by M. Allen
When he rounded the bed of the truck, he spotted Magnolia standing on the porch, staring at him like he’d lost his mind. Maybe he had? Her brows were drawn low over those perfect green-hazel eyes. She still wore that black sweater—the black sweater that hugged her body and exposed just the barest hint of creamy skin. And her tight jeans drove him to the brink of insanity. He quickened his steps, easily closing the distance between him and the woman he couldn’t live without. She leaned back on her heels. “Dax?”
He marched up the steps past the corporate man and stood nearly nose to nose with Magnolia. “I need to talk to you.”
“Um, Dax, this is Mr. Coppola from Starling.” She motioned to the shorter man with olive skin and dark brown eyes.
Dax reached out pulled his hand up and shook it. “Pleasure to meet ya.” He breathlessly faced Magnolia once more. “I need to talk to you. Now.”
At his side, the man looked at him with wide eyes and tentatively waved at Magnolia. “It was nice meeting you, Ms. Reed. We’ll be in touch.”
Magnolia kept her wide eyes on Dax. “Okay, Mr. Coppola. Thanks for stopping in.”
The only sign the man had scurried away was the sound of his hurried footsteps on the wooden stairs. Dax never took his eyes off Magnolia. He yearned to reach out and touch her but held fast, keeping his hands balled in fist at his sides.
“What’s this about, Dax?” Magnolia looked past him. “Is that Calla and Zinnia in the truck?”
He moved to the side, blocking her view. “Yeah, it is. Let’s go inside.” He walked past her and straight into the house. He could feel her at his back. Hell, if she was across the room he’d still feel her. When they reached the kitchen, he motioned to the chair at the head of the table. “Sit, please.”
“All right, are you okay? You’re acting really weird.” Magnolia slid into the chair and folded her hands on the tabletop.
A nervous ball sat in his stomach, and he began to pace the floor. “Magnolia, I have been wracking my brain to figure out a way to get this through your head.”
“Get wha—”
He held up his hand. “Let me finish, please.”
Silently, she waved him on to continue.
He pulled the folded papers from his back pocket and slapped them down on the table in front of her. “Here, look.”
Ever so slowly, she reached for the papers and unfolded them. When her eyes began to run over them, she raised her eyebrows. “Divorce papers?”
“Yeah, Lulu signed them this afternoon. She knew, Maggie. She just knew once you came back that things would be good and over between me and her. Before she signed them, she told me I’d never love her the way I love you, and she wanted that for herself.” He planted his fist on the side of the table. “And damn it, she was right.”
“Dax, I—”
“Just hold on a minute. Now, before you say you can’t do this, you can’t sell Triple R and you can’t be rid of me. Aw, hell, Maggie, I love you.” He slammed his fist on the table.
When she opened her mouth to speak, he cut her off once more—before she could walk away, before she could deny anything she felt for him. “And you love me, too. The way I see it, we belong together. I love every damn thing about you. And you forgive all my faults. We are meant to be together you and I.”
“You lied to me, Dax. How do I know you won’t do it again?”
“I swear to you, I won’t ever do it again.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Or keep things from me? Because if you do, then this will never work between us. I can’t go through any more, Dax. I really mean it.”
He knelt down beside her, looking up into her eyes. “Maggie, you’ve got to trust me when I say I don’t ever want to hurt you again.”
“What did Lulu mean when she told me to ask you about a box? What was she talking about?”
The woman gave nothing away. He couldn’t tell if she was serious or just toying with him. “Why would she tell you about that?” He stood and took a step back, wondering what the hell he was in for. That box had been a secret he kept from everyone, and the day Lulu had found it was the day she’d disappeared from his life for five years until only days ago.
Magnolia shrugged. “I’m not sure. You tell me.”
There was only one thing he could do… He spun on his heels and walked out the back door.
Chapter 29
“What in the hell did you do to poor Dax now?” Calla stormed across the room toward the back door.
Magnolia shot to her feet. “I have no idea. He just… left.”
Calla turned back to her. “Well, now you’ve good and gone and done it.”
Zinnia strolled through the kitchen door next, much more casually. She hopped up on the counter and opened the cookie jar. She pulled one out and started nibbling on the side of it. “I think he’s lost his mind.”
“Y’all are mean.” Magnolia stood next to Calla, watching Dax walk away in those perfectly fitted jeans.
Calla wrapped her arm through Magnolia’s and brought her back toward the table. “You know why he brought us here, don’t you?”
“I have my suspicions.” She crossed her arms, waiting for either of them to speak.
Zinnia hopped off the counter and strolled up next to her, with a cookie in each hand. She tilted her head and gave her that devil-come-what-may smile. “You ain’t leaving. Period. Lest I’m gonna hogtie you out back.”
“Zinnia!” Calla sucked in a breath. “What she means to say is—we don’t want you to leave, darlin’. It would be too hard without you. You’re back in our lives, and we don’t want to give you up.”
Though she still held a mournful sadness in her heart for her father as she looked around the room at Triple R Ranch, and the friends who’d become her family again, she knew she didn’t want to leave. “I don’t know what y’all are in a panic over. I’m not goin’ anywhere.”
Zinnia shoved the rest of her cookie in her mouth. Crumbs poured down her face and shirt. “Seriously?”
Magnolia rose from the chair and opened her arms for Zinnia and Calla to come closer. She wrapped them up tightly, squeezing. “You guys are my sisters. And I’m not leaving again. It’s time for me to come home for good.”
At her side, Calla clung to her as she squeaked, “I knew you would stay this time! I had no doubt.”
Zinnia tilted her head to the side and narrowed her eyes at Calla. “Sure, you didn’t.” She held her hand to the side of her head, mimicking Calla’s voice. “Zin, get your ass ready, we need to go tell Magnolia her ass needs to stay put. You be nice now. But don’t screw it up.”
“Oh, my gosh, you did not say that.” Magnolia threw her head back, laughing.
“Magnolia!”
She froze. “Dax?”
“Magnolia, I need you to come out here right now!” he bellowed at the top of his lungs.
“What in the world?” She dragged herself from Zinnia and Calla and headed toward the back door.
In the middle of the back yard stood Dax with Hayden at his side. Magnolia opened the door and strolled out to meet him. Though it was a crisp fall day and the ground crunched under her feet, the sun shone through the clouds. And for the briefest moment, Magnolia caught the hint of evergreen on the breeze. Smiling to herself, she could feel her father all around her. “What’s all this about?”
Dax shifted from one foot to the other. “You asked about a box. The one Lulu mentioned.”
“Yeah?” She put her hands on her hips, waiting.
“Maggie, I’ve had this box for nine years. I bought it the year after you left for school.” He pulled the small blue velvet square from the pocket of his jeans. “I’ve been holding it for you. I couldn’t bring myself to return it. I thought if I let it go, I would be lettin’ you go.”
She sucked in a breath. “What are you sayin’?”
Dax cracked open the lid to the box, revealing a platinum ring with a diamond studded magnolia sitting at the center of it. “This i
sn’t an engagement ring—it’s not nearly nice enough for that. But it’s a promise of my love and commitment to you. I know we’ve got a lot to work out. But, damn it, Magnolia, I just want you to be with me.”
Magnolia fought not to smile. “On one condition.” His lips rose up in a half-smile. “You take everything daddy left to you.” She motioned to the ranch around her. “This place is as much yours as it is mine.”
A light chuckle passed his lips, and he looked down at Hayden. “Little man, never underestimate the power of a woman.”
“Mommy knows.” Hayden giggled and ran toward Magnolia, holding out his hand to her. When she took it, he pulled her toward Dax and put her hand next to his. “You two hold hands.”
Without hesitation, Dax took her hand in his and slipped the ring onto her finger. “A promise that I will always be yours and you will always be mine.”
Magnolia tilted her head to the side. “If you think that’s goin’ to get you out of marryin’ me, boy, do you have another thing comin’.”
“So sassy.” He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer.
She laid her hands on his chest and felt the beat of his heart under her fingertips. His fresh, clean scent enveloped her. “You love it.”
“I love you.” He leaned in.
“And I love you, always.” She popped up on her tiptoes, pressing her lips to his, kissing the only man she’d ever want as long as she lived.
Try
A SHERIFF TO
KILL FOR
Edward Sutton: Reluctant Bounty Hunter
A Western Adventure
M. Allen
Chapter 1
“As you can see from these maps, it will be highly profitable for your territory and my company.” Barrett Wilcox sat back against the plush armchair, puffing on his cigar. The smoke permeated his mouth, giving him the sense of calm control he needed.
On the other side of the long wooden table, Governor Bickler eyed the map of Texas while he toyed with the ends of his pointed mustache. “You say you want to buy up all this property?” He pointed toward the jagged red line running down and across the middle of the state.
“I do believe that map is up to date.” Wilcox placed his cigar in the circular tray and rose to walk over to the sideboard where the crystal decanters stood. Taking a generous portion for himself, he then held up a glass, offering one to the governor.
With the shake of his head, he declined. “So good of you to offer my own reserve. But it’s a mite early for me.” Pulling a pocket watch from his pristine white vest, he studied it closely. “Only eleven in the morning.”
After he swirled the contents of his glass, he took a deep sip. The dark liquor burned down his throat. “My dear Governor, business should always be conducted over a good stiff drink and women.” He looked around the lavish, empty room. “Since we appear to be out of women, I insist on the drink.”
When commanding a room, even one as small as this, Barrett Wilcox demanded two things: One—know thy opponent or, in this case, the sap of a governor. And two—always be in control, no matter the circumstances. In his mind, every action had a plan and every plan had an action. He ran his business the same way, laced with intricacies and always according to his strategy.
The governor eyed the glass warily before he wrapped his meaty hand around it. “I can’t say this idea of yours doesn’t intrigue me. It could be very profitable for the state.”
The state? You mean yourself. Wilcox stifled a smirk. “That it can be, and we’ll give you twenty percent of the profits to be made. It would make this state,” he eyed Bickler meaningfully, “very wealthy.”
Governor Bickler took a deep drink then sat down in the armchair beside Wilcox. Drumming his fingers over the glass, he fidgeted in his chair and asked, “How do you plan on relocating all the townsfolk?”
“It’s a simple matter of offering the right price,” Wilcox answered smoothly. In truth only one offer would be made; whether the people accepted it or not was up to them. He’d have his land no matter what.
“And you have the means to do that?” The governor placed his glass on the table between them and steepled his fingers.
Wilcox gave a humorless chuckle and drawled, “By any means necessary.” When the governor’s brow furrowed in concern, he added, “My father, God rest him, was a business man much like myself. He started in a small shop back east and turned his one storefront to five. Now I’ve taken that business and expanded into other areas like what we are discussing now. So, if you’re asking if I have the money to what I’m proposing…?”
The governor sat forward and opened his mouth as if he were about to interrupt. Wilcox held up his hand, silencing him, and called out to his man outside the door, “Mason, we’ll have that package now.”
The door burst open and Mason, a tall, slender man, walked through carrying a leather satchel. Wilcox snapped his fingers, motioning for the bag. Mason gave him a sneer but continued forward, his deep green eyes darting around the room as though looking for a threat.
Wilcox stood and waved for the governor to join him at the table. When he did, Wilcox unwrapped the leather strings holding the satchel closed, then dumped the contents of the bag across the table. Green bills flooded the dark wooden surface.
He motioned to the unkept pile. “The means, Governor Bickler.”
A wide smile spread across the governor’s face. He scooped up a wad and started thumbing through it. “As long as you don’t cross Satan’s Sons, we’ll be just fine.”
“Who?” Wilcox cocked his head to the side.
The governor raised his eyebrows. “You’ve never heard of the Suttons?”
Wilcox shook his head. “Who’re they? A gang?”
Bickler dropped the money back onto the table. “They are the meanest sons o’ bitches this state has ever seen.”
“I don’t think a few common criminals would stop us.” He turned to Mason. “Would it?”
The man shook his head with a dark, cold look flashing across his sharp features.
The governor tittered. “I don’t think you understand me. They aren’t criminals.” He sighed. “Well, not anymore.”
Wilcox waved his comments away. “Won’t be a problem.”
“Mark my words, Barrett.” He wagged a finger at him. “Those men are the reason the banditos think twice about crossing the border. They’re not to be trifled with. I suggest you move your operation around their territory.”
Wilcox stabbed his hands through his thick black hair, pushing it out of his eyes. “How much land do they cover?”
The governor followed the red line across the map then arched his finger as if drawing an imaginary semicircle connecting another point down the road. “That’s the route you should take.”
Turning on his heels, Wilcox began to pace. “This is not the plan we laid out. When I say I want something done the way it’s meant to be, I expect it to be done. I’m putting a lot of money into this, Bickler, and I expect returns. You’ve outlined nearly a hundred miles of territory for me to go around.” He sucked in a deep breath then bellowed, “Unacceptable!”
“Boss.” Mason arched his eyebrow, giving the slightest shake of his head.
A warning Wilcox was loosing control. He picked up the cigar from the tray and took a puff, the smoke billowing out around him while he continued his pacing. He turned and faced the shocked governor once more and plastered a smile on his face. “Not a problem, not a problem. We’ll work it out with these Satan’s Suttons.”
“Satan’s Sons,” Bickler corrected.
“Did you say the last name was Sutton?” Mason crossed his arms and leaned up against the wall.
“That’s right.” The governor nodded.
Mason chuckled. “This should be fun.”
Wilcox whirled on him. “You know these men?”
“Seven of them to be exact. I’ve had some dealings with one of the younger ones in the past. But I hear the older ones are the real tw
isted ones. Especially the one they call Doctor.”
Bickler tilted his head and smiled. “Oh, he’s come a long way since then. He’s a real doctor now.”
“No matter. We’ll deal with him and the rest however we see fit.” Wilcox chuckled and offered the governor his hand. “Do we have a deal?”
When Bickler took his hand, a thrill went through him. He was about to take over Texas, and not even Satan’s Sons would stop him. “Good choice.”
“But, boss.”
Wilcox shot him a glare. “We’ll take care of it. That’s what I pay you for. To take care of it.”
Bickler held up the empty satchel. “Can I have this?”
“With pleasure.” Wilcox swallowed his annoyance and smiled.
“Much obliged to ya.” Bickler started sweeping the money back into the bag. “Wouldn’t want the state to lose its funds.”
“No, Governor, we wouldn’t want that.” He puffed on his cigar as his plans morphed once more. “You know, I think we’ll start in Sutton territory. Make our presence known in Texas. Why would anyone not take our offer once they see these Satan’s Sons bow down?”
“Mark my words, they may move on. But those brothers bow to no one.” The governor put the last of the bills in his bag.
“We shall see about that.”
Chapter 2
The glaring sun beat down on Grace as she hunkered low next to Edward, keeping her head tucked behind a rock. Sweat ran down the small of her back while she held her rifle trained on the opening of the ravine. After the showdown between Dalton, Edward’s slightly older brother, and Juan Luis, the banditos leftover from his scattered gang continually tried to plague her town. Determined to keep her friends and family safe, she’d taken up her guns and took it upon herself to protect those she loved. Her gaze slid over to Edward. His silent strength was the backbone she needed to do this job.
With his light brown hair and chocolate eyes, she’d been a goner for him at first sight. For weeks, they’d been hunting down the escaped bandito who’d given his all to see if he could end the Suttons. Yet all seven brothers were still standing, and Juan Luis was on the run.
