Chapter 26 - Atlee
TWENTY-SIX
ATLEE
It’s been the slowest day here at the pharmacy, probably because it’s so hot outside.
Summer has hit in full force here in Grizzly River, and most everyone is tubing on the town’s namesake.
I wish like fuck I were there right now, but someone has to man the pharmacy, and since I’m the low man on the totem pole, that’s me.
“You sure you’re going to be okay here by yourself?”
Exasperation makes me answer with an exaggerated, “Yes, just because I’m stuck here doesn’t mean you should be too, Pay.” My coworker, Payton, has been nice enough to stay with me, but now that we have an hour until closing, it doesn’t seem like there’s any sense in her staying.
“All right, but if you need anything, you can call me.”
“I know. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
I watch as she clocks out and leaves, wishing like hell that I could go with her. These last sixty minutes are going to be the longest of my life. Grabbing my phone, I start scrolling through social media, stopping on the pictures that Aubree has posted of the Nelson brothers.
Devlin. The strong, silent type. He’s so fucking hot.
Older than I should be attracted to. A whole decade separates us, but I can’t stop thinking about him.
Not since he came to get me the night that Truett was shot.
He and I text sometimes, and talk sometimes too, but it’s never gone any further than that.
I’m glancing down at a picture of him when the bell rings, signaling a customer. I glance up and greet them with a smile, but my blood runs cold, and the smile is quickly wiped off my face.
The man standing in front of me is wearing a black ski mask despite the sweltering heat, and there’s something metallic glinting in his right hand. My heart stops beating for a full second before it kicks back into overdrive, hammering against my ribs so hard I’m sure he can hear it.
“Don’t make a fucking sound,” he growls, his voice muffled but menacing.
He steps closer to the counter, and I can see his eyes through the holes in the mask—cold, desperate, wild.
The gun in his hand shakes slightly, but not enough to give me any comfort.
“I want everything you’ve got in the narcotics safe. Now.”
My mouth goes dry as sandpaper. “I-I can’t get into the safe,” I stammer, my voice barely above a whisper. “I don’t have the combination. Only my boss can—”
“Bullshit!” He slams his free hand on the counter, making me jump back. “You work here. You can get into it. Don’t lie to me!”
“I’m not lying,” I insist, my hands trembling as I hold them up in surrender. “I swear to God, I’m just a pharmacy tech. The pharmacist has to be here to access the controlled substances. It’s the law.”
His eyes narrow, and I can see him weighing whether to believe me. The seconds stretch out like hours, my pulse thundering in my ears.
“Fine,” he finally spits. “Call your boss. Tell them to get down here and open it. And if you try anything stupid, I’ll put a bullet in you before you can blink.”
I nod frantically, reaching for the phone with shaking hands. But instead of calling my boss, my fingers automatically dial the number I’ve memorized by heart. Devlin’s number.
Please pick up, please pick up, please…
“Atlee?” His deep voice comes through the speaker, and relief floods through me so intensely, I nearly collapse.
“Hi, Mr. Patterson,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady while the masked man leans closer to listen. “I need you to come down to the pharmacy right away. There’s been a…situation that requires your immediate attention.”
There’s a pause, and I can practically hear Devlin’s mind working. He knows I don’t call him Mr. Patterson. Ever.
“Atlee, what’s wrong?” His voice is sharp now, alert.
“Yes, sir, I understand this is unusual, but I need you to access the narcotics safe. There’s someone here who needs…” I glance at the gunman. “Who needs you to open it immediately.”
“Jesus Christ,” Devlin breathes. “Are you in danger? Is someone there with a weapon?”
“Yes, that’s correct. How soon can you be here?”
“I’m five minutes out. I was heading to town anyway. Stay calm, sweetheart. I’m coming.”
The endearment makes my eyes well up with tears, but I blink them back. “Thank you, sir. I’ll see you soon.”
I hang up and look at the masked man. “He’s on his way. Five minutes.”
But something in his posture has changed. He’s studying me with those cold eyes, and I realize with growing horror that he’s figured it out.
“That wasn’t your boss, was it?” he says slowly, his voice deadly quiet.
“Of course it was.”
“Bullshit!” He vaults over the counter before I can react, grabbing me by the arm and yanking me against him. The barrel of the gun presses against my temple, cold and unforgiving. “You called someone else. Who was it? Your boyfriend? The cops?”
“No, I swear. It was my boss.”
He backhands me across the face with his free hand, and pain explodes through my cheek. I cry out, tasting blood where my teeth cut the inside of my mouth.
“Don’t fucking lie to me!” He shakes me hard enough to rattle my teeth. “I heard how you talked to him. Nobody talks to their boss like that.”
Tears stream down my face as he presses the gun harder against my head. “Please, I didn’t call the police. I promise I didn’t call the police.”
“Then who?” He grabs a fistful of my hair and yanks my head back. “Who did you call?”
“A friend,” I whisper. “Just a friend. He’s not a cop, I swear.”
“Well, your friend better stay the hell away, or I’ll blow your pretty little brains all over this pharmacy.” He drags me toward the back of the store, away from the windows. “And then I’ll hunt him down and kill him too.”
My knees nearly give out at the threat. Not Devlin. I can’t let anything happen to Devlin because of my stupidity.
“Please,” I beg. “Just take what you want and leave. He won’t interfere, I promise.”
“Shut up.” He’s pacing now, agitated, the gun never leaving my head. “Shut the fuck up and let me think.”
The next few minutes are the longest of my life. Every second feels like an eternity as I wait for either Devlin to arrive or for this maniac to decide he’s done with me. My face throbs where he hit me, and I can feel my cheek swelling.
Then I hear it, the soft chime of the front door.
“Atlee?” Devlin’s voice carries through the store, carefully controlled but with an undercurrent of barely contained fury.
The gunman tightens his grip on me. “Don’t say a word,” he hisses in my ear.
“I’m back here,” I call out, unable to stop myself. I need Devlin to know where we are, even if it puts him in danger.
The masked man curses and presses the gun harder against my skull. “You stupid bitch.”
Heavy footsteps approach, and then Devlin appears at the end of the aisle.
When he sees us, me with a gun to my head, my face already showing the beginnings of a bruise, his entire body goes rigid.
His hands clench into fists at his sides, and his dark eyes fill with a rage so intense it makes me shiver.
“Let her go,” he says, his voice deadly calm. “Whatever you want, we can work it out. Just let her go.”
“Back off, cowboy,” the gunman snarls. “One more step and she’s dead.”
“You hurt her again, and you’ll be the one who’s dead,” Devlin replies with such quiet certainty that even the masked man seems to falter for a second.
“I want the drugs,” the man says, his voice cracking slightly. “Just give me the fucking drugs and I’ll leave.”
“Fine. But you let her go first.”
“Hell no. She’s my insurance.”
They stare each other down, and I can feel the tension crackling between them like electricity before a storm. I need to do something—anything—to help. My eyes dart around desperately and land on the panic button under the counter, just a few feet away.
If I can just reach it…
“Look,” Devlin says, taking a small step forward. “I can see you’re desperate. Maybe you need the pills for someone you care about. I get that. But hurting an innocent woman isn’t going to solve your problems.”
“Don’t pretend you understand shit about my problems!” the man screams, and in his agitation, his grip on me loosens just slightly.
It’s the chance I need. I throw my elbow back into his ribs as hard as I can and break free from his grasp, diving for the panic button. I slam my palm down on it just as the gun goes off.
The sound is deafening in the small space, and I scream, certain I’ve been shot. But then Devlin is there, tackling the gunman to the ground. They roll across the floor, fighting for control of the weapon.
“Atlee, get out of here!” Devlin grunts as he struggles with the masked man.
But I can’t move. I’m frozen in terror, watching the two men fight for what I know is my life. The gun clatters across the linoleum, and both men lunge for it.
The gunman gets there first, but Devlin grabs his wrist, forcing the weapon away from us. They’re both strong, but Devlin has years of ranch work behind him, and slowly, inexorably, he begins to overpower the smaller man.
“You son of a bitch,” Devlin snarls, slamming the gunman’s hand against the floor until he’s forced to release the weapon. “You put your hands on her.”
He pins the man to the ground with his knee and draws back his fist. The punch connects with a sickening crack that I feel in my bones.
“Devlin, stop!” I cry out as he draws back for another blow. “You’ll kill him!”
But before he can throw another punch, the front door bursts open and Noah Sanchez rushes in, his service weapon drawn.
“Sheriff’s department!” he shouts. “Everyone on the ground!”
“It’s okay, Noah,” I call out shakily. “Devlin’s got him.”
Noah quickly assesses the situation and holsters his weapon, pulling out his handcuffs instead. “Step back, Devlin. I’ve got this.”
Devlin reluctantly moves aside, allowing Noah to cuff the gunman, who’s groaning and barely conscious on the floor.
His mask has come off during the struggle, revealing a gaunt face I don’t recognize, probably someone from outside Grizzly River, desperate enough to try robbing a small-town pharmacy.
“You okay, Atlee?” Noah asks as he hauls the man to his feet.
I nod, though I’m anything but okay. My whole body is shaking, and the adrenaline is making me feel sick and lightheaded.
“I need to get this piece of shit to the station,” Noah says. “I’ll need statements from both of you, but that can wait until tomorrow. You’ve been through enough this afternoon.”
As Noah leads the gunman away, I finally allow myself to look at Devlin. Really look at him. His shirt is torn, there’s a cut above his left eyebrow, and his knuckles are bloody. But his eyes…God, his eyes are full of something I’ve never seen there before.
“Atlee,” he breathes, and then I’m in his arms.
He holds me so tight I can barely breathe, but I don’t care. I bury my face in his chest and let the tears come. All the fear, the terror, the helplessness, it all pours out of me in great, heaving sobs.
“Shhh,” he murmurs into my hair. “You’re safe now. I’ve got you.”
“He was going to kill me,” I choke out. “If you hadn’t come.”
“But I did come,” he says fiercely, pulling back to cup my face in his hands. His thumb gently traces the bruise on my cheek, and his jaw tightens with fresh anger. “And I always will. Do you hear me, Atlee? I will always come for you.”
The intensity in his voice, in his eyes, takes my breath away. This isn’t just about tonight. This is about something much bigger, much deeper.
“Devlin,” I whisper.
He closes his eyes, his jaw working. “I’ve never been so terrified in my life.”
My heart stops, then starts again at double speed. “You were worried about me?”
He opens his eyes and looks at me with such raw honesty, it makes my chest tight. “I was scared shitless. Afraid I was going to lose you. I care too fuckin’ much, even though I know I shouldn’t be. You’re ten years younger than me. You deserve someone who—”
I cut him off by pressing my lips to his. The kiss is desperate, full of all the fear and relief and longing that’s been building between us for months. He tastes like coffee and something distinctly him, and I never want to stop kissing him.
When we finally break apart, we’re both breathing hard.
“I don’t care about the age difference,” I tell him. “I don’t care about anything except how I feel when I’m with you. How safe you make me feel. How right this feels.”
“Atlee.” My name is a prayer on his lips.
“I was so scared he was going to hurt you,” I admit. “When I heard you come in, all I could think was that I’d put you in danger too, and I couldn’t bear it.”
“Hey.” He tilts my chin up, forcing me to meet his eyes. “Listen to me. Nothing, and I mean nothing, was going to stop me from getting to you today. And nothing ever will. You understand me?”
I nod, tears spilling over again.
“I promise you,” he says, his voice thick with emotion. “I am never going to let anything happen to you again. You’re mine now, Atlee. Mine to protect, mine to care for. And I don’t give a damn who has a problem with it.”
The possessiveness in his voice should probably scare me, but instead, it makes me feel cherished. Protected. Loved.
“Yours,” I agree, and the word feels like coming home.
He kisses me again, gentler this time but no less passionate. And as he holds me in the aftermath of the worst night of my life, I finally understand what it means to feel completely, utterly safe.
Devlin Nelson is going to be the death of me, but he just might be my salvation too. And I’m ready for whatever comes next, as long as he’s by my side.