“Does that mean we can leave?”
“I don’t see why not,” he conceded.
“I’d like to go home,” she said. “Have a home-cooked meal.”
He got it. After folks experienced traumatic events, doing something like cooking or cleaning gave them a sense of normalcy. They could take a break. He hadn’t slept, and fog was settling over his brain anyway.
Maybe an afternoon would do them both good.
“Mind if I come with you?” he asked, not taking for granted that she might want him to join her. He hadn’t meant what he’d said a little while ago about her leaving. He’d popped off at the mouth. Being tired wasn’t an excuse, but it was the reason. An hour or so of shut-eye would do him good.
“I was hoping you would,” Audrey said quietly.
“We can stop off at the grocery to pick up steaks and all the fixin’s,” he said.
“Sounds good,” she said without giving much away in the form of emotions. She had a way of shutting down when she was overly stressed. He’d seen it when they were kids more often than he cared to admit in those first few weeks of summer. But he’d always been able to get her to open up again with a comment or his touch.
Right now, though, she would slap him if he tried physical contact, and he didn’t trust himself not to say the wrong thing like he’d already done a few minutes ago. He’d take the words back if he could. It was too late.
The last thing he wanted to do was put more emotional distance between them. He could use a friend to lean on, and he guessed she needed one, too. Just like when they were younger, and he was trying to figure out why his own flesh and blood could walk away from the family he’d created with a woman he was supposed to love who died. And Audrey had been running from her own demons—demons that had eventually taken her away from him.
Could they get past them to be there for one another for one evening?
He hoped so.
Nurses reassured they had Duke’s number at the ready in case either of his grandparents’ condition changed.
On the way back to the cabin, Duke stopped off at the grocery. He was amazed at how many folks paused to offer a kind word about his grandparents and how proud they were of him and his siblings and cousins.
Being back in Mesa Point reminded him of what he’d loved about the ranch in the first place. It felt like home.
THE STEAKS TURNED out amazing thanks to Duke’s finesse with a grill. Audrey was duly impressed and wasn’t shy about telling him so. The man had skills.
She didn’t want to let herself think too much about the other skills he had, like being the best kisser she’d ever experienced. Those thoughts wouldn’t do any good and only managed to make her lips burn to touch his.
“I’m on dishes,” she declared, searching for a distraction and wishing she’d picked something else the minute those words came out of her mouth.
“Mind if I take a seat on the couch while you clean up?” Duke asked.
“Go for it.”
He gave a nod and a smile that pierced her heart.
Washing dishes didn’t take long as he got settled in the living room. Still, by the time she finished, Duke had practically sunk into her couch with his eyes closed. His steady, even breathing said he’d dozed off.
The sun was descending and shining brightly through the mini-blind slats. Audrey scooted across the living room and closed them. The man hadn’t slept since they’d been together and probably not for a minimum of twenty-four hours before that when he arrived in Mesa Point. She thought she remembered him saying something about being on a case prior to his trip home that had kept him awake.
Audrey needed her sleep. She had no idea how he managed with so little and still functioned like a normal person. Then again, normal wasn’t exactly the word she would use to describe Duke Remington. He fell into the superhero category as far as she was concerned. There was something quietly reassuring about having Duke in her home, like he belonged there. And he was the only reason she could be there right now too after all that had happened.
Audrey had been back in Mesa Point for three years already—wouldn’t Duke have come back a whole lot sooner if he wanted to see her?
In truth, he did visit his grandparents. She respected their wishes and stayed away, but he could have asked about her. He could have stopped by her cabin, a cabin located almost exactly at the spot they’d shared their first kiss. The fact had not been not lost on her the first time she was shown this place. As a matter of fact, she knew the exact spot where it happened.
The time had come to move on. Her lease was coming up next month. She needed to give her landlord thirty days’ notice. Then again, with the way word traveled in this town coupled with the lack of privacy, maybe she would be better off paying for an extra month rather than give a heads-up too early.
Audrey had never acquired a taste for lying like her parents, but she didn’t welcome unwanted questions about her private life. Questions that would surely come if she turned in her notice. What would she do next? She wanted land and plenty of space between her and her neighbors. Animals, too. Raising alpacas sounded good to her. She might be able to work someone else’s herd to learn the ins and outs before diving into running her own place.
Patience.
After making a cup of coffee, she started toward the kitchen table where her laptop was charging. The sun had dipped lower in the sky. Metal sparkled on the grill. She’d forgotten to grab a pair of tongs smothered in steak juice. Leaving those out overnight would invite all manner of unwanted creatures.
Audrey headed outside to retrieve the dirty tongs, leaving the door unlocked behind her. She was literally stepping ten feet outside her home and then coming right back in.
As she reached for the tongs, something sharp slammed into the back of her head. The earth tipped off its axis, and her knees buckled. Before she could scream, a hand came over her mouth. Suddenly, another wrapped around her in a viselike grip, and a voice whispered in her ear, “Think you can get away from me, bitch? You’re just like the others. You like to fight. I’ll punish you for that. You haven’t been nice to Trey. You hurt me, so I’m going to make you pay.”
The voice was low, guttural, and the words came out in between grunts. She didn’t recognize the male gripping her from behind.
Audrey tried to open her mouth to bite his thick fingers but failed. His hand wasn’t the only thing over her mouth. He held a cloth that had a chemical smell. Chloroform?
She wriggled her body. At least, she attempted to. The man’s grip held her steady. A second blow to the back of the head caused the world to spin as though she’d just taken several tequila shots. As much as Audrey fought against losing consciousness, she was no match for a head injury.
Bile burned the back of her throat as everything went dark.
AUDREY PUSHED THROUGH the fog and the darkness, struggling to wake up. She didn’t know how much time had passed but she had to open her eyes if she wanted to live.
Forcing her eyes open wasn’t working, so she tried a different tack. Maybe she could scream. Nope. Opening her mouth was next to impossible. Did she have something covering her mouth? A rag? Duct tape?
Where was she? How long was she unconscious?
