To Claim Her (12 page)

“An offer like that only comes from one woman.” 

The woman shot a smile at Derek and Jack.  “Sweet talker.”

“Christina Wilcox.  It’s been a long time!”  Mark stood and turned toward her. 

“Too long, Magic Mark.”  She flung her arms around him and gave him a kiss that seemed all too friendly to Gretchen. 

She watched as Derek dragged up a chair and put Christina on the other side of Mark.  She felt the jealousy gnawing at her insides as the woman cooed and smiled at the men surrounding the table.

“We didn’t know there was anything magical about Mark, Christina.”  Jack gave her a charming smile that made Gretchen feel an eye roll coming on.  “We’ve always known him as a Saint.”

She laughed.  “Oh, he’s no Saint.  Just why don’t you tell me where in the world you got the idea he was a Saint, and then let me tell you all a little story about Mark from just after we graduated.  He was quite the ladies’ man.” 

Mark smiled as Jack began regaling Christina with the tale of their days in the military together.  “Once upon a time in a quiet little place called Fallujah…”

“That’s in Iraq?”  Christina’s eyes were wide as she asked.

Gretchen considered knocking the other woman out of chair, but she wanted to know where the nickname came from so she kept quiet. 

Derek coughed, and Mark knocked back his drink as Jack smiled and nodded.  “Yes ma’am.”

“Okay.”   Christina gestured with her fingers.  “Go ahead.  I’m with you now.”

Jack leaned in again.  “We were on a rescue after a mission went bad and some of our men were trapped.”

“Oh.” Christina was glued.  Gretchen didn’t feel as entertained as much as slightly sick thinking about the dangers these men had faced.  Fortunately, the waitress brought her another glass of wine to ease her concern.

“Mark dropped in to lift a wounded warrior out on a stretcher.  He got him in the chopper, and the guy was so glad to be out of there, he started asking questions a mile a minute.  What were our names, were we married, where were we from, that kind of thing.  Guess he was a big football fan because when he heard we were from Louisiana, he said he already figured us for saints but that just cinched it.   We got a good laugh out of that one.”

Christina searched their faces before asking, “Why was that funny?”

Derek leaned closer.  “Cause not one of us has ever been very saintly, Ms. Wilcox.”

And that’s how it started.  Two hours of un-saintly stories and flirting, touching and teasing between Christina the guys. 

Jack and Derek seemed to egg it on with prompts and questions, laughing every chance they got and all but ignoring Gretchen.  There was only one thing for Gretchen to say.  Her hand shot up in the air as the waitress passed by the table.  “More wine, please.”

At the end of the night, Christina rejoined her sister and left.  Jack gave Gretchen a little hug, and Derek gave her a nod before heading out.    With all the wine, she couldn’t seem to keep her mouth shut as they exited the restaurant. 

“Well that wasn’t very fun.”

He opened the door of the truck and tucked his hand under her bottom to lift her in.  “No?  It seemed alright to me.”

She sighed.  “Well of course it did.  You spent the evening with two girlfriends.”

He grunted as he started the truck.

“You always did have girls all over you.  I hated it.”  She drew out the hated it in such a way that made her wonder if she would be crying soon.  But no, the feeling passed. 

“Most of those girls were just my friends, Gretchen.  You were always too insecure.”

“Well at least your friends don’t hate me.  They weren’t mean to me at least.” 

He narrowed his eyes at her.  “Glad that helps you.  But there’s something you need to remember.  The only one that should matter to you right now is me.  I’m the only angry one that you need to worry about.”

She leaned her head against the cool glass on the door and trailed her finger down the window.  “Right.”  Obviously he still was.

Chapter Eight

Mark leaned against the car as he watched Eddie run around the makeshift bases in the yard like a kid possessed.  He had to admire the kid’s spunk.  

From the corner of his eye, he saw the curtains shift at the kitchen window.  Gretchen.  Stubborn and scared.   And doing a better job torturing herself than he would ever do.  The hangover hadn’t helped.  He probably hadn’t made her feel any better over the last few days.   He couldn’t take the edge of his anger.  Not yet.   

“Throw the ball to me.  I can catch it!”  Eddie hopped up and down before he perched to catch a throw.  Down and ready.  Tongue tucked at the corner of his lips as he waited to make the catch.  Mark lobbed the ball into his son’s glove. 

The door cracked open and Gretchen stepped outside.  He gave her a nod.  It was the warmest welcome he could manage.  He waited as Eddie flung the ball back in his direction.   “When his energy wears down a little, I’ll take you in to get your car.” 

She nodded.  “Thanks.  I need to run to work to get paperwork for the past few days anyway.” 

One thing he could say was that Gretchen did a good job keeping all the balls in the air while raising Eddie.  Over lunch he watched as she turned on the charm for her little boy, encouraging him to try new foods, eating up every word he had to say.  It was clear she loved their son, and he felt relief to know. 

But she seemed exhausted – maybe from walking on egg shells as they tried to figure out how to deal with parenting together.  Or maybe it was the information about her car.  He’d finally shared the details last night since she’d be getting it back today.  She needed to be careful.  The shadows around her eyes said she had lost sleep thinking about that last night.

He’d answered a call from Nora mid-morning asking when Gretchen would return to work.  When would he stop holding her hostage.  And something about him being an old dog that couldn’t learn new tricks. 

He couldn’t completely discount her refusal to leave the house since she was afraid.  On the other hand, he could protect her if she’d let him.

Could have for the past few years.

Not sharing the news about Eddie felt like a clear rejection.  He couldn’t let that go.  He was back for his son now, though.

Outside the mechanic’s garage, Mark installed Gretchen in her car after paying the bill and checking over the repairs.  He leaned in the window and waited for her to start it up.  Smooth and quiet. 

He glanced back at Eddie waiting in his truck.  There was ice cream on the agenda for the afternoon.  They would also swing by Derek’s for the afternoon.  His wife had been gone for four years, and even after all this time, he was increasingly grouchy.  More so lately.  Maybe there was something Mark could do.  Derek had been on his way out of the military when Mark joined up.  Their friendship had seen them through the death of Derek’s wife and son when the her condition had turned deadly.

“I’ll be home after working for a while this afternoon.”

“No plans after work?” 

She shook her head.  He could see it was a trial for her to leave Eddie with him and return to the office. But it was time to step out and get back to living.  He had spoken to Jack about tapping into a camera across from the clinic and enabling a tracker on her car and phone to allow added security while they tried to catch a killer.  Using her as bait wasn’t a viable option, but eventually she had to lead her life whether the culprit was caught or not.   To do that, he had to make sure she was safe.

Mark watched as Gretchen pulled from the lot with a wave at Eddie.  He climbed into the truck and pulled up the app on his phone where he could watch her move through the city and to the clinic.

Gretchen entered the last of the numbers into the spreadsheet.   Jumping into work was the only way she made herself stay for the afternoon rather than grabbing the files and dashing home.  Her instincts told her that she was still in danger.  But with all the changes, she couldn’t be sure if it was from Mark or from the kidnapper.

Her heart and pride were shaky as she watched Mark and Eddie seal the deal on their relationship.  Thick as thieves.  As warm as felt watching the father and son together felt, she also had a sliver of fear ease in every time Mark narrowed his eyes to remind her of the betrayal.  Would he try to take her son away? 

The computer went dark with its screen saver.  Something flickered in the reflection, and her eyes settled on the glimmer of a face.  She startled at the image and jolted back. 

“Oh, did I interrupt your wheels spinning?”  The image on the screen formed into an image of Nora.

Gretchen glanced behind her, her breathing erratic.  “I remembered something.”

Warm hands landed on her shoulders to spin the chair around.  “Something about the kidnapping?”

She nodded.  “Yes.”  She swallowed down the taste of bile in her mouth.  “A man.”

Nora’s eyes squinted until wrinkles lined her forehead.  “Did you know him?”

She shook her head.  “More of an outline.  But there was something.”  She glanced through the clear partition to the empty waiting area, her mind drifting to the familiar man from several days before.  “He had a beard.”

Nora cleared her throat.  “Well, that’s wonderful.  This is progress.”  She helped Gretchen stand and pulled her toward the patient rooms.  “Real progress.  Let me check your wounds since it’s been a couple of days, and we’ll go see Officer Landry.  Maybe this will help their investigation.” 

Gretchen didn’t object as Nora put her in a room and went to grab a few things she needed.  She began unbuttoning her blouse and eased it off her shoulders as she waited.  Did this mean that her memories were coming back?  Would she remember everything that happened during the kidnapping?  Her stomach gave a quick roll. 

Nora returned and closed the door with more force than necessary.  “Let me get a quick look here.  She nudged Gretchen’s leg, turning her around to face the wall.

“I think I’m mostly better.  Mark put the medicine on and changed the dressings yesterday.  The stitches should be ready to come out soon.”  She stiffened and waited for the now familiar irritation as the bandage was removed.  Instead she felt a prick on the side of her neck.  “Ouch!”  She swatted at the spot.

“Easy now.  It will just take a moment.”

She glanced at Nora who was hovering behind her. 

“What was that?”  She patted at her neck but felt nothing.

Nora capped a syringe and placed it in her jacket pocket.  “Just something to make this go more smoothly.”

She felt her neck relax, and her shoulders begin to go limp.  “I don’t understand.”

“I know.  But you will.”  Nora moved her around toward the door and quickly set her shirt back in place.  “Let’s see if we can get you to the car.”

“I need my purse.  What was in the shot?  So dizzy.” 

“Don’t worry.  Just a muscle relaxer and bit of sedative.”  Nora opened the door and glanced into the hall before ushering Gretchen toward the rear entrance of the building.  They entered the stairwell, and Gretchen was herded through the exit door and into the deserted parking lot.  Closing time. 

“I’m not worried.  Dizzy.  Don’t want to go this way.”  She had her car.  It was parked on the other side of the building.  She hadn’t wanted to park in the rear because the view was hidden from the road.  It had felt safer to enter the building from the front when she came to work.  Lots of cars and people were always around.  She swatted at Nora’s grip on her shoulder and tried to pull away.  “No!”

Nora clamped tighter and pulled her more quickly toward the car.  “Don’t be a bother, Gretchen.  Get in without making a fuss.”

The edges of her vision were taking on a dark haze.   No more clear outlines helped her find her way.  Instead, the lure of sleep was calling.  “Call home.  Eddie’s waiting.”

Nora opened the car to the rear of her car, and the Gretchen fell inside before she could protest again.

The car door slammed, and the car roar to life.  She felt the car lurch out of the parking lot before hearing Nora speak.  “That sad part is I always liked you, Gretchen.  You just got in the middle of things.”  She tsked and then went quiet. 

Gretchen faded in and out of her daze.

“She remembers what you look like.  It’s only a matter of time before she realizes.  It’s time to take care of her.”  Nora whined in to the phone.  “It’s too late for that.  I gave her a shot big enough to knock out a horse.  Where should I take her?” 

She listened in shock.  She heard Nora disconnect, but her body was heavy and useless.  Totally incapacitated.  She felt the first tear slip down her cheek and onto the seat. 

Mark waited in front of the building.  When the windows of the clinic went dark, he pulled up to the entry way and waited.  He had dropped Eddie off with Sebastian after having ice cream before returning to catch Gretchen before she left. 

They needed to spend some time talking about the future.  Maybe over dinner, definitely without the boy present.  He didn’t know for sure what would happen with her, but there was clearly a place in his life for Eddie.  Maybe it could work out so they were a family.  He just had to be able to trust her. The hardest part might be getting her to trust him.  They had to start somewhere. 

He watched as the last employees trickled from the building.  One of the ladies in scrubs locked the door.  The building was dark.  He rolled down his window and got the attention of a nurse heading toward the parking lot. 

“Well, long time no see, Mark!  You’re looking good.”

He granted a smile to the woman.  She had only been a few years older in school, but he couldn’t remember her name to save his life. 

“Same to you.  Listen…”             

“You are just as fit as can be.  I’d snatch you up and take you home if it wasn’t for the three kids and husband waiting there for me to fix supper.”