Surviving Love (Montana Wilds Book 1) (22 page)

T
he sun had dipped
behind the buildings in the center of the small town, the evening rushing in to overcome the day. Mike stood behind the corner of the building, waiting. It didn’t pay to rush things. The enemy would come, wandering, unaware, doing whatever it was he set out to do. That was the time to strike—when the mark thought he was alone performing a mundane task.

Another fifteen minutes and he saw his opportunity.

Duke meandered out of the bar, a smug grin lighting his face. He passed within feet of Mike, completely oblivious to the other man, not looking in shadows as he should’ve been.

That had been Duke’s biggest mistake since day one: underestimating his opponent. Duke thought a man that bowed out was a coward. Mike knew that bowing out meant no one died.

Mike was no longer bowing out of this battle.

He watched Duke stroll to a darker corner, hiding from the lingering sunlight. He took out his member and peed against the wall, grunting with satisfaction.

Mike was behind him in a heartbeat, a ghost. He stood, waiting, until Duke finished, shaking and tucking himself back in. He zipped up and turned. His body jolted backward, squinting as he recognized who stood in front of him.

“I’ve come to collect,” Mike said in a gruff voice. “You’ve damaged something of mine. Sent a message. I’ve come to respond.”

“Is that right?” Duke said with a sneer, his eyes showing what his body didn’t.

Fear.

“Your word versus mine. Isn’t that how this works?” Mike asked, pulling on gloves. It was said the friction burns on Sara’s skin were from leather. Most likely gloves. No DNA was left behind.

Clever.

Duke dug in his pocket and whipped out a knife. With a click, the blade jumped out.

“Wow. A switchblade.” Mike smirked. “How very 1980s of you.”

Duke ticked his head to the right. “Confident to the last, eh, Frost? No witnesses, remember. I don’t even have to claim self-defense. I just have to walk away.”

“You’re an idiot, Duke, if you think a knife gives you a better chance at survival against me.”

Slower than an old man on a sunny porch, Duke slashed at Mike’s middle. Mike stepped to the side, his hands falling with force. He grabbed Duke’s wrist with one hand and smashed the other against Duke’s elbow. The knife skittered across the ground, Duke’s knife hand now useless.

Anger surged within Mike. Images of the bruises on Sara’s puffy eyes overcoming him. Her nightmares as she lay in that hospital bed, flailing her hands and groaning, fueled his rage. Red clouded his vision. He struck out. He tried to claim revenge for a beautiful woman who couldn’t claim it for herself. Tried to somehow fill the aching hollow of helplessness in his core. Tried to drown out the soul-crushing agony of seeing his love in pain.

Tears blinding him, on violent autopilot, Mike lost himself to his fear for Sara. To his terror of something happening to her. It wasn’t until he felt a firm hand on his shoulder that he came to. That he allowed reality to seep back in.

“All right, bro,” Greg said, pulling him away. “That’s enough. Cops are on their way.”

“I got it from here,” Jake said, stepping into the alley.

Greg grabbed Mike’s shoulders and started pushing him away. “Let Jake sort this out. He’ll get the least amount of questions.”

They walked in easy, unhurried strides out of the alley, across the street, and to the waiting BMW SUV. Each climbed in, Christie nodding from the driver’s seat as they closed the doors.

“All set?” she asked in a nonchalant sort of way.

“We’ve got this,” Greg said, staring out the window as she pulled away from the curb. “Jake’ll say Duke tried to take his wallet with that knife and Jake defended himself. He’s been in these parts forever. The sheriff is his best mate. Case closed.”

Christie nodded once. “Never tell Sara. Just say that he got put in jail because of what he did. She doesn’t need to know he would’ve gotten away with it.”

Mike stared out the window, his heart aching. “Did she wake up? Have you heard?”

She’d been in there for a day and a half, only barely coming to a couple of times, and immediately falling back to sleep. Mike had given up all the duties on the ranch he could, but there were a couple of classes he still had to teach. Christie, Greg, or Jake filled in when he couldn’t be there, or when they couldn’t, May came in. They made sure someone was always with Sara in case she woke up.

“She is on pretty serious painkillers. She woke up once but she was all crazy,” Christie said in a quiet voice.

Mike sighed, his eyes misting over again. He could take a great many things, but seeing her in pain broke a part of him he didn’t know how to fix. He’d give his life to see her healthy and happy. He couldn’t imagine any other way.

Greg leaned forward in the seat to put his hand on Mike’s shoulder. “She’ll heal, bro. And Duke’s going away. She’s safe. Just stick by her side, and she’ll carry on. I get the feeling that she’ll run through hell if you’re by her side.”

“She might be strong enough, but I’m not sure I am,” Mike admitted, his eyes going hazy as he stared out the window.

“That’s why you have us. You support her, we’ll support you,” Christie said softly. “We’re all a team. She’ll come out okay. Trust me.”

Two things were clear. Christie had been through something serious, and she had a core of steel because of it. She’d become everyone’s backbone in dealing with this. Mike was extremely lucky to have her calling the shots, because he still felt like a day-old kitten. Utterly lost.

M
ike was
in a chair next to Sara the next morning, dozing against the hospital bed, when he felt her hand stirring from within his. Her eyes blinked open, unfocused for a moment, before zeroing in on his face. Her lips tweaked into a smile before she winced. Tears welled in her eyes.

“Mikey,” she said in a hoarse voice.

“Yes, baby, I’m here.” He smoothed her hair back from her forehead.

Tears overflowed and wet her face. “I lost it. I lost our baby.”

Mike’s heart dropped. Tears blurred his vision. He’d heard that from the doctor; it wasn’t news. Her dejected look, though, sorrow filling her features, had his eyes overflowing as if he was just hearing for the first time.

He shook his head and stroked her cheek. “Your body has been through so much. Famine, thirst, surviving the wild, surviving an attack, surviving life—so much. It wasn’t a good landscape for a little one. But the doctor says you’ll heal. That you’re healthy. You’ll still be able to conceive. This isn’t the end, sweetie. And I’m right here. I’m always right beside you, okay?”

She nodded, her lips trembling. “Do you still love me?”

He pushed forward, his heart breaking. “Of course I do, dove. Of course I do! More than ever—that’s not true. Just as much as ever, which is more than most people love their entire lives. You and I are forever. It could just be the two of us for the rest of our lives, and I’ll be the happiest man in the world. I have what I’ve always wanted: I have my soul mate. Everything else is just icing.”

Sara’s watery smile filled her face. She nodded, squeezing his hand.

“Plus, the fun is in trying for a baby, right? So we have that to look forward to.” He smiled down on her.

She nodded again. Her eyes filled with relief, even though he could still see the haunting sorrow lingering from her loss. From their loss. He felt that same feeling deep in his core. They’d barely gotten used to the idea that they’d be parents, but to have that joy ripped away in a horrible act of violence hurt the soul. He would always remember the loss, and he could tell she always would, too. But they’d get through it. Together, they could get through anything. He wholly believed that.

“I love you,” Sara said as a tear ran down her face. “I thank God for you constantly. I thank Him for what happened with Phil so I’d be forced to find you.”

“I love you, baby.” He kissed the tear from her cheek.

A sparkle of fear crossed Sara’s gaze before she said in a tiny voice, “Did they find him? Did they arrest Duke? I tried to scratch him or something to leave some DNA, but he was too fast. I couldn’t leave any proof. I couldn’t—”

“
Shhh.
Don’t worry about Duke. He’s been arrested for assault and drug possession. He’ll be in jail for a long time. He won’t be bothering you.”

Sara’s eyes searched his face. Her brow furrowed as they delved into his eyes. After a moment, her expression cleared and a small smile tickled her lips. “Thank you, for taking care of him.”

“I didn’t do anything,” he replied, squeezing her hand, wanting to pick her up and squeeze her to him. She’d always been able to read him—to see through any lie he tried to tell.

Her eyes fluttered closed. “So modest. So protective. St. Mikey.” With that, she relaxed, her breath evening out. Back to sleep. Safe. Loved.

S
ara winced
as she stepped out of the car and onto the ranch. It was nearing the end of the season—the tourists were packing up and getting ready to head on. There were a few more families that would hang on for some last survival classes, but for the most part, it was time for normal ranch life instead of purely a tourist dude ranch.

Sara was excited about it. She wanted to know what it was really like out here, managing a large property and a lot of cattle and horses. Without putting on a smiling face for paying customers, she could just settle into this new place.

“Good morning, young lady. My, you’re looking gorgeous as ever.” Greg smiled as he rushed forward to take her purse.

Sara shook her head. “My eyes are brownish yellow with the faded bruises, and half my face is still swollen. I’m not looking my hottest, that’s for sure.”

“True. You look fierce. Like a cage fighter. I like it.” Greg laughed as he took her arm and escorted her toward the main house. “Here to see May or Dan?”

“Yes. I’ve been out for a couple of weeks. I need to see what mess this place is in.”

“Where’s your bodyguard?”

“Survival class, as usual. News got out that he was stranded with another person and kept us both alive. He’s getting even more press. Next season is already sold out and he’s been approached for a reality survival show.” Sara laughed and waited patiently while Greg opened the door. “The man won’t let me catch up with the achieving. Which I am convinced I will. Somehow.”

“I think he’s working hard to make sure you have an empire. He’s on fire.” Greg shoved his hands in his pockets as they neared the office. He had her purse over his shoulder. “I hear you guys are having another try for a baby. Congrats.”

Sara could feel her face turn red. She shrugged, a move having her wincing again. “Not right at the moment. I need to heal first. But we will. We both want the same things, so we’ll try again.”

Greg nodded, his eyes focused on her face. “I’m sorry about what happened. Seems like you’ve been getting the short end of the stick lately.”

Sara waved the thought away. “I’m okay. Duke’s in jail—that’s enough for me. I’ll heal and be right as rain. Things could’ve been a lot worse.”

“Too cheery by half.” Greg flashed her a grin and backed up. “Well, I think we’re all supposed to go to dinner tonight, so see you then.”

“Yup. Bye—but can I have my purse back? It looks good on you, but I have my lipstick in there. It’s not your shade.”

Greg smiled and unslung the handbag from his shoulder. “Just call me mule. All right, see ya.”

Sara watched him walk down the hall before she took a big breath and entered the office. She’d done some good work while she had actually been working, but she’d had so much crazy go down since she got here that she hadn’t done enough of it. She needed to know where she stood.

May was sitting at the desk with her head bent over some papers when the door opened. The older woman glanced up, and her eyes widened when she saw Sara.

“My goodness, child, what are you doing out of bed!” She hurried to Sara, took an arm, and escorted her to a chair. “You’re supposed to be resting.”

“I just wanted to check in. There’s bound to be some things not looked after while I’ve been gone.”

May glanced at the desk. “Don’t you worry about it! Now, you need to go back—”

“What is it? Let me see.” Sara held out a hand for the papers, a smile tickling her lips.

May sighed and handed them over. “There seems to be a problem with some delivery or other, but the boys didn’t remember receiving it at the barn. We got it, because we have some supplies, but we don’t know if we got it all or—” May waved her hand. “I’d forgotten how long all this takes. Seems like it goes so smoothly when you take care of it. It really takes hours, though.”

Sara’s chest filled with warmth. “I’ll take care of it.”

“No, dear. Oh no, I couldn’t have you do that. You need to get better. I can handle it.”

Sara tucked the page in her purse. “I’m sore, not decrepit. I’ll do what I can, and boss the boys around to do what I can’t.” She laughed. “Being needed means I still have a job, so that’s fine by me.”

“Well, of course you have a job. And did I hear right, you’re staying in the area? Because all the boys keep threatening to leave unless you stick around. Seems managing the supplies at the ranch houses has won a lot of votes.”

A shadow passed over May’s face. She clasped her hands and bowed her head slightly, pursing her lips. She’d apologized directly to Sara for what happened, feeling like it was her and Dan’s fault that Sara hadn’t been safe on their lands. She’d also said, though, that she wouldn’t mention it again—every time she did, tears choked her voice.

Three close friends of Duke’s had been fired. Dan and May were loyal, but when pushed, they reacted quickly and harshly. Anyone that sided with Duke, in any capacity, was thrown out of Dodge. No one was sad to see them go.

Sara smiled. “I’m trying to find some room in the budget for a weekly cleaner. We’ll see.”

“Oh yes, that would be nice. And a budget? My goodness, we’ll be just like all the big ranches.” May laughed in a carefree sort of way. “Well, we’d be happy if you stayed on with us. You fit in here. And if you stay, we know Mike Frost will, too. He’s nearly family now, so we’d hate to see him go!”