Rogue Stallion (13 page)

She slumped against the door facing. “Oh, thank God,” she breathed, her voice choked. Tears streamed down her face. “Oh, thank God. I’ve always been too weak and afraid to fight back, and Terrance takes after his daddy—”

Terrance glared at her. “You shut your mouth…!”

McCallum jerked him forward. “Let’s go,” he said tersely. “Mrs. Colson, Jessica will be out this afternoon to talk to you when I tell her what’s happened. I have an idea about where we can place Keith, but we’ll talk about that later. Are you all right? Do you need me to take you to the doctor?”

“No, thank you, sir,” she replied. “If you’ll just carry him off, that’s all I need. That’s all I need, yes, sir.”

Terrance yelled wild, drunken threats at her, which made McCallum even angrier. But he was a trained law-enforcement officer, and didn’t allow his
fury to show. He was polite to Terrance, easing him into the patrol car with a minimum of fuss. He called goodbye to Mrs. Colson and took Terrance off to jail.

Later, Jessica went with Sterling and Keith to talk to Mrs. Colson.

“This is short notice, but I called Maris Wyler before I came out here. She needs a good hand out at her ranch, and when I explained the circumstances, she said she’d be happy to have Keith if he wanted to come.”

“Do I ever!” Keith interjected. “Imagine, Gram, a real ranch! I’ll learn cowboying!”

“If that’s what you want, son,” Mrs. Colson said gently. “Heaven knows, it’s about time you had some pleasure in life. I know how you love animals. I reckon you’ll fit right in on a ranch. It’s very nice of Maris to let you come.”

“She’s a good woman. She’ll take care of Keith, and he’ll be somewhere he’s really needed,” McCallum told the old woman. “He and I have had a long talk about it. The judge has offered to let him plead to a lesser charge in exchange for a probationary sentence in Maris’s custody. He’ll have a chance to change his whole life and get back on the right track. She’s even going to arrange for the homebound teacher to come out and give him his lessons so he won’t have to go to school and face the inevitable taunting of the other students.”

Mrs. Colson just nodded. “That would be best,
Keith,” she told her grandson. “I tried to help you as much as I could, but I couldn’t fight your father when he was drinking.”

“It’s all right, Gram,” Keith said gently. “You did all you could. I wish you could stay.”

“I do, too, but this is your father’s house and I could never stay here again.”

“Yeah, neither could I,” Keith replied. “It wouldn’t ever be the same again, even if he does dry out. He talked about moving, and maybe he will. But I won’t go with him. The way he’s gotten, I’m not sure he wants to change. I’m not sure he can.”

“The state will give him the opportunity to try,” McCallum told them. “But the rest is up to him. If you want to see him, I can arrange it.”

Keith actually shivered. “No, thanks,” he said with a laugh. “When can I go and see this lady who says she’ll take me in?”

“Right now, I guess,” McCallum said with a grin. “We’ll take Jessica with us, in case we need backup.”

Keith frowned. “This sounds serious.”

“Maris is a character,” he replied. “But she’s fair and she has a kind heart. You’ll do fine. Just don’t get on the wrong side of her.”

“What he means,” Jessica said, with a pointed glance at McCallum, “is that Maris is a strong and capable woman who can run a ranch all by herself.”

McCallum started to open his mouth.

“You can shut up,” Jessica interrupted him deftly.
“And you’d better not swagger in front of Maris, or she’ll cut you off at the ankles. She isn’t the forgiving, long-suffering angel of mercy that I am.”

“And not half as modest.” McCallum grinned.

Jessica made a face at him, but love gleamed out of her soft brown eyes—and his, too. They had a hard time separating work from their private lives, but they managed it. They lived in each others’ pockets, except at night. The whole town looked at them with kind indulgence, because they were so obviously in love that it touched people’s hearts.

Even old Mrs. Colson smiled at the way they played. It took her back fifty years to her own girlhood and her late husband.

“Well, we’d better be on our way. I’ll drive you to the bus station when you’re packed and ready to leave,” McCallum told her. “And if there’s anything we can do, please let us know.”

“All I need is to leave here,” she replied, touching her swollen cheek gingerly. “Thank you for trying to help me, son,” she told Keith. “You were the only reason I stayed at all. I was scared of what he’d do to you if I left.”

“I kept trying to find ways to get out,” Keith confessed, “so that you could leave. But they kept sending me home again.”

“Well, nobody’s perfect, not even the criminal-justice system,” McCallum said, tongue-in-cheek.

They left Mrs. Colson with an ice bag on her
cheek and drove to the No Bull Ranch. Maris Wyler came out to meet them.

She was tall and lean, very tan from working outdoors, her long golden hair pulled back into a ponytail. She wore jeans and boots and a faded long-sleeved shirt, but she looked oddly elegant even in that rig.

“You’re Keith. I’m Maris,” she said forthrightly, introducing herself to the boy with a smile and a firm handshake. “Ever work with cattle?”

“No, ma’am,” Keith shook his head.

“Well, you’ll learn quickly. I can sure use a hand out here. I hope you like the work.”

“I think I will,” he said.

“That’s good, ’cause there’s plenty of it.” Maris replied with a grin.

“He’ll be fine here,” Maris assured Jessica.

“I knew that already,” Jessica replied. “Thanks, Maris. I hope someone does something as kind for you one day.”

“No problem. Come on, Keith, grab your gear and let’s get you settled. So long, McCallum, Jessica. Feel free to come out and see him whenever you like. Just call first and make sure we’re home.”

“I will,” Jessica replied.

She watched the two walk off toward the neat, new bunkhouse. The ranch, originally called the Circle W, had been in Maris’s husband’s family for years. Ray hadn’t been the sort of man a woman like
Maris deserved. He was a heavy drinker like Keith’s father, as well as a gambler and womanizer. Nobody had been surprised when he’d recently come to a bad end—running his pickup into a cement bunker on the highway in a drunken state one night. Maris had been doing all the work on the ranch for years while her lazy husband spent money on foolish schemes and chased the rodeo. It was poetic justice that she ended up with the ranch.

“Hensley’s always been a little sweet on her, you know,” McCallum confided to Jessica as he drove them back to her place. “It was hard for him to tell her about Ray’s death.”

“Really? My goodness, she’s nothing like his ex-wife.”

“Men don’t always fall for the same type of woman,” he teased. “He called her for me when I approached him about someplace for Keith to go, besides into foster care.”

“I’m glad Maris was willing,” she said quietly. “Keith’s not a bad boy, but he could have ended up in prison so easily, trying to get away from his father.”

“It’s a hell of a world for kids sometimes,” he said.

She straightened the long denim skirt she was wearing with a plaid shirt and boots. “Yes.”

He reached over and clasped her hand tightly in his. “I’ve been thinking.”

“Have you? Did it hurt?” she teased.

He chuckled. “Not nice.”

“Sorry. I’ll behave. What were you thinking?”

His grip eased and he slipped his fingers in between hers. “That Baby Jennifer needs a home and we need a baby.”

J
essica had thought about that a lot—that Baby Jennifer needed someone to love her and take care of her. McCallum had been firm about the improbability of a court awarding the baby’s care to a single woman. But that situation had changed. She and McCallum were engaged, soon to be married. There was every reason in the world to believe that, under the circumstances, a judge might be willing to let them have custody.

She caught her breath audibly. Bubbles of joy burst inside her. “Oh, Sterling, do you think…!”

His hand grasped hers. “I don’t know, but it’s worth a try. She’s a pretty, sweet baby. And I agree with you—I think our lives would be enriched by
having a child to love and raise. There’s more to being a mother and father than just biology. It takes love and sacrifice and day-to-day living to manage that.” He glanced at her gently. “You aren’t the sort of woman who will ever be happy without a baby.”

She smiled sadly. “I would have loved to have yours.”

“So would I,” he replied, his tone as tender as his eyes, which briefly searched hers. “But this is the next best thing. What do you think? Do you want to petition the court for permission to adopt her?”

“Yes!”

He chuckled. “That didn’t take much thought.”

“Oh, yes, it did. I’ve thought of nothing else since she was found.”

“The judge may say no,” he cautioned.

“He may say yes.”

He just shook his head. That unshakable optimism touched him, especially in view of all the tragedy Jessica had had in her life. She was amazing. A miracle. He loved her more every day.

“All right, then,” he replied. “We’ll get a lawyer and fill out the papers.”

“Today,” she added.

He smiled. “Today.”

Their wedding took place just a few weeks later, in July. They were married in the Whitehorn Methodist Church, with a small group of friends as wit
nesses. Jessica wore a simple white wedding dress. It had a lace bodice and a veil, and it was street length. After their vows, Sterling lifted the veil to kiss her. The love they shared was the end of the rainbow for her. When his lips touched hers, she laid her hand against his hard, lean cheek and felt tears sliding down her face. Tears of joy, of utter happiness.

Their reception was simplicity itself—the women at the office had baked cookies and a friend had made them a wedding cake. There was coffee and punch at the local community hall, and plenty of people showed up to wish them well.

Finally, the socializing was over. They drove to Jessica’s house, where they would have complete privacy, to spend their wedding night. Later, they planned to live at McCallum’s more modern place.

“Your knees are shaking,” he teased when they were inside, with the door locked. It had just become dark, and the house was quiet—even with Meriwether’s vocal welcome—and cozy in its nest of forestland.

“I know,” she confessed with a shy smile. “I have a few scars left, I guess, and even now it’s all unfamiliar territory. You’ve been…very patient,” she added, recalling his restraint while they were dating. Things had been very circumspect between them, considering the explosive passion they kindled in each other.

“I think we’re going to find that this is very ad
dictive,” he explained as he drew her gently to him. “And I wanted us to be married before we did a lot of heavy experimenting. We’ve both suffered enough gossip for one lifetime.”

“Indeed we have,” she agreed. She reached up to loop her arms around his neck. Her eyes searched his. “And now it’s all signed and sealed—all legal.” She smiled a little nervously. “I can hardly wait!”

He chuckled softly as he bent is head. “I hope I can manage to live up to all those expectations. What if I can’t?”

“Oh, I’ll make allowances,” she promised as his mouth settled on hers.

The teasing had made her fears recede. She relaxed as he drew her intimately close. When his tongue gently penetrated the line of her lips, she stiffened slightly, but he lifted his head and softly stroked her mouth, studying her in the intense silence.

“It’s strange right now, isn’t it, because we haven’t done much of this sort of kissing. But you’ll get used to it,” he said in a tender tone. “Try not to think about anything except the way it feels.”

He bent again, brushing his lips lazily against hers for a long time, until the pressure wasn’t enough. When he heard her breathing change and felt her mouth start to follow his when he lifted it, he knew she was more than ready for something deeper.

It was like the first time they’d been intimate. She
clung to him, loving his strength and the exquisite penetration of his tongue in her mouth. It made her think of what lay ahead, and her body reacted with pleasure and eagerness.

He coaxed her hands to his shirt while he worked on the buttons that held her lacy bodice together. Catches were undone. Fabric was shifted. Before she registered the fact mentally, his hair-roughened chest was rubbing gently across her bare breasts and she was encouraging him shamelessly.

He picked her up, still kissing her, and barely made it to the sofa before he fell onto it with her. The passion was already red-hot. She gave him back kiss for kiss, touch for touch, in a silence that magnified the harsh quickness of their breathing.

When he sat up, she moaned, but it didn’t take long to get the rest of the irritating obstacles out of the way. When he came back to her, there was nothing to separate them.

Her body was so attuned to his, so hungry for him, that she took him at once, without pain or difficulty, and was shocked enough to cry out.

His body stilled immediately. His ragged breathing was audible as he lifted his head and looked into her eyes, stark need vying with concern.

“It didn’t hurt,” she assured him in a choked voice.

“Of course…it didn’t hurt,” he gasped, pushing down again. “You want me so badly that pain wouldn’t register now…God!”

She felt the exquisite stab of pleasure just as he cried out, and her mouth flattened against his shoulder as he began to move feverishly against her taut body.

“I love you,” he groaned as the rhythm grew reckless and rough. “Jessie, I love you…!”

Her mouth, opened in a soundless scream as she felt the most incredible sensation she’d ever experienced in her life. It was like a throbbing wave of searing heat that suddenly became unbearable, pleasure beyond pleasure. Her body shuddered convulsively and she arched, gasping. He stilled just a minute later, and his hoarse cry whispered endlessly against her ear.

He collapsed then, and she felt the full weight of him with satisfied indulgence. She was damp with sweat. So was he. She stroked his dark hair, and it was damp, too. Wonder wrapped her up like a blanket and she began to laugh softly.

He managed to lift his head, frowning as he met her dancing eyes.

“You passed,” she whispered impishly.

He began to laugh, too, at the absurdity of the remark. “Lucky me.”

“Oh, no,” she murmured, lifting to him slightly but deliberately. “Lucky
me!
”

He groaned. “I can’t yet!”

“I have plenty of time,” she assured him, and kissed him softly on the chin. “I can wait. Don’t let me rush you.”

“Remind me to have a long talk with you about men.”

She locked her arms around his neck with a deep sigh. “Later,” she said. “Right now I just want to lie here and look at my husband. He’s a dish.”

“So is my wife.” He nuzzled her nose with his, smiling tenderly. “Jessie, I hope we have a hundred more years together.”

“I love you,” she told him reverently. Her eyes closed and she began to drift to sleep. She wondered how anything so delicious could be so exhausting.

The next morning, she awoke to the smell of bacon. She was in her bedroom, in her gown, with the covers pulled up. The pillow next to hers was dented in and the sheet had been disturbed. She smiled. He must have put her to bed. Now it smelled as if he was busy with breakfast.

She put on her jeans and T-shirt and went downstairs in her stocking feet to find him slaving over a hot stove.

“I haven’t burned it,” he said before she could ask. “And I have scrambled eggs and toast warming in the oven. Coffee’s in the pot. Help yourself.”

“You’re going to be a very handy husband,” she said enthusiastically. She moved closer to him, frowning. “But can you do laundry?”

He looked affronted. “Lady, I can iron. Haven’t you noticed my uniform shirts?”

“Well, yes, I thought the dry cleaners—”

“Dry cleaners, hell,” he scoffed. “As if I’d trust my uniforms to amateurs!”

She laughed and hugged him warmly. “Mr. McCallum, you’re just unbelievable.”

“So are you.” He hugged her back. “Now get out of the way, will you? Burned bacon would be a terrible blot on my perfect record as a new husband.”

“You fed Meriwether!” she gasped, glancing at her cat, who was busy with his own breakfast.

“He stopped hissing at me the second I picked up the can opener,” Sterling said smugly. “Now he’s putty in my hands. He even likes Mack!”

“Wonderful! It isn’t enough that you’ve got me trained,” she complained to the orange cat lying on the floor beside the big dog. Mack was already his friend. “Now you’re starting on other people!”

“Wait until Jenny is old enough to use the can opener,” he said. “Then he’ll start on her!”

Jessica looked at him with her heart in her eyes. She wanted the baby so much.

“What if the judge won’t let us have her?” she asked with faint sadness.

He took up the bacon and turned off the burner, placing the platter on the table.

“The judge
will
let us have her,” he corrected. He tilted up her chin. “You have to start realizing that good times follow bad. You’ve paid your dues, haven’t you noticed? You’ve had one tragedy after another. But life has a way of balancing the books,
honey. You’re about due for a refund. And it’s just beginning. Wait and see.”

“How in the world did a cynic like you learn to look for a silver lining in storm clouds?” she asked with mock surprise.

He drew her close. “I started being pestered by this overly optimistic little social worker who got me by the heart and refused to let me go. She taught me to look for miracles. Now I can’t seem to stop.”

“I hope you find them all the time now,” she said. “And I hope we get Jennifer, too. That one little miracle would do me for the rest of my life. With Jennifer and you, I’d have the very world.”

“We’ll see how it goes. But you have to have faith,” he reminded her.

“I have plenty of that,” she agreed, looking at him with quiet, hungry eyes. “I’ve lived on it since the first time I looked at you. It must have worked. Here you are.”

“Here I stay, too,” he replied, bending his head to kiss her.