Boots and Wishes: Ugly Stick Saloon, Book 8 (6 page)

“I traded it in on a truck for the ranch.” Jackson stared at his cards, not seeing them, remembering that old car and the fun he’d had driving it. “I hated giving it up, but I needed the truck.”

“Why don’t you buy Nick’s ’vette?” Connor suggested.

“What would I do with a Corvette?” Jackson asked. “I own a ranch. A ’vette only has seating for two. In case you haven’t heard, Audrey and I are trying to get pregnant. Where would I put a kid in a Corvette?”

“In the trunk?” Connor offered.

Jackson frowned at Connor. “Last I heard, putting kids in the trunk was illegal.”

“You’ll be trading your truck in for a minivan before you know it,” Ed joked.

“If it makes Audrey happy, I’d do it.”

“Still no luck?”

“No. And Audrey is getting so down about it.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Nick clapped a hand on Jackson’s back. “If you need a place to hang around in with tools, come on down to the shop. I’ve got more work than I have time for.”

“I might take you up on that.”

“So I take it you’re not interested in the Corvette?” Nick persisted.

Shaking his head, Jackson stared at the cards in his hand. “I’d love it, but it’s not part of the game plan. And neither are these cards. Who shuffled?”

The other three men at the table answered as one, “You!”

“I guess my head’s not in the game.” Jackson glanced up, hoping to catch a glimpse of Audrey. He didn’t see her behind the bar, so he scanned the saloon to see if she was waiting tables to give one of the waitresses a break. Though he didn’t find her behind the bar or wading through the tables, he wasn’t all too concerned.

When Mona turned up behind the bar and engaged in an intense conversation with Libby, Jackson sat forward.

Beth was serving drinks. Mona was supposed to be watching Mia, and Audrey was nowhere to be seen.

Jackson tossed his cards on the table and stood. “Sorry, guys, I’m done for the night.”

“I’m all in too.” Connor tossed his cards onto Jackson’s. “It’s getting late and I have to work tomorrow.”

“Me too.” Nick stood and stretched.

Jackson left the others, heading for the bar. Before he reached it, Mona pushed past him and shot out the back of the building.

“What’s going on?” Jackson asked.

Libby cleared a tray of empty mugs and loaded it with full ones. “Grant was in an accident out near Albuquerque. Mona is going to be with him.”

“Where’s Audrey?”

“With the baby, I assume.” Libby went back to managing the bar as Jackson left for the back door.

When he stepped outside, a tall, dark shadow ducked around the side of the little trailer. Jackson had hauled the truck off to Nick McBride’s shop the day before to have him reinstall the starter he’d pulled and to do a complete checkup on the rest of the engine.

“Hey!” Jackson called out.

The shadow emerged into the light, revealing a big, muscular man wearing dark jeans and a dark T-shirt.

“Can I help you with something?” Jackson asked.

The man tipped his head toward the trailer. “Yours?”

The hair on the back of Jackson’s neck stood on end. Something about this guy rubbed Jackson wrong. First, what was he doing lurking around the back of the saloon? Jackson made a snap decision. “Yes,” he lied. The man was a stranger. If he was moving on, the lie wouldn’t mean anything. “Why do you ask?”

“Thought I’d seen it before. My in-laws had one just like it.”

Jackson shrugged. “If you’re looking for a drink, you’ll have to go around to the front entrance of the building. This entrance is for authorized personnel only.”

The man’s eyes narrowed slightly. If Jackson hadn’t been watching, he might have missed it in the yellow glow from the security light. “Thanks. I could use one.”

Jackson waited for the man to walk around the side of the building, and then he gave it another ten seconds before he crossed the parking lot to the tiny trailer. The door was unlocked and the light was still on over the kitchen sink. Neither Mia nor Audrey were inside.

His heart beating a little faster, Jackson entered through the back door of the saloon, glanced in the backstage area and moved on to Audrey’s office.

He burst through the door to find Audrey on the telephone.

She pressed a finger to her lips and motioned for him to close the door.

Jackson complied.

Audrey said, “Thank you so much, Jake. Now I owe you one.” She hung up and turned to Jackson. “I suppose you heard about Grant?”

Jackson nodded. “What I want to know is who has Mia?”

Audrey touched a finger to her lips again and pointed to the floor beside her.

Leaning over the desk, Jackson could see the infant car seat with Mia sleeping peacefully inside. He let go of the breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding and relaxed. “When I saw Mona in the bar, I knew something was up. Then the man lurking around the trailer made me worried.”

A frown settled on Audrey’s forehead. “What man?”

“I didn’t recognize him as a local. He asked about the trailer.”

Audrey’s frown deepened. “What did you tell him?”

Jackson grinned. “I told him it was mine.”

“And he bought it?”

“He didn’t argue the point.”

“Where is he now?”

“I told him if he wanted a drink, he had to enter the bar through the front door.”

Audrey pushed to her feet. “Where’s Beth?”

“Serving drinks.”

Audrey lunged for the door.

Before she reached it, the door flew open and Beth threw herself through, slamming the door behind her. Her eyes wide and wild, her face white as a sheet, she flung herself into Audrey’s arms. “Oh God. He’s here.”

“Who’s here?”

“My husband, Randall Neal.” She let go of Audrey. “I have to get Mia.”

Audrey set Beth to the side. “Calm down. Mia’s safe behind my desk.” Audrey nodded toward Jackson.

He reached for the lock on the door and twisted it as a solid knock sounded.

Beth pressed her fist to her mouth, a sound like a wounded animal rising up her throat. “He can’t find us. I can’t go back to that,” she whispered.

“It’s okay. Get in my closet. Jackson and I will handle this.” Audrey guided Beth to her closet. “Just a minute,” she called out loud enough whoever was at the door could hear her over the music in the bar.

As Audrey closed the door to the closet, Beth put out her hand to stop her. “What about Mia?”

“She’s hidden behind my desk. Don’t worry.” Audrey closed the door, untied her shirt, unbuttoned the top button on her shorts and ruffled her hair. “Kiss me,” she told Jackson.

He did, his body’s response instant, his cock pushing against the fly of his jeans.

Another knock on the door made him step back and he unbuttoned the top button of his jeans and the buttons down the front of his shirt.

With a brief nod from Audrey, he opened the door to the man he’d met out in the back parking area.

“Oh, it’s you again.” He gave the man an irritated glare. “We’re busy in here, if you don’t mind.”

“I’m sorry to interrupt.” The man’s lip curled up on one side in a sneer as he glanced past Jackson to Audrey. “The girl tending bar told me to ask you if you’d seen this woman.” He held up a photograph of a woman with bleached-blond hair and a heart-shaped face. Though the photo was slightly blurred, Jackson couldn’t mistake the face. It was Beth.

Jackson leaned over the photo and pretended to consider it. “Nope. Can’t say that I have.” He looked up. “Who is she?”

“Elizabeth Neal. My wife,” the man ground out between clenched teeth. “She ran out on me and took my baby with her.” He stared past Jackson.

Audrey tied her shirt beneath her breasts and looked over Jackson’s shoulder. “Haven’t seen that woman. If we do, who should we contact?”

“Me. Randall Neal.” He dug a card out of his wallet and handed it to Jackson.

“Why would she run?” Jackson asked.

Randall’s eyes narrowed. “How the hell should I know? Maybe it’s postpartum depression or she’s just fucked in the head. All I want is what’s mine back where they belong.”

Jackson’s hands balled into fists and he had to fight to keep from slugging the man for the crappy way he talked about his wife and baby daughter. He’d bet good money this guy wasn’t above hitting a woman, thus explaining the bruise on Beth’s temple the day she’d showed up at the bar. And that was probably why Beth was hiding in the closet, afraid to come out.

“If you don’t mind. My wife and I were in the middle of something.” Jackson started to close the door.

Randall stuck his foot in the gap. “If you see her, tell her that I’ll find her. I keep what’s mine.” The man removed his foot.

Before Jackson could close the door, Mia gave a soft, bleating cry.

Randall’s palm slapped the door. “What was that?”

Audrey squealed and giggled. “Stop that, honey. Wait until you close the door all the way.”

“Can I help it you’re hot in those shorts?” He poked her side and she squealed again, slapping his hand away.

Randall glared at them as Jackson closed the door and locked it.

They waited, listening for the sound of footsteps walking away. Jackson held his breath, anger burning so hot he wanted to slam through the door and tell the man exactly what he thought of him. But he didn’t. If he revealed that he knew Beth, Randall might barge in and demand Beth and the baby be turned over to him.

At that point, Jackson would have to kill the man.

Chapter Six

Audrey opened the closet door and Beth fell into her arms, sobbing.

“It’s no use. We’ll never be safe. Randall will always find us.” Beth’s shoulders shook as Audrey held her.

“We won’t let him hurt you.” Audrey stroked her back as if Beth was a distraught child.

“What if he gets a court order to have Mia taken away from me? He can pull strings. He knows all the judges. They trust him!”

Audrey stared over her shoulder at Jackson as she murmured words of reassurance. “It’ll be all right. He can’t do that.”

“I don’t know, babe.” Jackson held up Randall’s card. “The man’s a prosecuting attorney. He might have some clout in the court system.”

“He does. I couldn’t tell anyone he was…hurting me. No one would have believed me. Randall has every cop in Austin batting on his team. He’s considering running for election to the US Senate. You heard him. He’ll tell everyone I’ve gone off the deep end with postpartum depression.” Her jaw tightened. “The irony is that I’ve never been clearer in my mind than after I delivered Mia. I won’t let her grow up in the hell I’ve lived in for the past six years.”

“So it’s true? Your husband abused you?” Audrey held her tighter, her heart breaking for the young woman. Having been in an abusive relationship, Audrey knew how hard it was to leave.

Beth bowed her head, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I couldn’t do anything right. If I spilled something, he hit me. If I didn’t fold his shirts right, he hit me. If he was in a bad mood because he’d lost one of his cases, he hit me.” Beth pushed the dark hair back from damp face. “At one point I had so many bruises I couldn’t leave the house for two weeks. I got to where I didn’t want to leave the house. I thought it was because I wasn’t good enough.”

Her chest squeezing tight, Audrey pushed Beth to arm’s length and smoothed the hair out of her face. “Oh, sweetie, life is not supposed to be that hard.”

“Then I got pregnant,” Beth continued. “And he was so sweet and nice, and for nine months he didn’t hurt me. He was ecstatic about the baby. His campaign manager said it would help him with the election. I thought he was changing; he was so very careful not to hurt the baby growing inside of me.” Her voice grew more ragged with each word. Beth paused before continuing. “The night I went into labor, he was angry with me for waking him. It wasn’t time, he said. He had a big case the next day and needed his sleep. I tried to be quiet, but it hurt so bad and the pain was only getting worse. I drove myself to the hospital.”

“Oh, Beth.” Audrey hugged her. “I’m so sorry. I wish I could have been there for you.”

“Randall was angry when he realized I’d gone. His campaign manager wanted pictures of him with his newborn baby to go on the front page of the paper. All I wanted was to make sure Mia was okay. She was too early. They thought her lungs might not be fully developed. Randall insisted on holding her when she should have been in the NICU. I begged him to let the doctors and nurses do their jobs.

“But he wanted that damned picture and made Mia wait until the cameraman dragged himself to the hospital twenty minutes later. Mia was struggling to breathe by then.

“Once the photo was taken, Mia was wheeled to the NICU and everyone cleared out of my room, Randall slapped me for making such a fuss.” Beth straightened, pushing her shoulders back. “I swore then that I wouldn’t live that way anymore. When I was strong enough, and Beth was well enough to travel, I loaded my parents’ old camp trailer and truck with everything I could sneak out of the house, and I left. I was going to drive all the way to Mexico when I ran out of gas and money here at the Ugly Stick Saloon.”

“I’m glad you made it this far,” Audrey said.

“Me too. But now that he’s found me, you and Jackson could go to jail for harboring me. If I know Randall, he’ll throw every lawsuit he can dream up at you two. The best thing I can do is leave.”

“No.” Audrey shook her head. “You can’t keep running. Mia needs a place to call home and you need to be where you feel safe.”

“I can’t let him ruin your lives like he’s ruining mine.”

“He won’t. And you’re moving in with us so we can protect you.” Audrey put her arm around Beth’s shoulders. “Come on. We’re taking you and Mia to the Gray Wolf Ranch. You’ll be safe there.”

“I can’t. You two have already done enough. I won’t accept any more of your charity.”

“If you won’t do it for you, do it for Mia,” Jackson insisted.

“You two are newlyweds. Mia and I would be in your way.”

“We have our whole lives to be newlyweds. You need us now, and we won’t take no for an answer.” Audrey gripped Beth’s arms gently. “You deserve happiness for all the horror you’ve put up with.”

“It’s only a matter of time before he finds out where I am,” Beth warned. “When he does, he’ll launch an attack, either legal or physical. No. I can’t do this.” She pulled out of Audrey’s embrace. “You two are nice people. I won’t let Randall cause problems for you.”

“At least stay with us until we can find a safe location for you. I’m sure Jackson knows someone who has a place you can hide out at until Randall gives up and leaves the area.”

Beth hesitated, chewing her bottom lip. She sighed. “Okay. But just for the night. The trailer won’t be safe. He’s seen it and knows I’m around here somewhere. For all I know, he’s watching it now. Waiting for me to return.”

“If he’s still here…” Jackson walked to the office door, “…I can distract him while you three make a break for it. Go to the ranch and stay there. Lock the doors and load the pistol I gave you for your birthday. I’ll be right behind you as soon as you’ve had enough of a head start.”

“Thanks, babe.” Audrey kissed Jackson on the lips. “You’re the best.”

Beth wiped the tears from her eyes. “You’re a lucky woman, Audrey.”

“I know.”

Jackson paused with his hand on the doorknob. “Stay behind the door and lock it as soon as I walk out. I’ll send Charli back to give you the all-clear once I have Neal engaged in conversation.”

“Be careful and don’t let him have much alcohol,” Beth said. “He’s a mean drunk.”

Jackson winked. “I can take care of myself. You two take care of yourselves and Mia.”

“We will,” Audrey concurred.

Jackson cracked the door and peered out into the hallway. Then he slipped through.

Audrey locked the door behind him, leaned against it and stared at the pale young woman in front of her. Her heart ached at how much she’d had to suffer. “You’ll be okay. I promise.”

“He’s far too smart.” Beth wrung her hands, her brow furrowed in a worried frown. “Taking me and Mia into your home will only bring you more trouble.”

“We can handle it.” Audrey put on a good show, but she’d feel a whole lot better when she had her .40-caliber pistol loaded and ready to take on any trespasser at the Gray Wolf Ranch.

Beth lifted Mia into her arms and rocked her while Audrey paced the room.

After what seemed like an hour but was only about fifteen minutes, a soft knock came. “Audrey, it’s me, Charli.”

Audrey leaned her cheek against the door. “Are you alone?”

“Yes,” Charli’s voice sounded through the door panel.

Audrey opened it a crack.

Charli glanced over her shoulder. “Jackson has the bastard occupied. Let’s get you two out the back door while the going is good. Greta Sue and I will stand guard at the end of the hallway. We won’t let anyone past.”

Beth laid Mia in the car seat and adjusted the straps around her.

“Let me carry her.” Audrey hooked her elbow through the handle and handed Beth her keys. “Go ahead of me and open the truck doors.”

Charli and Greta Sue blocked the end of the hallway, staring out at the bar. Charli turned and nodded, mouthing the word
Hurry
.

“Go.” Audrey gave Beth a gentle nudge.

Beth shot out into the hall, glancing toward the bar, her eyes wide and wary.

Audrey followed, carrying Mia in the car seat.

They made it out the back of the building and to Audrey’s truck without encountering any problems. The two minutes it took for Audrey to buckle the car seat into the back of the truck were two of the longest minutes of Audrey’s life. Beth took those two minutes to race through the trailer, grabbing everything she and the baby would need.

When she returned to the truck, Beth dumped her stuff on the back floorboard and climbed in the passenger side.

Audrey slipped into the driver’s seat of her red pickup. As she reversed out of her parking space, Charli burst through the back door and waved her down.

Audrey hit the automatic window button and it slid down.

“He’s leaving the bar,” Charli called out, breathing hard.

Beth pressed a hand to her mouth, fear in her eyes.

“Duck down in the seat,” Audrey commanded.

Beth bent forward as Audrey drove around the side of the saloon.

A man emerged from the bar and stared at her truck as she passed by. She pretended not to notice him, but she watched in her peripheral vision as he climbed into a car and backed out.

Audrey pressed her foot to the accelerator and sped toward Temptation, hoping to get far enough ahead of Randall to lose him. Once she reached Temptation, she zigzagged through the streets, glancing back often through her rearview mirror. She didn’t see any headlights, so she finally headed out of town toward the ranch.

“You can straighten. No one is following us,” she said.

Beth sat up and glanced over her shoulder at the road behind her and at Mia sleeping quietly. “I have a bad feeling about this.”

“Don’t.” Audrey had been thinking through all the people she knew or had contacts with. “I have an attorney friend in Dallas who specializes in divorce. I’m going to call him as soon as we get to the ranch. If I’m not mistaken, he has some friends in high and low places. He can help you file the papers you need to start divorce proceedings.”

“Randall will kill me.” Beth shook her head. “This will ruin his chances at office.”

“Do you want to stay married to a man who beats you?”

“No.”

“Do you want to risk him hurting Mia?”

“No.”

“Then let me put you in contact with Clayton Chance.”

“Clayton Chance?” Beth’s eyes widened. “The high-power divorce attorney who helped that computer CEO through his breakup with the actress?”

“Yeah, that Chance.” Audrey grinned. “They don’t call him the Shark for nothing.”

“I can’t afford him.”

“You won’t have to. He’ll have your ex paying all his fees.”

“I wish I had your confidence.”

“Honey, I used to be where you are. Then I got tired of being pushed around. I suspect you’re tired of it too. And, as you said, Mia deserves a better life.”

Audrey pulled through the arched gate of the Gray Wolf Ranch and along the driveway to the sprawling ranch house, where she shifted into park. “We’re home.”

Beth carried Mia inside while Audrey unloaded the items she’d brought from the trailer.

After settling Mia and Beth in one of the guest bedrooms, Audrey got on the phone to Clayton Chance, cringing at the lateness of the hour.

“Audrey?” Clayton’s voice came over the line hoarse and groggy. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine, Clayton.” She didn’t waste time, but launched into the purpose of the late call. “I need your expertise as the meanest divorce lawyer in town.”

“Oh, sweetheart, are you and your Kiowa cowboy in trouble? I thought you said he was
the one
.”

“We aren’t and he is. I need your help for a friend of mine in an abusive situation. Her husband has some political pull in Austin. She needs someone who will cut through that crap and get her and her baby out of a bad environment for good.”

“Sounds interesting. What’s in it for me?”

Audrey smiled into the phone. “How about I provide the strippers for your bachelor party? Hell, I’ll even host it at the Ugly Stick Saloon.”

“Not much of a deal for me. I’ll never marry, thus no bachelor party.”

Audrey chuckled. “Clayton, you’re a cynic.”

“You’ve got that right. When you work in my field, it’s hard to be anything else.”

“I’ve been a cynic but found it to be self-defeating. I learned to never say never.”

“Then you were never a true cynic.”

“Will you help my friend or not?” Audrey asked.

“I’ll help, and the best part is, you won’t owe me a thing.”

“I’ll owe you that bachelor party,” she said. “Be looking for a call from Beth Neal. And Clayton?”

“Yes, Audrey?”

“Your true love is out there. You just have to let her in.”

“And you, my dear Audrey, are an optimist soon to be disappointed.”

Audrey shook her head as she set the phone on the charger, scribbled Clayton’s number on a piece of paper and found Beth mixing formula in the kitchen.

“Clayton is expecting your call. He has more pull in DC than the president himself. If anyone can get you that divorce and a restraining order, it’s Clayton Chance.”

Beth measured powder formula in a scoop and poured it carefully into a baby bottle. “Thank you. I’ll call him first thing in the morning.” She poured water on top of it, capped it with a nipple and a seal and shook the liquid until all the powder dissolved. “I’m worried what Randall will do when he finds out I’m here.”

“The only people who know you’re here are Jackson, Charli, you and I. None of us will tell Randall.”

“But I have to work. If he sticks around long enough, he’ll find me at the Ugly Stick.”

“Then you can work here. I’ve told Jackson I need a housekeeper. This place is too big for the two of us to keep up with when we both have our own work to do.”

Beth’s shoulders sagged. “I feel like I’ve been nothing but trouble since I got here.”

“No, sweetie, you and Mia are a joy. Let us help you. ’Tis the season, right?” Audrey chewed on her lip and made a decision. “As a matter of fact, we have just the place for Mia. Come.” She grabbed Beth’s hand and led her down the hall to the room she and Jackson had been working on for the past six months.

Her hand gripped the doorknob, and she pushed back her own disappointment over not getting pregnant, knowing this was the right thing to do. Then she flung the door open and flipped the light switch on.