Legally Binding Page 18
Lindsey glanced at him before zeroing in on Paul. “You murdered Jeb and Gary. And you would have let Bart take the lethal injection for it.”
Paul’s lips flattened, but there was no remorse in his eyes.
Lindsey shook her head. “I can’t believe you almost got away with it.”
“I did get away with it. Bart signed the papers. The ranches belong to Ranger now, and the cut of future profits Roger promised is mine.”
“Not yet. Bart isn’t convicted. He isn’t going to plead. I saw Nancy in time.”
“What the hell does Nancy have to do with this?” Paul asked.
“She didn’t burn the lab report or help you cover up evidence?”
“You think she’s in on this? Please. Nancy is a glorified bookkeeper. She doesn’t have the imagination or the ambition.”
“Then what was she doing in your office this morning?”
Paul’s brow furrowed. “I don’t have a clue. Probably snooping. I’ll deal with her later.”
“How about Brandy Carmichael?” Lindsey pressed on.
Paul flinched at the name. “She’s just a mistake from my past.”
“She told us about your affair. She also told us she wanted to list Jeb’s land. Was she after that deal with Ranger Corporation, too?”
Paul’s brows shot toward his hairline. “You think you have this all figured out, don’t you? Did you also figure out why I gave you Bart’s case when you had no experience in criminal law, let alone murder?”
Lindsey sucked in a breath.
“That’s right. I thought you’d blow it. And you did.”
Bart clenched his teeth until his jaw hurt. Lindsey hadn’t blown it. She’d saved him. Despite the way he’d played right into Paul’s hands in a misguided attempt to protect her, she’d saved him. And he was damn well going to get the chance to thank her. He took another stealthy step.
Paul’s eyes shifted, like he’d caught movement out of the corner of his eye.
Bart froze.
Lindsey reached for the door.
Paul grabbed her arm and jammed the muzzle of the gun into her ribs. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Every nerve in Bart’s body screamed for him to jump Paul, to get that damn gun. But the table still blocked him. And though he’d seen such heroics in movies, in real life the move would probably only get them killed. He forced himself to take only a small step, a step Paul wouldn’t notice. He had to get into position before he made a move. It was Lindsey’s only chance.
Lindsey glared into Paul’s eyes, like the gun in her ribs didn’t even faze her. “We’re in the courthouse, Paul. There are bailiffs just outside the door. You’re not going to get away with this.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. You and I are going to walk out this door and right under those bailiffs’ noses. And you aren’t going to try anything.”
Bart’s heart slammed against his ribs. Paul obviously didn’t know Lindsey like he did. She would try something. He would bet his life on it. And Paul would shoot her. Fear clutched his throat. He couldn’t let Paul take her out that door. He had to put an end to this now. He inched around the corner of the table.
“But how’s that going to work?” Lindsey continued. “Bart will be here by himself. You really don’t think he’s just going to sit here politely while you’re gone.”
“That’s exactly what he’s going to do if he doesn’t want me to put a bullet in you. And when I get back, he’s going to go into that courtroom and plead guilty for killing Jeb, Gary and Beatrice. And he’s going to make it convincing.”
“How does he know you aren’t going to put a bullet in me as soon as we step outside the courthouse?”
Paul smiled. “I guess he’ll just have to have faith in me.”
Not in this lifetime. Bart met Lindsey’s eyes. He took the last step around the table.
Lindsey dropped to the floor.
Bart charged. Before Paul had time to swing the gun around, he drove into Paul’s side like a linebacker.
Breath exploded from the attorney’s lungs.
Bart plowed a fist into his jaw.
Paul raised his gun hand.
Bart chopped down on his arm. The gun clattered to the floor. He found the lawyer’s face with another punch and another, until Paul lay still.
Grabbing the gun, Lindsey scrambled to her feet and rushed for the door. The noise of the crowds in the hall had probably prevented the bailiffs outside from hearing the fight, but Lindsey obviously intended to call them in now.
Bart caught her as her fingers touched the knob. “Wait.”
She turned to him. Eyes bright and skin flushed that delicate pink, she looked as beautiful and strong as he’d ever seen her. She searched his eyes.
“Once you get the bailiffs in here, we won’t be able to talk. And I have some things you need to hear.”
She shook her head. “You have faith in me. You were willing to put your life on the line. You saved my life. That’s all I need to know.”
“Then there’s something I need to say.” He gathered her against him. She was so soft and yet strong. Ladylike yet as tenacious as his best cutting horse. “I love you, Lindsey.”
Tears sparkled in her blue eyes. “I love you too, Bart. And I’ll get you cleared. I promise.”
He shook his head. “I only need one promise from you.”
“Anything.”
“Promise me that when this mess is over, you’ll let me prove how much you mean to me.”
“I promise, Bart. With all my heart, I promise.”
Holding each other close, they moved toward the door as one.
Epilogue
“What are you going to do now, Lindsey?” Cara’s concerned voice rippled over Lindsey’s cell phone.
The million-dollar question. Lindsey threw her car into Park but didn’t open the door. Instead she sat in the air-conditioning and watched lights glowing from the house, apartment building and interim horse barn at the Four Aces.
Her head was still spinning. It was impossible to wrap her mind around all that had gone on in the past few days since Paul had drawn a gun on her and Bart at the courthouse. So much had come to light. So much had changed. And now the news Cara had just given her. None of it seemed real.
“Lindsey? Are you there?”
Lindsey brought her mind back to her conversation. Cara had asked what she was going to do now. What was she going to do now? Don had offered to keep her on while he sorted out the wreckage of Lambert & Church, but she hadn’t given him her answer. “Is this Cara the reporter asking?”
“No. Cara the friend.”
She blew a breath of air through tight lips. “I’m sorry. I’m still trying to recover from the bombshell you just dropped on me.”
“Don’t worry about it. Being called a reporter in any context is no insult to me. You know that.”
Yes, she did. Cara was a top-notch reporter through and through. And she and Kelly were top-notch friends.
“Are you still staying at the Four Aces?” Cara asked.
Lindsey looked out the windshield of her parked car. “Bart has been insisting I stay here until he’s sure I’m no longer in danger. That protective thing he’s got going.”
“Yeah, and I’m sure that’s all it is,” Cara teased. “As long as he’s protecting you in bed at night, that’s all that matters.”
“Cara!”
“Don’t tell me you’re still living a chaste life. I’ll have to come out there and slap you.”
No, there was nothing chaste about the life she’d been living at the Four Aces since the sheriff had found so much evidence of Paul’s wrongdoing hidden at his house that the D.A. had been forced to drop the charges against Bart. Just thinking about the nights since Bart had been released from jail brought heat to her cheeks and a silly grin to her face. “There will be no slapping, Cara.”
“Good girl. Now back to my original question. What are you going to do now?”
“What about long-term, Lindsey?”
“Long-term? I guess I have some thinking to do.”
“Fair enough. I just don’t want you deciding to move back to Boston.”
Move back to Boston? She hadn’t thought of that option. Maybe because it wasn’t one. “Mustang Valley is my home. You’re not getting rid of me that easily.”
“Glad to hear it,” Cara said with certainty, as if all her questions were answered. A remarkable feat.
Too bad Lindsey’s questions weren’t answered. And sitting in her car chatting with Cara wasn’t about to answer them, either. “I have to go.”
After exchanging goodbyes, Lindsey punched the End button on her cell phone and climbed into the warm Texas night. She needed to find Bart. She needed to tell him what had happened. Maybe then she could put her life in order in her own mind. Maybe then she could answer some of the questions plaguing her.
She spotted him walking from the barn, a big palomino horse trailing behind him. Although the horse wore a bridle, his back was bare. As soon as Bart spotted her, a smile spread over his lips. “Just the woman I’m looking for.” He narrowed his eyes and studied her face. “What happened?”
Cara’s news. Shock must still be written all over her face. “Cara called.”
“And?”
“The grand jury indicted Paul for both Jeb’s and Gary’s murders and for drugging and framing you.”
“After all the evidence they found at his house and office, it’s no wonder.”
She nodded.
“So if Cara called just to tell you that, why the long face?”
“That’s not all she told me.” She took a deep breath. “They found Paul in his jail cell after the news of the indictment came down. He hanged himself.”
Bart’s lips tightened. “I can’t say I’m too sorry about that.”
“Me, either, I guess. It’s just that the whole thing is so sad. I took the position at Lambert & Church because Paul seemed to believe in me. He made me think I could be a success.”
“You are a success, Lindsey. You don’t need Paul. You don’t need Lambert & Church. You don’t need anybody.”
“That’s not true. I need you. But not to believe I’m a success. I just need you to be happy.”
“Damn straight. And I need you, too.” He stepped forward and gathered her into his arms.
Warmth seeped into her bones and wrapped around her heart. She drew in a deep breath of leather and fresh air. He was something, her cowboy. Honest and tender and strong all wrapped into one sexy package.
He pulled back slightly and looked down at her. Mischief twinkled in her green eyes. “All this brings me to the reason for this horse.” He raised the rein he held in one hand and the palomino stepped forward.
She gave Bart a questioning look.
“The other night I wished I could take you for a moonlight ride. Tonight I aim to make that wish come true.”
Anticipation shivered through her. The thought of snuggling close to Bart while a horse’s back rocked gently beneath them was more tempting than chocolate. “I’ll go change into jeans.”
“Don’t bother. I don’t envision us needing a lot of clothing for this ride.”
Another shiver sent heat to her core.
“But before we go riding, I have a question to ask.”
“A question?”
“Yes. And I want an honest answer, so help you God.”
As if she could meet Bart’s sincerity with anything less. She raised her right hand. “So help me, God.”
Dropping the rein, effectively ground-tying the horse, Bart fitted a large palm over his hat and lifted it off his head. “After that ordeal with Paul in the courthouse, I said I only wanted one promise.”
She remembered. How could she forget? “You said you wanted me to let you prove how much you loved me.”
“Yes. But I’ve decided that isn’t enough.”
She willed him to go on, to tell her what more he wanted, what more she would gladly give.
Holding his hat to his heart with one hand and taking Lindsey’s hand in the other, he sank to one knee. “When I met you, I’d all but given up on finding a woman I wanted to spend forever with. But I found that with you. I don’t know what the future is going to bring, but I do know I want to spend it with you. I want you to be my bride.”
Joy spun through her, making her giddy.
“I know you want to build your career, and I’m fine with that. I’ve been a bachelor so long I can take care of myself and Daddy and you. We can do this, Lindsey. You won’t have to sacrifice a thing.”
“Oh, Bart. You don’t have to convince me. I would be honored to be your bride. I would be honored to spend the rest of my days loving you.” She reached down and smoothed her fingertips over his stubbled chin. Decisions fell into place in her mind, decisions she hadn’t known she’d made until this moment. “I want to set up a practice to help people who can’t help themselves. Children. And people like your father.”
He nodded, pride spreading over his face in a wide grin.
“And after I establish my new law practice, I want children of our own. I want to fill all the bedrooms in that big house of yours.”
He pushed to his feet. Fitting his hat back on his head, he wrapped his arms around her. “You’ve just made me the happiest man in Texas, maybe the whole damn country. We can get the marriage license and rings tomorrow and be married by next week.”
She pulled back from his embrace. “We have to wait for your father to get out of the rehabilitation center. He has to be at the wedding.”
Bart’s brow furrowed briefly as if considering this new wrinkle. He nodded. “He’s doing better every day, so that shouldn’t be too long.”
“And we have to wait until my family can come to the wedding.”
He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. “Of course.”
“And Cara and Kelly. We have to wait for Kelly to get back from her honeymoon.”
“Okay. Is that all?”
“It would be nice if you and Kenny could reconcile.”
His grimace broke into a smile. “Well, I guess I can try. It’s not sacrifice if you do it for someone you love.”
Joy spread over her lips and burst in her soul like Fourth of July fireworks. Kenny aside, the thought of a wedding to the man of her dreams witnessed by all the people she loved filled her nearly to bursting.
He chuckled and folded her back into his arms.
She reveled in the feel of him, so strong, so solid, so warm. It didn’t matter what the future brought. As long as she had Bart, she could weather anything. As long as she had Bart, every day for the rest of her life would be a stunning success.
Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to
Ann Voss Peterson for her contribution
to the SHOTGUN SALLYS series.
ISBN: 978-1-4592-3770-4
LEGALLY BINDING
Copyright © 2004 by Harlequin Books S.A.
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