This Time You

by T. M. Cromer

  “Ms. Holt? Our officers are approaching your room. They need to know where you are.”

  “Under the bed. I’m under the bed.” Prior to that moment, she hadn’t thought about the loss of her towel. Now, deep embarrassment heated her skin. “Um, I don’t have clothes on. I lost my towel in the struggle.”

  A female officer spoke in a no-nonsense tone. “The closet is clear.”

  “Bathroom clear,” came her male counterpart. “I’ll check the grounds.”

  The moment he left, the female officer encouraged her to come out as the dispatcher ended the call.

  Shaking, Margie crawled from her hiding spot. She held it together as she met the compassionate eyes of the officer. She even managed to drag on a thick robe and belt it, but the second she heard Gabriel yelling her name, she lost her shit.

  Chapter 20

  When the two police cruisers turned onto his street, Gabriel felt his first stirrings of unease. As the sirens grew louder, his stomach knotted. He’d just dialed Margie’s number and was stepping off his porch when a masked figure shot out the rear door of Margaret’s house, headed for the wooded area at the back of her property.

  Convinced something unspeakable had happened, Gabriel flew around the house and through the back door, screaming Margaret’s name. In the blink of an eye, he was facing down the business end of a gun barrel.

  “Don’t move!”

  He couldn’t if he tried.

  “On your knees! Get on your knees!”

  He complied, but apparently not fast enough for the officer, because the other man shoved him down on the tile. The impact to his hip and shoulder was jarring, and he hissed his discomfort.

  “It’s all r-right. I know him.”

  Gabriel shifted his head a fraction and sought Margaret. The relief he felt was so profound, he closed his eyes and thanked a god he never gave much thought to.

  “Ease up. Slowly.”

  The male officer never removed his hard stare from him, and Gabriel tried to be as unthreatening as possible. “I need to know she’s okay,” he croaked.

  Part of the tension eased from the officer as he holstered his weapon and rolled his neck. When the guy nodded and stepped back, Gabriel sprinted to Margaret.

  “Tell me you weren’t hurt.” With great care, he grasped her face between his hands.

  “I’m okay, Gabriel. I promise.”

  His heart only resumed beating when she lifted tearful sapphire eyes to meet his searching gaze and gave him a watery smile. Crushing her close, he looked over his shoulder. “I’m sorry, I should have said this before, but I saw a masked man running out the back. My first concern was for Margaret, or I would’ve given chase.”

  The male deputy jumped to call dispatch, and the female rapid-fired questions at Gabriel. He described the man as best he could, but camouflage was plentiful in these parts, as was the man’s heavyset body type. With the hood, there was no way to detail anything more about him.

  “It was Don,” Margaret said.

  Gabriel separated from her and gently lifted her chin. “Are you sure?”

  The uncertainty and torment in her eyes gouged his insides. After a long minute, she shook her head. “Something about the eyes, but no, I can’t one-hundred percent identify him as the intruder.”

  “Who’s Don?” The female officer pulled out a pen and pad.

  “He’s our neighbor,” Gabriel answered for Margaret. “He started harassing her about the time I moved in next door in October. If you check your records, you’ll see Margaret filed for a restraining order against him after he showed up on New Year’s Eve.”

  The two deputies shared a grimace. They, too, knew the legal document wasn’t worth the paper it was written on if the harasser had it in their head to ignore it.

  “Has he bothered you since then, ma’am?”

  “I can’t say he has except for a phone call or two, asking me why I was doing all this to him.”

  Gabriel’s head whipped around so fast his neck cracked. He stared in open-mouthed shock.

  Color rose in Margaret’s cheeks, and she dropped her eyes to the floor. “I didn’t tell you, because I knew how you’d react. You and Jamie spoke to him, and I thought he got the hint after we canceled the alarm contract and filed the restraining order.”

  Seething inside and attempting to get a grip on his churning emotions, Gabriel nodded without answering.

  “How often does he call you, ma’am?”

  “He only called the two times. Once after he was served the paperwork, and then again a few days ago.”

  Sure his teeth were going to be ground to dust, Gabriel made a conscious effort to unclench his jaw. An image of a guilty-looking Margaret hanging up the phone flashed through his mind. She’d lied to him as little as three days ago.

  Margaret went on to explain the entire situation, from Kaley’s injury to today’s event.

  “Were either of the recent phone calls threatening, or did they give you a bad feeling?” The question came from the other woman, and Gabriel’s gaze snapped to her. The sympathy stamped on her face made him wonder if she hadn’t been harassed herself once or twice. It wasn’t a jump to imagine her shapely body and pleasing features had attracted more than one unsavory character in her lifetime.

  “Not threatening, but definitely a bad vibe,” Margaret confessed.

  Gabriel kept one arm around her as he rubbed the spot between his brows. Now his adrenaline was wearing off, he struggled to contain his temper over her secrecy. Why hadn’t she trusted him with the information? How the hell was he supposed to protect her if she wasn’t honest with him?

  Protect.

  His instinctive response every time he was around her. Yeah, he’d fallen for her so damned fast, and all he wanted to do was bundle her and her family up to take them far away. Somewhere the sleazy Dons of the world couldn’t get to them.

  “I’m sorry, Gabriel.” Her soft voice dragged his mind from the violence he wanted to inflict on her stalker. Regret and apology hung heavily in the air between them. And maybe a little hurt on his part.

  He tried to tell himself he had no right to be salty, but he couldn’t.

  “You have nothing to be sorry for, Margaret. Don is a predator. You’re a victim. But I wish you would’ve told me.” He attempted to smile, but it fell flat. “He’s dangerous, and I don’t understand why you can’t understand that.”

  “I do now.”

  The male officer had been writing an incident report the entire time and finished it as another policeman walked through the door. The newcomer looked familiar, but Gabriel couldn’t place him until Margaret gave the man a welcome smile.

  “Eric!”

  The memory clicked into place. They’d met in his office after Margaret’s sister Sammy had punched Gabriel in the face at their first official meeting to discuss her legal issues. Deputy Eric Daniels had been the first officer to respond.

  “I’d ask how you are, but…” Daniels cast a curious look around. “How’s your sister Sammy?”

  Tears welled in Margaret’s eyes, and Gabriel could have cheerfully maimed the guy. The issue with Sammy was the least of their troubles.

  Daniels picked up on her grief. “Right. I’m sorry.” Turning to his coworkers, he said, “I’ve got a team searching the woods and surrounding area, but nothing so far.”

  “Gabriel, right?” The female deputy paused to listen to her radio. “Did you see which direction he went?”

  “He ran into the woods. There’s a trail behind the house.”

  “The boys play in there,” Margaret clarified. “The underbrush isn’t as thick.”

  At some point during the police interview, Scott brought the children home. After he discovered she was okay, he gave her a sharp, meaningful look. “I need a phone call when you’re through, Margie.”

  The terseness and demand in Scott’s comment grated on Gabriel’s last nerve. “Was he always such an ass, or has he grown nastier with time?”
r />   “I’m not sure. But he really is an ass, isn’t he?” Margaret sighed.

  James showed up a minute or two after the dickweed left, and Gabriel was profoundly grateful her brother had the good sense to usher the children out of the house. Something Scott should’ve done.

  Fifteen minutes later, the house was silent as a tomb.

  “Don’t be mad at me.”

  Gabriel looked up from preparing their coffee.

  Margaret was freshly dressed, standing at the island.

  The fragility surrounding her made him wish he’d have given chase to her attacker and finished this mess for good. Because he didn’t want to show his frustration, he finished fixing their drinks. “I’m not.”

  “You’re frowning and awfully quiet.”

  “It’s been a crazy morning. I tend to retreat into myself to process information. Or so I’ve been told by my family and office staff.” He gave her a half-hearted grin. When she didn’t smile in return, he set down the spoon and moved to stand in front of her. “I’m not mad. I’m confused why you felt you couldn’t confide in me about Don’s phone calls.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe I feared you’d pay him a visit and end up in jail.”

  He grinned, this time with real humor. “I’m not uncivilized, Margaret. Or not completely anyway. Besides, I have a good friend or two who would post bail and get the charges dismissed.”

  Her relieved expression morphed into annoyance, and she crossed to look out the back window. “I suppose I need to call Scott. I already know what he’s going to say.”

  “No need to call right away. Let him stew a bit.” Gabriel approached her and tucked his head next to hers.

  “Good idea.” She smiled and leaned back in the circle of his arms.

  He took pleasure in holding her. This simple touch reassured him she was safe and unharmed like nothing else could.

  “When I saw the cars… I was terrified,” he confessed.

  “Probably not as much as I was when that fucker lunged at me.”

  A shudder wracked her body, and Gabriel hugged her tighter, unable to speak through the thickness of his emotions.

  They remained locked together until a knock on the window interrupted them. Seconds later, Margaret’s children tore into the kitchen and went straight for their mom.

  Gabriel fielded questions as best he could, trying to appear calm and convincing when Aaron asked if the “bad guy” might come back. How did he answer? He had every doubt they’d seen the last of Don.

  The boys refused to be corralled by James, insisting they needed to be with their mom.

  “It’s okay, Jamie. They can stay with us.”

  Gabriel stuck to her side, solicitous and protective, refusing to leave her alone.

  Margie couldn’t deny she was grateful for his care and attentiveness.

  James decided to linger and entertained Scotty and Aaron with a challenging race-car game. Her brother’s presence allowed her to take a much-needed second shower. Scrubbing away the sensation of the intruder’s clawing hands was paramount, and she wouldn’t be satisfied until the ickiness was gone.

  When she stepped from the glass enclosure, Gabriel was waiting with a clean, fluffy towel. No agenda but to lovingly dry her off and cuddle her close. His hands were everywhere at once—smoothing her hair, caressing her jaw, stroking her shoulder—all in an effort to reassure her. Or maybe to reassure himself.

  They climbed on the freshly made bed, and she snuggled into him, savoring the heat radiating from his large frame.

  “What is this between us, Gabriel?”

  He paused mid-stroke of her hip and contorted to see her expression. “What do you mean?”

  “This.” She gestured between them. “This emotion.”

  Why the sudden need to have things defined, was a mystery to her. Perhaps in her mind’s effort to compartmentalize what had happened, she required clarification in every aspect of her life.

  “What do you think it is, Margaret?” When she clammed up, he snorted. “I think it’s pretty clear, don’t you? Love. Undeniable, unbreakable.”

  Yeah, she felt it, too.

  “Gabriel?”

  “Hmm?”

  “Do you think it was Don?” She held her breath, waiting for his answer but expecting an explosion.

  He surprised her with a simple sigh. “I guess the more important question is, do you?”

  A shiver ran the length of her body, and she burrowed closer. “I think maybe it was, but I couldn’t swear it in a court of law.”

  “If it was him, and I’m not saying it wasn’t, things will escalate. It’s also a clear indication he’s unhinged, Margaret.”

  She couldn’t ignore the warning note, nor could she find a reason to defend Don this time. Hell, she didn’t want to. He’d terrified her today. The evil intent that had emanated from him made her jittery still.

  “I’m scared, Gabriel.” Admitting the current situation frightened her wasn’t easy. For too long, she’d had to be the strong one. A single parent—and a mother to boot—couldn’t let on she was scared. Margie had learned long ago to stuff her insecurities and uncertainties down to the point they never saw the light of day. She asked what had been taunting her for the duration of her second shower. “What if he was the one who hurt Kaley last October? What kind of person attacks and terrifies a family this way?”

  “A sick one.” His arms tightened. “I’m scared, too.”

  “Because you can’t predict what he’ll do?”

  “Mostly. And because he pops up every time we let our guard down. How do we protect against that?”

  She’d wondered the same thing. “I still want to see Sammy today.”

  “Do you really want the additional stress?”

  “If it is Don, I’m not letting him stop me from living my life, Gabriel. I can’t. It would be too easy to hide out here. It’s no way to live. Besides, he’s already proven he can get to me here.”

  “Okay. You get dressed, and I’ll let James know where we’re going. Give me fifteen minutes, and I’ll drive you.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  “Yes, I do. For my own peace of mind. We’re also going to talk about heightening security around here. Gordie’s guy will have someone he can recommend, I’m sure.”

  “Are you talking about a bodyguard?” she asked, never having seriously considered hiring protection and unsure if her situation qualified for one. “I can’t afford it.”

  “You let me worry about the particulars.” He placed a hard kiss on her mouth and rose from the bed. After he double-checked the locks on her windows, he said, “See you in fifteen.”

  Chapter 21

  Margie hadn’t know what to expect when she saw Sammy, but an inanimate shell of her former self wasn’t it. Gabriel stood on the far side of the rec room, discussing God knew what with Dr. Montgomery, while Margie tried to draw forth some form of response from her baby sister. As she was ready to give up, Sammy grabbed her arm in a vice-like hold.

  Gabriel straightened from his casual stance against the wall, drawing Stephen’s attention to the two of them.

  Margie gave a small wave of her hand to keep them away.

  “You can’t stop it, sissy.”

  Sweat broke out on Margie’s brow, and her breath came in shallow pants. She was afraid she knew exactly what Sammy referred to, but still, she croaked, “Stop what?”

  Dull eyes lifted to meet her searching gaze. For a second, recognition was present along with another unidentifiable emotion. Sammy shoved to her feet. “Don’t believe him. He’s lying to you.”

  “Who, Sammy? Who’s lying?” Margie took a deep breath in her effort to calm down. “God, Sammy. Tell me how to help you.” If the sound of a heart breaking could be heard, Margie was sure hers would’ve resounded around the cavernous recreational area.

  “Tell them. Convince them. I’d know if he were dead, sissy.”

  “Michael?”

  The momentary hope on S
ammy’s face faded, and she turned her head away. Maybe she recognized the anguish and pity Margie was feeling for her. But what little life she had, left her, and she stared at Margie as if she were a stranger.

  “Michael’s not dead,” Sammy rasped. She shuffled down the hall with Stephen right on her heels.

  Hot tears burned their way down Margie’s cheeks, and she used the sleeve of her thin cardigan to soak up the moisture. Her little sister was seriously ill, and there was no immediate solution to ease her suffering.

  “Are you all right?” Gabriel watched her closely.

  “No,” she confessed. “I guess I thought she…” What? Would take one look at Margie, grab onto their old animosity, and stiffen her spine? At least if Sammy could drum up a bit of fighting spirit, she might stand a chance, but this ghost of her former sister didn’t.

  “She seemed intense there for a bit. What did she say?”

  “Gibberish. Michael was alive and someone was lying to me.”

  Gabriel frowned and cast a troubled glance after Sammy and Stephen. With a deep sigh, he ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t know what to make of her words, but it certainly doesn’t sound good.”

  “I know.”

  “Do you want to try speaking to her again?”

  Margie wrapped her arm through his and rested her head on his shoulder. “I don’t see the point. Not today.”

  “Feel like lunch? We can grab something and take it back for James and the boys.”

  A glance at her watch showed it was indeed lunchtime. “I’m sure he’s ordered pizza for Scotty and Aaron by now. It’s what they do on video-game days.”

  “Fair enough. Grey’s place isn’t far from here if you’d like to get a bite. Or I can bring you straight home.”

  “Lunch at your brother’s restaurant sounds good.”

  Their conversation during the meal was practically non-existent, but Gabriel seemed comfortable with her silence, and Margie didn’t feel the need to open up. Perhaps he was lost in his own thoughts regarding Sammy’s issues, or maybe he had altogether different things running through his mind.