Branded by the Sheriff

by Delores Fossen

  Right about the time Faith had been with Ross Harland.

  Beck mentally groaned. Had Faith kept it from this man that he’d fathered a child?

  “How can I help Faith?” Harland asked.

  The question stunned Beck. Here, Beck had just told him in a roundabout way that he likely had a daughter, and Harland hadn’t even asked about Aubrey. Certainly Harland could do the math as well. And that riled Beck to the core. If Aubrey had been his child, he’d sure as hell want to know, and he’d want to be part of her life.

  “I’m not sure you can help,” Beck answered, trying not to launch into a rant about how Harland should step up to the plate and be a man. “But Faith wanted to ask about getting a bodyguard for Aubrey.”

  Harland made a sound of understanding. “Well, I do have someone on staff who might work. Her name is Tracy Collier, and she’s trained as both a nanny and a bodyguard. How old is Faith’s daughter?”

  Now the guy might finally get it. “Sixteen months.”

  “Good. I was hoping we weren’t dealing with a newborn here.”

  “No. Not a newborn.” Beck hesitated, wondering how much he should say and knowing he couldn’t stop himself. He had to know, because despite Faith’s denial, her past lover could have a part in this. “I thought you might be Aubrey’s father.”

  “Me? Not a chance.”

  Beck had to hesitate again. This conversation was getting more and more confusing. “But you were with Faith about the time Aubrey was conceived.”

  “Look, I don’t know what Faith told you about our relationship, and I’m not even sure it’s any of your business, but there’s no way that child could be mine.”

  “Birth control isn’t always effective,” Beck pointed out.

  He cursed. “I want to talk to Faith.”

  “Like I said, she’s indisposed. She’ll have to call you back. And for the record, she never said you were Aubrey’s father. I just put one and one together.”

  “Well, you came up with the wrong answer. Faith and I weren’t lovers.”

  Beck nearly dropped the phone. “Not lovers? And you were together for a year?”

  “Her choice. Not mine. Now, what the hell does this have to do with your investigation, Sheriff?”

  Maybe nothing. Maybe everything. “Faith doesn’t believe her brother is trying to kill her, and it’s possible the danger is linked to someone in her past. When relationships go bad, situations can turn dangerous. Aubrey’s father might have some part in this.”

  “Well, I don’t know who he is, but he must be someone pretty damn special.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Harland cursed again, and he stayed silent so long that Beck thought maybe the call had been dropped. “Ask Faith why we never slept together,” Harland finally said.

  “Excuse me?” Beck said because he didn’t know what else to say.

  “You heard me. If you want answers, ask her.” And with that, Harland hung up.

  Beck glanced at the phone and then at Faith’s bedroom door. He didn’t know what the devil was going on, but he intended to find out.

  CHAPTER SIX

  “Beck Tanner asked you what?” Faith demanded.

  There was a groan from the other end of her cell-phone line. “He thought I was your daughter’s father,” Harland explained.

  Faith slowly got up from the bed where she’d been sitting and started to pace across the guest room in Beck’s house. “What did you say?”

  “The truth, that the child couldn’t be mine because we were never lovers.”

  Faith didn’t groan, but she squeezed her eyes shut a moment and silently cursed a blue streak.

  “The sheriff said this was pertinent to the investigation,” Ross added. “He said he wanted to be certain that none of your previous relationships could have a part in you being in danger.”

  “Maybe, but he had no right to ask you about our sex life.” Or the lack thereof. Mercy, she did not want to explain this to Beck.

  The truth could ultimately put Aubrey in danger.

  “Anyway, the bodyguard I’m sending over is Tracy Collier,” Ross continued, obviously opting for a less volatile subject. “She’s one of my best. She should be there any minute, and she’s yours for as long as you need her.”

  “Thanks, Ross,” Faith managed to say. She did appreciate this, truly, but it was hard to be thankful when Beck might learn the truth.

  “I’m sorry I told Sheriff Tanner anything about our relationship,” Ross continued. “Should I phone him and have a little chat with him?”

  It wouldn’t be a chat. More like a tongue-lashing. “No. I’ll do that myself.” She thanked her old friend again and ended the call.

  How dare Beck ask Ross a question like that, and he hadn’t even had the nerve to tell her. But then he hadn’t exactly had a chance, she reluctantly admitted. Like her, he’d been tied up all day planning to make Aubrey as safe as possible.

  And they had succeeded. For now, anyway.

  She, Marita and Aubrey were at Beck’s house on the edge of town, and it appeared that no one had been aware of the move. Beck had literally sneaked them out the back of the hotel and into his place. Once the bodyguard arrived, then the plan was for a Texas Ranger to pull backup bodyguard duty while she and Beck made an appearance at her own house.

  But first, she wanted to let Beck have it for that phone conversation with Ross.

  Faith jerked open the guest-room door and stormed toward the family room, where she could hear voices. Beck’s house was large, especially for a single guy: three bedrooms, three baths and an updated gourmet kitchen. A real surprise. When Beck had given them the whirlwind tour, she’d wanted to ask if he actually used the brick-encased, French stove or the gleaming, stainless cookware on the pot rack over the butcher’s block island. But she hadn’t said a word, because she hadn’t wanted to intrude on his personal life.

  He obviously hadn’t felt the same about hers.

  She nodded to Sgt. Sloan McKinney, a Texas Ranger who was sipping coffee while he stood by the kitchen door. Faith went straight to the family room and stopped dead in her tracks. Her temper didn’t exactly go cold, but it did chill a bit when she saw what was going on. Marita was talking to a tall brunette. The bodyguard, no doubt. But it wasn’t the bodyguard who snared her attention. Aubrey was on the floor, sitting in Beck’s lap while he read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom to her.

  Beck looked up at Faith, and his smile dissolved. Maybe because she looked angry. And was. And maybe because he knew the reason for her anger.

  He’d changed clothes since they’d arrived and was now wearing black jeans and a white, button-up, long-sleeve shirt. Anything he could have worn would have made him look hot. But sitting there with Aubrey made him look hot and…extraordinary. It wasn’t just his good looks now. It was that whole potential fatherhood thing. Beck seemed totally natural holding a child. Her child. And that created a bizarre ripple of emotions.

  She had to remind herself to hang on to the anger.

  “We’ll go to your house when I’m done with the story,” Beck let her know. Aubrey didn’t take her eyes off the brightly colored pages.

  “Faith, this is Tracy Collier,” Marita said.

  Faith shook the woman’s hand. “Thank you for coming.”

  “No problem. Ross said it was important.”

  Yes, and Faith owed him for that. But not for what he’d volunteered to Beck.

  “Sheriff Tanner checked my ID,” Tracy volunteered. “And he ran a background check on me before I arrived.” She didn’t sound upset. More amused.

  “She checked out clean,” Beck informed Faith.

  Though she was upset with him, she couldn’t find fault with the extra security steps he’d taken with Tracy. But how could any man look that hot while jabbering nonsensical words like chicka, chicka?

  Marita and Tracy resumed their conversation about sleeping arrangements. Apparently, Tracy had decided to take the sofa in the family room
since it was near the front door. The Ranger would have a cot near the back door. Good. The arrangement gave Faith a little reassurance about leaving Aubrey, but it would still be tough.

  Babbling, Aubrey tried to repeat the last line of the book that Beck read. He then did something else that shocked Faith. He brushed a kiss on Aubrey’s forehead. There was genuine affection in his eyes. Aubrey’s eyes, too.

  Aubrey gave Beck a hug.

  Beck’s gaze met Faith’s again, and he went from affection to a little discomfort. With Aubrey in his arms, he stood and walked to Faith.

  “Ready to go to your house?” he asked.

  No, but she was ready for that conversation. And ready to get her mind off Beck as a potential father.

  Marita came to take Aubrey, and Faith gave the little girl a kiss. “Mommy won’t be long.”

  Aubrey babbled something, reached for Beck again, but Marita moved her away. Faith gave her a nod of thanks.

  “You don’t want me reading to Aubrey,” Beck mumbled.

  “Yes. I mean, no.” Since she was starting to feel petty again, she headed toward the garage. “I’m just surprised, that’s all.”

  “Me, too. But it’s hard not to get attached to her.”

  “Oh, that should make your family really happy,” she snarled.

  He didn’t respond to that. They went into the garage, got into his SUV. Even though the windows were tinted and it was dusky dark outside, he still had her slip down low in the seat so that none of his neighbors, or a killer, would spot her coming out of his place.

  On the backseat, there was a doll wrapped in a blanket. Faith already knew what she would do with that doll. She’d carry it into her house so that anyone watching would think it was Aubrey. The little detail had been Beck’s idea because he said he didn’t want anyone questioning why Faith wouldn’t have her daughter with her at her house, especially since everyone in town likely knew about the child’s arrival the night before.

  Beck looked down at her. “You talked to Ross Harland,” he said. Apparently, that was an invitation to start the argument he guessed they were about to have.

  “You had no right to ask him those questions,” Faith accused.

  “I beg to differ. You don’t think your brother is guilty. But I’m trying to figure out the identity of a killer. Your previous relationships are relevant.” He pulled out of the garage and immediately hit the remote control clipped to his visor to shut it. He didn’t pull away from the house until the door was fully closed.

  Faith just sat there. Stewing. And waiting. She didn’t have to wait long.

  “Harland said he couldn’t possibly be Aubrey’s father,” Beck continued. “I don’t guess you intend to tell me who is.”

  “No.” She didn’t even have to think about her answer.

  “That’s what I figured you’d say, though I don’t have a clue why you’d keep something like that a secret. I’m repeating myself here, but I’m trying to find a killer, Faith.”

  “And knowing Aubrey’s father won’t catch that killer.”

  He cursed under his breath. “I had a friend at the FBI fax me a copy of Aubrey’s birth certificate. The father’s name isn’t listed. Just yours.”

  That had been intentional, and it would stay that way. Her silence must have let him know that because he didn’t say anything else about it. Silently, he drove through LaMesa Springs and down Main Street—Faith could tell from the tops of the streetlights, but she was too low in the seat to actually see anything.

  “No one seems to be following us,” he explained, checking the rearview and side mirrors. He made the turn into the hotel and went to the back parking lot. Beck glanced all around them. “You can sit up now. I want people to think I picked you up here.”

  “But what if someone on the hotel staff blabs that I wasn’t here all afternoon?”

  “No one knows. There’s been a Do Not Disturb sign on the door and strict orders that no one goes into the room. Later, I’ll phone the manager and tell him that I’ve moved you guys to your house.”

  Even though it was the plan, it still sent a chill over her. After that call, she’d officially be bait.

  “So it was really Sherry in the motel with Pete?” Beck asked as he drove away from the parking lot. Except it didn’t sound like a question.

  But Faith answered it as if it’d been one. “What did your brother say?”

  “He lied.”

  She glanced at him, and even in the darkness she had no trouble seeing his expression. A mixture of emotions. “How do you know that?”

  “Because I could see it in his eyes.”

  Faith blew out a long breath. “Why didn’t you see it ten years ago?”

  “Because I wasn’t looking. I just accepted what he told me as gospel.”

  “You accepted it because you already believed the worst about me.”

  He took a moment to answer. “Yes, and it’s probably too little, too late, but I’m sorry.”

  She nearly laughed. For years, she’d wanted that apology. She’d wanted Beck to know the truth. But it seemed a hollow victory since she couldn’t enjoy it. Well, not now anyway. But once the danger had passed it would no doubt sink in that this moment had been monumental.

  Faith frowned.

  She certainly hadn’t expected an apology from Beck to feel so darn good. Maybe because she’d already written him off. She hoped it had nothing to do with this crazy attraction between them.

  “I’ll work on my father and Nicole,” he continued, taking the final turn to her house. Even though the curtains all appeared to be closed, some lights were on. “Pete, too, eventually. Once they’ve accepted that you were the scapegoat in this, then your life here should be a little smoother.”

  “Thank you.” That was a gift she certainly hadn’t expected so soon. Then it hit her. “You’re doing this for Aubrey.”

  “In part,” he readily admitted. “I don’t want her to feel any resentment from anyone. But I’m doing it for me, too. Because it’s the right thing to do, and since Sherry is dead, I think this will help my family get past the hurt. You know that old saying—the truth will set you free.”

  “Not always,” she said under her breath.

  They came to a stop outside her house, directly in front of the porch. All she had to do was go up the steps, and she’d be inside.

  Beck glanced at her again, and for a moment she thought he might have heard her and was going to question it. He didn’t. He just looked at her.

  He opened his mouth. Closed it. Shook his head. But he didn’t explain why he was suddenly speechless. Instead, he picked up the doll, handed it to her and motioned for her to get out.

  “Make it quick but not too obvious that you’re trying to hurry,” he instructed.

  Faith did. While clutching the doll, she got out of the SUV and went inside to find Sgt. Caldwell waiting for them.

  Beck and he exchanged handshakes. “Let’s hope we catch a killer tonight,” Beck greeted him.

  “We’ll do our best.” The Ranger pointed to the security keypad by the door. “Before I leave, I want to go over the updates. There are external motion detectors that’ll alert you if anyone comes within twenty feet of the house.”

  “What about windows?” Beck asked.

  “All doors and windows are wired for security, and if anything’s tripped, the alarm will go off, and the keypad will light up the problem area.”

  Faith was certain she looked confused. “But won’t the alarm scare off Darin if he shows?” She propped the doll against the wall.

  “No. The alarm will be a series of soft beeps. You shouldn’t have any trouble hearing them, but they won’t be loud enough to be heard from outside.”

  Beck’s cell phone rang, and he stepped aside to answer it.

  “The keypad’s easy to work,” Sgt. Caldwell continued. “Just press in the numbers one, two, three and four to arm it after I leave. Oh, and don’t stand directly in front of any windows.”

>   She had no plans for that. “If Darin shows, how fast can you respond?”

  “Less than two minutes. I’ll be nearby, parked several streets over. I don’t want to be any closer, because if he sees me, it might scare him off.”

  “Two minutes,” she repeated. “I hope that’s fast enough to catch him.”

  Sgt. Caldwell lifted his shoulder. “Best case scenario is that your brother will call you first before he shows up. If that happens, just stay on the line with him and have Beck contact us so we can make a trace.”

  Faith nodded. “I don’t want Darin hurt.”

  “We’ll try our best. But it might not be possible. For that matter, it might not even be your brother who shows up.”

  “Nolan Wheeler,” she provided.

  Yes, he might have tossed those rocks through the window. And if so, if he was the one who arrived on her doorstep, then he could be arrested and questioned. It wouldn’t tie up the loose ends with her brother, but she believed it would get a killer off the street.

  Beck ended his call and rejoined them. One glance at him, and Faith knew something was wrong.

  “That was the manager of the convenience store,” Beck explained.

  She held her breath, waiting for him to say her brother had been spotted again.

  “Not Darin,” Beck clarified, obviously understanding the concern in her body language. “This is about the taxi driver who stopped there after dropping you here at your house. When the clerk asked him what he was doing in LaMesa Springs, the driver told him.”

  Which confirmed what the taxi driver told Faith. “Let me guess—Nolan Wheeler was in the store?”

  Beck shook his head. Paused. “No, but my father was.”

  “Your father?” she mumbled.

  She didn’t have to clarify what that meant. If his father knew, then so had Nicole and Pete. And after that stunt Nicole had pulled in her hotel room, Nicole could have been the one who’d thrown those rocks.

  Beck looked away from her and handed Sgt. Caldwell his car keys. “I turned off the porch light. Figured it’d help in case someone’s already watching the place.”

  And that person would believe it was Beck leaving. That’s why Beck had changed his clothes, so that he would be dressed like the Ranger. Since no one knew the Ranger was there, the killer or her brother would think Faith was alone and vulnerable. Well, she wouldn’t be alone, but the vulnerable part still applied.