And yet, somehow, she stood there, just stood there, and did nothing as Ted came for her.
With his fine Italian shoes light and quick on the showroom’s wood floor, he walked right up to the counter, stepped around it, and wrapped his perfectly manicured hand around her upper arm. “You’re beautiful, my darling, as always. But you look tired.”
The faint smell of the signature cologne he always had specially made just for him came to her. She knew she would gag on that smell. But she swallowed, hard, and glanced down at his fingers encircling her arm. “Where’s your wedding ring, Ted?”
He actually chuckled. “Larissa and I are through.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that.”
“No, you’re not. You knew all along she wouldn’t last. A diversion, that’s all she was supposed to be. I work very hard, and you know that I do, to make a fine life for us. I deserve a diversion now and then. But then you left me and I tried to distract myself, tried to convince myself that any beautiful, reasonably intelligent woman would do. I thought I could forget you. I was wrong. You are mine, and you are perfect for me and I’m ready now to give you another chance.”
She simply could not let that pass. “But I’m not yours.”
“Yes, you are.”
“We’re divorced, Ted, in case you’ve forgotten. And the last thing I want is another chance with you.”
His eyes shifted, away—and then back. Other than that, he pretended he hadn’t heard her. “Let’s sit down, shall we?”
“I don’t want to sit down with you. Let go of my arm, Ted. Leave. Now. Please.”
Again, he ignored her. “This way.” He started walking, pulling her with him, into the hallway that led to the back door, pausing at the open arch on the left. “This will do.” He led her into her studio and over to her worktable, where he pulled out a chair and pushed her down in it. Then he grabbed another chair a few feet away and yanked it over next her. He sat down, too. And then he said, “I love you, my darling. And I’ve come to take you home. I know that I hurt you and I swear to you that I will never do that again.” He reached out. She steeled herself not to cringe away as he traced the line of her hair along her cheek and down her neck.
Chloe’s skin crawled. She swallowed bile again and stared at her worktable, taking a strange kind of comfort from the tools she used every day: the stacks of thick fabric sample books, the color wheels, the sketch tablets, the loose swatches of fabric, the scissors, drafting compass, tape measure, shape templates, colored pencils and fine-point pens...
Ted kept on talking. “I called you three times yesterday. You never picked up. And then I thought, well, that’s all right. It’s better that we talk face-to-face anyway. Better that we cut to the chase and you can just come home with me. And it is better. It’s wonderful to see you, my darling. And now I just want you to look at me. I want you to tell me the truth, that you’ve missed me and you’re so glad to see me. I want to work this out with you—and yes, I know. My temper has been a problem. But I’ll return to counseling. Everyone needs a little extra help getting things right now and then.”
She tried again. “Ted. I’m in love with my fiancé and I don’t want anything to do with you.”
“You don’t mean that.”
“Yes, Ted, I do.”
“Look at me.” He grabbed her chin in a punishing grip and yanked her head around to face him.
“That’s going to leave a bruise.” She glared at him.
“Darling, I’m so sorry.”
“I don’t believe you.” She realized she was getting less numb and more angry. Angry was good. At least her knees weren’t shaking anymore.
“You know, Chloe. You really shouldn’t bait me. If you would only treat me with the love and respect I deserve, our lives would go so smoothly, everything just so, moving along without a hitch.”
She shot to her feet.
But before she could dodge around him and make for the door, he grabbed her hand. “Sit down.” And he yanked her back into the chair so hard that her teeth clacked together. “What’s this?” He still had her hand. Her left hand.
“It’s my engagement ring. Remember? I’m engaged.” She tried to pull away.
He held on. His face was getting that look, his eyes distant, his skin flushing mottled red. “Take it off.”
“You’ll have to let go for me to do that.”
But he didn’t let go. “Already, you are out of hand. You are pushing me too far. You know that you are.”
“Let go of me, Ted.”
“Don’t you ever try to tell me what to do.”
“Let me go,” she said softly. And then she said it again, a little louder, “Let me go.” And then she couldn’t stop saying it, louder and louder, “Let me go, let me go, let me go, let me go...”
And right then, as she repeated that same phrase like a mantra, for the seventh time, he drew back his fist and he punched her in the jaw.
Chloe saw stars as blood filled her mouth. It hurt—and more than just the fist to the face. She’d bitten her own tongue, bitten it good and hard.
Everything got very clear then. Crystal clear.
She needed to defend herself and she needed to do it now.
Chloe let out a scream. It was a wild cry, feral. Furious. Ted stared at her, bug-eyed in surprise. His perfect darling Chloe would never let out such an animal sound—a tasteful little whimper, maybe. But a full-out, full-throated scream of rage? No way.
However, she was no longer his perfect Chloe. She belonged to herself now—to herself, and to Quinn. She needed to end all of Ted’s false assumptions and she needed to end them forever and always.
So she reached over, grabbed one of the heavy sample books in both hands, drew it back and whacked that sucker right across the side of his big, fat head. His chair scraped the floor as the sample book connected. He let out a grunt of surprise.
And that was all he got a chance to do.
Because she went kind of crazy. She lifted that sample book and she hit him again. His chair went over and he was on the floor. She jumped on top of him and hit him some more.
By then he was making these ridiculous little whining sounds, his arms drawn up in front of his face. He was calling her name, “Chloe, stop! Chloe, don’t!” as she flailed at him with the sample book.
From out in the showroom came pounding and shouts, followed by the sound of glass shattering. And then, wonder of wonders, Quinn’s voice: “Chloe!”
“Back here!” She climbed off Ted and stood, panting, above him, still holding the sample book threateningly over her head, as Quinn came flying into the room.
“Angel, my God...”
About then, she noticed there was blood all down the front of her white silk shirt. She explained mildly, her tongue already swelling in her mouth, “He hit me and I bit my tongue.”
On the floor, Ted was curled in the fetal position. “Help me,” he groaned. “Get that crazy bitch away from me!”
Quinn said, “This must be Ted.” Chloe dropped the sample book on the table, pressed her suddenly quivering lips together and nodded. He asked, “How bad are you hurt?”
“I’m okay, really. It lookth worth than it ith.”
Ted rolled and started to get up.
Quinn said flatly, “Stay on the floor, Ted.”
With a moan, Ted went over on his side and curled up in a ball. He whined, “You people are insane.”
“Just shut up and don’t move.”
Surprisingly, Ted took Quinn’s advice.
Chloe zipped past Ted and got to Quinn. He hooked his big arm around her, pressed his warm lips to her forehead and whispered, “I think he’s got your message now. You did good, angel. Real good.”
She snuggled in close to him. “How did you know to come here?”
“Nell called me. Told me you’d been cryin’ on the phone and I’d better get the hell over here and not leave until all your doubts were dealt with and all your tears were dried.”
/> “I love Nell.”
“Yeah, well, for once I guess I won’t be pissed at her for sticking her nose in.” He kissed her forehead again. “You’re okay, you’re sure?”
“I am. I really am.”
“Good, then. Go call 911. Use the phone in the showroom.”
It occurred to Chloe that it might not be such a great idea to leave Ted alone with Quinn. “Pleathe don’t hit Ted,” she whispered. “He’th not worth it.”
“I’m not going to hit him. I’m only going to do what I’ve always wanted to do and that is to have a little talk with him.”
“Quinn, I really don’t think—”
“Angel.”
“What?”
“Go on. Make that call.”
* * *
What Quinn said to Ted, only Ted ever knew.
Whatever it was, when Chloe reentered the back studio room after calling the police station, Ted was sitting in the chair again. He had nicks and scratches all over his face, and his right eye was swiftly turning a deep magenta. His tie was askew, his fine suit wrinkled and his hair a mess. He told her quietly that he’d been way out of line and he was very sorry and he would not be bothering her anymore.
She believed him. Now that he knew she would fight him, he wouldn’t get near her again. She really was tempted to leave it at that. Pressing charges could be messy. He’d probably string the process out forever. Who knew what tricks he might try?
But she kind of wondered if he’d ever hit Larissa. And if, for the third time, she just let it go, would he only find another woman to bully and hurt?
So when Riley Grimes showed up, she told him and his partner exactly what had happened. By then, she had a doozey of a bruise swelling at her jaw. The blood down the front of her made its own statement about what Ted had done to her. Her tongue thick and slow and very painful, she told them exactly what had happened and said that yes, she did intend to press charges. So Riley and the other officer took Ted away in handcuffs. They’d called an ambulance for her. Quinn had smashed the glass in the front door, so he got hold of his brother Carter to come over and secure the showroom entrance. Then he went with Chloe in the ambulance to the hospital southeast of town.
At Justice Creek General, they took pictures of her injuries and an X-ray of her jaw. Nothing was broken. Her tongue was a mess. They advised saltwater rinses, ice packs and aloe vera gel. The good news? The bleeding had stopped on its own. The doctor said that if she still had pain in a week, she should see her family practitioner.
Quinn hovered close, and Chloe loved that he did. She knew she was going to be fine now. Yes, her face ached, her tongue throbbed and she was talking with a lisp. But all of that was temporary. Down inside, in her heart and soul, she’d never felt better.
She’d never felt so free.
* * *
Quinn couldn’t wait to get her home to Annabelle and Manny, though he did kind of worry that she might give him grief about it, might demand that he take her to her house.
But no. She just smiled with that beautiful, battered face of hers and said, “Yeth. Take me home to Annabelle and Manny. Thath where I want to be.”
At home, Quinn told Manny what had happened. Manny settled Chloe on the sofa with a mountain of pillows at her back and a light blanket over her knees. He brought her an ice pack and a saltwater rinse for her poor, aching tongue.
When Annabelle came bouncing down the stairs, they told her that Chloe had been hurt and she needed them to take care of her. Annabelle demanded to be allowed to kiss the boo-boo on Chloe’s jaw and make it all better. She insisted that Chloe have her one-eyed teddy bear. “Hug him real hard, Chloe. Then you will feel much better.”
Quinn called Nell to let her know what had gone down. Nell turned right around and called everybody. Within half an hour, family members started arriving. By late afternoon, Chloe had had visits from all of Quinn’s sisters and three of his brothers.
Nell even called Chloe’s parents. Linda and Doug Winchester rushed right over. Chloe took it well, Quinn thought. She let her dad hug her and then her mom, too. Linda cried. She pulled Quinn aside and said she needed to tell him personally how very wrong she’d been. She hoped, she said, that someday, somehow, she would find a way to make things right with her daughter and with him.
He gave her a hug and told her there was nothing to make right. “We’re family now, Linda. Everything’s going to be just fine.”
That caused Linda to cry even harder.
Then Doug clapped him on the back. “I know I don’t have to say it. But I’m a father and that means I’ll say it anyway. Take good care of my little girl. She hasn’t had it easy.”
“I will, sir,” Quinn promised. “You can count on me.”
Then Doug took Linda home.
Chloe made a list of what she needed from her house. Quinn went over there and gathered everything up.
And that night, for the first time, he had her in his bed where he’d always wanted her. He brought her aspirin for the pain and he wrapped himself around her and he held her all night long.
* * *
Chloe never went back to the house across the street. Slowly, she and Quinn and Manny moved everything she needed to the log house.
Within a week, her tongue was fully functional again. On a Thursday night late, she and Quinn sat out under the stars and said the things they’d never managed to say before.
She told him what was in her heart. “I love you, Quinn. So, so much.”
And he said, “I love you, angel. I’ve been wanting to tell you forever. But somehow the time never seemed right.”
“I think maybe you sensed that I wasn’t ready yet. To say it. To hear it. But I’m ready now.”
“Yeah,” he said gruffly. “I see that. I feel that. I love you, Chloe Winchester.” He stared deep in her eyes.
She gazed back at him and knew she’d gotten it exactly right the second time around. “I went all wrong there, for so many years.”
“No.”
“Yes. I went wrong, took the wrong path. But I’m back where I belong now. I think deep down I always knew you were the one for me, from way back when we were little, from when you used to put those Hershey’s Kisses on Miss Oakleaf’s desk.”
He groaned. “You remember that? Nobody remembers that.”
“Well, yeah. We all kind of do.” She got up from her deck chair—but only so that she could sit on his lap. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she whispered in his ear, “It was so sweet and so romantic, you leaving chocolate for Miss Oakleaf. Everybody said so.”
“You think so, huh?”
“I do, yes.”
“I love you, Chloe.” He nuzzled her hair. “I love you. Now that I’m finally saying it, I just can’t say it enough.”
“Good. Because I love you, too.”
“Vegas?” he asked, his mouth so warm and soft against her cheek.
She turned her head—just enough so that their lips could meet. They shared a long, sweet kiss. And then she answered him, “Vegas. Definitely. Name the day.”
* * *
Five weeks later, they moved back to the fully renovated house down the hill. Annabelle put on her fairy princess costume and danced around her new princess bedroom, scattering fairy dust as she went. That same day, Manny presented her with a tiny, long-haired, big-eared Chihuahua puppy, which she promptly named Mouse.
And a week after that, Quinn and Chloe were married in the wedding chapel at High Sierra Resort and Casino in Las Vegas on the Sunset Strip. Annabelle was the flower girl. Manny stood up as best man. Quinn’s sisters and Tracy Winham and Rory Bravo-Calabretti were all bridesmaids, with Nell the maid of honor.
Doug Winchester proudly gave his only daughter away for the second time. “This is the one that counts,” he whispered to Chloe as he walked her down the aisle to Quinn. Linda Winchester cried all through the ceremony—tears of joy, she said.
For Chloe, it was the happiest day of her life.
So
far.
* * * * *
Don’t miss CARTER BRAVO’S CHRISTMAS BRIDE,
the next installment in Christine Rimmer’s
THE BRAVOS OF JUSTICE CREEK miniseries,
coming soon, only from Harlequin Special Edition.
Keep reading for an excerpt from EVERGREEN SPRINGS by RaeAnne Thayne.
SPECIAL EXCERPT FROM
This Christmas, Cole Barrett isn’t expecting
a miracle. He’s just trying to help his children
grieve the loss of their mother. But when beautiful
Devin Shaw bursts into their world, will Cole find
a second-chance family under the mistletoe?
Read on for a sneak preview of
EVERGREEN SPRINGS,
the latest book in New York Times bestselling author RaeAnne Thayne’s stunning series
HAVEN POINT.
http://www.harlequin.com/harlequinexperience
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Evergreen Springs
RaeAnne Thayne
DEVIN CONCENTRATED, NIBBLING on her bottom lip as she tried to work the needles that seemed unwieldy and awkward, no matter how she tried.
After her third time tangling the yarn into a total mess, Devin sighed and admitted defeat. Again. Every time they happened to be assigned to work together, Greta took a moment to try teaching her to knit. And every time, she came up short.
The Good Girl's Second Chance (The Bravos Of Justice Creek 2) Page 18
