But he could no longer hear her.
Royce tried to assure himself that’s because the exam had gone well and there was nothing else for Dr. Jenkins to say to her. However, his thoughts were moving in a different direction, too. That something was wrong. That she’d had an injury that he hadn’t noticed on the way to the hospital. There’d been plenty of chances for that to happen.
“Can you hurry?” he asked the nurse, Alice Wilkins. It wasn’t his first request but his third, and he made it clear he would keep asking until she’d finished.
Maybe that’s why she made a sound of disapproval. “Hold your horses. I’m working as fast as I can.” She added another stitch. “You were lucky.”
Yeah, the doctor and X-ray tech had already said the same thing. The shot to his shoulder had been a through and through. But Royce didn’t feel lucky, and he wouldn’t until he’d made sure that Sophie was okay.
It seemed to take hours, but the nurse finally finished with his shoulder and started in on the cuts on his head. Those would have to wait. He’d used up all the patience he had, and Royce eased the nurse aside, got off the table and headed for the door.
“I’ll be back,” he told her, but that might not be the truth. He’d be back only after he saw Sophie.
Royce bolted out the door and nearly ran smack-dab into his brother. “Whoa,” Jake said, backing up. “In a hurry?”
“Where’s Sophie?” But Royce didn’t wait for an answer. He went to the examining room and threw open the door.
Empty.
“She went to the bathroom,” Jake supplied. “She’s all right.”
Yeah, and Royce might believe that once he saw her for himself.
Jake caught on to him when Royce started down the hall. “Dr. Amos told Sophie and me that you were okay, that your injuries weren’t too bad and you were just getting stitched up.”
“They aren’t bad,” Royce agreed. “What did he say about Sophie’s injuries?”
“They’re minor. Just a few cuts and bruises. She was a little queasy, though, and that’s why she wanted to go to the bathroom.”
Hell. Queasy didn’t sound good for several reasons. Maybe the pregnancy. Maybe an injury the doctor hadn’t detected. Even if it was simply because she was upset—and she had a right to feel that—Royce didn’t want her going through that alone.
“Hey.” Jake stopped him again when he started to leave. “What’s going on? Did something happen that you didn’t tell me about?”
Nothing that had to do with the investigation. Royce had filled in his brother when Jake had arrived at the vacant farm and driven them back to Mustang Ridge. In turn, Jake had taken over tying up a few loose ends, like charging the surviving gunmen and starting the paperwork.
“I’m not blind,” Jake said, keeping a grip on Royce’s arm. “I saw the way you were holding Sophie in the truck.”
He’d done some holding all right. In fact, Royce hadn’t wanted to let go of her. It might take a lifetime or two for him to forget the bullets flying past her and the way the SOB Lott had punched her in the face.
“You care for her,” Jake added.
“I do,” Royce admitted. And it was a relief to say it aloud.
However, his relief was cut short when he heard the hurried footsteps and he saw Stanton making a beeline toward them.
“I heard,” Stanton said. “Is Sophie hurt?”
Royce was about to say he didn’t know and head out to find her, but he saw the movement at the end of the hall and spotted her coming out of the bathroom.
His breath of relief was a lot louder than he’d anticipated, and it caused both Jake and Stanton to give him a funny look. Royce ignored them and went to her. Sophie moved quickly toward him, too, and they pulled each other into their arms.
She held him gently, mindful of his wounded shoulder, but Royce brought her even closer to him.
“The doctor said you’d be okay.” Her voice was all breath, and she was trembling. She held him so gently that he figured she was terrified of hurting him.
But nothing hurt now.
Well, except for seeing those bruises on her face and chin. Royce wished he could give Lott another beating for those. It took a special kind of scum to hit a woman.
He pushed her hair from her face so he could examine every nick, every scrape, and yeah, those god-awful bruises.
“Nothing serious,” she assured him but frowned when her attention landed on his bandaged shoulder. “You shouldn’t be on your feet.”
Royce ignored that. “Jake said you were queasy.”
She nodded, glanced around, nodded again and looked as if she might say something. And then Sophie’s attention landed on her brother who was making his way toward them.
“Stanton.” She eased away from Royce and hugged him.
“I heard what Lott did to you.” Stanton cursed. “I’m glad the bastard’s dead.” He lifted her chin, examining the bruises, and had a reaction similar to Royce’s.
Even though Royce still wasn’t happy about Stanton drugging them, it seemed as if he really did care for Sophie. And that meant Royce would figure out a way to forgive him. Sophie could no doubt do the same since he was family and she loved him.
“Royce is the one who’s hurt,” she said, stepping away from her brother. “He saved my life. Several times,” she added, her voice breaking now.
Royce pulled her back in his arms. “She saved mine a couple of times, too.”
“I’m thankful for that,” Stanton said, and he glanced back at Jake. “Your brother doesn’t know yet, but our father turned himself in for the illegal land deal.” He paused, met Sophie’s gaze. “He’ll no doubt have to do some jail time.”
Royce braced himself for her reaction. She didn’t burst into tears, maybe because of the spent adrenaline and bone-weary fatigue but she gave a heavy sigh and ran her hand down her brother’s arm.
“I can hire a lawyer for him.” Sophie shook her head. “But I can’t save the ranch.”
Stanton’s sigh was heavy, too. “I didn’t expect you to.” He gently kissed her cheek. “And maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to a clean start.”
Yeah. So was Royce. But he wasn’t sure Sophie and he had a shot at that. Too much old baggage. Maybe too much new baggage, as well.
“I’ll go to the sheriff’s office and check on Dad,” Stanton said. “I’ll let him know you’re okay.”
“Thanks. I’ll be there later myself.”
“Are you sure you’re up for that?” Royce asked.
She nodded but waited until her brother had walked away before she added anything. “I love my father. Always will. But I can’t undo what he’s done, and he needs to pay for that.”
Maybe her change of heart had come because she’d seen firsthand just what illegal activity could do. After all, Lott wouldn’t have had a reason to try to kill them if it hadn’t been for her father’s land deal.
“I’ll see my father,” she explained. “But then I think he and I need some space.”
Royce figured that wouldn’t be a pleasant meeting, and he intended to be there. Well, after he got something else out of the way.
“What about the queasiness?” Royce asked.
Sophie glanced around as if to make sure no one was close by. No one was. Even Jake was still waiting up the hall, probably to give them some time alone. She took the small pen from her pocket. At least Royce thought it was a pen, but then he had a closer look.
“A pregnancy test?” he asked.
“I got it from one of the nurses I know.” She dodged his gaze. “It only takes two minutes, she said.”
Two minutes. Not long at all.
Royce reminded himself that they needed to know and they would have already had it done if it hadn’t been for the attacks. But suddenly a big knot formed in his stomach.
“I can take you somewhere so you can do the test,” he offered.
She tipped her head to
the ladies’ room just a few doors down. “Or I can do it here.”
Yeah. Here. Which would mean that two minutes was actually two minutes and wouldn’t include a trip that would delay the results.
“Let me tell Jake that it’s okay for him to leave,” Royce said.
She nodded. And Royce saw it then. Her nerves just beneath the surface. He wasn’t the only one with a stomach in knots.
He went back to Jake, trying not to look as if his entire world was suddenly up in the air. “Why don’t you go on back to the office, and I’ll join you there?”
Jake glanced at Sophie and then at him. “No, you won’t. Whatever’s going on between you two, you need to settle it.”
He thought of the pregnancy test. Well, that would settle it.
Or would it?
Even if Sophie was pregnant, that didn’t mean she’d want him in her life. Hell, she might not want him, period. He’d told her she wasn’t his type. Had harped on the fact of his own parents’ bad marriage. Yeah, she was attracted to him.
He was attracted to her.
But that didn’t mean anything was settled.
“Take some time off,” Jake insisted. “And before you kiss her again, you might want to wash the blood off your face. Most women don’t find a bloody cheek very romantic.”
It was exactly the kind of lighthearted brotherly ribbing he needed. Jake hadn’t had to say he would support him no matter what—Royce knew that he would.
Drawing in a long breath, Royce headed back down the hall, and he caught Sophie by the arm as they walked to the ladies’ room. “I’m going in with you,” he insisted.
She stopped so fast he nearly tripped over her. “It’s the ladies’ room,” she emphasized. “And you know what I have to do on this thing, right?”
“That’s what I figured.” He saw her point then. Most women wouldn’t have wanted a man around for that. “I’ll wait right outside the door.”
Sophie nodded, seemed relieved. “The nurse said if we get a plus sign, I’m pregnant. A negative sign means I’m not.”
Simple enough. The makers of the test probably made it that way because they figured some people might be crazy in this situation.
Sophie turned to go inside the bathroom. Royce stopped her and kissed her. Not one of those gentle pecks he’d given her earlier. Not a kiss of relief, either. The kiss he would give his lover.
Because Sophie was.
She had a slight smile when she eased back and ran her tongue over her bottom lip. The concern quickly returned, but before he could kiss it away again, she ducked inside.
Royce considered a quick trip to the men’s room to wash his face as Jake had suggested, but the next few seconds suddenly seemed a lot more than two minutes.
He paced. Checked his watch. And then put his ear to the door to listen.
“I need you to time this,” he heard her say.
Royce cursed. Heck, the two minutes hadn’t even started yet. He fastened his attention to his watch. Or rather tried. And he gave up and opened the door.
Sophie was there standing by the sink where she’d placed the little white stick.
“Anyone else in here?” he asked.
She shook her head, and Royce stepped inside with her. He glanced at the test. The screen was still blank. A clean slate, so to speak.
And that’s when it hit him.
He didn’t want a clean slate on either the test or his life. He wanted Sophie. Royce caught on to her and turned her to face him so he could tell her that.
“It’ll be okay,” she whispered.
“Yeah.” Maybe it would be. Their gazes connected, and he pulled her into his arm for another kiss. “Sophie, I’m in love with you.”
She blinked and made a sound a drunk person might make. “W-what?”
Royce tried not to panic, but he’d hoped she would jump into his arms and tell him that she loved him, too. Well, she wasn’t jumping. She was staring at him with her mouth open.
“I know, it’s sudden,” he tried.
But she pressed her fingers over his lips. “No. It’s not. We’ve lived a few lifetimes in the last few days. It’s not sudden at all.” She swallowed hard. “And I’m in love with you, too.”
At first, it felt as if someone had slugged him. The air sort of swooshed out of him. Hardly a manly reaction. But the breath returned. So did the relief. And he hauled her into his arms. Gently, of course. Because of their injuries. And the kiss he gave her was gentle, too.
“Marry me,” he said with his mouth against hers.
She pulled back again. “If you’re doing this because of the test—”
“I’m not. In fact, I don’t want you to look at that test until you’ve answered me. Will you marry me, Sophie?”
Tears sprang to her eyes.
The door sprang open, too.
“Sorry,” Royce said to the woman who was about to come in. “Official police business.”
He shut the door, held it closed with his foot and turned back to Sophie. “Well?”
“You said I wasn’t right for you.” She didn’t wait for him to correct that falsehood. “But I am. And you’re the right man for me.”
Yeah. That was the response he wanted, and the kiss she gave him wasn’t too shabby, either.
“Well?” he pressed. “I need an answer to my proposal.”
“Yes,” she said before he even finished. And she repeated her yes a couple of times.
Royce couldn’t help himself. He whooped for joy and probably scared some folks out in the hall. He didn’t care. Right now, the only thing that mattered was that Sophie loved him and she’d said multiple yeses.
The next kiss was considerably longer and hotter than it should have been, considering they weren’t close enough to a bed to finish it off the right away. They pulled back, breathless and revved up.
“We should celebrate,” he suggested, “in bed.”
“Are you up to that?” She glanced at his shoulder, at his sly smile, and gave him a smile of her own.
“Always,” Royce assured her.
First, though, they had to look at the test stick on the sink. It no longer seemed as life altering as it had been just ten minutes ago. In fact, either way it went, Royce would be happy because if Sophie wasn’t pregnant, he’d do something about getting her that way real quick.
Without looking at the little screen, she scooped up the test and held it for him to see. Sophie kept her gaze nailed to his.
And this time Royce didn’t just smile. He laughed.
The little pink plus sign was crystal clear.
Royce pulled her back to him. “I need to get you to the altar right away,” he said. He turned the test so she could see it.
Sophie blinked, but the smile came just as quickly. The laugh, too. “Are you ready for this?” she asked, blinking back happy tears.
“Oh, yeah,” he drawled. Royce figured Sophie and he were in for one heck of a good life.
* * * * *
Look for more books from USA TODAY
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brand-new miniseries,
THE MARSHALS OF MAVERICK COUNTY, launches in May 2013.
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Chapter One
Three months later
“Dugan is out.”
Miles’s fingers tightened around his cell phone as he wheeled his SUV around and headed toward the station. “What?”
His superior, Lieutenant Hammond, didn’t sound happy. “Based on the Kelly woman’s murder and some technicality with the chain of evidence when they’d searched the man’s place, Dugan’s lawyer got his conviction overturned.”
The past few weeks of tracking down clues and false leads day and night taunted him. He released a string of expletives.
Hammond cleared his throat. “If we’d found evidence connecting Dugan to a partner, maybe things would have gone differently, but...”
Hammond let the sentence trail off, but Miles silently finished for him. If he and Mason had found such evidence, Dugan would still be in a cell. And the world would be a safer place.
But they’d failed.
The day Dugan’s verdict was read flashed back. Dugan’s threat resounded in his head—you’ll pay.
“Now that he’s back on the streets—”
“I know. He’s going to kill again,” Miles said. And he’s probably coming after me.
His cell phone chirped, and he glanced at the caller ID. Marie’s number.
Damn, she was probably on his case for working again last night and missing dinner with Timmy. He’d thought he might have found a lead on the copycat, but instead he’d only chased his own tail.
The phone chirped again.
You’ll pay.
Panic suddenly seized him, cutting off his breath. Dammit...what if payback meant coming after his family?
“I have to go, Hammond.” Sweat beaded on his neck as he connected the call. “Hello?”
Husky breathing filled the line, then a scream pierced the receiver.
He clenched the steering wheel with a white-knuckled grip. He had to clear his throat to speak. “Marie?” God, tell me you’re there....
But the sudden silence sent a chill up his spine.
“Marie, Timmy?”
More breathing, this time followed by a husky laugh that sounded sinister, threatening...evil.
Dear God, no...
Dugan was at Marie’s house.
Standoff at Mustang Ridge Page 18
