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In that moment he regretted not arming the alarm. He’d put one in, based on his wife’s insistence, but never used it now that she was gone.
Another few seconds and he’d be ready to grab whoever crossed that threshold. And he hoped like hell it was only one person.
Mitch flexed and released his fingers. He was ready.
A smallish—at least in comparison to his size—figure slipped inside. He took a step toward the intruder and grabbed whatever he could, wrapping his hands around the person’s upper arms. The intruder seemed familiar but he dismissed the thought.
Until the person kicked where no man wanted a foot and he gulped for air. The intruder put their hands on top of his and then dropped to the floor, breaking his grip. This person had skills.
“Stop it and I won’t hurt you,” he warned through sharp intakes of air. He was still trying to regain his footing after taking a hit to the groin.
Before the intruder could scoot away completely, he had a fistful of shirt material. He took another knee in the same spot, ignoring the pain shooting up his abdomen and causing his gut to clench.
Fists flew at him until he wrangled the stranger’s arms under control, but in pulling him or her close he ushered in a scent—lilies—and froze.
The intruder scooted out from underneath him.
“Whatever you do, don’t turn on the light,” the familiar voice warned through gasps.
“Who are you?” he asked but he already knew the answer—an answer that was a throat punch.
“It’s me. Kimberly.”
Chapter Four (#u8a2678ba-1ad0-5002-bd7a-d59d385ca9bb)
Kimberly needed to find the right words to get her husba—Mitch motivated to get out of the house and Jacobstown until she was certain the men who’d found her had moved on. Thinking about him in terms of being her husband only crushed her heart more.
Instead she stood there, mute.
“My wife is dead,” Mitch said out loud. His angry tone came off like he said the words more for himself than for her benefit. Either way, they scored a direct hit. Guilt was another punch.
All she could think to do was back away from him, slip past him and dart into the twins’ nursery across the hall. She didn’t flip on the light because her eyes had long ago adjusted to the darkness and she didn’t want to wake the babies yet.
She knew that he followed her based on the tension she felt radiating from behind her.
Mitch’s hand gripped her arm as she started toward the set of cribs nestled against the wall. Her heart nearly burst at the thought she would actually get to see them again. Hold them?
“Stop right there.” Mitch’s voice came out in a growl.
Reality slapped her in the face. He was about to kick her out. She jerked her arm out of his grasp and whirled around on him.
“I know what this must look like but trust me when I say you and the babies are in danger,” she said in barely more than a whisper. “If we don’t get out of here right now, a pair of men will show up. And that’ll be bad news for everyone.”
He stood there and stared at her like he was facing down a ghost. And he was. At least in his mind.
Mitch stilled and she could tell that she was getting through to him. Angry or not, he’d always been reasonable. Even though she could tell his armor was up and she’d never truly be able to break through it again, he considered what she was saying.
“Where have you been?” he finally ground out.
“Around.” As far as answers went, it was awful. But it was also true. And there was no way she was telling him her locations. It would be too easy for him to predict where she went next.
Mitch stood in an athletic stance and crossed his arms over his solid bare chest.
“Why?” There was no sign of weakness in his voice when he asked the question. No sign of long nights without her. No sign of the hurt he must’ve felt. His tone was steady as steel now. He was steady as steel. The only thing that could melt steel was a temperature of 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit, and his glare felt at least that scorching.
He deserved an explanation. There was no time to go into details. She needed to get him to safety and then she could figure out the right words. Everything had careened out of control faster than an Indy driver staring down a wall after veering off course. The wall was coming. The crash was going to be devastating. The only question was how many of the pieces she could pick up afterward.
“Please say you’ll come with me and bring the babies,” she begged.
“You’re supposed to be dead. Explain to me why you’re alive and standing in front of me.” His arms crossed tighter over his chest and there was so much anger in his eyes.
“I can’t right now. But I promise—”
“Not good enough.” He stood there, being a stubborn mule.
“Mitch. Come on. Just listen to me,” she started, but he stopped her with a hand in the air.
Frustration seethed, pouring off him in waves.
“Forgive me, but I’ve been talking to a headstone for the past eleven months.”
Those words were daggers and robbed her of breath.
“I buried your memory and as much of you as I could along with it,” he continued, unblinking.
Wind blasted the window, rattling the casing. She jumped and sucked in a sharp breath. “We need to go now.”
“The kids need stability. Being here will give them that.” His lips thinned. “Give me one reason I should take it away from them.”
He wanted answers she couldn’t give. But asking him to trust herat this point would be a slap in the face.
Reluctantly, she moved into the hallway, knowing full well he’d follow. Waking the twins would create a commotion and her heart would break if she heard them cry. She also couldn’t risk them drawing attention or covering up the sound of someone breaking in. Words failed her and she wanted to scream. Panic gripped her like a vise, squeezing air from her lungs.
Mitch was so close on her heels, he almost ran into her when she stopped.
“People are after me and they’ll use you and the twins to draw me out. I shouldn’t have shown up at the doctor’s office today,” she admitted, both hands out in defense.
“That was you?” Recognition dawned with the admission but it didn’t help with his anger.
“I’m sorry, Mitch. I truly am. I made a mistake but I can’t change that now. You and the babies aren’t safe here.”
“Why not call the sheriff?” He shrugged. Suspicion laced his tone and she completely understood why he’d feel that way even though it hurt.
“Because in my case that will do more damage than good,” she admitted. The night-light plugged into the socket in the hallway cast a warm glow on his chiseled features. Again she stared into eyes of suspicion and disbelief.
“I don’t know what to tell you. Sounds like you got yourself into a mess of trouble.” His words came out clipped.
“It’s so much worse than that. I got you and the babies in a terrible fix. There’s no way out but to run. I need you to believe me, Mitch.” She stared into his eyes, which had hardened toward her. Was she even getting through? Based on his stern expression and closed-off stance, the answer was no.
This wasn’t the time to back down. “I’m serious, Mitch. Please come with me and I’ll explain everything once we’re out of danger. Trust me when I say men could show up anytime and they’ll outnumber you. They’ll bring weapons.” There were times when she felt like she would always be on the run. By the time she met Mitch, she’d been running for half a year. When the man who raised her had given her a throwaway phone and insisted she try to reach him only using the cell, she’d worried that he might be getting senile.
The first few calls had gone fine. As fine as they could be with him acting so strange. He’d mumbled about putting her in danger, but he never explained when she questioned him. She didn’t put too much stock into what he said. She knew full well that he was a decent man. She played along while she tried to figure out the next move. Counseling? Support group? Her thoughts moved to questions like was it safe for him to be behind a wheel? And was it okay for him to live on his own and continue to run his business? Her worries quickly shifted from thinking about taking his car keys away to realizing something was really wrong when he didn’t answer her calls. Days later, the deputy had found him. He’d drowned, which was highly unlikely for a man who never went near the water. And now the men who’d killed her father were after her.
But then again gloom had always followed Kimberly. Mitch had been a light against so much darkness. Falling for him had been so easy, so effortless. He was sunshine in a world that had become pitch-black.
It was selfish of her to want to hang on to the feeling of finally basking in the sun again, a feeling she hadn’t experienced in so long.
A well of resolve sprang inside her. Loving him was exactly the reason she needed to buck up and be strong right now. She’d put Mitch and the babies in danger. So she would get them out.
A flash of light followed by a crack of thunder split the night air.
“What do those men want from you?” he finally asked, and she realized he must’ve seen them earlier.
“They must’ve followed me to the plaza. I hadn’t seen them in a few days, so I thought I was in the clear. I’m sure they saw my reaction to you and put two and two together because they disappeared when I was so close. They’ve never done that before,” she admitted.
“They won’t get past security on the ranch. They don’t know the place like you do,” he started and then paused. A strange look crossed his features.
“What? What is it?”
“A heifer’s hoof was cut off, butchered. Any chance your men would do something like that?” he asked, and it was a genuine question.
“Like a warning?” She was already shaking her head. “No. They’d use you or the babies to draw me out. You wouldn’t see them coming.”
Mitch stood there, all fire and frustration. More signs she was making progress with him.
“It also proves someone can get past security,” she added for good measure.
When he didn’t argue, she realized she was getting closer to his agreeing to cooperate.
“I promise this will all make sense soon. Just please come with me. I don’t know how much time we have before they get here,” she stated as plainly as she could. Seeing the man she would always love stirred up so many emotions inside her once again. Emotions she needed to keep in check for the sake of everyone she loved. In another time and place, the two of them could have shared something very special, very real.
Where was the reboot button when it came to life?
“LOOK. I DON’T know what you have going on or what game you’re playing but your problems are not my problems anymore. That all stopped when you walked out on us,” Mitch said through clenched teeth. For a split second he thought maybe his wife had been in a crash and survived but lost her memory or her mind.
All hope was decimated when he heard her speak. She knew who he was. She knew that they had children together, children she hadn’t once thought to check on in the last year. Those were her choices. This woman’s mind was as clear as water in a mason jar.
So he stood there, examining her. Anger boiled inside him at the fact that she stood in his home without an apology for what she’d put their children through by making them live the first year of their lives without a mother.
“My wife is buried on the west lawn at the entrance to her favorite place on the ranch, the meadow,” he ground out, trying and failing to keep his voice at a whisper. He refused to believe that the woman he’d fallen in love with could be so heartless.
His words were intended to deliver a physical blow.
“I—I’m sorry for that, Mi—”
“Don’t apologize to me. I got exactly what I deserved. But they didn’t.” He nodded toward the babies’ room. “Those two didn’t do anything wrong.”
Kimberly stood there, her gaze scanning the area. She looked scared and a little bit angry. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, she also had that protective-mother look. The one that said nothing and no one would hurt her babies. And he couldn’t ignore what she’d said. Someone had slipped past security and butchered one of his animals on his watch. Could they get to the babies, too?
Determination radiated off her five-foot-six-inch frame. Standing there, she was just as beautiful as he remembered. Dozens of times she’d slipped into his dreams. He’d imagine her right there next to him in bed. Or bounding through the house with that energy and light only she had.
Never once did he envision she’d return in the middle of the night with a warning. There were scenarios that had crossed his mind. The loss-of-memory one had always been prominent. Maybe because that would explain her leaving him behind, with his heart stomped on.
His dead wife standing in his hallway in the middle of the night, trying to convince him to go somewhere with him before she explained what the hell was going on, wasn’t exactly topping the list of scenarios in which he’d dreamed of seeing her again.
“Please, Mitch. I know I don’t deserve your trust. But believe it or not I’m here to help not hurt anyone,” she pleaded one more time.
“You can’t hurt me anymore. I don’t care what happens to you.” The words escaped before he could reel them in. It wasn’t true. He did care for his kids’ sake. They needed a mother. But what kind of mother disappeared? Or worse—faked her death? “Why’d you do it, Kimberly?”
“There was a reason I was so private and never wanted to be photographed or interviewed the entire time we were married, a good reason. Did you ever once think that there could’ve been another reason besides the flimsy excuses I gave that I just didn’t like having my picture taken or that I was just a homebody?”
“What reason did I have to question you? Until today I had no idea what you were capable of. I still don’t know who you are.” The words had the effect he’d intended—sharp and direct—even though a twinge of guilt tried to worm its way into his heart. Mitch slammed the door on that emotion. He had nothing to feel guilty about. He wasn’t the one who’d abandoned their family.
“I understand if you hate me but everything I did was out of love.” She seemed to choke back a sob as determination set her features. “No one, not even you, can call me a bad mother. I put my children first.”
“Here’s a question...” Anger was rising like a volcano that was minutes from erupting. “Why have kids in the first place if you didn’t want them?”
“Is that what you think?” Her strong facade was cracking deeper. Anger shot from her eyes, which he could see clearly now in the soft light of the hallway. She looked like she was about to spew a few choice words at him but then she must’ve thought twice because she blew out a breath and let her shoulders sag. Kimberly had never looked so defeated. But he meant what he said. He couldn’t possibly have truly known her if she was capable of—what? Faking her own death? Ditching their family? Walking out on him without so much as a word?
“I cared.”
“Actions are more important than empty words,” he stated. She wasn’t getting off this easily.
Another gust of wind blasted against the kids’ window, and Kimberly looked like she was ready to jump out of her skin. It was clear to him that something had her spooked, but without any real answers—and she’d been dodging his questions so far—he couldn’t make a decent decision. And then there were the men who had been after her earlier. He’d noticed their intent and it had brought out his protective instincts before he’d confirmed she was his supposedly dead wife.
Yet going with her on a whim seemed extreme.
“Tell me why you’re running and who’s after you.” He decided to play along. During the time they had been together, he’d never picked up on a hint of her losing touch with reality. No matter what else he felt about her, he knew she wasn’t the type for drugs or alcohol. So if she was sane and not under the influence of any substance, he probably should at least hear her out. His heart clenched at the sight of her, and being this close without answers or explanations caused his fists to tighten.
“I can’t.” Her gaze darted around like she expected someone to blast through a wall or window at any second.
“Why are you really here?” he asked. Surely it wasn’t to save him and the twins from some unknown threat. That would mean she cared.
“I already said.” She could be stubborn. He’d believed it to be sexy before. And, hell, it was now, too. Even though nothing in him wanted it to be.
“Are you sure this doesn’t have anything to do with the heifer we found near the base of Rushing Creek?”
“No. These men wouldn’t touch your livestock.”
“Tell me who’s after you.” Maybe he could put the pieces together to see if there was a connection. Or maybe she could tell him something that would make the killing make sense.
“I can’t.” A look of something—such as frustration or fear—marred her beautiful features.
“Well, then we don’t have anything else to talk about.” He faced her down, not budging an inch.
“I leave here and they’ll show.” She glanced at the wrist on which she used to wear a watch, but there was nothing there. “It’ll happen and you won’t be prepared.”
“You’re not giving me anything to work with. I can’t evaluate a threat if I don’t know what it is.” No way was he softening his stance. Of course he’d do anything to protect the little ones in the next room. And after her visit he planned to take extra precaution. But he wasn’t convinced that leaving the ranch was in the twins’ best interest.
