Southern Admirer (Southern Loving Book 2)

by Thorn, Ava

  “I’ll be right there,” Farrah said quickly before hanging up.

  Shane knew he was running out of options. But he couldn’t do a missing report until Jasmine was missing for 24-hours. He could use his power in law enforcement, but he didn’t want to do anything that would cause more friction in his relationship with Jasmine. He called the only people that could help him.

  “There better be a good damn reason why you’re calling me,” a baritone voice barked.

  “Jasmine is missing. She left at noon time to visit your grandparents and hasn’t returned yet,” Shane rambled to his best friend, as he waited patiently for Jasmine to arrive at the house.

  “Did you guys get in a fight? I swear if you hurt my baby sister, I’ll kill you,” Benjamin said, before muting the phone.

  A car pulled up and Austin and Farrah both hopped out the car and made their way over to him.

  “I tried calling her non-stop in the car, but it’s going to voicemail,” Farrah said, her voice was filled with worry. “Where do her grandparents live?”

  “I don’t know,” Shane replied, as he waited for Benjamin to come back to the phone.

  “Mama says that her parents said that Jasmine and the baby left hours ago,” Benjamin said. “We’re going to come over there, Mama and Daddy is going to ride to Tarak and Kushala’s.”

  “You don’t have to ride all the way over here,” Shane interrupted. “We got enough able bodies that can go looking for Jazzy.”

  “What the fuck ever man, I used to trust you! I do not trust your ass to find my sister!” Benjamin yelled. “If we don’t find her in an hour we will put an APB out on her.”

  Before Shane could respond his phone backlight lit, Benjamin had hung up on him.

  “What do you think we should do?” Austin asked, looking at him.

  “Farrah, you stay here, and call if Jasmine returns. Jasmine normally take’s two routes back to the ranch.” He looked at his cousin. “You take the highway and I’ll take the back road.”

  “Gotcha.” Austin kissed Farrah before making a beeline to his pick-up truck.

  Shane sat behind the wheel of his car. He looked at his trembling hands. He had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach that Jazz and his daughter were in trouble. Cranking up his truck, he pulled out the driveway kicking up dirt as he sped down the gravel driveway.

  ***

  Jasmine hit the steering repeatedly. She couldn’t believe that she got a flat tire and her phone was dead from taking all those pictures of her grandparents with Shay. Sighing, she looked back at Shay sleeping peacefully in her car seat. She just had to get a flat tire on some dark country road with poor lighting.

  Well, at least her brothers and father had drilled ‘changing a tire 101’, into her brain. Popping the truck, she looked at Shay one more time before getting out the car.

  Walking the right rear tire she kicked it a few times, like that was going to do anything. Going to the trunk, she closed her eyes in frustration before opening them and searched for the spare. She searched desperately for the spare that was she seen in her car the other day.

  “You have to be fucking kidding me!” she screamed, slamming the trunk. She was about to get back in the car, when bright headlights pulled up from behind her. This is what Lifetime movies are made of, a woman stranded on the side of the road with a child and is abducted and killed. She looked around her surrounds, it was pitch dark and the way the lights bounced off the forest seemed to cause her imagination to think there was something out there.

  She turned and looked back at the car, where the driver sat there watching her. The hair on the back of Jasmine’s head stood up. She lifted a hand to shield her eyes from the blinding light of the vehicle so she could see the driver. The door opened slowly and a figure moved out the car.

  “You don’t have to wait, my husband is a Texas Ranger and he should be here any moment.” She was taught to never turn her back on someone. Jasmine slowly started to walk backward to her car.

  “A fine thing like yourself shouldn’t be sitting on the side of the road with your baby.”

  His voice was deep with a hint of a Spanish accent.

  Jasmine hand stilled on the door handle as she looked up at the man who was still standing by the door of his truck. How did he know I have a baby? She asked herself. Glancing in the car, Shay was still fast asleep. She was always trained to listen to her gut and her gut was telling there was something off about the man. She opened her door and jumped back inside the safe comfort of her car, locking the door.

  Her heart pounded against her rib cage as the man made his way slowly to her car. Jasmine blew her car horn repeatedly. Hoping that someone lived nearby and would send rescue her way. She jumped back as the man started to bang on the window with his fist, looking into a pair of cold dark eyes, Jasmine saw pure evilness in them.

  Shay started to wail. Jasmine scrambled to the back seat. “Please, just leave us alone,” she cried.

  The man shouted something incoherently that she couldn’t make out; he banged on the window harder. The man backed up from the window as he searched for something on the ground. He bent down and picked up what seemed to be a rock in his hand. With a forceful throw, the window shattered.

  Jasmine could hear sirens in the distance. The man looked at her one last time before he ran back to his truck and disappeared down the road.

  “Shhh, it’s okay baby,” she said, running her hand up and down on Shay’s back trying to soothe her as the sirens and blue lights came closer.

  ***

  The call came through over the scanner that a woman matching Jasmine’s description was nearly assaulted on a back road after her vehicle sustained a flat tire.

  “Where is she?” he yelled, frantically searched the scene for Jasmine. Shane needed to hold her in his arm, he need to make sure they were okay.

  The officer pointed to the ambulance. Shane looked over to where Jasmine sat holding their daughter with a brown blanket around her shoulders. Their eyes met over the chaotic scene. His heart began to race-as he sprinted over to her.

  “We’re okay,” she repeated, over and over again.

  His arms engulfed her in his strong embrace. He kissed Jasmine and Shay. “Are they okay?” he asked the paramedic sitting next to Jasmine filling out paper.

  “Both of them check out fine,” the man replied.

  Shane hugged her again. He could feel that Jasmine was literally shaking like a leaf. Pulling her back, he gave them the once over. Except for the small cuts on the side of Jasmine’s face, and still in shock—she was in perfect condition. He smiled at his daughter; her green eyes were alert as she sucked on her pacifier.

  “What happened?” he asked softly.

  “I…I had a flat tire,” she stuttered. Running his hands down his face, Shane's eyes traveled to the car sitting on the side of the road with a shattered window and a flat tire. “I thought I lost you.” His eyes look back up and deeply into hers.

  She held his gaze. “You didn’t,” she said softly.

  His eyes shifted back to Jasmine’s car. “I always knew that life was short…”

  Jasmine reached out and touched his hand. “Hey, you didn’t lose me, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  “We’re still here.”

  His lips curled into a faint smile. “Yeah.”

  Jasmine hesitated for a second, then leaned in and softly pressed her lips to his, letting them linger. He inhaled and touched her face gently.

  This is what he needed, since finding out she was missing and nearly assaulted. The physical closeness was proof that he hadn’t lost his family. He pulled away slightly and brushed his thumbs over her cheeks before letting his hand drop to the side.

  Tonight was his awakening. There were still things that he needed to do. But with Jasmine by his side, he knew he could do them. He didn’t want to waste another moment letting the world know how much he valued Jazzy.

  “Are you guys ready to go home?�
� he asked.

  She smiled and nodded at him as she placed her hand into his.

  “Ranger McBride, can I see you for a second?” an officer asked as Shane safely put Jasmine and Shay in his truck.

  “I’ll be right back.” Shane kissed Jazz’s forehead before walking over to the waiting officer.

  ***

  It was three o’clock in the morning and finally her overprotective family finally left. Sitting on the sofa holding a mug of her mother’s infamous peppermint tea that made her toes curl after one sip. Putting the mug down on the side table, she looked at her hands that were still trembling.

  “Everyone is gone,” Shane said, walking into the room.

  “Okay,” she sighed, standing up. But before going to her bedroom she walked to ceiling window. Staring out into the darkness, Jasmine couldn’t help the shiver that ran through her body.

  For the past few hours she pretended to be this strong woman, who wasn’t afraid of anything. “I was stupid,” she said, turning around looking at him. “This could have been a bad ending.”

  “Don’t say that!” Shane said.

  “I’m scared! How could someone…” Her voice broke as moisture clouded her vision.

  “Not everyone in this world is good.”

  She wrapped her arms around her midsection and held her head low. “I’m going to check on Shay and go to bed.” She walked out the living and to her bedroom.

  After taking a hot shower and dressing into her pajamas, she came out the bathroom to see Shane sitting on the bed. This would be the first time in weeks she wasn’t going to argue with him about their sleeping arrangement. Before slipping into the sheets in her bed, she peeked into the crib at Shay sleeping peacefully.

  “She’s okay,” Shane assured her, as he patted the empty space next to him.

  “Did you make sure the doors were locked?” Jasmine asked. She knew it was a silly question, but she couldn’t resist asking.

  “Yes, now come to bed.”

  Slipping between the cool sheets, her body was stiff as she laid there next to him. Turning around to face him looking at her, she stared into his mesmerizing green eyes. “Please hold me.”

  “I promise I won’t let anything happen to you, and I would never hurt you. I swear,” he said leaning down, his lips gently pressed against hers.

  “I know,” she replied.

  He smiled and wrapped his arms around her. “Go to sleep darling,” he said.

  Jasmine snuggled closer to him before falling into a deep sleep.

  Shane laid in bed next to Jasmine listening to the soft sound emitting from her. He’d never seen her this scared. He touched the dried blood on the side of her face. For the first time in his life, he knew it was time to put aside the fear and live for the present.He stroked a tendril of hair at her temple, the silkiness of her skin, the sheer fabric against her body.

  He didn’t want to barrage Jasmine with a lot of questions after the night she had. He sat up and gawked at Jasmine as she slept peacefully. Sliding out the bed, carefully not to wake her, Shane strolled to his dark office, turning on the computer he sat down and checked his email for the incident report involving Jasmine.

  Victim experienced flat tire. Shane sat at the computer for hours going over every detail thoroughly. He started go to the next photo when something caught his eyes. The tire look like it was slashed.

  “What are you doing?”

  Shane looked up from his computer to see Jasmine standing in the doorway. “Nothing.” He quickly turned off the computer as she walked over next to him.

  She sat on his lap and yawned.

  “I’ve been thinking that we should go on another date…I will even announce it on Facebook,” he tugged her hair.

  “You don’t even have a Facebook,” she chuckled. “Plus, I don’t want those old clichés, something happens and you're confessing your undying love for me.”

  “See you got a brother singing a new tune, since the day you rescued me from my sorrow.”

  Jasmine cracked up, turning she looked up at him. “You’re not a brother.”

  “Hey! I have a sister and plus I was in a fraternity!” He wrapped his arms around her tightly. “We’re losing focus.”

  “Fine,” she smirked.

  “Like I was saying before I was rudely interrupted,” he said looking at her squarely. “It has taken me a minute—”

  “A minute!” she started to say when he poked her. “Sorry, geez go ahead.”

  “Like I was saying, I haven’t dated after Sarah’s death because I wasn’t in a good place to be in a relationship. But it’s that old saying that my aunt Charlene use to say, ‘things happen when you least expect it.’” Shane cleared his throat, for the first time being with Jasmine he was going to be honest with her. “I may have a good life and everything appears to be fine but I wasn’t always lucky in the love department.”

  Jasmine moved off his lap and sat on the edge of the desk staring at him. “You don’t have to tell me about…”

  “We always had a great friendship. It’s so easy to be with you that it scares me. I feel more certain of myself than I have in a very long time.” Shane thought about those long arguments and fights that Sarah that would have him battling insecurities. It didn’t matter that he was successful and nice looking—he couldn’t get rid of the scars that Sarah left him with. Every day he had to mentally tell himself that he was a great man.

  “Are you afraid that this may be too good to be true?” she asked, snapping him out of this thoughts.

  “I didn’t freak out at the picnic because you wanted to know exactly where our relationship was going. I freaked out because I don’t want us to last for only a minute, second, hours-I want longevity.”

  Jasmine reached out and held his hand. “We’re not great when it comes to these types of conversations…but I’m willing to do what it takes to make this work.”

  Shane stood up and cradled her face in his hands. “Back on the picnic I was scared and brushed you off.”

  “Don’t say anything you don’t mean,” she interrupted.

  “If I didn’t want to be here. I wouldn’t. Today at 12:04 a.m., I’m choosing you. I’m standing on my own two feet and telling you this is what I want, and I don’t want this life that I’m building with anyone but you. Yes, Jasmine Bly St. Clair, I want a life with you…I think this could be something amazing.” Shane kissed her softly before pulling back in gazing into her eyes. “We’re not going to know unless we take a risk and jump.”

  “Yes,” she whispered. “I will catch you.”

  “I’ll promise I’ll catch you too, baby.”

  He had a few weeks to think about their relationship; right now to this day he was choosing her. He was choosing everything that came with her, even her annoying habit of cracking her bones. He knew that she accepted him of all his baggage. There were fears that things might go wrong, but he didn’t care because he still chose her.

  Chapter Nine

  Shane stared in the distance at the sky and the white clouds that moved in a blur of movement. He grunted and threw another bale of hay to Hank.

  “Dang boy, don’t you have some ticket to write people or an arrest to make?” Austin sing-songed, as he pulled up in his old, white Ford pick-up truck.

  “Hey, I don’t tell ya how to write those damn country songs.” Shane tone was full of sarcasm.

  “Since we’re talking about working,” Hank said, tossing a bale to the side. “I ain’t never seen you fixing anything Mr. High and Mighty.”

  “Hey! That’s why I’m here now,” Austin pouted, as he put on his gloves.

  “You must have been getting on Farrah’s nerves,” Shane mumbled, as Hank slapped Austin on his back.

  “Now we will get done quicker,” Hank whooped. “I plan on taking Natalie to dinner in the city, since she’s been hollering I don’t do nothing with her.”

  Both guys looked at each and shook their head.

  “By the way, I
heard your remark and I can assure your ass that Farrah is not mad at me…I heard through the grapevine that a certain hot mama is looking to buy a house and my little suga just offered her the townhouse.”

  Shane heaved the last bale of hay off the truck, he wiped the sweat off his eyebrows. “Get the fuck out of here?”

  “Nope.” He shook his head. “I heard them chitchatting all week long about painting the new nursery pink.”

  Shane could tell that his cousin was having pleasure and watching him squirm. “It’s my fault that she’s planning on leaving.”

  “Oh really? How is that?” Austin sat on the tailgate of the truck, looking very much amused.

  “Remember when you guys babysat Shay, well Jasmine wanted me to define our relationship—”

  “You didn’t,” Hank interrupted, leaning against the barn.

  “Yep, I heard them yacking about how this dummy said ‘what you want me to change my Facebook status.’ Shit man, no wonder you got Jazzy running for the hills.”

  Shane sat there silently drinking his water, listening to his cousins bantering back and forth.

  “Man why is it hard for her commit? Jazzy is not like Sarah…stop giving Jasmine these mixed signals. One minute you ready to start anew with her but you not ready to commit…she is good enough to push out a five pound baby but not good enough to marry.”

  “Is that how she feels?” Shane asked.

  “Told Farrah she felt like you can’t commit to love. Shit man, you don’t know whether to check your ass or scratch your watch,” Austin tsk-ed.

  “Leave him alone.” Hank stepped in and looked over at Shane. “Do you love her?”

  “With all my heart,” he replied.

  “Then the real commitment is to love itself,” Hank said simply. “Love is about growing, maturing and evolving. Because when you make a commitment to love you commit to what is real.” He stopped talking when he realized his cousins were staring at him with their mouth ajar. “What?”

  “Well, I’ll be damned, Shane it looks like our little Hankie has grown up,” Austin slapped his head.