Off to the side Grace and another young woman, probably Sara’s friend Fiona, sat huddled together on the floor, bits of plaster and glass all around them explaining the gunshots.
In his peripheral vision the fast-moving shadow of a man as he dodged from one bedroom forward to the next, and a slight scrape from the kitchen let him know of at least one more. Okay three, he could handle three, if only one of them were not holding the love of his life in his hands. Shit.
“Has no one every taught you how to knock? We’re kind of busy right now. Why don’t you toddle off, and no one,” Tom grunted as he tightened his grip and Sara’s feet came off the floor, harsh choking noises emitting from her throat, “will get hurt.”
Though there was nothing he wanted more than to look into Sara’s beautiful eyes, to reassure her that it was going to be okay and they would find a way out of this, he kept his attention trained on his nemesis, searching for any weaknesses. Unfortunately for now Sheridan held the winning hand. He’d placed himself in a corner of the room with an inside wall at his back, and no blind spots. He also made sure he kept Sara firmly centered in front of him, her head blocking his own, even though it forced her up onto her toes, the prick.
“Look, you want your file back, so take it.” Keeping his gun trained on the inch of Sheridan’s forehead he could see, Nick pulled the file out from where he had tucked it into the back of his jeans, waving it back and forth like a white flag before throwing it to the floor where they heard it land with a soft slap. “Let the women go, Tom, all they’ll do is slow you down, you don’t need them. Your little girl needs her mother.”
He knew instantly he’d said the exact wrong thing, Sheridan’s already constricting hold on Sara turned malevolent, her neck squeezed so tight he could see the whites of her eyes as they rolled back in her head, the cock-sucking, fucking, prick.
“Look man, do what you want, I don’t give a shit, but she promised me some big dough so why don’t you relax there before you do irreparable damage and we’re both out, cause no cash, no file.” His finger tightened on the trigger, desperate for a shot.
“You must think I’m an idiot. First, you fuck with my contacts in Iraq,” he said coldly as he moved the gun from his aim of Nick’s chest down to his crotch, causing his balls to practically climb up his ass in reaction. “Now you want me to calmly turn over my wife so that you two can go riding off into the freaking sunset together? I don’t think so.”
The simultaneous sounds of grunts and the slap of fist against skin coming from both the kitchen and the bedroom as Frank and Jared made their entrance gave Nick the break he’d been looking for. As he leapt towards Sara he sensed Adam and Maggie as they burst through the door right on his six, but then as he set his right foot down his leg buckled beneath him at the same time he registered a fiery pain.
Adam and Maggie caught him under his armpits stopping his downward momentum.
“Drop your weapons,” Tom snarled, “drop them now—or she’s dead.” He placed the barrel of his gun into her temple, causing a whimper of pain to escape.
The three of them crouched there helpless, Nick’s leg laying awkwardly in front. Tom kicked their weapons out of reach before sidestepping them to reach the now empty doorway, which would have been covered if he had used his brains and waited the asshole out.
Jared and Frank, having taken care of business slid into the room, and gauging the situation, froze.
“Well, much as this has the makings of a great reunion, I think we’ll have to pass on our regrets and leave. After all, my wife and I have a lot of catching up to do, don’t we dear?” He leaned around far enough to grind his lips into the side of her exposed neck, laughing as hatred consumed Nick and he lunged forward, only to fall back into Adam’s arms as shots of fire rose up his body. A cold sweat broke out across his forehead and his vision tunneled until all he could see was Sara.
Staring into her beautiful face, twisted now into one of loathing and fear, he could feel her desperation, and prayed she wouldn’t do anything to trigger the beast. A kaleidoscope of their time together raced through his mind even as he was working feverishly to find a way to stop Sheridan from getting out that door. Their first encounter, she’d looked so adorable standing up to him over that silly dog. Their first kiss where he had learned there were kisses, and then there was connecting on a level that he hadn’t even known existed. Holding her as she trusted him enough to confess her pain and confusion and cry out her absolution. The first time they made love, when he learned there was a very big difference between having sexual intercourse and becoming intimate with the right woman. The woman meant for him, the woman that meant everything to him.
Their eyes met, hers backlit by the streetlight outside, glowing with love and a thousand unsaid things, and he couldn’t let her go out the door that way, without him ever saying those three all-important words, “I love you.”
Her eyes widened and filled with tears, a look of such joy coming over her that his own throat closed and his eyes became so misty he had to blink rapidly to keep her in focus. “I love you, Sara, forever and ever. We’re going to get out of this okay, be strong, baby, for Jessica and for me, we need you.”
“How touching,” Sarcasm dripped from the words. “Too bad she’s mine. Come on, baby, it’s time to move, we have a plane to catch.” He laughed at the surprise on the DEA agents faces, “did you really think you would catch me that easily? They need to teach you to think outside of the box. I had a feeling there would be a welcoming party at Sea-Tac, not to mention it might have raised a few eyebrows to see the lovely Ms. Radcliffe bound and gagged, even though it was for her own safety.” He glanced over his shoulder at Fiona, grinning mockingly. “I had my pilot land us at a nice and quiet, rustic little airfield, no questions asked. It’s called ingenuity, agents. I’d recommend it.”
“You won’t get away with this. Our team is on the way, you have nowhere to go.” Maggie spoke quietly, evenly. “Why don’t you let her go and turn yourself in? It’ll go better for you. We can make a deal.”
Nick’s harsh denial, “You’re freakin’ kidding me, right?” was almost drowned out by Tom’s bitter laughter.
“Of course she is, Nickolaus. It’s her job to say things she doesn’t mean. As long as she gets her man, isn’t that right, O’Connor. Yes, I see you there, so the rumors were true. I thought I got rid of you ages ago. You’ve been a thorn in my side for more years than I can count, my boy.”
“Yeah, good to see you again too, you bastard. Watch your back, ’cause paybacks a bitch. I’m not stopping until you go down, one way or the other.” Adam growled from over Nick’s shoulder.
“Threats? I expected higher of you. I should of known better. A man’s roots always shine through in the end, wouldn’t you agree, Nick?”
“Fucking rights, they do. That’s how we always knew you were pond scum.”
“Tut, tut, you’re sounding a little bitter there, my friend. Well, as much fun as this has been, we really need to be on our way. See you gentlemen on the other side.”
He gave Sara a rough shove through the doorway as sirens sounded down the block. The strobing of the blue and red lights lit the interior of the house and showed Grace as she rose from her spot on the floor, some kind of pipe in her hands lifted high over her head. Growls from outside coincided with Jared’s alarmed cry, “Mom!” and then pandemonium erupted as Sara took her chance, lifting her foot up and slamming it down on Sheridan’s instep, causing him to howl in pain, again jerking her off her feet by the neck. At the same moment, Grace’s rotund frame rushed forward and brought the pipe down hard on Tom’s back and shoulder, missing his head which surely would have killed him, but causing him to loosen his grip on Sara and fall hard on his right side.
Then Jake burst through the door, all fangs and slathering jowls, and locked his teeth around Sheridan’s leg, shaking the bejesus out of it. Tom cowered away, face covered, crying and pleading for help. Frank and Maggie were on him, Fran
k pinning his legs with a flying tackle that caused the old floorboards to groan in protest. Maggie had his arms up and pulled tight behind his back as she used plasticuffs to restrain him and began to read him his rights.
Jared ran to his mother’s side where she had fallen to her knees from the force of the blow, gently prying the poker out of her hands before wrapping his arms tightly around her. “That was the stupidest, craziest, bravest, fucking thing I’ve ever seen, don’t ever do that again. You scared ten fricken years off my life.”
“Don’t swear,” She wept from the vicinity of his armpit, the tension of the last hour catching up to her. “Nobody hurts my Sara Sunshine and gets away with it. I love you, son of mine.”
“It’s alright now, Momma, it’s over. You rock by the way, and I love you too. After things settle down we need to talk.”
“Okay, son.”
Sara ran to where Nick had fallen, still cradled in his best friend’s arms and crumbled to the floor beside him. Her hands were shaking as she searched his body in the gloomy light, and he bit down on a groan when her fingers encountered a warm stickiness along his outer thigh. “Nick, oh my God, Nick, he shot you.”
He grunted from the pain as she neared the wound, then was shocked when she whipped her shirt up over her head and bundled it up to press it where she thought the injury was, cringing as he flinched away.
“It’s going to be okay. Help is on the way, hold on, baby, hold on,” she crooned, trying but not quite succeeding to control the quiver in her voice. Her free hand reaching brushed the hair back on his clammy forehead. Jake had curled up beside him, whining a little, sensing his pain.
He rubbed his dog’s head and tried to reassure Sara, but his tongue was thick in his mouth, “Don’t worry, honey, it’s just a nick. I’ve had worse. I can’t believe you and Grace nailed him like that, you could have been hurt. I’m so effin proud of you, you did it. You’ll never have to worry about that jackass again, it’s over.”
He caught her hand in his, lowering it to his lips. “I was so freaking scared when I heard those gunshots, and then to see what he was doing to you…” He couldn’t control the shudder that swept over his body, “I felt so helpless.”
His moist gaze sought hers out, “Promise me you’ll never take a crazy chance like that again. I can’t live without you, Sara. I love you more than I ever thought possible. I need you in my life or it wouldn’t be worth living. I never believed in love, never thought I would find someone that I couldn’t live without, until you. I can’t believe how much I love you.”
“Ah, man, I love you too,” Adam’s deep voice coming from over Nick’s shoulder caused them both to start. They’d forgotten he was there. “Does this mean we’re getting married?” He grinned.
“Shut up, Adam,” Nick said, his focus never wavering. “Well, you heard the man. Are we?”
There was only one answer she could give, “Hooyah.”
Epilogue
The next morning after everything quietened down and everyone had a chance to recoup, they all met up in the back booth at Grace and Grits to catch each other up.
Adam and Maggie had spent the rest of the night at the Sheriff’s catching up on paperwork, making sure Sheridan and company had an uncomfortable night in lockup. They were both bleary-eyed but cautiously happy. “Sheridan isn’t talking—yet—but his two goons are spilling what they know. We hope to get enough from them to put the pressure on Sheridan. Either way with the papers in that file and what happened last night; he’s in a world of hurt.”
“Two? There were three others with Tom. Sam, Hit-man, and another guy, right, Fiona?” Sara looked over at her friend, nestled in the corner between Frank and Jared, happy as a girl sporting a shiner could look with two hunks vying for her attention.
“Hmm? Yeah, there was, two dark haired creeps, Tom, and his shadow.” The glance she shared with Sara was filled with remembered terror.
Maggie and Adam looked at each other, “One got away then. We’re going to follow up. According to the last entry there’s a large shipment of methamphetamines expected soon along the Texas/Mexico border. We’ll be there, waiting.” Maggie was as determined as ever, arms crossed over her ample chest. Both Adam and Frank wore lovesick looks on their ugly mugs, and Nick hoped their friendship would not be tested because of a woman, no matter how beautiful.
He couldn’t believe Jake had managed to escape the house and show up just in time to help save the day. And Grace, he shook his head in bemusement, Jared came by it honestly. He tightened his hand engulfing Sara’s where it rested on the seat between them, his casted leg settled onto the chair across the way. He’d been lucky, the bullet had passed through the fleshy part of his thigh above the knee, a little lower and it would have shattered his kneecap. Sara had stayed with him the entire night, from the ambulance ride to the hospital, right up to the casting of his leg, and the overnight stay. He’d tried to talk her into going home, getting some rest, and she’d replied they had the rest of their life to rest. He liked that. The connection to her felt right. When she’d said yes last night to his lame-assed proposal all he could think was, thank God.
As soon as possible, he was going to talk to her about divorcing Sheridan, she had more than enough grounds, and then he was going to ask her properly to take a chance on him. Surprisingly, rather than getting freaked out by the thought, he felt a calmness settle over him, a sense of completeness.
The bell above the door jingled, and he looked up in time to see a little human tornado flying down the aisle towards them. He leaned back to let her at her mother, but instead she flew into his arms, her tiny ones wrapping tightly around his neck. “Nick. Oh, Nick. Annie told me you got hurt, are you gonna be ok? I’ll take care of you, don’t worry.”
Now he knew how the Grinch felt, he could swear his heart grew two sizes as he carefully hugged her back, tears springing unashamedly as he looked into Sara’s misty eyes.
He was home.
The End
A Word from the Author
To my readers:
I hope you enjoyed Tidal Falls. I love second chance romances, don’t you?
If you’d like to leave a review and share your thoughts with other readers, click here.
Other Books by the Author
Wounded Hearts Series
Tidal Falls
The Rebel’s Redemption
Twilight’s Encore
The Sheriff Meets His Match
Summer Lovin’
Wounded Hearts Box Set
Maggie’s Revenge
With This Heart
Mended Souls Series
The Guardian
The Beast Within
Gambling Hearts
Hold ’Em
Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Blue Haven
Sweetheart Cove
Single Titles
Silver Bells
The Lady Said No
My Baby Wrote Me A Letter
Tempted by Mr. Wrong
Valentine: A Hearts and Kisses Romance
Mistletoe Inn
Skating on Thin Ice
About the Author
JACQUIE BIGGAR is a USA Today bestselling author of Romance who writes about smart, sassy females and tough, alpha males who learn the true power is love. Free reads, excerpts, author news, and contests can be found on her web site:
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