Chapter 27
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
“I’ll politely text them both no,” Charley told the handsome man in the bed, wearing a frown on his face as he waited for her answer.
Sully grumbled, “Don’t be too polite.”
“You’re my only concern, Sully.” That made him smile and maybe blended a little color back into the healthy tan of his cheeks.
“Where will you be until I can get out of here?” he asked and took another bite of pasta. “It’s dark outside.”
“Chloe invited me to stay with them on Triple C Ranch-West.”
“Yes.” Sully nodded. “Please take her up on that.”
“I will. I have puppy food in my car, and I need to see how Wyatt is doing.”
“Good,” Sully said with a nod. “I’ll be able to rest tonight if I know you’re with the Brevards. Now, tell me about this dog. Where did he come from?”
“I don’t know.” Charley splayed her hands and recounted how she’d heard the noises outside her front door and found the puppy.
“He was filthy as if he’d been dumped in the nearby woods, and he’s skin and bones.
I was afraid if I didn’t take him in, he’d wander down the hill and into the traffic on Colorado Avenue. ”
“I wonder if he belonged to one of the murder victims found in the cave tunnels.”
That hadn’t occurred to Charley, and she tilted her head in thought. “That would explain why he was so dirty and hungry.”
“I’m guessing since you named him, you’re planning to keep him.”
“You and I both like dogs. Maybe I could share him with you,” Charley said, and then feeling vulnerable looked away. “He deserves a safe home.”
“He does,” Sully said. “I can’t wait to meet Wyatt.”
Finding a grin on Sully’s face, Charley smiled back. Owen was smiling, too, as he entered the room again and said that he’d contacted Roy, Randy, and the Coopers.
“Your cousins are relieved and happy you’re okay, Sully. Randy said to tell you he will keep the horses and skeet customers covered. Roy says his girlfriend, Mindy, will also help out in the store with the customers until you’re well enough to come back to work.”
“Good to know. Those guys are great. Thanks, Dad.”
“I called Derek Brevard, so all of the Coopers are aware by now that you survived and are on the road to recovery.” Turning to Charley, Owen said, “Chloe said to tell you she’ll have a warm dinner waiting for you whenever you get back out to Triple C-West, Charley.”
“Thank you, Owen,” Charley replied. Then to Sully, she said, “I should get going and let you rest, Sully. And I’ve left that puppy for the Brevards to care for long enough. I don’t want us to wear out our welcome.”
She could tell Sully was about to protest her leaving when an overhead announcement advised everyone that visiting hours in the ICU were over in ten minutes. Sully’s nurse entered as the message ended and stated that Dr. Sankari was happy with his latest labs.
“I’ll call you later, if that’s okay,” Sully said and reached for Charley’s hand.
Charley took his hand and nodded. “Yes, please.” When he tugged on her hand, she stepped closer. Impulsively, she leaned down and gave him a gentle hug and kiss.
“Thank you,” Sully whispered in her ear.
When Charley stood up and met his gaze, the look in his green eyes and on his face conveyed a multitude of meanings behind his words.
She guessed first and foremost he appreciated her believing he was innocent of the charges Trish had leveled against him.
Maybe his thank you included finding his wallet and phone.
And perhaps, she hoped, he was thankful she’d come to him in the hospital.
Wild horses couldn’t have kept her away.
“Yes, thank you, Charley,” Owen seconded with a heartfelt smile.
“My pleasure,” Charley said simply, letting it cover everything for both men. She felt Sully squeeze her hand before letting go. Picking up her purse, Charley walked to the doorway, and turning to Sully with a wave, she said, “Good night.”
As heavy as her heart had been for nearly twenty-four hours, Charley’s heart danced a happy jig in her chest now.
She smiled all the way through the hospital and outside to the parking garage.
Once she reached her car, she got in and locked the door.
She paused to send two texts. To Leon, she said she hoped he was feeling better and explained that Sully was in the hospital after a serious car accident.
In addition, she explained to Leon that she had an obligation to take a puppy off the hands of her cousin and couldn’t visit him.
To Rod, she turned down his offer of lunch, firmly reminded him that she would never accept another date and told him not to contact her again.
Having realized she hadn’t blocked Rod’s number, she did so now for certain.
Then Charley started her Mini Cooper and left the hospital garage.
She headed for the interstate, and halfway to the country, her cell phone rang.
Keeping her hands on the wheel, she answered.
“So, when will you be back?”
“Sully.” She giggled happily. “I haven’t even reached Triple C-West yet.”
He chuckled, and his deep voice was music to her ears. “That doesn’t answer my question.”
“When do you want me back?” she asked, her headlights shining on the highway and thickening ponderosa pines.
“Now,” he said. “I’ll scoot over in this bed, and you can spend the night with me.”
“I’d like nothing better,” she admitted. “But I think your doctor and the nurses might object.”
“I don’t care,” he said. “I want you with me, Charley.”
Those words made Charley deliriously happy. “I want to be with you too.”
“Do you mean that?”
“Yes, I do. How about I come by tomorrow and see if they’ll let me take you home?”
“Promise?” he asked.
“Promise.”
Even after their conversation ended, the smile didn’t leave Charley’s face.
She soon pulled under the Triple C Ranch-West wooden archway and parked in the drive near the lovely home.
Grabbing the puppy food, she all but skipped up the steps and rang the bell.
Chloe answered the door and gave her a big hug.
The twins were already in bed, but Cooper appeared in the foyer, holding the puppy, with the German shepherd at his side.
“Time for you to be getting ready for bed too, Cooper,” Chloe said. “You have school tomorrow.”
“Aww…Mom,” Cooper began. He was a miniature of his father. “Do I have to? I’m playing with the puppy.”
“You can take Wyatt and Spike outside to go potty, but then it’s up to bed.”
Cooper and the two dogs scampered out the front door, and Charley said to Chloe, “Thank you so much, Chloe. I don’t know how I would have made it through today without you and Derek and the kids.”
“That’s what family is for, Charley. We were so relieved to hear the good news about Sully from Owen earlier,” Chloe said as they stood in the foyer near the arched bridge over the pretty fishpond.
How calm Charley felt now opposed to the anxiety that had enveloped her the previous night when standing near this spot.
“Sully is stable but they’re keeping him overnight? ”
“Yes,” Charley said and repeated what the doctor had told them earlier. “Sully hopes to be moved out of ICU tonight and discharged tomorrow. I said I’d check on him and take him home when his doctor releases him.”
“Good,” Chloe said. “Are you hungry?”
“I’m suddenly starved.”
“Wonderful. I have dinner for you,” Chloe said as Cooper, Wyatt, and Spike trotted back inside the house.
“Cooper, thank you so much for taking charge of Wyatt,” Charley said.
“You’re welcome,” Cooper said politely, picking up Wyatt and scratching his furry head. “It was fun. He’s a nice puppy.”
“Hi Charley,” Derek said, walking into the hallway from the family room. “Great news about Sully.”
“Yes, the best, Derek,” Charley replied, smiling.
“Let’s go, Cooper,” Derek said. “It’s your turn to read the story tonight.”
“Can Wyatt sleep with Spike and me?”
“Up to Charley,” Chloe said.
“Sure,” she said and watched as Derek, Spike, and Cooper, carrying Wyatt, started up the staircase to the second-floor bedrooms.
“Since the master bedroom suite is downstairs, Spike likes to sleep upstairs to be near the kids,” Chloe said and motioned for Charley to follow her to the kitchen.
There they were joined by Scarlett, waving her fluffy black tail.
Charley petted Scarlett as Chloe walked into the pantry.
Chloe came back out with a bottle of red wine and lifted it into the air. “A glass of wine?”
“Yes. A glass of wine would be fantastic,” Charley said as Scarlett jumped onto a windowsill in the breakfast nook and groomed herself. Chloe opened the wine and poured two glasses. They touched their glasses and Charley suggested, “To Sully?”
“To Sully,” Chloe agreed. They each took a drink and then Chloe set her glass down and removed a dish covered with tinfoil out of the oven.
With the tinfoil off the delicious smells of baked steak, mashed potatoes, green beans, and a corn muffin wafted Charley’s way.
When they were sitting opposite each other at the table, Charley ate, and after a moment Chloe said, “Charley, if it’s none of my business, just say so.
But what are you going to do about your flower shop, and more importantly about Sully? ”
“I don’t know if I want to reopen my shop in the same location or sell the property and move. Sully and I joked about him being my business manager, so I guess I should consult him.”
“I bet he’ll say to move your shop to the country. I would second that.”
“What I do know for sure is how I feel about Sully,” Charley admitted.
Chloe smiled and said, “You’ve fallen hard for him, haven’t you?”
“Yes,” Charley hesitated and then said quietly, “I haven’t told Sully yet, but I’m in love with him, Chloe.”
“Tell him. Don’t play games or waste time.
By the way, I’ve seen the way he looks at you.
I think he feels the same,” Chloe said, but Charley wasn’t convinced Sully’s feelings about her were nearly as strong as her own and shrugged.
“When he realized you had left the party, he was worried about you and determined to find out what happened.”
“I told him I should have stood my ground and listened to his side.”
Now Chloe shrugged. “We live and learn. I can tell you that my life changed forever for the better after I listened to Derek’s side of things back in the day.”
Chloe told her more about that time in her life as Charley finished every bite of her dinner. Chloe carried Charley’s empty plate to the sink and loaded it into the dishwasher as Derek entered the kitchen. The three of them spoke for a few minutes, and then Charley yawned.
“Sorry,” Charley said with a laugh. “I’m exhausted.”
“Let’s get you settled in upstairs,” Chloe said.
Charley left the kitchen and walked down the hall.
In the foyer, she paused to wait for Chloe.
Over her shoulder, she saw Derek pull Chloe into his arms. Chloe wrapped her arms around his neck, and as she stood on tiptoes to kiss him, he patted her fanny.
Oh, how Charley wanted that with Sully and so much more.
She looked away and moved forward to the bottom of the staircase.
Chloe joined her a moment later with a peaceful smile on her lovely face.
Yes, what a perfectly wonderful life.
That rejection text from Charley had distracted him and he’d shrieked as the woman’s knee slammed into his groin.
Instantaneous sickening pain almost made him puke.
With long, brown hair, she had been the closest match to Charley that he’d ever caught.
The voices said she was a noxious whore like his mother.
They deserved toadflax, not flowers. How stupid could she be walking the streets with a killer on the loose?
The irony made him laugh. He’d pulled up alongside her and made an offer.
Sure enough, for twenty bucks, this one had willingly accepted a ride.
Not until his hands had tightened around her throat did she fight back.
She’d clawed, hit, and kicked her way out from under him.
Also like Charley, she’d escaped. For now.