Bone Deep (28 page)

Greta
leaned toward her
, puffing alcohol fumes as she spoke
. “Be careful. Reed doesn’t let go of things he wants
. Like Tom’s mother for example.
” She gave Sarah a
weighty
look.

“What
does that mean?
”

“I’m only telling you not to underestimate
him
.
If Reed can’t have what he wants, then he’ll destroy that thing—or person—so no one else can have it.
”

“
You think he…?
”
She couldn’t bring herself to say the words aloud, but it surely sounded as if Greta was suggesting Reed had somehow had a hand in Tom’s mother’s death.

“This warning is for
only for
you.”
Greta
nodded
toward where Tom had disappeared. “And for him.
Take care.
”

Sarah’s
gaze
darted around the te
nt searching
for something to ground her.
This was
a bizarre dream.
T
he bearded woman’s
warning and hints shook her and she didn’t know what to do about them. Should she tell the sheriff? But Greta’s words were vague. She hadn’t outright accused Reed of murder
.

Just then Tom reappeared, looking less foreign with most of his body covered in regular cloth
ing.
His
shin
ing eyes focused on
Sarah
and when he reached her, he asked quietly, “Are you sure?”

“
Very sure
.” She took both of his hands in hers. “I never wanted you to leave
. You know that
.”

“I thought it would make things easier for you. Better.”

“It didn’t.
Not at all.
”

As she took his hand to leave the tent, she glanced back at Greta. The woman was smiling.

People stepped aside to let them pass
as they made their way to the entrance
, but whispered comments swirled around them. Sarah ignored all of
them
and
left the dark confines of the tent for the bright, sunny day outdoors.
The sky was
clear and blue
and the sun a lemon drop. A breeze blew
against
Sarah’s face and it felt like freedom.

She
was
uncertain whether to wait for the sheriff or meet him at his car
, but t
hen he appeared,
coming
through the crowd with Art Reed beside him. They were arguing as they approached.

Sarah clasped Tom’s
hand
tighter and she glanced up at him. His eyes were
wary
and watchful, but
un
afraid.

She herself was frightened. If what Greta had hinted at was true, then Reed
was
possibly a murderer. Should she pull Ziegler aside and tell him? But if
Greta
refused to corroborate the story, then Sarah would only be prolonging Tom’s ordeal. It would be be
st
to simply get him out of here as soon as possible
and figure out the rest later
.

Reed marched up to Tom and planted himself in front of him.
“Where the hell do you think you’re going?
You come begging me to take you back and now you think you can leave agai
n? You don’t belong out there.
This
is your home. This is the only place you belong.”

“No,” Tom said quietly. He dropped his
gaze for a moment
then brought his face up
to stare
defiantly at the man. “No!”

Reed’s voice went from strident to cajoling. “Do you think she’s going to keep you? A few months from now she’ll be done with you and then what’ll you do? Where will you go? Who will take you in then?”

“
Stop it
!” Sarah
pulled on
Tom’s arm. “Don’t listen to him.
Let’s go.
”

Ziegler said, “Reed, the man’s made his choice. Leave it be.”

“
Y
ou want him back in your
town
, sheriff? You think that’s not going to make trouble i
n your happy little community?”

“Don’t matter if it does.
The man’s got rights
.”
Ziegler
moved in beside Tom
. “Come on.”

“Think about what you’re doing, boy.” Reed called
as they walked away
. “Think about the woman. You don’t want to cause trouble for her.”

The sheriff
looked
back
. “Are you making a
threat
against Mrs. Cassidy
?”

Reed
fell silent.

“Good. I didn’t think so.” The sheriff
ushered
Sarah and Tom before him
past
curious
fair-goers
, past the ticket seller at the entrance
,
and across the grassy lot toward the sheriff’s cruiser.

Sitting in the back seat on the way to
Fairfield
, Sarah held Tom’s hand.
They
sat close their arms were
pressed together
from shoulder to fingers.
She would’ve liked to take him in her arms and hold him again, but there’d be plenty of time for that soon enough. Joy swelled in her at the knowledge.

The sheriff
tuned the radio to country western music and turned up the volume to give
his passengers
some privacy.

Sarah noticed Tom’s feet were bare. She nodded at them. “He took your shoes?”

Tom
flexed his toes. “He didn’t need to. I wasn’t going to leave.”

She wanted to ask why he
’
d thought going back to that horrible man was his only option, but she already knew the reasons.

“Don’t ever leave me again. I won’t take your shoes to keep you with me, but I
will
be very angry if you ever disappear like that again.” She looked into his eyes to make sure he understood her. “You really hurt me.”

He frowned. “I’m sorry. I was just trying to make things better.”

“I know.
But the two of us apart never going to be the better option. Understand?
”

Tom looked at her and one of those slow, sweet smiles curved his mouth. “I do.”

Chapter Fifteen

At the sheriff’s office, Sarah thanked Ziegler
again
for helping them and he apologized
once more
for withholding what he knew
.

As she drove home, the enormity of the commitment she
’
d just made came crashing in on her. By claiming
Tom
today, she had promised him a life together.
And s
he
did want
him in her life. She believed what she felt for him was love, but it was so permanent.
T
he idea of
a union
with someone so
different was scary
. Eventually she
’
d
introduce Tom
to her parents and her sister.
Knowing she’d have
to explain her choice and fight
other
peoples’ resistance to it for the rest of her life was daunting.

But then she looked at Tom and all her fears melted away. He regarded her with those fathomless blue eyes she would never get tired of looking into.

“Thank you for coming for me.”

She teased
,
“Thank you for being so easy to find.”

She pulled the car into the driveway and they walked up the steps to the house. On the porch Tom pulled her
against him
and gave her a lingering kiss.

She reveled in the feel
ing
of his warm
body
, his strong arms and his mouth
softly exploring hers
. She lost all sense of time as he kissed her.
At last
she pulled away
to ask
if he was hungry.

Tom
was
breathing hard
and his sky blue eyes had turned to midnight desire
. “Later. This first.” He
lifted
her
to set
her on the porch rail. Her skirt hiked up as she wrapped her
legs
around his hips.
He cradled
the back of her skull
and
continued to kiss her
with the fervor of a drowning man gasping for air
.

S
arah
tugged
his s
hirt impatiently from his pants so she could
slid
e
her hands up
the silken skin of his back. His muscles flexed beneath her palms and she shivered at the sensation of so much hard, healthy male in her arms
.
T
he
bulge
of his erection
pressed against
her crotch. She was ready for
them both to strip off their clothes and come together right there on the porch. The bed was too far away.

Millie began bawling steadily and loudly
, begging for attention
.

Tom pulled away reluctantly and regarded her with a heavy-lidded gaze. “I’ll tend to the animals.”

“We’ll finish this later,” Sarah whispered.

His
hands
bracketed
her waist and
he
lifted her
down
Sarah tore herself away
from the temptation of one last kiss … and one more … and one more. She hurried inside and q
uickly assembled a dinner of leftovers.

After setting
the table,
she
poured glasses of lemonade
and
waited for Tom to come in. But he
was taking
too long and she was too anxious to see him. She grabbed one of the glasses and walked out to the barn.

The orange light of early evening
cast
the scene before her in a dreamy glow. Tom was currying
Edison
, one hand resting on the horse’s flank and the other brushing down his leg. Motes of dust and chaff from the hay were suspended in the air, settling on Tom’s shirtless body like flecks of gold.
In that rich light he looked like a stained glass window.
The sweet scent of fresh hay filled the air.

Tom caught sight of her and straightened
.
Sarah offered
the glass of lemonade
and he
swallowed it down.
T
he muscles of his throat
rippled and
droplets of condensation from the glass f
ell
onto his chest
to roll
down the plane of his chest.

Sarah swallowed too. Her body tingled and throbbed in all sorts of places. If she didn’t touch him soon, she
would
explode into a thousand fragments or melt into a wet puddle of need
right there on the barn floor
.
She reached for the top button of her blouse.

Tom
finished his drink, wiped the back of his hand across his mouth then saw her
unbuttoning
her
blouse
and froze. She pulled the
garment
off and tossed it aside, unzipped her skirt and let it drop, unfastened her bra and
tossed
it playfully at Tom.

He let out a low-pitched, growl as he caught it, put it to his nose and breathed in her scent. Then he dropped both bra and glass on the floor
. The glass hit with a clunk and rolled a few feet.

Tom
stalked toward her
like a wolfish predator
.
Sarah darted
away
with a laugh and climbed
up the ladder
to the loft
.

He was right on her heels all the way and
,
the moment they reached the loft
, he grabbed her. He
attacked her mouth, lips
mashed
against hers
,
tongue plu
nging
inside to claim her
.