A Thanksgiving To Remember

by Margaret Watson

  The single shot echoed in the darkness, and Tom felt Wade fall backwards. He crumbled to the ground, and Tom grabbed his flashlight and shone it down on him.

  Blood oozed from a wound in his chest, and Wade lay very still. Tom put his fingers on Wade’s neck. There was no pulse. Wade was dead.

  Tom slowly straightened, looking down at Wade’s body. He felt a brief flicker of grief at the waste of a life, but he knew he’d had no choice. If he hadn’t shot Wade, he would have been killed himself. Along with Tina.

  Holstering his gun, he turned and ran into the cabin, calling Tina’s name. Tina had managed to sit up on the bed, and she was watching the door, fear in her eyes. When she heard him, she slumped back against the wall.

  Tom eased the tape away from her mouth. “Are you all right?” he asked, as he fumbled with the string that bound her hands.

  “I’m fine. Just a little sore.” She rubbed at her wrists, and he could see angry red lines circling them.

  “You’re safe now. Wade’s dead.”

  Her eyes filled with tears. “I heard the gunshot. I knew you were out there because I recognized your voice, and I was so afraid that he’d shot you.”

  Tom tossed aside the rope that had been binding her legs and pulled her into his arms. “You’re not going to get rid of me that easily.”

  She clung to him, holding him tightly. He could feel her shaking, and he sat down on the cot and pulled her into his lap. “It’s over, sweetheart. And I’m so sorry that you had to suffer like this.”

  “It’s not your fault,” she said into his shoulder. “Wade is the one to blame.”

  “I should have made sure you had police protection,” he said, his voice grim. “And believe me, I won’t forgive myself for a long time.”

  At that she lifted her head. “Don’t be stupid, Tom. It wasn’t your fault that Wade kidnapped me.”

  She was looking steadily at him, and even in the darkness he could see the conviction in her eyes. “You’re way too generous,” he muttered, and then he found her mouth with his. He had to kiss her, taste her, assure himself that she was alive and unharmed.

  She melted into his kiss, straining to move closer to him. But before he could lose control, he eased himself away from her. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

  She nodded. “I’m fine now.”

  “What happened? How did he get to you?”

  “He cut out a pane of glass in one of the panels by the front door, then reached inside and let himself in. I was upstairs and I never heard him. I walked down into the kitchen and there he was. He had a gun.”

  “I knew something was wrong when I called. I could hear it in your voice.”

  “I was trying so hard to sound normal. He wanted you to come back to the house, and I didn’t want you to walk into a trap.”

  “Better that than the thirty-six hours you’ve endured,” he said grimly. He couldn’t stop himself from touching her face again, just to assure himself that she was all right.

  He saw her wistful smile in the darkness. “It sounds like we were both trying to protect each other.”

  “It’s my job to protect you.” Emotion made his voice gruff. “Believe me, this won’t happen again.”

  Tina eased away from him and stood up. “Shouldn’t you call the Grand Springs police and tell them what happened?”

  Tom frowned at her, wondering at her sudden coolness. But she was right. Stone Richardson was waiting to hear from him. “I guess I should.”

  Tina watched as Tom took his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed. After a moment, he began speaking in a low voice. She looked around the cabin, now nothing more than dark shadowy shapes, and shuddered. It would be a long time before she forgot what had happened here.

  But Tom had rescued her. She knew full well that Randy Wade hadn’t intended to let her go, or Tom, either. He’d bragged to her about what he planned for the exchange. He’d intended to ambush Tom, killing the only witness to his murder of the Steeles. He hadn’t told her so, but she knew he would then kill her, too. Wade was a desperate man and couldn’t afford to leave any witnesses.

  Tom snapped the phone closed and turned back to her. “Stone and Bob Jones will be here in a few minutes. They’re on the old road I found, just around the curve.”

  “What will happen now?” she asked.

  Tom shrugged. “There will be lots of questions to answer and lots of paperwork to do. It’ll take a while to wrap up this case, since there were several crimes involved. We’ll have to check the gun we found in Wade’s last cabin and make sure it was the one that he used to kill the Steeles and the two men he killed in the bank robbery. And I’ll have to explain why I shot him.”

  “But if you hadn’t, he would have killed both of us!”

  Tom reached out and swept her into his arms again. “I know, sweetheart. It’s just a formality. But the Bureau requires it every time an agent uses deadly force.”

  She soaked up the comfort from Tom’s embrace, unwilling to let him go. She was going to have to do that soon enough.

  After a moment, Tom stepped away from her. “I hear Richardson and Jones. Do you want me to have an officer take you home? I might be here for a while.”

  His words made an arrow of pain quiver in her heart. “Whatever is easiest for you.”

  He looked outside. “You probably want to go home. Let me have someone take you there. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  “Take your time,” she said, feeling hot tears pool in her eyes. “I understand.”

  He kissed her once more, then led her out the door into the now completely dark meadow. There were two shadowy figures, holding flashlights, walking toward them.

  “You okay, Ms. White?”

  Tina recognized Bob Jones’s voice. “I’m fine,” she said.

  “Is there a uniformed officer on the road?” Tom asked. “I’d like someone to take Tina home.”

  “I’ll get someone up here right away.” Stone spoke into his radio, and all Tina could hear was a crackle of static. “It’ll be just a moment,” he said to her. “I know you’ve had a rough time, but we’ll need to ask you some questions. Can we come by in the morning?”

  “Of course,” she replied. She turned to look for Tom, but he was standing with Bob Jones next to the cabin, deep in conversation. This was his job, she reminded herself. He didn’t have time to hold her hand.

  She understood that, but the distance between them was still painful. His case was over, and Tom would be leaving Grand Springs. Oh, he would be around for a few more days, tying up loose ends and making sure everything was taken care of. But his job here was finished, and he would be returning to his home.

  And she didn’t even know where that was, she thought with a pang. His family lived in Chicago, but she didn’t know where he was based. It was just one of the many things she didn’t know about him.

  Her legs felt leaden as she walked toward the road. Tom was right. She needed a hot bath and about twenty-four hours of sleep. She stumbled once and caught herself just before she fell.

  “Tina, wait,” she heard Tom call behind her, “someone will walk you down to the car.”

  “I’m fine,” she called back over her shoulder, forcing herself to smile. “You’re all busy, and the car will be here in a moment.”

  She felt Tom watching her but didn’t turn around. He had work to do. And she needed to get used to the fact that he wasn’t going to be around.

  It was late the next morning when she heard a key turn in the front door lock. She’d been sitting in the kitchen, drinking coffee and staring out the window, and she stood up and walked into the living room.

  “Hi, Tina,” Tom said quietly. He came over and wrapped his arms around her, giving her a kiss. “I’m sorry I didn’t call last night. How are you feeling?”

  “Pretty good,” she said, drinking in the sight of him. His hair was disheveled and there were lines of exhaustion on his face. But his eyes were clear, and there wasn’t a
hint of pain in them. “How about you?”

  “I’m fine.” He kissed her again. “I don’t suppose there’s any food in there?”

  “There is still some turkey left. How about a sandwich?”

  “Sounds wonderful.”

  She poured him a cup of coffee, and then made him a sandwich. It was a good excuse to not look at him. She was afraid he would see the sorrow in her eyes, and she didn’t want anything to mar their last days together.

  “What’s wrong, Tina?” he asked softly.

  Startled, she spun around to face him. “What do you mean?”

  “You look sad. And you looked that way last night, too.” He got up from his chair and came over to stand next to her, taking her hand. “It was the violence, wasn’t it?”

  “What do you mean?” She was genuinely confused.

  “Wade kidnapped you at gunpoint, he tied you up and threatened to kill you. It must have brought back awful memories of your life with your father.”

  “Oh, Tom.” She melted inside and gave him an impulsive hug. “Thank you for worrying about me. But I didn’t think about my father at all. I was scared, but no more than anyone else would have been.”

  She tried to ease herself away from his embrace, but he tightened his arms around her. “What is it, then? Are you upset that I couldn’t come home with you last night?”

  “Of course not! That’s your job. I knew you had to stay.”

  “Then what is it?” He touched her mouth with his finger when she would have spoken. “And don’t tell me nothing is wrong. I know you better than that. I thought we promised to be honest with one another.”

  She didn’t want to tell him why she was sad, but he was right. They had promised to be honest with each other. She could give him that, at least.

  “Your case is finished,” she said in a low voice. “You don’t belong in Grand Springs. I know you’re going to be leaving. I’m not looking forward to that.”

  She lifted her head and met his gaze, seeing astonishment in his brown eyes. “You thought I was going to just walk away from Grand Springs and you?”

  She shrugged. “You can’t stay here. As far as I know, there isn’t an FBI office in Grand Springs.”

  His eyes softened as he watched her. “I keep forgetting that this is all new to you,” he murmured. Then he grinned, and she saw a devilish sparkle in his eyes. “You’re right, I am leaving town. I’ve been undercover on this case for several months. I have some time off, and I want to see my family and let them know I’m all right.”

  He bent and kissed her thoroughly, and she felt passion stirring in him. In spite of herself, she felt an answering leap inside of her. Then he lifted his head.

  “I don’t want to visit my family by myself, Tina. Will you come with me? I want to introduce you to my parents—as my bride.”

  “What?” She wasn’t sure she had heard him correctly.

  “I love you, Tina. Will you marry me?”

  She felt the tears prickle in her eyes. “Of course, I’ll marry you,” she whispered. “I love you, too, Tom.”

  Then she couldn’t say anything more. He covered her mouth with his and she melted against him. When he lifted his head, he was breathing deeply and his eyes glittered with need. Without a word, he swept her into his arms and carried her upstairs to her bed.

  They fell together on the bed, trying to pull off their clothes without letting go of each other. He kissed her with a hunger that she recognized, because it consumed her, too. Their hands flew over each other, touching, caressing, holding. She couldn’t get enough of him. And when he plunged into her, she rose to meet him, wrapping her arms and legs around him and whispering his name.

  They lay tangled together on the bed for a long time. When he wanted to roll to the side, she held him tightly against her, relishing the weight of his body on hers. Finally, when her heart rate had slowed to normal and her body was limp and sated, she turned her head and kissed him once more.

  He rolled to the side and gathered her close. Pressing his mouth to her temple, he murmured, “I want to get married right away.”

  “Me, too,” she said without opening her eyes.

  He eased away from her, then she felt him watching her.

  “Are you sure?” he asked, raising himself on one elbow. “I don’t want to rush you into anything.”

  “You don’t?” She trailed a finger down his ribs, then grinned up at him. “That wasn’t the impression I had a few minutes ago.”

  “A few minutes ago, I would have died if we hadn’t made love,” he said, grinning back. “That was an emergency situation.”

  “I see.” She stretched and smiled at him, happier than she’d ever been in her life. “I can see that the concept of emergencies is going to take on a whole new meaning in my life.”

  “You’d better believe it.” He pounced on her again, kissing her until she felt desire stirring again. Then he sat up, pulling her with him.

  “I’m serious, Tina. I want to marry you as soon as possible. But you may want to have a fancy wedding with all of the trimmings.”

  “That’s not important to me,” she said. “I don’t care about putting on a big show. I just want us to be together.”

  He kissed her again. “That’s all that matters to me. I’m based in the Bureau’s St. Louis office right now. Do you want me to apply for a transfer to the Denver office? It will be a long commute between Denver and Grand Springs, but I’m willing to do it.”

  Her heart melted all over again. “That’s not necessary, Tom. I’m sure there are hospitals in St. Louis that need nurses. I’ll find a job there.”

  “I know how attached you are to this house, and how much it means to you. You’ve lived in Grand Springs all your life. It doesn’t seem fair to ask you to give this up.”

  “We’ll keep the house and visit Grand Springs regularly. But my life is with you, not in this house. You are what makes me happy. I’ll miss my friends in Grand Springs, but it’s not as if I’ll never see them again.”

  Tom took her hands and bent forward to kiss her. “Then let’s get married right away. We’ve already started a tradition of spending the holidays together. Let’s continue it as husband and wife.” His eyes gleamed at her. “And think about the traditions we could start under the Christmas tree.”

  “I can hardly wait.”

  “Then let’s start right now.” Tom wrapped her in his arms, and Tina saw the future unfolding in front of her, bright and full of happiness.

  Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Margaret Watson for her contribution to the 36 Hours series.

  ISBN: 978-1-4592-4103-9

  A THANKSGIVING TO REMEMBER

  Copyright © 2000 by Harlequin Books S.A.

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  *Cameron, Utah

 

 

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