Jericho was about to assure Theo and these other three that he did indeed have that right, but then he heard a sound he definitely didn’t want to hear. The front door of the house opening.
And Laurel stepped onto the porch. She didn’t stay on the porch, however. She marched down the steps toward them.
“Which part of stay inside didn’t you hear me say?” Jericho whispered to her through clenched teeth.
“I can’t let you fight my battles for me.”
He would have liked to remind her this battle wasn’t just hers. It was for custody of Maddox. But there was no sense letting her father know they were still at odds.
“You’ll be arrested soon,” her father said. “I plan to wait here until the cops from Dallas show up and take you away in handcuffs.”
So, the Dallas PD had drawn the short straw. They probably didn’t know this was part of Herschel’s sick plan—especially since there was almost certainly some evidence against Laurel. Some. Her father would have seen to that.
Too bad Herschel hadn’t sought out help from the SAPD. Jericho’s brother Levi could have possibly helped put an end to this already. Of course, Herschel was probably insisting the crime had taken place in the Dallas PD’s jurisdiction.
“I guess this means I won’t be going to a mental hospital,” Laurel remarked. She folded her arms over her chest, faced their enemies head-on. Well, at least she wasn’t looking afraid now. Just riled to the core.
“That was only if the warrant fell through,” her father answered. “It didn’t. But I can always use it as a backup.”
“Or you can come to your senses and do the right thing,” Theo said to Laurel.
When Theo took a step toward Laurel, Jericho drew his gun. Aimed it at the man. “First warning. Don’t come closer. You don’t get a second warning.”
Theo’s expression turned to iron, and his eyes were still narrowed when he looked at Laurel. “You can marry me and put an end to all of this.”
“Marry you?” she repeated. “And that’ll make the criminal charges and the insanity allegations go away? That’s not going to happen.”
“Then prepare yourself to go to jail,” the lawyer said, her tone sassy enough to put Jericho’s teeth on edge.
“I’m already tired of you and I barely know you. Get back in the limo,” Jericho ordered her. “Teddy, shoot her if she manages to get her hands on a gun while she’s in there.”
Clearly, Nan wasn’t accustomed to being put in her place. She cursed at him. A vanilla kind of profanity that a third grader would have used. But she got her butt back in the limo.
One down, three to go.
Jericho pointed to several heavily treed areas around the ranch and then got the attention of the other two ranch hands. “Keep watch, because our visitor here likes to hire killers. Which is why you should be inside,” he added to Laurel.
“I’m staying put until they leave,” Laurel insisted.
Of course she was. And besides tossing her over his shoulder and hauling her back into the house—something that Jericho briefly considered—there was no way to get her to budge. That meant he really needed to hurry this conversation along.
“All right, let’s just get this out on the table,” Jericho said to Theo. “Laurel’s not marrying you.” After clearing that up, he turned to Herschel. “And she’s darn sure not going anywhere with you.”
“Then be prepared for me to take custody of my grandson, because the warrant will include a court order for me to do just that.”
Doubtful. Still, Herschel could have manipulated that some way, too. It didn’t matter. Jericho usually didn’t have a shades-of-gray approach to the law, but in his son’s case, he’d make some exceptions.
“I’m Maddox’s father,” Jericho said, just in case these two nut jobs had forgotten that significant detail.
Hell. Herschel’s smug look returned. “You have no legal right to him. Your name’s not even on the birth certificate. Plus, I have DNA results that my own daughter gave me. Results that prove that Theo is the baby’s father.”
“Those results are a lie!” Laurel snapped.
“Are they?” Herschel’s smug look got worse.
“You know they are. I couldn’t put your name on the birth certificate,” Laurel whispered to Jericho. “I couldn’t let my father know. And I would have had to let you know, too.”
Yes, because she couldn’t have added Jericho’s name without his knowledge. Considering she thought it would be a death sentence for him, there was no way Laurel would have done that. But that blank space and the fake DNA results were going to give Theo some leverage.
If Jericho allowed it to happen.
He wouldn’t.
Herschel shrugged. “It’ll take a while for you to redo the DNA test. Until then, Theo has a right to take his son. Go inside, Theo, and get Maddox. You know he’s in that house.”
“And I have a right to shoot Theo if he tries to go inside,” Jericho insisted right back.
Maybe Theo wasn’t so stupid, after all, because he didn’t make a move. “We’ll be back when that court order arrives, and Herschel and I will take custody.”
Jericho wanted to use the cliché over my dead body, but since that’s exactly what someone wanted, he kept it to himself. Besides, he didn’t need to say anything. Herschel knew what kind of man Jericho was, and even with all this bluster and talk, he also knew Jericho wouldn’t just hand the child over to Theo or him.
“Think of the danger,” Theo said, looking at Laurel now. “Someone’s obviously trying to kill Jericho and you. Maddox shouldn’t be near you, or he could get caught in the crossfire.”
“He’s already been caught in it.” And that’s all Laurel said for several moments. The anger was there in her voice, but there was also plenty of hatred. “If you’re so concerned about his safety, then come clean and tell us who’s behind the attacks.”
She stared at her father, maybe waiting for Theo to acknowledge in some way that Herschel was responsible.
Theo didn’t utter a word.
But Herschel did. “I’m not trying to kill you.”
“Then who is?” Laurel pressed.
Herschel blew out a long breath, rubbed the space between his eyebrows as if fending off a headache. “Maybe someone involved in that money laundering deal you orchestrated.”
“I didn’t orchestrate it. I was set up, probably by you. So, who other than you would want me dead?”
“Dorothy,” Herschel finally admitted.
Theo opened his mouth as if to deny that, but he only shook his head. “Maybe,” he conceded.
What Theo didn’t concede, however, was that he had just as much, if not more, motive than his mother. Something he’d never admit.
This was another of those not-over-my-dead-body situations. One they’d never resolve. But in the meantime, the minutes were just ticking away, and if Herschel was telling the truth, it wouldn’t be long before the Dallas police arrived. That meant Jericho had to get Laurel and Maddox out of there fast.
“Come on.” Jericho slipped his arm around Laurel’s waist and got her moving toward the house.
“You can’t run!” Herschel called out to them. “I have someone watching the ranch and the roads. Of course, if you try to run, I can have you charged with obstruction of justice. Then, Theo won’t have any trouble claiming that boy.”
Jericho didn’t trade barbs with the man. Didn’t even acknowledge him. He just hurried Laurel inside.
“Get Maddox’s things,” Jericho told her once he’d shut the door.
Her eyes widened for a moment. “We’re leaving?”
“Yeah. Herschel might be watching the roads, but we can get out to the highway using the old ranch trails.” Jericho didn’t see another way around leaving.
<
br /> Another way around something else that had to be done, too.
“We’re going to a safe house,” Jericho told her. “And then we’re getting married—today.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
As a young girl, Laurel had fantasized about her wedding.
To Jericho, of course.
However, she hadn’t imagined her wedding would happen while she was wearing jeans, a purple top and while hiding out in a safe house. In her fantasy, Jericho hadn’t been scowling, either.
Too bad that was what he’d been doing a lot since they’d arrived at the safe house. Of course, there was plenty to scowl about.
Moving her from the ranch and hiding her wouldn’t put him in the good graces of the Dallas PD. Something that clearly didn’t please him since he’d been the sheriff of Appaloosa Pass for well over a decade. This had also put his brothers in a bind since they, too, were lawmen, and the Dallas PD would be pressing each one of them to tell them where Jericho had taken her.
They wouldn’t tell.
His brothers were loyal to him.
But that didn’t mean this kind of pressure couldn’t hurt their careers. Plus, as long as there was danger of an attack, Jericho’s family would have to continue watching their backs. Because the person after them could use Jericho’s family to get to him.
She definitely wasn’t getting on their good sides like this.
The only upside to this was that for the moment Maddox was safe. And this marriage would ensure his safety even if she was arrested.
Laurel checked her hair in the dresser mirror. Yes, it was silly to be concerned with such things, but it was her wedding day, after all. Her hair was fine, but there was no way she could conceal the worry in her eyes.
Thank goodness Maddox was too young to notice it, and so far he’d acted as if coming to the safe house was an adventure. Laurel could partly thank Iris for that. Jericho’s mother had come with them. Along with Levi. Iris and Levi had spent the past couple of hours entertaining him in the large family room of the rural ranch house.
Jericho, too.
She wasn’t sure why she was surprised by it, but Jericho seemed to slide right into daddy mode. And it wasn’t as if he didn’t have other things to do. He had plenty, what with all the arrangements for the so-called wedding, and for transferring custody of Maddox to him. Jericho had taken care of those things. Had continued to get updates about the investigation and some other cases he was in the middle of.
But it certainly felt as if he’d put Maddox first.
Since her bedroom door wasn’t shut, Laurel had no trouble hearing the footsteps in the hall, and a moment later Jericho appeared in the doorway.
Still scowling.
Like her, he was dressed casually, wearing jeans and a gray button-up shirt.
“How’s Maddox?” she asked.
“Napping on a quilt in the family room.”
Not unusual since Maddox still took two naps a day. At least they’d managed to maintain parts of his routine.
“I think we tired him out,” Jericho added. “Does he always have that much energy?”
“Always. Between him and me, you won’t be getting much sleep for a while.” She winced because that sounded a little more intimate than she’d intended.
Thankfully, Jericho ignored it and glanced in the direction of the family room. No doubt where his mother and Levi still were, before he stepped inside and shut the door.
“The justice of the peace will be here in about an hour,” he explained. “Keep your fingers crossed that the weather cooperates.”
Yes, that. As if they needed more obstacles. The sky was iron-gray, and it was cold. Anything that fell now was more likely to be ice than snow. A white Christmas was rare in this part of the state. However, ice could definitely slow down or even stop the justice of the peace from getting out to the safe house.
“You trust this person?” she asked.
Jericho nodded. “Jax will be driving him out and will make sure they aren’t followed.”
Good. Jericho had already told her that only a handful of people, mostly his family and his deputies, knew about the location of the safe house. It wasn’t one that any other law enforcement agencies used but rather belonged to a friend of one of the deputies.
“I’ve also started the paperwork for you to sign over custody of Maddox to me,” Jericho added.
That was what Laurel wanted. Or rather what she needed to happen. Still, it felt like a punch, and the doubts came. So did the tears that she tried to blink back.
“Your family hates me,” she said.
“Yeah, they do. But that has nothing to do with giving me custody. I’m doing this to stop Herschel, not to claim Maddox.”
Laurel heard the accusation in his voice, and it was there for a good reason. She’d kept Maddox from him. “What I did was wrong. But please believe me, I thought I was doing the right thing.”
Jericho didn’t give her any indication he agreed with that. The pain was still too raw over having been shut out of his son’s life for eighteen months. Maybe it always would be. The current situation certainly wasn’t helping matters.
He glanced at her. Specifically at her tear-filled eyes. He mumbled something she didn’t catch, and as if it was the last thing on earth he wanted to do, Jericho slipped his arm around her. Pulled her to him.
Laurel hated that it was a dose of instant comfort.
Instant attraction, too.
He made a sound deep within his chest, and backed away. Physically, he did, anyway. The attraction was still there. His scowl, too, though he had toned it down at bit. It made her wonder, though, if it’d ever go away.
“You don’t really want to do this with me,” she said.
“What?” No scowl, just some confusion in his eyes. “The marriage? Or...”
“Of course. Oh.” They were talking about the forbidden attraction now. The kind of attraction that would cause a rift the size of Texas in his family. “Nothing will happen. We’ve got this under control.”
Laurel hadn’t realized Jericho would take that as a challenge, and maybe he hadn’t wanted it to be one. He cursed again. Not general cursing, either. It had her name in it. And judging from the profanity, she thought he was about to call off the wedding and storm out of there.
He didn’t.
Still cursing her, and adding some raw words for himself, Jericho took hold of both her arms and snapped her to him. Laurel didn’t even manage a sound of protest before his mouth was on hers.
The feelings came in a flash. The memories and the attraction. Always the attraction. But the pleasure was there, too, simmering right along with other things—including the reminder that this wasn’t a good thing for them to be doing.
Her body didn’t listen.
It never listened when it came to Jericho.
For just a couple of moments, she wanted to get lost in the pleasure. In the kiss. Not hard to do. The heat warmed her from head to toe. His mouth took the heat to a slow burn, and it didn’t take long for Laurel to do something about that. She slipped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer.
He had the beginnings of an erection. She found that out when she brushed against him. That should have been a big red flag to put a stop to this, but her body seemed to think it was a good thing. Jericho still wanted her. Of course, the deep kiss was already proof of that. She got more proof when he dropped some of those kisses on her neck.
And lower.
Mercy, she wanted him to go lower.
More profanity from him. Not exactly traditional foreplay, but then this wasn’t foreplay.
Was it?
She tested that by brushing her sex against his.
All right, it felt like foreplay, which meant it had to end. There
was no way she could have sex—
Jericho groaned and jammed his hand between them to block the foreplay. Not a good idea because it meant his hand was practically between her legs. Exactly where that part of her wanted it to be.
Without warning, Jericho turned her, pressing the front of her against the door. And pressing his body against her back. Definitely not the way to continue the foreplay.
Or so she thought.
It slowed things down. No more frantic kisses. No more testing the limits of his jeans by brushing against his erection.
But the kissing didn’t stop.
With his breath gusting and hot on her skin, Jericho cupped her chin with his left hand and kissed the back of her neck. He kept his other hand on her lower stomach, and he lowered it even more. Touching her until Laurel’s vision blurred and she lost what little breath she had.
She didn’t get a chance to regain her breath because Jericho pressed himself, hard and hot, against her. And just when Laurel was within a heartbeat of an orgasm, he stepped back.
All the way back.
So that no part of him was touching any part of her.
Laurel stayed there a moment. Not wanting to face him. But knowing she couldn’t put that off forever. She eased around, fixing her clothes to avoid eye contact with him. However, Jericho forced that, too, by catching onto her chin again.
“Yeah, we’ve got it all under control,” he snapped. “I don’t think it’s a good sign when we start lying to ourselves.”
No. But then making out with him wasn’t a good sign, either.
She glanced at his zipper area. “Are you going to do something about that?” Good grief. “I mean, you can’t go out there like that.”
“And you can’t go out there like that.” He dropped his gaze to her breasts. Her nipples were still hard and pressed against her top.
Since there wasn’t much else she could do, Laurel laughed. Not actually from humor. More from the absurdity of this. “Guess we’re both wearing our lust on our sleeves.”
“We always have.” He scrubbed his hand over his face. “Look, we can go ahead and finish what we started, but it’d be a mistake. Agreed?”
Harlequin Intrigue, Box Set 1 of 2 Page 8
