Chapter Thirty-One
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
The sheriff arrested William, handed him off to one of the deputies to be transported to the station, then drove Portia and Devlin and the two dogs back to the ranch. Rolling to a stop in front of the house he walked with them up to the front door.
“Would you like to come in, Sheriff?” Devlin asked. “Is there anything else you need to ask us?”
“I have plenty of questions, but I’m satisfied the moment. You ran across him on a walk, he’d had some kind of epiphany and confessed his sins.”
“Exactly,” Portia said with a sigh. “It’s as if it was meant to be. The mysteries are solved, and if the women he abused want to step forward they’ll be heard.”
“You’ll have to come to the station tomorrow and give your official statements, but I don’t see any issues. Get some rest. You both look beat.”
“Yeah, we are, thanks, sheriff,” Devlin replied. “It’s been a helluva night.”
As the sheriff walked to his car and drove off, Devlin put his arms around Portia and hugged her tightly.
“Are you okay, darlin’?”
“I am. Exhausted but very relieved. I wasn’t sure he’d believe us.”
“I think he wanted to, and there was no reason he shouldn’t. I need to check on the horses real quick. You can come with me if you want, or—”
“No, thanks. I’m dying to get cleaned up, then I’ll be crawling into bed.”
“You do that. I won’t be long.”
* * *
Though Portia was utterly drained she couldn’t fall sleep without Devlin beside her. When he returned he ambled into the bathroom, took a quick, hot shower, then crawled between the sheets and pulled her into his arms.
“I thought you’d be dead to the world,” he murmured as she curled against him.
“The bed felt so empty without you.”
“Well I’m here now. Get some rest.”
“Thank you for letting me be with you in the forest tonight. I’m still surprised. I thought you’d want to keep me away from William and that whole scene.”
“I thought about it, but you had every right to be there, and I knew he didn’t pose a threat, not with Andy, Brody and Cade with me.”
“And Jezzie and Jethro,” she added.
“Yep, and Jezzi and Jethro.”
“William was so much worse than I imagined. I still can’t believe everything he’s done.”
“It’s pretty crazy he wasn’t caught before now. I can only think he must have had help. I bet he’ll spill his guts to save his own skin. Now go to sleep. We’ll talk about everything in the mornin’.”
“Okay,” she mumbled with a yawn. “Goodnight.”
“Nite, darlin’.”
* * *
Devlin woke up before Portia, and though he longed to wrap her in his arms and devour her body, when he glanced at the clock he discovered he’d overslept. He was already late contacting his clients to reschedule the lessons they’d missed. By the time Portia woke up, showered and dressed, his week had been arranged and he was in the kitchen making pancakes.
“That smells so good,” she mumbled, walking up and hugging him. “I can’t remember the last time I had pancakes.”
“Have a seat. They’re all ready,” he said, lifting the last one out of the pan and adding it to the top of the pile. “The maple syrup is on the table, unless you’d rather have something else.”
“No way, maple syrup is the best.”
Settling in and placing two on her plate, she took a bite and let out a moan of pleasure.
“Wow, these are so good. How did you learn to make them?”
“My mom. She said every man should know how to whip up pancakes.”
“That’s brilliant.”
“But, Portia, I need to speak to you,” he said solemnly.
“That sounds serious.”
“It is. You took some dangerous chances and I’m not happy about it.”
“When?”
“For starters, the day William grabbed your bag and took off. What were you thinkin’ chasin’ after him?”
“I was thinking I wanted my bag back. It has my life in it.”
“If you feel you need to carry all that stuff around, you should make copies and keep the originals somewhere safe.”
“I suppose I could do that.”
“But even that’s not a good idea. If someone did manage to get hold of your bag it would be easy to steal your identity.”
“Ohh, I hadn’t thought of that. You’re right.”
“And then there’s the paperweight.”
“Excuse me?”
“Hitting William with it. Again…what were you thinkin’?”
“That I could knock him out and get away, and I did.”
“You got lucky. If he’d turned around he could have wrestled it away from you. It was way too risky.”
“Okay, okay, I get it, I do, but it was a spur of the moment thing.”
“Like when you were on the freeway and slammed your foot on the accelerator to cut me off?”
“You know I’m sorry about that.”
“Yep, but do you remember what I said?”
“About…?”
“Portia! The accident!”
“Uh…I’m not sure.”
“I said, if you were my lady I’d spank your butt for drivin’ like a maniac on that packed freeway. The way I see it, you’re my lady now, and I’m gonna do just that.”
“But—”
“Then tomorrow you’ll make arrangements to get my truck fixed and make sure I get either a loaner or a rental until it’s done.”
“Yes, of course I will. I would have done that sooner except—”
“Except we’ve been dealin’ with William, I know, but now it’s time to take care of unfinished business. At noon I’ll be takin’ my lunch break. You’ll come home a few minutes before me, and wait for me naked on the bed bent over the pillows.”
“You’re not serious.”
“You said that to me once before, and I’ll give you the same answer now—as a rattler,” he declared, rising to his feet. “But,” he added, lowering his voice, “if this isn’t for you, no problem. We can call it quits. You can stay in the cabin and finish your month of work. Your choice, darlin’.”
“I, uh, it is for me,” she replied, staring up at him. “I can’t quite believe it, but yeah, it is.”
“I’m real happy to hear that. Now stand up, put your hands on the table and arch your back,” he ordered, opening a drawer and lifting out a wooden spoon. “You’ll get a few good swats to remind you who’s in charge around here, then we can finish our breakfast.”