Justice for Boone: Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes, Book 6 (14 page)

She shrugged. “I’ve always disappointed them, especially my dad. They just don’t get me. I’ll never be the one thing they wanted most in their life—a boy. I’ll never be that close to them. There’s too much hurt from the way they raised me.”

Boone said nothing, but hugged her tight. “Come on, let’s get back out there and see if we can’t extricate ourselves.”

“Sounds good to me. Boone?”

“Yeah, sweetheart?”

“Thanks for coming with me tonight.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I’m sorry I won’t get to meet your parents.”

“Me too, Hay. Lord knows they weren’t perfect, and sometimes I hated my dad for the blinders he had on when it came to Lizzy and his best friend, but they would’ve loved you…for you.”

“Thanks.”

“Come on. Wouldn’t want your dad to get the shotgun out,” he teased.

Hayden laughed again. “He’d more likely hand you a condom and tell you to have a good time.”

They walked hand in hand back to the family room. Boone had no idea why or how Donna and Bob Yates couldn’t see what a great
daughter
they had, but it wasn’t going to change his mind in the least about her. He wanted her. In his bed, in hers, against the wall of her entryway, in his barn…he hadn’t ever waited this long to have sex when he was dating a woman before, but he’d wait as long as it took. Hayden was worth it.

T
he week
after Boone met her parents had gone by relatively quickly, all things considered. But after her second twelve-hour shift, Hayden had come home to a dead cat lying on her doorstep. There was no note, nothing to prove Dana had left it there, but Hayden had a feeling it’d been her. There was no outward sign of how the cat had died except for its neck lying at an awkward angle. The only person who could possibly hate Hayden enough to do something like that was Dana.

She’d called it in and Juan had come over to take pictures and take the poor cat carcass in as evidence. Juan hadn’t found any sign of who’d left the dead cat on her doorstep, but they both had the same hunch it was Dana.

Hayden hated to put more of a burden on Boone than he already had, but knew there was no way she could keep this from him. He needed to know so he could be even more vigilant, and report anything that seemed out of place. And if the tables were turned, she’d be extremely pissed if he kept something like this from her.

It was late, but she didn’t hesitate to call him.

“Hey, Hayden, I didn’t expect to hear from you,” Boone said as he answered the phone, pleasure easy to hear in his voice.

“Yeah, I wasn’t going to call until tomorrow, but something came up.”

“Oh shit. Dana?” Boone guessed immediately.

“Yeah.” Hayden explained without beating around the bush, figuring he’d appreciate her getting right to it. “Found a dead cat outside my apartment when I got home. There’s nothing to prove that it’s a gift from Dana or one of her minions, but I’m guessing it was.”

“Dammit,” Boone swore. “I can’t believe this. It’s insane. Why isn’t she getting the hint?”

“We see this all the time.” Hayden tried to keep her voice calm so as not to rile Boone up any further. “Stalkers can’t distinguish between what’s real and what’s fantasy. They have a one-track mind, and want what they want no matter what anyone tries to tell them otherwise.”

“She knows where you live,” Boone stated unnecessarily.

“Apparently. But I can take care of myself. I already knew she was obsessed with you and figured she’d eventually try to scare me again. And Boone, if I didn’t run screaming away from you after she had my drink spiked, this sure as hell isn’t going to do it.”

“I’m sorry, Hay. I had no idea she’d be so psycho.”

“This isn’t your fault, Boone. It’s not. We’ll deal with this just like we’ve dealt with everything else.”

Boone didn’t say anything and Hayden knew he was struggling to comprehend the latest threat against her. “Have you gotten any sleep?” He’d been staying up late the last few nights because some of his heifers were giving birth. He’d told her that each one of the calves that were born were worth anywhere from two to eight thousand dollars. He wasn’t going to take any chances that the mamas would give birth in the fields on his property. They would do it in the safety of his massive barn, with veterinarians and himself there, in case something went wrong.

“Some.”

Which Hayden figured meant little to none.

“I didn’t want to add anything else on your plate,” Hayden told Boone honestly. “But I also figured you’d want to know.”

“Thank you for not keeping it from me,” Boone said.

“You’re welcome. Will you try to get some sleep tonight?”

He barked out a harsh laugh. “You think I’ll be able to sleep after I found out my ex-girlfriend put a dead cat on the doorstep of my current girlfriend?”

It sounded like a rhetorical question, but Hayden answered it anyway. “No. But I was hoping you’d be happy hearing I was home safe from my shift and that I was tucked under my covers warm and sleepy after a hot shower.”

That did the trick. “I
am
happy hearing that, Hay.” Boone’s voice had lost its bite, and was more of the low rumble she loved to hear from him.

“I’ll let you go then. Take care of the baby cows, cowboy.”

“I will. Stay safe, Hay.”

“Always. I’ll talk to you soon.”

“You will. Good night.”

“Good night.”

Hayden clicked off the phone and shook her head, pissed at Dana and what she was doing to Boone. At this point, she honestly hoped Dana would confront her face-to-face. She could take care of herself when it came to confronting pissed-off ex-girlfriends. There was nothing she wanted more than to take the bitch down. She’d press charges and make sure they stuck. Dana would regret not simply leaving when Boone broke it off if she made any more attempts to get in Hayden’s face.

Hayden hadn’t heard from her parents, except for a quick text from her dad asking when she was bringing Boone over again. She’d simply responded with a quick, “I’ll let you know,” and left it at that.

She and Boone, on the other hand, had texted and talked every day since he’d left her at her door last week. They’d made out on her doorstep, until Boone pulled back with a deep breath, swearing. He’d told her he had to go or he’d never leave. Even Hayden’s, “Then stay,” hadn’t been enough to convince him. He’d palmed the side of her head and whispered, “Soon,” then turned and left.

Hayden knew what he was doing. He was building the anticipation between them…and damn if it wasn’t working. She’d have to try to control herself from attacking him when she saw him next. Her sessions with her vibrator and her imagination just weren’t cutting it anymore. She wanted the real thing. She wanted Boone.

He’d called after she’d gotten off work each night. They hadn’t talked long, or about anything heavy or deep, but it was nice to know he was thinking about her and they could talk about nothing.

But his texts were what made her smile like an idiot. Boone was funny and sweet, and somewhat dirty. She never knew when she heard the ding of her phone what kind of mood Boone was in until she read his text. Brandon had caught her reading one and smiling and had immediately wanted to know what was up. She’d refused to tell him and he’d actually stolen her phone and read what Boone had written.

I
woke
up from a really sexy dream this morning, you were wearing a slinky black dress which was hiked up around your waist. You were sitting astride me, dripping all over me, holding your handcuffs and asking if I wanted to try them out. Needless to say, the water in the shower was cold by the time I was done.

H
ayden had
blushed beet red at Brandon’s whoops and catcalls. He hadn’t shut up about it until she’d tackled him and put him in a headlock, promising to tell the other guys he was deathly afraid of spiders if he opened his mouth.

Not all of Boone’s texts were explicit as that one had been; most were quirky, light and…nice.

J
ust wanted
to check in to see how you were.

Miss you.

Can’t wait to see you in forty-three hours and two minutes.

What color panties are you wearing under your uniform today?

H
e never failed
to make her laugh…and to make that spot in her belly fill up. She’d felt so empty inside. Night after night of going home to a lonely apartment with no one to give a crap if she ate, was tired, or if she’d had a hard day, had worn her down until she was just going through the motions of living. But knowing Boone was there, even if it was just by phone, made her feel warm and fuzzy.

Twice since they’d had dinner with her parents, Boone had ordered dinner for her. It’d arrived after she’d gotten home and showered. The first time was pizza; the second time, a huge sub sandwich from the place down from her apartment complex was delivered. The gestures were sweet and made Hayden feel cared for.

Now it was the day of their date. Hayden had braved the crowds and gone to the mall to find a black dress to wear for Boone, as he’d requested. She’d risked going without Mack, as she was busy, and thought she hadn’t done half bad. They still had to decide on a day when they’d go shopping so Mack could collect on her bet, but so far they’d both been busy and hadn’t been able to come up with a day that worked for both of them.

Hayden ran her hands down her stomach over the silky material of the dress she was wearing and tried to calm her nerves. She’d luckily found a very nice saleswoman who was thrilled to help her find something that would work. She’d tried on about ten different dresses, but the second she’d slipped this one over her head, Hayden knew it was the one.

There was a deep V in both the front and back of the dress, and it hugged her slight curves as if it was made only for her. The bottom flared out over her ass into a flouncy little swirl of material. There were cap sleeves that draped her shoulders and showed off her muscular and toned upper arms.

Hayden felt feminine in it. She imagined the look on Boone’s face when he saw her in the dress and it made her bite her lip. He’d like it—at least she hoped so. The saleslady easily talked her into a pair of thigh-high hose with a thick seam up the back of her legs, just like she’d seen celebrities wear. The heels she bought weren’t high, still no more than two inches, but they seemed to elongate her legs anyway. The lady helping her had even unearthed from somewhere in the store a small black handbag, which would actually hold her service pistol without being obvious about it. Since she couldn’t wear it in her ankle or chest holsters, as she usually did when she went out, she had to carry a purse.

The last thing she’d bought was a black lacy bra that helped make it look as though she actually had some boobs. Seeing herself with cleavage was definitely a rare occurrence.

Now she was sitting at her small table—because pacing was out of the question in her heels—wondering if she was overdressed. Boone hadn’t told her where they were going, only that he’d planned a romantic night out for the two of them. Hayden’s leg jiggled up and down, and she was just pondering if she had time to run to her room and change when her doorbell rang.

Obviously not. Damn.

Hayden strode to the door and, after making sure it was Boone, she opened it and stared.

She hadn’t ever seen him in anything but jeans and his boots. Tonight he was wearing a pair of khakis that had been pressed so the creases along the front were clearly seen. He had on a pair of brown loafers, which shone as if he’d polished them.

His shirt was a rich mahogany that brought out the flecks of gold in his eyes somehow. He’d paired the shirt with a tie with blocks of different color browns in it. He wasn’t wearing a Stetson, which was rare for him. His dark brown hair had been brushed back from his face, but a few stubborn tendrils still managed to hang over his forehead. All in all, he looked and smelled delicious.

They stood there looking at each other for a moment before Boone lifted his hand and twirled his finger at her.

“What?” Hayden asked, not understanding.

“Turn.” His voice was low and gruff.

So Hayden turned away from him, then faced him again.

“Again.”

“Boone,” she complained, getting annoyed.

“Please. Again.”

Since he said please, Hayden turned again, this time faster, but he caught her hips as she was faced away from him and held her in place. He put one hand on her stomach and pulled her into his front. His other hand ran up and down her arm, starting at her shoulder under the wispy fabric and ending at her wrist, before heading up again.

“You look amazing, Hayden.”

“Uh, thanks. So do you.”

“Are those thigh-highs you’re wearing?”

Hayden had no idea why he was concentrating on her pantyhose, but she answered affirmatively.

“If we didn’t have reservations, and I didn’t want to take you out and show you off so badly, I’d have you on your back on your kitchen table so fast it’d make your head spin.”

“Uh…”

“And just saying, sweetheart…if this night ends up with me inside you, I want to start it out with you wearing this fantastic dress, and those sexy-as-all-get-out hose, and maybe even those heels as well.”

“Boone!”

“What?”

Hayden didn’t know what. His words were making her melt. She’d never inspired such…lust in a man before, and she liked it. “Nothing,” she mumbled lamely, resting her head back on Boone’s chest as she reveled in the feel of his hard-on against her back.

He laughed and spun her around, running both hands through her hair. She’d taken the time to use the curling iron on it for the first time in forever. She had thick curls at the ends, which rested on the curves of her breasts. She watched as Boone’s eyes followed his hands as he fingered her hair. Hayden swore she could feel the heat from his hands on the skin showing in the deep V of her dress.

“I’d kiss you, but one, it’d mess up your lip stuff, and two, we’d never leave. So come on, we have reservations.”

“Where are we going?” Hayden asked, trying to ignore the goosebumps rising on her arms at his words.

Instead of answering, Boone picked up her purse—and then looked down at it in surprise at the weight.

Hayden held out her hand and answered the unspoken question he’d asked with his raised eyebrows. “It’s got my service pistol in it. I couldn’t exactly wear it.” She gestured at herself.

She’d told him she carried it wherever she went. As far as she was concerned, she was never off duty. She’d never ignore a crime that was going down in her presence. She always wanted to be prepared…for anything. Especially when she knew Dana was out there planning something else crazy.

Boone didn’t give her a hard time about carrying, just nodded at her and encouraged her to step outside.

Hayden locked her door and dropped her key inside her purse and let Boone lead her to his truck. It’d been scrubbed and detailed by the body shop and he’d told her how glad he was to get his own truck back. The rental was good, but there was nothing like driving around in your own vehicle.

He helped her in, as it was harder to step up in a dress than it was when she was wearing pants. Hayden had to give Boone credit, he was trying very hard to be a gentleman, but she didn’t miss the gleam in his eye when her dress inched up her thighs as she sat down. He held out the seat belt to her and Hayden took it with a smile. He shut the door and hurried around to the driver’s side. He started the powerful engine and they backed out of the parking space and headed to the main road.