Robin and Her Merry Men (12 page)

*****

When Will ran away again like the little bitch that he was, unable to face his mistake, Collin relaxed. “I’m good
,
Ox. Thanks.” He stepped away, his thoughts immediately going to Robin. He turned, only to find her gone. His eyes roamed over the camp, drop
p
ing in disappointment when she was
nowhere
to be found.

“You sure? Your eye may beg to differ there, bud.” Ox stared at him. Collin reached up and felt the goose egg that was already swollen past his brow and flinched. He hadn’t felt it until now.

“That’s gonna leave a mark. How is Robin?
She didn’t get hurt in the cross
fire did she?”

“No man, she left. I think she would have whipped the shit out of you both if she would have stuck around though. Did you see that left hook? Damn. I hate to be the poor fool who pisses her off.” Ox rubbed his forehead, shaking his head back and forth.

“She did land a good one, didn’t she?” Collin grinned.

“Hard enough Will thought it was you. Either she packs one hello
v
a
punch or you hit like a girl,”
Ox joked, lightning the mood.

“She’s somethin’, ain’t she?” Collin couldn’t help it. He was proud of her. Before he even got the chance to step in and defend her honor, she had pounced and was going in for seconds.

“That she is. I don’t think she needed you
, lad. Will might o’
ended up knocked the hell out if you wouldn’t have stepped in when you did. You did him a favor in more ways than one,
” Bull
pitched in.
The three laughed at the image.

“Listen, thanks again
,
guys. Sorry for the rumble, but Will stepped out of line. I need to go find her and make sure she’s okay.”

“No. Let her be. Franny will make her a drink and let her vent. If you go chasing her now, she’s
liable
to dot your other eye.” Bull grinned.

“You might be right…
And I think she could hurt me
,
”
h
e snickered, still in awe of her. Pastor Tuck on the other hand had showed restrain most men wouldn’t have in the same situation. He kept true to the cloth and turned the other cheek, showing more strength than anyone. “Let me know if my brother comes back. We need a little family discussion.”
Ox and Bull nodded, not needing explanation where he was going.

Pastor Tuck had co
me close to allowing emotion override his beliefs. It was true that if a time arose that threat came upon them he would stand and fight. Tonight wasn’t that time. He had almost fallen right into the devil’
s plan. He was angry, but more
so angry
with
himself. He sat up against a tree, nursing the homemade ale when Collin approached.

“Hey.” Collin took a spot next to him, accepting the mason jar of amber liquid. “You did what most men couldn’t have back there, Pastor. I’m sorry you were put in that situation. Will had no right.”

Tuck let out a ‘humph’, guzzling a good drink before speaking. “He was blinded by anger, as was I. Don’t be blind, Collin. I wasn’t the man I should’ve been. Anger took over me too.
I’m ashamed of my behavior.” He looked down, his eyes hidden in the shadows. “Thankfully, our God is a forgiving God.” When he looked up, a weak smile had found its way back into his heart. Collin looked up to him. In all their darkest days, and in the tightest of
predicaments
, the man still found solitude and peace. He had been working on it himself, but still had a lot of demons to fight off from his past before he could ever live in such serenity.

“That he is. Come on. I heard
a
rumor there was pie to be served after dinner.” He patted him on the shoulder before he rolled to his side and stood. Sharp pains shot through his rib cage, and given the amount of stiffness that had already begun to sit in, the chances of him escaping bruised
,
if not cracked ribs
,
was slim. Once he stood, he offered Tuck a hand. Tuck took it gratefully, and the two set out in search of blackberry pie. Pie was the universal
peacemaker
in their world, and no matter what bad or despair dumped on the extended family, it had the power to turn it into a rainbow.

The next few days, Robin strayed away from Will, John, and even Collin,
sticking closely to the women and kids. After the fight, once her anger had left, pain took
its
place. Her heart ached, turning her normal hard
-
as
-
nails exterior into mush allowing her emotions to shine through. As much as she hated it, she was still a girl at heart, who only wanted the men she loved to love her in return.

Will had made it perfec
tly clear how he felt about her, which hurt worst of all.
Thankfully
John had been off helping gather firewood when it had all went down. After word had reached him, Sara, Franny, and the other women had set a
barricade
up not allowing him to speak to her despite his numerous pleas.
For the past few days, they had kept her wrapped in their bubble away from any reminders of that night or the two men who owned her heart.

Collin
,
on the other hand
,
had managed to sweet talk
his way by her apron
-
clad body
guards and had offered her support and an ear to vent, but even he knew it best to give her space
and kept his distance
.

After
Will had disa
ppeared that night, he only showed
face the next morning
at breakfast
before making himself scarce. It had been days and not one meal had he returned for, nor one night to his cabin.
Despite the jadedness she carried, subconsciously she still worried for him. It was no secret he had a hot temper, and she worried he might do something stupid or dangerous without thinking with a clear mind.

Robin busied herself, volunteering to gather berries and nuts with a few of the younger children. As she stripped mulberries off the low branches of a massive tree, Pastor Tuck approached. “Ah. Nature’s candy. When I was a boy, my grandmother would take me out in search of enough mulberries to cook in a cobbler for Sunday dinner. My siblings and I would climb the trees that lined the
backside
of the property, usually eating more than we carried home. Come dinner, the basket of fruit we had gathered magically tripled in size and managed to make a cobbler big enough to feed the lot of us and have left overs.” He smiled, setting in to work beside her. She loved hearing the stories of his youth. He might have been born poor, but he had definitely lived a rich life. Her parents had more money than they knew what to do with, but
unlike the good pastor, she had no stories to tell. He had asked her once, learning most of her childhood had been spent in the care of a nanny or at boarding school. Because she seemed to admire them so much and got joy out of them, he had promised to give her some of his raising through the memories he cherished for her to call her own.

“Your grandmother sounds like a pretty magical woman, who loved her grandchildren very much.”

“She was, and was the best grandma in the world. After she passed, we were sorting her things and found bowl after bowl of frozen berries in the freezer, all marked with the date. Grandpa had finally come clean and told us her secret. During the week before we would arrive, she would take him out and together they would pick enough to replace her supply. It had all started when they themselves were young, and he courted her. Every afternoon, she would meet him by the same mulberry trees. It was under those sweet ripe berries that he had kissed her for the first time, proposed, and if I had to
guess, where our parents were…uh…
planned so to speak. So, when they were small, she would send them out to the very same spot, wanting them to feel the love and experience the true beauty of nature. The tradition was passed down to all of us.”

“Wow. That’s a beautiful story.”

“Yes. Because
of those trees, we tasted the love in every pie and cobbler she made. Most importantly, we made our own memories that will be with us all forever.” He climbed up on a thick branch
effortlessly,
picking the berries she couldn’t reach.

“Mulberries are my favorite.” She grinned, no longer feeling the heaviness that weighed her heart for the past days. He seemed to understand how to cheer her up, without prying or forcing her to discuss something she had no control
over
. They talked casually the rest of the trip, a
nd while in the company of the m
ulberries and Pastor Tuck,
she
was able to forget all of the chaos and drama.

*****

Will had headed straight to town the morning after t
he fight, knowing that he was the last person Robin
—
or anyone for that matter
—
wanted to see
. He had screwe
d up royally. With nothing to focus his attention on, he decided to skip planning a way for Robin’s name to be cleared with the others and took matters into his own hands
.
It beat w
a
llowing in
self-pity
and another jug of Pastor Tuck’s wine
.
Hopefully if he was lucky, he might earn some amount of
forgiveness
from them all, if only a little.

The mayor had no idea who he was up against. His call to an old friend had given him grounds to work, and he intended to make sure everythi
ng fell in
to place so Nottingham wouldn’t know what hit him before it was too late.
Like clockwork, he waited until the bastard left to meet his prostitute at the rundown hotel on the edge of town and his wife went for her late night ‘tennis lesson’. When the coast was clear, he snuck into the mansion.

It didn’t take much to find the art collection Nottingham had displayed in a special room for all to envy. He had tight security, but not enough to keep Will from easily figuring a route around it. He made
notes
,
careful to itemize every valuable and exact locations of the alarm triggers with the
way to deactivate each and every one in a little notepad he carried. When he returned, Nottingham would be left with nothing more than the floor beneath the expensive rugs and the paint on the walls.

Will’s uncle, Richard Kings, had moved from Seattle to follow his legal career over twenty years ago. He had been the best judge the city had ever seen, but to follow his political career it had been necessary. Now, as he retired from a state held posit
ion, he was moving back home.
Until a few days ago, Richard had no idea of Seattle’s happenings. The only information he received was from the media, who slapped a shiny sugar coat on anything that was reported.
When he found out about the evil Nottingham spread, he immediately went through the pro
per chains to ensure his spot of
Mayor upon his return. The beauty of it was, Nottingham had no clue.

Will had spent the
most part of a week
scoping out Nottingham, concocting a plan to send him packing with a bang. As he laid everything in place, it was only a matter of time before the town could begin rebuilding to its greatness and
Robin could be safe.

After grabbing supplies for camp, he set back home to face his sentence. He knew what he had to do, and come hell or high water, he was going to win back the woman he loved.

*****

John found Robin down by the river and saw an opportunity. He strolled up to her, doing his best to remain casual in hopes she wouldn’t flee. To his surprise, she welcomed him with a smile.

“So, what do you think?” She splashed water on her face, wincing at
the cold sting. The river was
direct run
off of the snow from up north, keeping it a chilling temperature even on the warmest of summer days.

“What about?”

“This…
all of it. The forest, the people…
It’s amazing
,
isn’t it?”

“Oh…
yeah. I didn’t know what to expect. After I had time to explain and ease their suspicions, everyone welcomed me with open arms. I’ve never
known people like this. It’s…
weird. The woods thing is kinda growing on me too.” The corners of his mouth tugged up slightly as he plopped down on the fresh grass. Robin giggled.
“Listen,
I know things kinda went to hell
,
Robin. I still can’t change how I feel about you. How
serious are things with you and Will?”

Robin shook her head, not wanting to have this conversation. She was still pissed at Will, but couldn’t shut off her feelings for the asshole. Seeing John, and finding out that he hadn’t betrayed her
,
opened her heart to him too. She was always one for honesty, and decided to lay it out. The sooner she got it over with, the sooner she could start working on mending her broken heart. “John…
I
—
”
s
he
hesitated, taking a deep breath before
swallowing. “I care about you…
we have a history.”

“But?” h
e asked, waiting for the blow he knew was coming.

“But I care about him too. I know it’s not fair…but I don’t think I can choose. I’d rather just keep you both as friends than lose one of you forever.”

“Robin! The fucker practically called you a whore. What can he give you? The man has nothing but a shack in a tree. Open your ey
es. I’m right in front of you…
and all I’m asking is for a chance to see where it can go.”

Robin
stood, now pissed off and ready to pop. “Said by a true rich prick. I thought you were different than that John. Really? You just had to go there. That’s low.” She started to walk off when he rose and stopped her.

“Listen, I’m sorry. It’s just hard to hear. I’ve wanted you for as long as I can remember. Just when we finally get a shot,
he
steps in the way. I can’t lo
se you now.” He dropped his head, defeat washing over him. She was so close, yet still just out of his reach.

Robin’s temper simmered. She understood his outburst, and knew it must be a major blow to admit what he did. He was a man, and men got jealous. It was almost endearing in a twisted way. “I don’t know what I want right now
,
John.” She stepped forward, raising her hand to cup his chin. “I can’t change my heart. I think there is a go
od chance I am falling for you…
but I’m falling in love with him too. That’s all I can give right now. Maybe things will change…but I need time. Please understand that.” She turned and walked off, her mind racing and nothing making sense.

*****

Will wanted to beat the living shit out of John when he spotted him making his move on Robin by the river. When he got within
earshot
, he slowed, listening. Her words struck straight to his heart. She loved him. Granted, she had confessed her feelings for John too, but h
e couldn’t deny that the lovely, enticing, bewitching Robin Hoode
—
loved him. He saw first hand that attempting to make her choose wasn’t going to help. If he didn’t tread lightly, she’d put them both in the friend category forever and neither would ever stand a chance again. As she walked off, he disappeared, needing time to work things out before he acted. One way or another, he’d have the woman he loved.

He knew what needed to be done, and if he could come to terms with it, it might just work. First thing first, time for the walk of shame
—
he owed a few
apologies
.

*****

Will sat beside Pastor Tuck, feeling the weight of his sha
me smother him. “Listen, Tuck…
the other night I was out of line. I let my temper get the best of me. I didn’t mean
—”

“I know,
Will. Don’t worry about it. I forgave you the moment I walked off. Women have a way of bringing out the worst in us.” His interruption was a relief.

“So…
are we good?”

Tuck grinned, patting him on the shoulder. “We’re good.”
Will moved to leave, halting when he continued
,
“Might I give a little piece of advice?”

Will cocked his head, unsure where he was going with the conversation. “Of course.”

“Robin is a special girl. Sometimes the answer is outside of the box. Unconventional. Go have a talk with John. You both may be able to salvage things and work together to win her back…if she will have you.” Will’s brow wrinkled in confusion. What the hell did that mean? Unconventional? Both of us?
Wait…
does he mean…
Surly he couldn’t…

“What, l
ike as in both of us…together…
with her?”

“
Polygamy
has been around since before the birth of Christ. Just because there
's
an extra person in th
e relationship doesn’t require you two
to be intimate. It ju
st means that there needs to be
a strong friendship and bond
—
an
ag
reement that nothing matters besides making
her happy, and protect
ing
her.
Think of it as a brotherhoo
d…
or a complex friendship.
Think about it. You may be surprised at how many benefits a rel
ationship like that could bring.
” He winked and walked off, leaving
Will
pondering what could have been taken as a sexual reference. Leave it to the preacher to point out mor
e than the obvious advantages.

Come
nightfall
, Will waited until Robin retired to ‘her’ room and people began trickling off to bed for the night. With only
him, John, the good
p
astor, and Wolf left enjoying the warm night breeze, it was now or never. He swallowed his pride and made his move. John seemed like a decent guy. In other circumstances, he could see them hanging out as friends. “I hope Tuck knows what he’s talki
ng about. Here goes nothing,”
Will said under his breath as he approached him.