Beneath A Texas Sky (Harlequin Super Romance)

by Winters, Rebecca

  “It was a selfish act on my part, Dana. Now I’ll feel better about you when you’re alone.”

  With the P.I.’s assigned to tail Glen until further notice, Jace was already breathing a lot easier.

  “I’ll feel better when you’re fed.” She flashed him a smile. “Let’s go.”

  Once again they headed for town, but this time there was a difference in her, a subtle breakdown in her defenses. He planned to keep working on that until nothing stood between them.

  When they entered the café, a middle-aged woman Jace hadn’t seen before brought menus to their table.

  “No Millie tonight?” he asked after she’d taken their orders.

  “She only works the day shift.”

  “Do you mind if I ask you a question?”

  “Of course not.”

  “Do you know of a Shelby Norris who lives in Cloud Rim? I tried to deliver a package to that person the other day, but the address was wrong. So far no one’s been able to help me.”

  “I’ve never heard the name and I’ve lived here ten years.”

  “Obviously the sender made a mistake. Thanks for your help.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  When she walked off, Dana said, “I can see where you would have frustration on the job.”

  “It happens.”

  “How long have you worked for IPS?”

  He’d wanted to build trust. Now he was going to have to tell her some lies along with the truth.

  “Since I graduated from college.”

  “Where?”

  “In Austin. That’s where my family lives.”

  “Do you have siblings?”

  He grinned. “Two brothers. Buck is younger by two years. Samson is older by four. They’re both married and have children.”

  “You sound very fond of them.”

  “We’ve always been buddies. I couldn’t have made it without them after my wife died of cancer. Of course, my parents were there for me too.”

  Her eyes glistened over. “Mine came to the prison every week. Since my release, they’ve tried to move mountains for me. What would we do without family?”

  “I’m glad neither of us has ever had to find out.”

  “How did you happen to come here, Jace?”

  “I got restless, so the manager changed my assignment. Since moving to West Texas, I’ve been the relief driver for other regular drivers.”

  “You mean you won’t always be working this route?”

  “No.”

  The way her face fell excited him no end.

  “But I’m here for a while longer,” he assured her as the waitress brought their dinner.

  About nine more days to be exact. If he hadn’t found Gibb’s killers by then, he’d have to return to Austin and work this case on the side. At that point he’d be able to tell Dana the truth of everything. They’d proceed from there.

  By the time they had finished their meal and he’d driven her back to the trailer, it was almost ten o’clock. He’d been enjoying himself so much, he hadn’t been aware of anything else.

  They stood outside where a chorus of crickets serenaded them. “I hate saying good-night, but work comes early in the morning.”

  She nodded. “Thank you for dinner, and for making me feel safe.”

  “It was a pleasure. I’d like to see you again. Do you suppose I could talk the head astronomer around here into letting me look through the telescope tomorrow night?”

  Her lips curved in a beguiling smile. “I think that could be arranged. Why don’t you come by my trailer after work and I’ll fix us tacos before we leave for the observatory. What time are you off?”

  “I’ll be here at five-thirty.”

  “That’ll be perfect.”

  “Before I leave, you’d better bring your gun inside.”

  “Oh! I’d forgotten about it.”

  “I’m afraid I haven’t. In fact, I’d like to take a quick glance around your trailer.”

  “Please do.” She unlocked the door for him.

  While she was getting her gun, Jace walked through the interior. Everything looked fine. With the new lock, Glen wouldn’t have had time to tear the whole thing apart in order to break in.

  “All clear,” he said when she came inside. His gaze darted to the gun. “Where do you keep it at night?”

  “On the floor right by me.”

  “As long as it’s within reach of your hand.”

  The last thing he wanted to do was leave, but he’d made progress tonight and didn’t want to frighten her off by coming on too strong.

  “One more thing. It might be wise if we exchanged cell-phone numbers. I don’t anticipate any problems being here on time tomorrow night, but you never know.”

  “That’s a good idea.”

  After that was accomplished, he said, “Go ahead and lock the door after me.”

  She followed him to the entrance. “Good night, Jace.”

  Her smile was the last thing he saw before she shut the door. He waited for the click before he walked to his car.

  Glancing toward the ranch house, he noticed the truck was back. That meant Glen had cruised by the trailer on his way home. No telling what he’d made of the strange car in her driveway.

  Once Jace had left Cloud Rim, he reached for his cell phone, anxious to hear what the P.I.’s had to report on Glen.

  “Pat? What’s the latest?”

  Jace listened to the rundown.

  “Do they know whose apartment it was?”

  “They said they’d have that information tomorrow. Apparently Glen was all het up about something. Stayed parked outside in his truck until quarter to nine, then took off for Cloud Rim, leaving a bunch of broken beer bottles behind.”

  “That figures,” Jace murmured. “Glen’s angry because he believes this guy is making time with Dana. While the P.I.’s are at it, tell them to get a list of every employee who works at that truck stop. We’ll see if there’s a match anywhere, then run a background check.”

  “They’re working on it now.”

  Jace rubbed his forehead. He could feel a headache coming on. What he needed was a good night’s sleep, but he couldn’t imagine when it was going to happen.

  “Pat?”

  “I’m right here.”

  “I wouldn’t blame you if you told me to pack it in and go back to Austin.”

  “You know something, Jace? During my career I’ve been hung up on a case or two that didn’t have anything but hope going for them. It kind of reminds me of a time when I was a little kid. My mom told me to say my prayers. I told her I didn’t feel like it. She said, ‘Then get down on your knees and stay there until you do!’

  “That was probably the best advice I was ever given, because it always worked. As I see it, you’ve got the right instincts. Just keep on doing what you’re doing until something happens.”

  Jace needed that. “Thanks, Pat. Tomorrow morning I’m driving straight up here to have a little chat with Ralph Mason while his grandson’s at work. Let’s hope he tells me something—anything I can use.”

  “When more news comes in, I’ll let you know.”

  BEFORE SUNLIGHT CREPT through the slats of his bedroom blinds, Glen trained his binoculars on the trailer. The black Sentra he’d seen parked behind her car last night wasn’t there now. Lewis must have borrowed it from someone at work and taken off for Alpine before dawn.

  Glen stood there for another five minutes watching for movement. Sure enough, he saw the Toyota being backed out to the street.

  Satisfied she wouldn’t return until lunch at least, he hid the field glasses in his duffel bag and put some fresh film for the minicamera in his pocket.

  Once he reached the hallway, he said, “I’m leaving for work now, Grandad. There’s a frozen macaroni and cheese for your lunch.”

  “All right. See you later.”

  Slipping out the back door, he got in the truck and headed for her trailer. But when he inserted the key in the
lock of her trailer door, it didn’t move. He jimmied it half a dozen times. Nothing happened.

  Lewis had changed the lock on him and she’d let him! That slimeball had done a lot of things Glen didn’t like, but tampering with Glen’s private property was something else.

  He kicked the door with his boot before stomping back to the truck. In a few minutes he’d reached the grocery store. The owner was getting the cash register ready. He was always there snooping around, watching Glen with his buzzard eyes. Glen hated his guts.

  “Mr. Jorgenson?”

  “You’re late, Glen. The truck is due in shortly and there’ll be a load of boxes to unpack. Before it comes, the produce has to be put out.”

  “Grandad had another accident this morning. He’s been fighting the diapers, but I told him he needed to start wearing them or I’d never be able to get to work on time.

  “If you’d let me go to Alpine as soon as I’ve taken care of the produce, I could be down and back at work by ten o’clock. Just tell the guy unloading the truck to stack the boxes outside the back door. I’ll stay late putting everything away.”

  He studied Glen for a moment before nodding.

  “Thanks, Mr. Jorgenson.”

  Twenty minutes later Glen took off for Alpine, intent on tracking down Lewis to do some real damage. Outside Fort Davis he passed the IPS truck headed for Cloud Rim. It was the same driver who’d been sniffing around Dana the other day.

  If Glen didn’t have business to take care of, he’d turn and follow the IPS guy to find out what he was up to. He’d never seen him in Cloud Rim so early in the day. It figured he’d driven up early to visit Dana when no one else was around.

  He pressed his foot on the accelerator. The sooner he did what he had to do in town, the sooner he could get back to Cloud Rim and give the IPS driver what was coming to him.

  Ten minutes later he reached Alpine.

  As usual there were a bunch of trucks lined up by the diesel pumps at the Jeff Davis Truck Stop. Glen spotted the Harley around the back of the mart. That meant Lewis was here. Before Glen confronted him, he circled the place several times looking for the black Sentra.

  When he couldn’t see it, he pulled up to a gas pump and got out of the truck. He purposely walked past one of the open bays where Lewis was working. Once he’d made eye contact with him, he headed for the men’s john.

  Lewis had warned Glen never to come around his work or his apartment. Any contact would have to happen at the Gray Oak Bar. Since the Christmas holidays, that plan of communication had been working.

  But now that Lewis had gotten a look at those videos of Dana, he’d been hiding from Glen, and Glen knew why.

  He took a leak and washed his hands while he waited for Lewis to make an appearance. After five minutes he realized he’d been stood up. In a frenzied mood, he stormed out of the bathroom.

  Lewis was going to be sorry when he got home from work. He’d discover the lock on his front door had been shot off and the videos were missing. That ought to get his attention in a hurry.

  As Glen rounded the end of his truck, Lewis was there checking the pressure in the left front tire. Without looking at Glen, he said, “You’d better have a good reason for turning up here.”

  “I’ve got a damn good reason and you know it.”

  “How many times have I told you we can’t make a move until my scheduled vacation in August.”

  “I’m talking about Dana.”

  “What about her?”

  “I may have let you see those videos, but she’s mine, Lewis. You don’t have no rights to her.”

  “I never said I did, you dumb ass.”

  “The IPS driver said he gave you a ride to her trailer from Fort Davis on Thursday.”

  Lewis got to his feet, wiping greasy hands on his blue uniform. “Listen to me and listen good. I haven’t stepped foot on Mount Luna in two months. What do you think you’re doing talking to anyone about me?”

  The menace in his voice made Glen a little less sure of himself.

  “I caught the driver hanging around her trailer. I told him she was my girlfriend. That’s when he told me about the passenger who came up to spend the night with her. I asked him who the guy was. He gave me your description.”

  Of course it hadn’t happened like that. But Lewis would never know.

  “Then he was describing someone else. Or else he made it up to give you a hard time because you’re so pitiful.” His eyes narrowed. “You’d better pray it’s one of those reasons. Otherwise it could mean someone’s nosing around.

  “I warned you to leave that bitch alone. Any mistakes at this point and it’s your funeral, not mine.”

  Lewis walked away without looking back.

  Glen wanted to shout that they were both in this together. If he went down, so would Lewis!

  But he held back because he had a feeling Lewis hadn’t lied to him. Something told him it was the IPS driver who’d been having fun at his expense.

  With one thing on his mind, Glen got in the truck and headed for Cloud Rim. A half hour later he reached the town and kept his eyes glued for the IPS van.

  After checking the main streets, he drove down the alley behind the shops on the north side. There it was, parked at the rear of the drugstore.

  As fast as he could, Glen backed out of the alley and parked on the main street far enough away from the grocery store that Mr. Jorgenson couldn’t see him. He reached under the seat for his knife with the ten-inch blade and hid it inside his flannel shirt.

  He walked to the corner, then hurried across the street and back down the alley. The IPS van was still there. Before anyone could see him, he pulled out the knife and hacked viciously at the right rear tire.

  While he was hunkered down at the side of the van, he heard voices. Quickly he hid in the dense shrubbery bordering the alley. Pretty soon the driver came out to load some packages in the van. Then he started up the engine and took off.

  When the van turned onto a side street, Glen retraced his steps to the truck. Once he’d put the knife back under the seat, he reported for work.

  Half the boxes had already been brought inside. They stood in the aisles waiting for Glen to stack the shelves. Old man Jorgenson acknowledged him between customers.

  Glen loaded the dolly and brought the rest of the boxes inside. While he was putting the last row of canned sodas in the fridge next to the checkout counter, he caught sight of the IPS driver who’d come into the grocery store with a package.

  While the driver chatted with Mr. Jorgenson, he nodded to Glen. “How’s it going?”

  They could both go to hell. “Fine.”

  Much as he hated to admit it, he figured Lewis had spoken the truth. The bastard had something going with Dana and enjoyed making a fool of him. He’d probably figured out that Glen had a key to the trailer, so he changed the lock for her.

  Glen didn’t think the driver knew about the slashed tire yet. It wouldn’t start to fall apart until he’d been traveling on it for a while. Here’s hoping it happened while the van was rounding one of those dangerous curves on the mountain road.

  “Both of you have a good day,” the driver said before he walked out of the grocery store.

  “You too,” Glen muttered as he envisioned him plunging to his death.

  CHAPTER SIX

  THE PHONE RANG as Dana was getting out of the shower. Her eyes darted to her watch. It was five-fifteen. She wanted it to be Jace. But if he was calling to cancel…

  Throwing a towel around her, she hurried into the kitchen for the cell phone. There was a block on the caller ID. “Hello?”

  “Dana? It’s Jace.”

  She’d know his deep voice anywhere. “Jace—

  I-is everything all right?”

  “It is now,” came the cryptic response. “When I get there I’ll tell you about my experience. I’m at my apartment in Alpine. As soon as I’ve showered and changed, I’ll be on my way. Forgive me for being late to dinner?”

/>   “Of course.” She went limp with relief.

  “I’m glad you said that. You have no idea how much I’ve been looking forward to a home-cooked meal.”

  “It’s just tacos and fruit salad.”

  “Maybe after we’ve eaten we could take in a movie. I noticed the latest James Bond is playing.

  Have you seen it?”

  “No. I was in prison at the time it was released,” she explained in a quiet voice.

  “It’s actually a pretty good film. Would you like to see it before we head for the observatory?”

  “If you don’t mind watching it again, I’d love it.”

  “Good. I’ll hurry.” He sounded excited.

  After they clicked off, she moved to the bedroom to get dressed. Fortunately she’d thought to bring her black sweater and tailored gray wool pants from California. They looked smart without being too dressy.

  She wore her hair long from a side part and applied a medium shade of pink frost lipstick. Her eyes and eyebrows didn’t need makeup. A touch of lemon splash and she was ready.

  When she looked in the full-length mirror behind her bedroom door, she almost didn’t recognize herself. It had been a long time since she’d dressed for a man. For a moment her mind slipped back inside Fielding prison where she’d believed she would die without ever tasting freedom again.

  You’re free now, Dana. Do as the psychiatrist said and put the past behind you. It’s over. Have the courage to live the rest of your life. Don’t let the pain of that hellish period taint your relationship with Jace. If he thinks you can’t get over it, he’ll lose interest.

  Determined that this evening would be perfect, she walked out to the kitchen to make final preparations. As she started frying the tortillas, she heard a knock on the door.

  “Dana? It’s Jace!”

  “Coming!”

  She wiped her hands on some paper toweling before dashing to the door to open it. Though he’d arrived with flowers in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other, it was Jace himself who rocked her foundation to its core.

  The black trousers matched with a silky gray sweater molded his powerful physique and underlined his dark curly hair and eyes. Her heart raced as she felt his admiring gaze wander over her with the same thorough scrutiny.