly had in common. “Me, too,” he said quietly.

  She looked at him with understanding. “When?”

  He cleared his throat. “Five years ago.”

  Suddenly, Colt wanted to know the facts he hadn’t let anyone else tell him. Not that Shelley had ever been particularly forthcoming about the failures in her life. Appreciating the way her auburn hair fell softly over her shoulders, he pinned her with a glance and asked, “You?”

  “My marriage officially ended two years ago, although we were separated for nine months before that.”

  Colt’s glance slid to her son.

  Shelley answered the question before he could ask.

  “Yes, Austin is Tully Laffer’s son. We separated right after I learned I was pregnant.” She emitted a rueful sigh that let him know she was as disappointed in the turns her romantic life had taken as he was in his. “Anyway, our divorce became final shortly after Austin was born. I stayed in Dallas for a while, then finally decided to come back home. I figured it would be easier to raise my son here.”

  There seemed to be a lot she was leaving out—and he wanted to know what. Which was odd. He usually wasn’t this nosy. “Your ex doesn’t mind?”

  Shelley turned a fond glance to her son and sat back in her chair. She crossed her legs at the knee. Her khaki skirt rose higher on her thigh, giving him a glimpse of taut, tan skin. “Turns out Tully’s not interested in the whole parenting thing.”

  That was no surprise to Colt. He’d only had to meet the guy once to know the spoiled rich kid was all wrong for Shelley. Not that she’d listened to him, or anyone else in Laramie for that matter.

  “What about his family?”

  Shelley grimaced. “His parents were barely there when he was growing up. They have a jet-setting lifestyle that has them constantly on the go. The last thing they want is any demands from grandchildren.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “So am I.” She linked her hands around her knee. “I think they’re all really missing out.”

  No kidding, Colt thought, his glance moving briefly back to Austin, who was still playing contentedly.

  Her son certainly deserved better. As did Shelley. Aware he had an apology of his own to give that was long overdue, Colt leaned toward her and cleared his throat. “So...about prom.”

  Pink color flooded Shelley’s cheeks. “I’m sorry.” She lifted a staying hand and continued gazing deep into his eyes, as serious now about burying the hatchet between them as he was. “I shouldn’t still be upset about that.”

  Colt winced. “Yeah, you should.”

  She lifted her brow. He felt the pull of attraction and knew it was time for him to set the record straight. “I should have called you that night to let you know what was going on.”

  Her expression gentled. “In your defense, you were a little busy helping to comfort a lost puppy who’d gotten his leg stuck between a rock and a fallen tree. A puppy who likely would have died had you not spotted him and stopped to help.”

  Colt reached over and patted Buddy’s head, taking comfort in the way his pet leaned into him affectionately. “Once the fire and rescue team arrived, I should have taken the time to call and tell you what was going on.”

  Looking as if she appreciated his honesty, she asked in return, “Why didn’t you?”

  “I told myself it was because this guy needed me with him in order to stay calm while the firefighters sawed that tree.”

  Their gazes met. “And in reality?” she asked even more softly.

  And here was the hell of it. “I think you’re right. I didn’t want to go to prom.”

  “Because you hated dancing,” she guessed.

  Because I didn’t want to fall any harder for you than I already had. “Because I knew if we followed through on the plans that we had for that night—” and we slept together for the first time “—it would kill me when you broke up with me.”

  “If we had followed through on our plans, I wouldn’t have broken up with you.”

  Colt wanted to believe that. Life had taught him otherwise. “Come on, Shelley. At least be honest about this. We didn’t want the same things for our futures. You were headed to Dallas to study dance at SMU. I was going to San Angelo State to get a degree in law enforcement.”

  “That was then.”

  “And now?” he prompted.

  “I find myself wanting a quiet life, filled with the familiar, too.”

  Colt knew she had convinced herself she would be happy in Laramie. He also knew you couldn’t really go back again. That sometimes the past was meant to be just that. Which was why he shouldn’t be entertaining the notion of becoming anything other than the most casual of friends
with her.

  Still, he was curious. “What about marriage?” Was she looking for husband number two?

  Shelley made a face, shook her head. “Been there, done that.”

  “Well, see, that’s where we’re different.” He rubbed a hand across his jaw. “I do want to get married again someday. If I can find the right woman...”

  “Then I hope you get that.”

  They were quiet as they watched the little boy play.

  Austin pushed his wooden box away and walked toward Colt.

  Shelley tensed, ready to leap into action. “Is it okay?” she asked nervously, eyeing Colt’s large companion.

  Colt nodded, as relaxed as Shelley was wary. “Buddy’s been trained as a therapy dog. He’s great with kids.”

  Seeming to know he was safe with the big animal, Austin bent down to look Buddy in the face. The Bernese mountain dog lay with his head flat on the ground, the only sign he knew of the child’s interest was the shifting of eyebrows on his face.

  “Do you want to pet the doggie?” Colt asked Austin, hunkering down beside the two. “You can do it like this.” He demonstrated.

  Austin gently patted Buddy on the top of his head. Buddy remained perfectly still except for his tail, which thumped gently on the wooden porch floor.

  “Doggie!” the little boy said.

  “Doggie,” Colt repeated, petting Buddy, too.

  The get-to-know-each-other session continued for several more minutes. Finally, Austin straightened and toddled back to the wicker toy basket. He picked up his little red truck and took it to Buddy. Instead of handing it over to his new friend, he held it just out of reach. “Mine,” he announced, clutching it tight in his hand. “My toy.”

  “It’s okay,” Colt soothed. “Buddy isn’t going to take it from you.”

  Austin held tight to his belonging, and then moved away. All the while Buddy remained calm and content.

  Watching, Shelley smiled. “I’m glad you kept him,” she said finally, looking Colt in the eye. “The two of you belong together.”

  No, he thought, the two of us belong together. Always did, always would. If only we didn’t have such different outlooks on damn near everything. Pushing that unwanted thought away, he rose. “Well, apologies made, Buddy and I better be on our way.”

  Shelley rose, too. “I’m sorry about all the bad feelings, all these years.”

  Relief sifted through him. “Me, too.”

  She lifted a palm. “Friends?”

  Colt returned the amiable high five, glad the two of them were finally beginning to put the past behind them. “Friends,” he said.

  Nothing more. Nothing less.

  Chapter Two

  “Yeah, well, I don’t believe it,” Rio Vasquez said in the locker room as he changed into his tan uniform. “No woman ever forgives a man for standing her up on one of the most important nights of her life.”

  Colt fastened his holster around his waist. “We’re adults now. We were kids when all that went down.”

  “Doesn’t matter.” Rio sat down to put on his boots. “The heart is still the heart.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Colt checked his flashlight and his gun. “You hot-blooded Latinos think you know everything there is to know about passion.”

  “We do.” Rio stood and slapped his pal amicably on the shoulder. “And what my romantic radar says is that no grudge held that long is ever going to be set aside that easily.”

  “Meaning what?” Colt joked back, studying Rio’s circumspect expression. “You think Shelley’s just pretending to forgive me?”

  His friend shrugged. “I’m sure in her rational mind she thinks she ought to let the past be just that. Whether or not she can ever really trust you not to hurt her again is another matter entirely.”

  Rio had a point, Colt conceded, as he walked out to his squad car to begin his nightly patrol. His truce with Shelley had come about a lot more quickly than he ever would have guessed possible. Partly because they both had a lot more life experience and hence were now able to sort out what was important and what wasn’t. Another factor was the pressure of the wedding, and their mutual desire to do right by their friends. But there were lingering feelings, of that he was sure.

  He’d have liked to stay longer on her porch. Get caught up on more than just the basics. Forge new bonds.

  But it had been clear, despite her deeply ingrained Texas charm and hospitality, that as soon as the olive branch was extended, she’d wanted him and Buddy out and on their way.

  And that had to mean something. He just wasn’t sure what.

  * * *

  AT BEDTIME, SHELLEY OPENED UP the drawer in Austin’s changing table and got her second big surprise of the day. “Oh, no. Tell me we’re not out of diapers!” She rushed to the closet, then the diaper bag, Austin toddling along right behind her. Nothing. Which meant she was going to have to put Austin in the car and run out to get another box of disposables.

  Not that Austin, who’d had an unusually long and late nap, seemed to mind being carried out to her Prius shortly after 9:00 p.m. “We go bye-bye,” he announced cheerfully.

  “One of these days we’ll be completely unpacked and then it will be a lot easier to get organized,” Shelley promised as she strapped Austin into his car seat.

  “Diapers!” Austin shouted, waving his arms.

  Well, Shelley thought wearily, at least her son knew what they were after. Unfortunately, the only store open that late was on the outskirts of town, near the entrance to the Lake Laramie State Park grounds. For once, the Mega-Mart was not crowded with summer campers, so Shelley and Austin were able to zip in and out.

  The problem appeared en route home as dusk was falling. Shelley had just turned onto the two-lane highway toward town and gone about a half mile when a pair of headlights coming the opposite direction wove into her lane, then out again, then back toward her.

  Terrified, she hit her horn and brake simultaneously, steering her car as far onto the shoulder as she could go without actually swerving off the road. And still the oncoming vehicle kept heading right for her, weaving back and forth. Knowing she had no choice if she wanted to avoid a collision, Shelley swung the steering wheel farther right and veered off the highway to get out of the way of the wildly careening vehicle.

  Her car shot forward as it completely cleared the shoulder and the low ditch beside it, then slammed down on the rough sagebrush-covered ground, bumping hard once, with teeth-clenching force, and then, to a lesser degree, again and again and again.

  Finally, the Prius ground to a halt while the big sedan that had almost crashed into her continued on its way, not slowing down in the slightest as it swerved into the wrong lane yet again.

  Only this time, she noted in slow-motion horror, the SUV coming toward it was not able to react fast enough. Despite the squealing brakes and blaring horn, the two vehicles collided with a huge boom. A dark-colored SUV went airborne before crash-landing onto its side. The instigating white sedan was thrust into a field one hundred yards south of Shelley’s Prius. And then all fell horribly silent.

  Hands shaking, Shelley turned off her ignition but kept the headlights on. She hit the emergency flashers and swung around to look at Austin. He was still strapped safely into his car seat, but looked as stunned and shell-shocked by their unexpected leap off the road and near miss as she felt.

  Her heart pounding, Shelley scrambled out of the car, opened the back door and removed her son from his car seat, clutching him fiercely.

  My heaven, that had been close!

  “You okay, li’l fella?” Shelley asked, stroking his back.

  Austin nodded. He put his head on her chest. She could feel him trembling. Poor thing. Still cuddling her son in her arms, Shelley reached for her phone and dialed 9-1-1. The operator
came on the line. Shelley quickly described what had happened.

  “Is anyone hurt?”

  “I don’t know.” She looked at the crash scene, which was eerily still. “I can’t tell from here.”

  “Can you get a visual for us? So we’ll have an idea how many ambulances to send?”

  Her whole body quaking with a mixture of adrenaline and nerves, Shelley strapped Austin in his seat, got back in the car, and did as required. Emergency lights flashing the entire way, she drove slowly through the field to the scene of the accident. The SUV that had taken the hit had flipped and was still on its side in a nearby field. It had a New York license plate and two passengers inside.

  The sedan that had caused the crash bore Texas plates. The man who’d been driving was sitting behind a deployed airbag that looked like it had deflated. He was shouting belligerently in a slurred voice.

  Shelley got back on the line and told the operator what she knew.

  Fortunately, by the time she had finished, several other motorists were on the scene. One immediately set out flares to stop oncoming traffic. Another went over to the SUV. Everyone left their own vehicles’ lights on to better illuminate the scene.

  Moments later, Shelley couldn’t help noticing that Austin, who normally chattered nonstop while they were in the car, was still ominously silent. She pivoted around in her seat to face him. Her toddler was staring at the scene uncomprehendingly. “Austin?” she asked, aware she was trapped now by all the vehicles, too. “Are you okay?”

  He didn’t respond. Just continued to stare in that same dazed, emotionless way.

  Panicked, Shelley shut down her ignition and jumped out of the car. She reached in to release Austin from his safety harness. He had seemed fine a moment ago, but was it possible he’d somehow gotten hurt without her knowledge? Shelley checked her son over but found nothing—no cuts, bruises or any outward sign of injury.

  A Laramie County Sheriff’s Department car drove up, siren blaring, lights flashing. The officer parked horizontally across the road, further blocking off the scene. Deputy Colt McCabe stepped out wearing a tan uniform.