Chapter 3 Rhett
THREE
RHETT
Well, now I understand why Shadow was so intent on checking out the bushes.
The new momma cat whines in the box I have her in. She’s birthed maybe three kittens that I think are alive, and there might be a few more to come. I’m more a dog kind of person, and Shadow herself never had a litter of puppies, so I’m unequipped to deal with...this.
But from what I know, the clinic should still have someone inside.
I pull off of main street and into the small cul-de-sac of old houses where the clinic sits at the end. The small parking lot out front has two cars in it; a beat up sedan that looks like it might fall apart at any moment, and a SUV with tinted windows.
I frown as I pull in beside the SUV and cut the engine to my truck. The door to the clinic is wide open, and from the sounds of it, there’s shouting.
Fuck. My hackles rise as I gingerly scoop up the cardboard box with the cat and her kittens. I’m hissed at, but the momma isn’t capable of moving. From the corner of my eye, I watch her stomach clench as she attempts to push another kitten out.
As I get to the door, I slow, the urge to jump in nearly overtaking me. But from here I can listen to what’s going on.
“You think you can just fucking leave me like that? Like I wouldn’t find you?” A male’s voice, slurred and full of anger. My body stiffens. I’ve known men like that my whole life. Men who treat women like shit.
“Please, Scott. Not here. Not now.” A tingle of reverence runs down my spine at the sound of her voice. She sounds exhausted, but not terrified. Like she’s used to his bullshit.
The man snorts loudly and slams his fist into something. “You’re coming home.”
“No.”
I take that as my sign to walk in. As soon as I cross the threshold, I see her.
She’s beautiful, with strawberry blonde hair and riveting green eyes.
Her cheeks are flushed, her body all curves.
Her plump lips part when our eyes meet. She’s beautiful, like no one I’ve ever seen before.
A star in the night sky, a supernova that’ll one day consume me.
A throat clears, and I finally see him. He’s filth beneath my shoes while in her presence. I barely give him a once over; he has short, brown hair and pale blue eyes, a tuft of hair above his lip and a beard that are both disgustingly uncared for. Greasy, if I had to use one word to describe him.
How the hell did this rat come in contact with this beauty of a woman?
I take my eyes off him and nod to the girl. “Hey, princess, something wrong? I didn’t think you’d still be here.”
Her eyes widen slightly, but she shakes her head. “No, nothing’s wrong. I was going to lock up soon.”
The asshole standing between us scoffs. “Who the hell is this, Sage?”
Sage. A beautiful name for a beautiful woman. Fuck, I feel sappy. Undeserving.
More fucking deserving than this weak shit.
Sage opens her mouth, her cheeks turning a darker shade of red, and her eyes flash with fear as the man looks between us.
Slowly, I approach, box still in hand, and gently lower it onto the bench in front of her—the only thing between her and him. Instead of looking down at what’s inside, her eyes remain locked on me.
Good. “I’m sorry,” I say, glancing back at him, “I didn’t get your name.”
He bristles. “Scott.” He makes it sound like a fucking whine.
“Scott.” It even sounds bitter when I say it. “Well, Scott, I’m Rhett, Sage’s husband.”
All the colour drains from Scott’s face as he looks between us. I don’t even know why those particular words came out of my mouth, but I’m pretty fucking glad they did, because it has the rat taking a step back.
Somehow, Sage doesn’t react, doesn’t even try to deny it. I do hear her release a soft breath, though I don’t know if it’s out of relief or for something else.
I could have just royally fucked her over by making that statement. But seeing him try to intimidate her into going with him flipped a switch inside me.
When I glance at him, Scott just looks...shocked. I can’t fully read his expression other than the fact that he never expected it.
How long had he messed around with her? Dragged her along behind him while he fucked around doing whatever he wanted? How many times did she beg him for better?
That shock transforms into something else, and he takes a measured step towards us. “You bi—”
“Think real hard about what you’re about to say about my wife,” I say in a cold, measured voice. It’s the type of tone I would have taken with a potential client demanding more than they deserved, or a particular lawyer barking up the wrong tree.
A dark glint enters the rat’s eyes as he looks between us, expression flickering between shock and rage. “This true, Sage?”
Beside me, Sage swallows audibly, every inch of her trembling. “Yes. We met when I arrived in town.” She turns to me and somehow musters a loving gaze, one not filled with underlying disgust or anger or hatred. “We got married recently.”
It’s not a look that feels familiar, but it makes warmth fill my chest. Somehow, she manages to make it look real enough that I can believe it.
“And you’re married?” Scott flails a hand like he really can’t believe our story. “Where’s the ring, huh?”
Lie. Lie. Lie.
“Getting resized, since you think it’s any of your business,” I growl. “What, you want to see our marriage certificate next?”
“And I’m at work. I never wear jewellery at the clinic. You should know that,” she adds, sounding almost a little disappointed that he doesn’t even know this one thing about her.
At least her deadbeat ex has the balls to look ashamed.
“Sage—” he starts, taking a step forward.
I block him before he can move another inch.
“I think we’re done here,” I interject, circling an arm around her waist. A shiver runs through my body like a burst of electricity.
There’s something about her that just fits, almost a little too perfectly.
This stunning woman has a power over me, a power I’ve never allowed myself to fall for—until now.
Her ex makes a sound in the back of his throat before storming towards the door. “This isn’t over, Sage. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll get you back. One way or another.”
The threat is like a splash of cold water, and it sobers me completely.
“You need to leave, and you shouldn’t return,” I reply, voice tense.
Sage says nothing as he leaves, throwing himself into the SUV and peeling out of the parking lot. Neither of us move until his taillights disappear down main street.
“Thank you,” she whispers, her voice shaky.
Hesitating, I slowly remove my arm from around her and take a step back. “I’m sorry I couldn’t kick his ass. Didn’t seem appropriate.”
She presses her lips into a firm line, staring at me for a long moment before shaking her head. “I take it you didn’t just come in here to rescue me?”
“Unfortunately not.” I peel back the flaps of the box and show her what’s inside. “My dog, Shadow, found them.”
She glances hesitantly at me before taking a peek into the box. A soft, strangled mewl responds to the invasion, and when I check, I find myself staring down at a litter of five bloody kittens and a mother exhausted and trying her best to get her babies latching.
Gently, Sage picks up the box and takes them into the back. I can’t help but follow her, watching as her trembling ceases and she somehow shoves her fear aside.
I stop in the doorway and lean against the doorjamb, crossing my arms as I watch her. But her eyes are on me, not the momma cat and her kittens.
“Everything okay there, Sage?” I ask, cocking my head.
She quickly shakes her head, cheeks turning pink as she tears her eyes from mine.
I can’t help but miss her assessing gaze almost immediately. The pull towards her is incessant, like a rope had been tied around my heart, and every tug of it is dragging me to her.
No. I shake my head, pushing those thoughts—that feeling—aside and locking it up tight.
Chances are, the rat isn’t coming back. I doubt he has it in him to go after her again. Now that he knows there’s a barrier between him and Sage, maybe it’ll scare him off for good.
And after tonight, I won’t see her again.
But I don’t get the feeling it’ll be that easy.
Sage pulls each kitten out of the box and sets momma up on the table without a word. The little ones cry for their mother, and Sage helps them find their way back to her warmth with ease.
“Looks like they’re all responding,” she says, humming while she does a cursory examination of each kitten, weighing them, wiping them down, and making sure there aren’t any underlying issues before returning them to momma. All the while, I just stand there, watching her.
Finally, with momma weighed and cleaned up, Sage clears her throat. “Are you taking responsibility for these guys? Or are you leaving them here?”
Slowly, I push off the doorframe, moving to stand near her. Once again, that pull is there, but I somehow manage to keep it from taking over.
“I think we should talk about what that ex of yours said,” I reply, joining her by the exam table. “He threatened you.”
She doesn’t stop herself from flinching, the colour of her cheeks draining as she shakes her head. “Scott isn’t dangerous. He thinks he is, but really, he’s a coward.”
My jaw clenches as I watch her, but she won’t look at me—just the kittens. “He said he’s staying in town,” I tell her, lowering my voice. “Seems more stalker than anything else. And they tend to escalate. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was waiting around the corner to follow you home.”
Instead of responding immediately, she moves around the examination room, avoiding me and my stare.
And although I need her to give me a response—because otherwise, I’m just going to have to call the sheriff and let him know about the creepy ex—I also can’t help but just watch as she pulls out a real crate and goes about filling it with new blankets and gently getting momma cat and her kittens into it.
“You never answered my question about taking these guys,” she murmurs without looking up at me.
I heave a sigh and round the side of the bench, corning her.
Only now does she meet my stare, and I can’t help but get lost in how gorgeous her eyes are.
They’re like freshly cut gems, sparkling under the yellow light hanging above us.
And even after a day of working with all sorts of animals, she still smells like lavender somehow.
“Come home with me, just temporarily,” I say, bracing my hands either side of her hips.
“W-what?” she stutters, eyes going wide.
I glance down at her full lips before meeting her stare. “I said: come back to my cabin with me. We’ll bring the kittens, but I can’t let you go home. Not until he leaves town.”
Sage tugs her bottom lip between her teeth, eyeing me for a moment before shaking her head. “That’s ridiculous and totally unnecessary.”
“Really?” I lean in, catching her by surprise, because she stiffens, the flush returning to her cheeks. “What would he have done if I hadn’t walked in? What if he’s waiting for you out on main right now so he can follow you home?”
Something changes in her eyes, because the stiffness turns into a visible shudder, and any bravado she had before disappears as she wraps her arms around herself. “He won’t hurt me.”
“That’s hard to believe,” I reply softly. “Desperate men do terrible things, Sage. And he’s more than just desperate. He’s delusional. And I promise you now, I will protect you from him. In any way I can.”
I watch as tears brim her eyes, a shaky breath falling from her lips. “How do you expect to help me? If the problem is him following me home, I can just go up the mountain to my sister and her husband. He has a cabin.”
“Do you want to drag her into this?” I ask honestly, because she doesn’t seem like the type of person to do that.
Sage shakes her head after a brief moment. “No, I don’t.”
“Then come with me to my cabin. I can get us a marriage license in the morning—”
“Wow.” She holds up a hand, brows raised. “You think that’s a good idea?”
“Will he leave without definitive proof that you won’t return with him? Will he leave you alone unless he’s absolutely certain he can’t have you?” My heart pounds, waiting for her to push back. Something in her eyes tells me she wants to—and she should. What I’m suggesting is idiotic.
But a marriage license is just a piece of paper she can shove into the rat’s face. And an annulment might be difficult, but I can handle everything to do with a divorce once the dust has settled and we know he’s out of her life for good.
“Do you trust me?” I ask.
Her eyes meet mine, swimming with uncertainty. “I don’t even know you.”
I release a breath, pushing away from her. “My name is Rhett, and I’ll help you, Sage. I’ll marry you and buy you a ring, because I think that’s the only way he’s going to get the message that you aren’t going back. If it’ll protect you in the long run, I’ll do it. You just have to say yes.”
Sage chews her bottom lip for a long moment, just watching me with those striking green eyes. I see the wheels turning in her head as she considers all her options—which aren’t many.
But when she sighs, I feel myself go rigid. “Yes, Rhett. I will marry you.”