Forever in Haven's Crossing (13 page)

“Thank you so much, Kim,” he said, hugging her with true sincerity.

“Okay, what’s goin’ on here—we leave you two alone for ten minutes and
you’re
hollerin’ and
she’s
cryin’ again,” Logan said, laughter in his voice.

“Look, Dad, she got me a new iPod!” Will said, walking over to show his dad.

“Did she now?” Logan replied as his eyebrow rose. She knew he was wondering how she did it without them knowing.

“I got you one, too, Ben,” she said handing him his gift and giving him a hug. “I love you,” she added.

“Love you, too, Mom—thanks for this.”

Both boys started toward their cars, Kim wiping the tears from her face. “Damn, woman,” Logan said, pulling her toward him. “This is gettin’ to be a habit.”

“I can’t help it—I cry when I’m happy,” she said, nudging him in the side.

“And when you’re sad, or worried, or mad, or frustrated,” Caleb added, laughing.

“Shut up!” she replied, slapping his arm. “I used to never cry until I met
you
.”

“Honey, if you only knew how often poor Caleb has heard those words coming from a woman’s mouth,” Logan joked as Caleb vowed to get even.

They watched their two boys drive off and then headed toward the house. “So what did Ben wanna talk to you two about?” she asked hesitantly. Both men smiled down at her.

“He pretty much told us that he’d never seen you this happy before, thanked us for taking care of you, and told us he’d kick our asses if we ever hurt you,” Logan said, grinning.

“He did not!” she said, nudging him again.

“He’s a good boy, Kim,” Caleb said more seriously. “You did a fine job raising him.”

“Thank you,” she replied. “I just wish he’d had you two in his life when he was growing up.”

“Well he’s got us now. That’s the important thing. Now—let’s get inside and see how much more relaxed we can get ya, sugar,” he said with a wink and a pat on the bottom.

Kim started spending a lot of time with Caleb learning about the financial aspect of running the ranch and how to put in orders, do the payroll, and how to keep all the documents filed. Caleb also taught her how to use the program he installed on the computer so she could help out and get things entered. She saw how much work he put into making sure it was all running smoothly and efficiently. She also found out just exactly how influential and wealthy the Wade family really was. She knew they had money, but they weren’t the type to flaunt it or brag about it, and since she herself was not a materialistic person, she never even brought the subject up. She just trusted they were taking care of business and now that she knew just how secure they really were, it made her proud and also gave her peace of mind.

She finally received her divorce decree a month later and the day she got it, both Caleb and Logan asked for a date for the wedding. When she asked how it all worked, having two husbands, they explained she would be legally married to Caleb, since he was the oldest, but they’d also have a symbolic ceremony, uniting all three of them in marriage. Kim was hoping Myka and maybe the other girls would be able to come. And, since Myka was coming to visit in another six weeks, when she finished the semester and graduated with her master’s degree in physical therapy, Kim was going to try and convince them to wait until she got there.

Myka could not contain her excitement when she found out about the wedding. They started making plans and Myka wanted to have a bachelorette party if they could get everyone there.

“Uh, they are
not
gonna to let me go out and get drunk off my ass with some male strippers around, Myka.”

“What? Maybe I can talk to them,” she said. Kim began laughing so hard her stomach began to hurt.

“You just go right ahead and do that, sister, and let me know how that works out for ya.”

“So you don’t think I could turn on the charm and talk them into it just for one night?” Myka asked using her sweetest “I’m so innocent” voice.

“Again,” Kim said, knowing her men a lot better than Myka did, “good luck with that. So, what’s plan B?”

“Hey, what about just a celebration at your house?” Myka suggested.

“Now you might have something there—as long as there are no strippers. I’m pretty sure they’d be okay with that, I’ll talk to ’em tonight.”

“So, are you ever gonna tell me what it’s like being with two men?” Myka asked, always trying to get all the delicious details.

“Myka Lambert, I’m gonna beat your ass if you ask me that one more time! It’s just one of those things you have to try out for yourself, but I will say—it’s definitely worth the experience. And who knows, this is a ménage town after all—maybe we can get you the hookup,” Kim said, laughing.

“Oh my God, I could never!” Myka shrieked. “It is intriguing though. We might just have to explore some possibilities.” The girls continued to chat on the phone, making plans and laughing until Myka had to leave for class. Kim promised to call after she had a chance to talk to Caleb and Logan.

After she hung up the phone she called her friend, Sheila, to see how she was doing and to see if she might be able to come. Sheila was over-the-top excited for her, but told her she finally had to break down and have surgery on her knee. She had been having trouble with it for the past year or so and since she was a personal trainer, it wasn’t getting any better. Kim told her to get herself better and they planned for her to come after she was healed and had some more vacation time. It was good to hear her voice. Kim missed all the girls’ nights they used to have.

That night at supper, Kim felt tension in the air. She actually stopped to wonder if she had done something she shouldn’t have, because they were so quiet. She decided to wait for their talk, until they were in a better mood. Later, the sheriff came over and talked to the men in private, making her believe that something was definitely going on and it didn’t pertain to her. When she asked them why the sheriff came by all she was told was that there was nothing for her to worry about and that everything would be okay.

Two weeks later, the sheriff came out to the house again and this time the men all went for a walk, leaving her inside to wonder. When they came back inside, both men looked worried and solemn.

“What did he say?” she asked softly.

“Come here, darlin’,” Logan said with a sigh. She walked over to the table and Caleb held her chair out. They all sat there in silence for a few minutes and Kim was starting to get worried.

“Please, Logan—tell me. You’re scaring me.” She watched their faces intently. Logan picked up her hand and began to talk.

“Do you remember when the sheriff came by the other day?” She nodded. “He came to tell us we had a woman missing from town.” Kim gasped at his words. “He came today to tell us they found the body and”—Logan paused—“she had been murdered.” Kim started to get tears in her eyes.

“Did you know her?” she asked, almost in a whisper.

“She was a sub that came to visit here at least every other month,” Caleb answered. “She was a real nice woman and she certainly didn’t deserve to die the way she did.”

“Now, Logan and I have talked about this, sweetheart, and we need you to know the whole story. We’re gonna tell ya so that maybe you’ll be more careful, more aware. We don’t wanna scare ya, but you need to know, okay?”

“You
are
scaring me,” she said, getting up from the table. Logan reached out and pulled her into his lap, putting his arms around her waist possessively.

“I know, darlin’,” Logan soothed. “But we’re just tryin’ to protect the most precious thing we have around here—and that’s you.” He gestured to Caleb to continue.

“This isn’t the first time this has happened, sugar. The sheriff thinks we may have a serial killer on our hands, and worse yet, it may be somebody who lives here.” Kim shuddered and Logan held her tighter.

“We’re sending you away for a while until this sicko is caught,” he added.

“What? No! I’m not leaving you!” she cried, trying to break free from Logan’s hold.

“You
are
going, baby,” Logan said matter-of-factly.

“No. I. Am. Not. And you
can’t
make me!” she yelled, hitting his arms with her hands. He wrapped his arms around her arms and took her wrists in one hand, pinning them up against her lap.

“You’re also gonna listen to us carefully. Now, settle down and pay attention. Go on, Caleb,” Logan said.

“From this moment on, you are in our sight at all times. You go
nowhere
alone, understand? We don’t even want you outside on the ranch by yourself. Are we perfectly clear?”

“Yes,” she mumbled, still in shock. “But I’m not leaving,” she added with determination.

“We’ll talk about that later, darlin’. Right now we just want to make sure you’re clear on the rules.” Logan made her look at him and she nodded her head in agreement. “Good girl. Now let’s get ready for bed.” He picked her up and carried her to the bedroom, knowing in his heart he would kill anyone who tried to harm her or take her away.

The next month was really stressful. Caleb and Logan watched her like a hawk, not leaving her alone for a minute. It finally got to the point she had to tell them to back off because she couldn’t even sneeze without them being right there. She swore to them that if they sent her away she’d come back the very next day and they knew she was stubborn enough to do it, so they reluctantly let her stay. Her days were spent inside all day long and even though she knew she’d rather be with them rather than somewhere else, she wasn’t sure how much longer she could stand it. She was thrilled when word got around that the sheriff had arrested someone and the whole town breathed a sigh of relief.

Everyone started to gradually get back to their regular routines and Kim was extra thankful, because she hadn’t wanted Myka around if there was a serial killer running loose. So, now she could come and they could get on with the wedding plans. There was only a little over a week left and so much still needed to be done. Kim called the other girls, but they weren’t going to be able to make it either. Mel was leaving for a business conference, and Teri’s son had just returned from a tour in Afghanistan. They all wished her well and promised they would all make a trip together sometime soon. Kim loved those girls. They had been with her through good times and bad and her life just wouldn’t have been the same without them.

Myka was arriving at the airport, and since it was an hour away, Caleb drove Kim to go pick her up. Logan was left behind to fix some fences that needed to be repaired. Both men had been quiet about Myka’s visit and she wondered if they were concerned about how Kim would behave when Myka got there. She also thought it might just be a reminder of Kim’s pre-Wade life when she was alone and had no one to love her. Of course, her inner voice graciously suggested that they may be having second thoughts about the wedding.

Caleb was silent most of the drive, not cooperating in Kim’s attempts to engage him in small talk.

“If you don’t want to marry me just say so,” she blurted out, praying he wouldn’t confirm her fears. His head turned so fast she thought he might get whiplash.

“Why would you ask me that?” he said, concerned.

“Because you and Logan have been so quiet lately and we’re supposed to be married in just a week. I thought you might be getting cold feet.”

“No, sugar. No cold feet here. We both love ya more than ever and can’t wait for you to be our wife.” He put his hand on her knee and rubbed up and down her leg.

“Okay, well first of all you can’t be doing
that,
” she said, removing his hand from her leg, “when we’re about to be walking into a public place. I’ll be damned if you’re gonna leave me hot and all worked up. Second, I think we need to have a little talk about how it’s
not
okay to make
me
talk about every little thing and then you two don’t have to. It’s not fair,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest and making him smile.

“I’ll be sure to inform Logan that we’re gonna be having that talk and I do look forward to seein’ how that turns out,” he replied, still grinning.

As they entered the airport, Kim couldn’t contain her excitement.

“Damn.” Caleb laughed. “If we’d known you were gonna be like this we would’ve had her here a lot sooner.”

“I can’t wait to see her, Caleb. She’s my best friend in the whole world.
Girl
friend, that is. You and Logan are my best
guy
friends.”

He raised his eyebrow and with sarcasm oozing from his words said, “And I’m real glad to hear that, sugar.” Kim stood close as people were exiting the plane. When she saw Myka, they both screamed like little girls and ran into each other’s arms.

“Oh my God, you look amazing!” Myka squealed.

“So do you! I’m so glad you’re finely here,” Kim replied. Caleb stood patiently waiting, propped against the wall. His arms were crossed over his chest, his boots crossed at the ankle. And his cowboy hat made him the quintessential cowboy.