Cut and Run

by Amy Elizabeth

  There was no point in denying it any longer. “Yeah. I am.”

  “And clearly he has feelings for you, too.”

  “I don’t know. I can’t figure him out. One minute we’re practically flirting. The next minute, he’s strictly my employer. And the next minute…” She paused and shook her head. “The next minute, he’s the most compassionate person I’ve ever known. He switches between the roles so often, I can’t even keep up.”

  “It must be difficult for him, too, though. He has a business to run, and you’re one of his employees, regardless of how he feels about you. In private–obviously–he can be a little more open. But out there, he’s still your boss.”

  Rebecca leaned back against the cushion. “It was so much easier when I hated his guts.”

  Allison laughed. “You never hated him. You hated the fact that you liked him, despite your best efforts not to.”

  *

  Alec called the girls’ room later that evening. “I forgot that Lucy scheduled two new therapists for tomorrow morning. I need to be here to meet them and get them started with my father.”

  “Of course,” Rebecca replied. “What time should I be ready, then?”

  “Why don’t you come up after lunch?”

  Despite the fact that she’d slept most of the day, she had no trouble going right back to bed that night. She awoke early, ate a large breakfast, and spent the morning with Star, relishing the horse’s uncomplicated company. She gave her a long bath and hand-walked her around the front paddocks, trying not to fret about her upcoming afternoon with Alec. Around eleven, she noticed a large white van in the driveway and saw two men carrying medical equipment into the farmhouse. She frowned, thinking of what Walter had to endure on a daily basis, and made a mental note to visit him again soon.

  After returning Star to her stall, Rebecca went back to her cabin to shower and change. Anxiety crept into her throat as the sinister threats from the letters raced through her mind. Maybe if she were back in Southie, dealing with the familiar crowd there, she wouldn’t feel nearly as intimidated. But being out here, where everything and everyone was so radically different, she was completely out of her element. She trusted her new friends, but at the end of the day she had no idea how they would react if Kevin’s threats came to fruition. After all, they’d known Kevin a lot longer than they’d known her.

  How could she be sure that their loyalties would lie with her?

  Once I’m through with you.

  What did that mean? What was he planning to do? Stalk her from a distance and scare the living daylights out her? Confront her face-to-face and physically assault her? Or, worst of all, slip into the cabin one night to finish what he’d started on the dance floor? Why was he so spiteful in the first place? Yes, she’d hurt his pride, but Alec was the one who humiliated him in front of the entire ranch.

  She sighed wearily. It didn’t make any sense. But then again, men like Kevin, Sean, and Karl didn’t usually make much sense. They were all the same, reacting on impulse and emotion rather than logic and restraint. Perhaps that was why she felt so drawn to Alec–the more she got to know him, the more she admired his self-control. Surely he’d realized by now that she was falling for him, and given her predicament he could have easily taken advantage of that. He was keeping his distance, though, which both relieved and disappointed her.

  The water turned cold, but she hardly noticed. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she stepped out of the shower and into her favorite jeans and a cherry red tank top. Then she pulled her hair back in a braid and grabbed her jacket, taking a brief look in the mirror before heading to the farmhouse.

  Alec gave a warm smile when he opened the door. “Come in. We’re just finishing up.”

  She followed him into the living room, where two physical therapists had his father lying on his back on a long, flat massage table. “Hello, Rebecca,” Walter called, although he couldn’t see her. The therapists stood on either side of him, circling his legs as if he was riding an upside-down bicycle.

  She felt unnerved by the sight of his shriveled limbs, but she managed a smile as she stepped up to the head of the table. “Hi, Walt. Getting ready for the Tour de France?”

  The old man chuckled, and Rebecca saw Alec’s mouth drop open. She had a feeling that Walter hadn’t laughed aloud in a very, very long time.

  *

  “You were wonderful in there,” Alec said as he backed his truck down the driveway. “I can’t believe you made him laugh.”

  “I can’t, either. It must’ve been nice for you to hear that.”

  “Yeah. It was.”

  Rebecca leaned her face against the window and watched the rolling landscape of the Flying W pass by. It was another cloudless day, and only a touch of snow remained on the distant peaks. She could hardly believe that the summer was halfway over already.

  Alec cleared his throat. “Should I be worried about Allison?”

  She tried not to read into his question. “No. I told her it wasn’t what it looked like.”

  “That’s good.” He shifted in his seat. “I hope I’ve never done anything to make you uncomfortable. Somehow we just always seem to find ourselves…”

  When his voice trailed off, she offered a suggestion. “Lowering our guard?”

  “Yeah. That’s a good way of putting it.”

  She dared a glance over at him. “You don’t make me uncomfortable. If anything, I’m a little too comfortable with you, considering you’re my boss.”

  “I’d like to hope I’m also your friend.”

  Rebecca thought for a minute of a reply. To say he was only a friend was inaccurate, but to say he was anything more wasn’t quite right either. She settled for a nod before resuming her gaze out the window.

  Half an hour later they arrived at the police station, which looked downright primitive compared to the massive complex in South Boston. Still, she started to feel panicky as Alec parked the truck. As a rule, she hated cops. Half the ones she’d dealt with were crooked and the rest were either inept or indifferent. The last time she’d been to a police station was back in December, one of three occasions when she bailed Sean out of jail. But most of her experiences with law enforcement were long before that, answering pointless questions about Karl when she already knew that he would get off with nothing more than a slap on the wrist.

  Alec opened the door for her, jolting her back into the present. “You okay?”

  “Yeah,” she replied, wiping her sweaty hands on her jeans.

  Mechanically she stepped out of the truck, wishing she could run all the way back to the ranch. Alec closed the door behind her and placed a comforting hand on the small of her back as they entered the station.

  The process, much to her relief, was simple. They sat down with Deputy Harris, a large balding man with a gray mustache and an enormous belt buckle. Alec began by stating some of Kevin’s employment history during the past five years. Then Rebecca described his behavior over the summer and his actions on the night of the party.

  “And two days ago, these started arriving,” she said, spreading the letters on the desk.

  Deputy Harris frowned in concentration as he studied both the letters and the envelopes. Then he cleared his throat and sat back in his chair, folding his thick arms across his belly.

  “I’ll get in contact with the local sheriff in Billings, Doug Lasky. He can go over and have a chat with Kevin to see if there’s any connection. I’ll have him check his records, too, to see if he’s got any prior convictions.” He paused and leaned forward. “But to be honest, Miss Sheehan, I’m not so sure these letters are from a disgruntled co-worker. You got anybody back home who could be capable of sending these? Maybe not a boyfriend, but someone who wanted to be? Ever had any similar threats made to you by a family member or schoolmate, perhaps? Any skeletons lurking in your closet?”

  Rebecca bit her lip. If only he knew she had an entire graveyard in her closet.

  “Well, at first I…I t
hought it might’ve been my stepfather.”

  The deputy eyed her curiously. “Are you still a minor?”

  Her eyes darted to Alec. As far as he knew, she was eighteen, but at this point she figured it didn’t matter.

  “I am.”

  “Has your stepfather ever threatened you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Has he ever assaulted you?”

  She hesitated. “His name is Karl Finnegan, Junior, of South Boston,” she said in a very small voice. “If you want to know the details, you can look up his records.”

  Rebecca saw Alec stiffen beside her, gripping the armrests of his chair as the deputy jotted down Karl’s name. “I want to contact the Boston P.D., if that’s alright with you.”

  “Please ask them to be very discreet.”

  “Duly noted. Just trying to cover all possible bases here.” He looked up and offered a kind smile. “I wouldn’t worry too much, Miss Sheehan. Hopefully it does turn out to be this guy Kevin and he’s just playing a terrible prank on you. If that’s the case, you of course have the option of filing a restraining order, but we’ll discuss that only if we need to. For now, just remain cautious and avoid being alone in any vulnerable locations.”

  Rebecca shook the deputy’s hand and watched Alec do the same. Once outside, she took a seat on the nearest bench and drew in a deep, cleansing breath.

  Alec sat beside her and gave a reassuring smile. “You did it.”

  “I did.” She glanced up at him. “I’m sorry I lied about my age. I didn’t know if you’d hire someone who was only seventeen.”

  To her relief, he chuckled. “Considering all your other lies, your age would’ve been the least of my worries.”

  She groaned and shook her head, knowing he was right. Just as she opened her mouth to respond, she heard a familiar voice behind her.

  “Bec?”

  She whirled around to see her brother standing on the sidewalk. “Jeff!”

  He glanced between her and Alec and raised a brow. “Well, it’s no wonder I haven’t heard from you lately.”

  Rebecca burst out laughing and raced over to him. He enveloped her in a hug before turning to Alec, who had risen to meet him. She introduced them, and the two cordially shook hands.

  “So why exactly are you guys at the police station?” Jeff asked.

  She and Alec exchanged a quick look. “There was an incident at the ranch with one of my staff members,” he said. “Rebecca happened to witness it and needed to give a statement.”

  “Oh. Well, fair enough. I was afraid you’d gotten into trouble already, sis.”

  She playfully punched him in the arm. “So what are you doing out here?”

  Jeff pointed to the banner advertising the Teton County Fair. “I didn’t know it was your day off. This is perfect! Let’s go together.”

  “I should let you two go ahead,” Alec said. “You don’t get to see each other that much.”

  “No, please come,” Rebecca insisted. “It’ll be fun. And you never get a break from the ranch.”

  He glanced down at his watch and didn’t bother to hide his grin. “Actually, for once I don’t have anything else I need to do today.”

  Chapter 12

  Rebecca bounded down the sidewalk between Alec and Jeff, content to listen as the two of them conversed. To her delight, they immediately hit it off, chatting about everything from Jeff’s job at the high school–the same high school Alec had attended–to the forest fire raging in Yellowstone Park. It wasn’t until the conversation turned to football that Rebecca’s head snapped up.

  “Wait a second,” she said, staring at Alec in disbelief. “You watch football?”

  “Sure, if there’s not a rodeo on.”

  She giggled, if only because she couldn’t tell whether or not he was joking. “Actually,” he added, a twinge of mischief in his voice, “I’m something of a Broncos fan.”

  Rebecca screeched with laughter as her brother clamped his hands over her ears. “Don’t listen to this miscreant, sis. There is no team besides the Patriots.”

  They waded through a sea of pick-up trucks and emerged in a wide field filled with tents and midway rides. When they reached the ticket booth, Alec stepped in front of them and produced his wallet.

  “Three adults, please.”

  “Oh, no, you don’t!” she cried, making a valiant but unsuccessful attempt to push his arm away.

  “You don’t have to do that, Alec,” her brother agreed.

  “It’s done,” he informed them, handing each of them a ticket.

  “Well, thank you,” Jeff said. “I owe you a beer, I think.”

  “I’ll take you up on that.”

  As Alec handed over his ticket, Jeff pulled her back a few paces and lowered his voice. “Is this your boss, the one you can’t stand?”

  She gave a sheepish grin. “I guess I can stand him now.”

  Rebecca may have been on the opposite side of the country, but she instantly recognized the smell of the animals and the delicious, fattening fried foods. Screams pierced the air from kids twirling upside-down and around in circles on various rides. They wasted no time joining them, and the first hour disappeared in a blur of spinning and soaring high above the fairgrounds. Alec looked green on the more intense rides but pressed on without complaint. They saved the giant Ferris wheel for last, waiting until the sun drenched the landscape in golden light. Rebecca leaned her arms against the lap bar and soaked up the view, trying to commit every single detail to memory.

  “Remember the last fair we went to together?” Jeff asked.

  She smiled. “In East Falsmouth? Of course.”

  “That’s in Boston?” Alec asked.

  “No, it’s down on the Cape,” Rebecca replied. “I had to watch Dad and Jeff go on all the big rides because I was only nine and I wasn’t tall enough to ride them yet.”

  “You were such a little brat,” her brother said. “Sitting there pouting because you thought you were too grown up for the kiddie rides.”

  Alec chuckled. “Why doesn’t that surprise me?”

  Rebecca gave him a playful nudge. “So finally my mom took me into the restroom and teased my hair into this big, gigantic ponytail on the top of my head. I looked absolutely ridiculous, but I didn’t care. It gave me the extra inch I needed. We got in line for the roller coaster and this time the attendant let me on. It was my first time on a roller coaster, and we got to sit in the front row. It was awesome.”

  “Those were good times,” Jeff added.

  “Yeah,” she said, turning her gaze back to the mountains. “They were.”

  Rebecca never would have imagined that, only three weeks later, their father would be gone and Susan would start downing half a bottle of Beefeater a day.

  It was a unanimous decision to bypass the livestock exhibits, as Rebecca and Alec saw more than enough animals every day. Jeff didn’t seem to mind, either, as they meandered over to the food stalls, breathing in every mouth-watering aroma from grilled sausages to deep-fried candy bars.

  Rebecca paused in front of an enormous wooden barrel. “What’s sarsaparilla?”

  Alec looked surprised. “You don’t have it back east?”

  “I’ve never heard of it either,” Jeff commented as Alec ordered one.

  She glanced at him uncertainly as he handed her the mug. “Can I have it?”

  “I wouldn’t serve alcohol to a minor,” he replied, giving her a discreet wink. “It’s like root beer.”

  She took a sip and instantly loved the super-sweet flavor. The guys grabbed a couple of real beers while Rebecca contented herself with her sarsaparilla. They sat and devoured grilled hot dogs, corn on the cob drenched in butter, and fried butterfly potato chips. Alec and Jeff groaned when she suggested dessert, but they were good sports and shared a plate of funnel cake with her.

  “So I know you have your heart set on B.U.,” her brother said as they nabbed an empty picnic table. “But I downloaded the admissions packet from the
University of Wyoming, just in case you want to take a look at it.”

  Her eyebrows shot up. “There’s a university here?”

  “It’s in Laramie,” Alec supplied.

  Jeff nodded. “The campus is about six hours away, but they offer plenty of online and distance courses. Their psych program looks pretty good, sis. You should check it out.”

  She was floored. The notion of attending college outside of Boston had never even occurred to her.

  “Really? You think I should?”

  “Well, I know you have your scholarship, but I also know that you really like it out here. I just wanted to throw it out there and say that you’re welcome to stay with me if you wanted to give it a shot.”

  All her life, she’d had tunnel-vision–a psychology degree from Boston University. Now the blinkers were off, and she saw an entire alternate future, a different route that would ultimately lead her to the same goal. Live in Wyoming with Jeff and attend college here? She liked the sound of that. Surely she’d qualify for financial aid, and even if she had to take out a few student loans–so what? Jeff had to, as well, and he was doing just fine paying them back.

  “What type of scholarship do you have?” Alec asked.

  Rebecca’s head was spinning in so many different directions, it took her a moment to formulate her response. “It’s a full ride to Boston University. It even covers my living expenses for all four years.”

  He was visibly impressed. “And you’d honestly consider giving that up?”

  The idea was tempting. She really had fallen in love with Wyoming, and she felt more at home with Jeff, Alec, Walter, and the horses than she ever had back east. She loved her work and the sight of the soaring mountains greeting her every morning. She’d be lying, though, if she didn’t admit that the very first thought that went through her head was that staying here would give her the chance to get closer to Alec.

  Give up your scholarship you worked so hard for? On the slim chance that you and Alec might get together down the road? You’re out of your mind. Don’t even think about it.