Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Rachel kissed Marcus’ forehead. “I love you, buddy. Sleep well.”
“I will, Mom. I like it here. And did you see the big fence they have around the property? No one’s getting in,” Marcus said, closing his eyes.
Oh, the innocence of children. Rachel did love the tall fence surrounding the property, but she didn’t know everyone who lived here. How could she trust them if she didn’t know them?
Clara, along with what could only be termed as an abundance of people, had helped move all their personal belongings into the house.
When Regina, Clara’s friend, had realized that Rachel had two children and did crafts, she changed which house Rachel and the kids were going to live in.
She walked them two houses down to one that had three bedrooms, a full basement, and a loft that Regina thought would be perfect for all Rachel’s crafts.
She had to admit it was a lovely space. And because it was hidden from people walking in, if she wanted to leave things out while she worked on them, she could.
Multiple kids had shown up to play with Marcus and Chelle. Rachel had tried to keep track of the names but had given up. Between the adults and kids, she’d met at least fifty new people today.
Her refrigerator was filled with some meals that could be heated up to eat, and her pantry was stocked with all the necessities. Every need she’d had, they’d taken care of.
Her only embarrassment, besides how little they had, was when Phoebe had asked Michelle where her toys were.
Michelle had piped up that her bad daddy had sold their toys.
The silence in the house was deafening. Rachel had only hoped that no one would ask any questions.
She needed just one day when she didn’t have to think about the kids’ dad.
But no one had asked questions. In under an hour, though, toys for both the kids had shown up.
Rachel walked around the house checking the doors and windows before glancing into Michelle’s room. She’d fallen asleep almost before she’d finished her bath.
Today had been exciting and busy. Rachel was ready to relax, and she relaxed best by crafting. She brewed a cup of hot tea and took it upstairs.
She looked around the room. Everything had a place, and she could easily find whatever she needed.
She set her drink down on the table beside the comfortable rocking recliner Clara had insisted she needed.
Gunner and his brothers had wrestled the chair up the stairs into the loft. She had giggled along with everyone else as they tried to get it through the wooden banister separating the loft from below, the wall, and a bookcase that was built in directly by the stairs.
Flick yelling Pivot had them all laughing.
Brody, the brother she’d nicknamed the broody one in her head, had waited until they were done and were walking down the stairs.
He’d been behind Flick and had given him a kick in the behind, sending him tumbling down the stairs.
Gunner had just chuckled and shaken his head at them.
She picked up the pale pink yarn and her crochet needle.
She’d sold out at the last craft show of a couple of the items she wanted to show Gunner.
The pink loaf cat was part of her idea for gift boxes for people who visited Broken Hearts.
She also wondered about having them available to ship to people if someone asked.
She needed to write down her ideas after she finished this little one because she’d thought of a lot of ideas on the drive.
She lost herself in the motions of crocheting. She breathed deeply and relaxed. They were safe behind walls tonight. Tomorrow she’d meet with Gunner and they could talk ideas about the shop.
She finished the cat in under an hour. She’d become faster the more she made. She stared at the pink one and then had an idea. She looked through the craft supplies she’d brought into the house.
Darn it!
She wanted a purple and a soft buttery yellow for her two ideas. She’d only brought a small amount of yarn into the house. She glanced down at her thin T-shirt and sleep shorts. It was chilly outside, but the house was toasty warm.
The kids were safe inside. She could run out to her van parked in the driveway.
She had debated about parking in the garage when Gunner had offered.
If she had, she wouldn’t have needed to go outside.
But that small part of her that wasn’t quite ready to trust had wanted the van and trailer outside to be able to make a quick getaway if needed.
She pulled her curtain on the window closest to where her van was parked and looked outside.
She didn’t see anyone. She grabbed the house keys so she could get back inside.
She opened her front door and stepped out.
Locking the door, she hurried toward the van.
The chilly night air had her nipples tightening and Rachel shivering.
Opening the van door, she found her yarn divided by color and grabbed the small totes with purple and yellow.
She started to leave, then thought about how she felt and how mad she was about her situation.
She bent down and crawled under the table area where she’d stored the tote of black yarn. She started scooting backward from under the table, pulling the tote.
“Everything okay?” Gunner’s voice called.
She jerked, slamming her head into the table and yelping.
She backed out, tears filling her eyes, and sat up to check her head where she hit it.
“Oh crap. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you. I was taking a walk on the compound and saw a light on in your van. I was worried it got left on and would drain the battery. Then I heard someone rummaging in it,” he said, his voice close by.
She turned, her face flushing. “I just hit my head. I had an idea and needed some yarn,” she said, waving her hand toward the totes.
“I feel horrible you hit your head because I startled you. Can I at least carry them for you?” he asked.
Rachel stared at Gunner’s face. Unlike the kids’ father, Gunner’s face expressed everything he was feeling—regret at her getting hurt and a need to help her.
“I’d appreciate that,” she said. She pushed the totes toward him and used the counter to steady herself as she stood.
“Whoa, you look a little unsteady. Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked.
She took a deep breath and took stock. Her head ached, and her fingers had a little blood from when she checked her head. She wasn’t sure why she felt off.
“I think I’m okay,” she said, Gunner’s face wavering in front of her.
He dropped the totes and then everything went dark.
Gunner dropped the totes and reached for Rachel, catching her as she fainted. Holding her against him, he texted Stella and Flick for help. He lifted her, grabbing her keys off the cabinet to get back into the house. Once he knew she was okay, he’d come out and get the totes.
“Everything okay?” Stone called.
“Rachel hit her head when I startled her. Can you unlock the door and then bring these totes in?” Gunner asked, tossing him the keys. Lifting Rachel in his arms, he realized how thin she was. She had a beautiful face, but the shadows under her eyes and the hollowness below her cheeks worried him.
He carried her in, laying her on the couch in the front room. He’d move her to the bedroom if Stella or Flick said to, but he wasn’t encroaching on her personal space without her okay.
“What did you do to my mommy?” Marcus yelled before he pushed Gunner away and started beating on Gunner wherever his hands could reach. “You’re supposed to be nice, Clara said. Not like our bad daddy!” Marcus screamed.
Gunner held up his hands and let Marcus get it all out. When Gunner didn’t fight back or try to grab Marcus, he paused and stared up at Gunner.
“I think you’re a brave boy for defending your mom. I’m not a bad man. Your mom was getting totes from underneath the table, and I asked a question. It surprised her…”
“Oh, did she hit her head on the latch? I’ve done that a couple times, and it really hurts,” Marcus said, wiping his nose and the tears seeping out of his eyes.
“Yes. Flick and Stella are going to come check her out to make sure she’s okay,” Gunner said, slowly moving his hand to Marcus’ shoulder. He wanted to comfort the kid, but this outburst told him there might be more to their story he needed to be aware of.
Marcus didn’t flinch when Gunner placed his hand on Marcus’ shoulder. Marcus moved closer and leaned against Gunner.
“Can I tell you a secret?” Marcus asked, staring up at Gunner.
Gunner nodded and knelt down so Marcus was face to face with him.
“You can, but if you’re in danger, I need to share it with your mommy,” Gunner said.
Marcus leaned closer, wrapping his arms around Gunner’s neck and burying his face against Gunner’s chest.
“Daddy said if I told, he’d kill Mommy and Chelle,” Marcus whispered.
Stone knelt down beside them. “You can trust Gunner and all of us. We won’t let your daddy do that.”
Gunner pushed the rage he felt at Marcus’ words deep down inside. He didn’t want Marcus to feel how angry he was.
“What does he not want you to tell?” Gunner asked, breathing deeply, his arms wrapped around Marcus. He reminded himself that the kids and Rachel were both safe here at Bluff Creek.
“I saw him pushing a needle in his arm,” Marcus said softly.
Gunner had to strain to make out what he said.
A needle in his arm—had Rachel’s husband been a drug user the whole time, or had it been something new?
The small amount of time he’d been around Rachel, he didn’t see her being okay with drugs being around her children.
“All right, where’s the patient?” Flick said, walking in with Stella.
“Mommy’s here. She hit her head on the hard metal thing under the table. It hurts when it happens,” Marcus said, turning toward Flick.
“Well, let’s see how she is,” Flick said.
Gunner kept his arm around Marcus as Flick and Stella checked her over. Rachel moaned a little as she came to.
“Hey, Rachel. Do you remember me?” Flick asked.
Rachel nodded, then grabbed her head.
“You’re Beth’s husband,” she said.
Flick chuckled. “Yes, I am Beth’s husband. I’m also an EMT, and Stella here is a nurse practitioner. Does anything else besides your head hurt?”
Gunner listened as Stella and Flick ran through questions regarding Rachel’s symptoms. They’d helped her sit up, and Flick had gone to the kitchen, returning with some juice for her to sip.
“Have you been skipping meals?” Stella asked.
“Maybe. I haven’t deliberately been skipping meals. I ate breakfast with Gunner and the kids. We’ve been so busy for the last week, and I haven’t been very hungry,” Rachel said.
“How’s your sleep been?” Flick asked.
“Not great. We’ve been traveling and I don’t sleep deeply in the van,” Rachel replied, sipping the juice.
“I think, and I can tell by Flick’s face he’s coming to the same conclusion, you’re exhausted, run down, and didn’t take in enough calories today.
When you hit your head, I don’t believe your body could handle processing the adrenaline.
I’d really like you to eat and drink something and see how you feel.
Does a smoothie sound good, or would you rather we heated up some of the mac n’ cheese with barbecue chicken?
We need to make sure you have a good balance of protein with your calories,” Stella said.
“I’m not very hungry, but the mac n’ cheese sounds better than a smoothie,” she said, wrinkling her nose.
Marcus grabbed her hand. Rachel pulled him closer. “I’m okay, buddy.”
Marcus nodded and hugged her.
Gunner waited while Flick heated up the food. Stella checked Rachel’s pulse. Flick returned with the food and waited until Rachel took her first bite.
Gunner now understood how these men he’d gotten to know could be so upset. Gunner didn’t want to stand here helpless. He wanted to wrap Rachel in his arms and fix whatever was wrong with her.
And little Marcus and Chelle. He wanted to make sure their loser of a dad was out of the picture because Gunner wanted to be their dad. He wasn’t sure how, in less than twenty-four hours, he’d fallen in love with the woman of his dreams and with her kids.
If Rachel’s husband or ex-husband, Gunner wasn’t sure which, was available—Gunner would be teaching him a lesson about threatening children. Ripping him apart piece by piece might get rid of the anger Gunner had toward him.
“Rachel, I’d feel better if someone stayed with you tonight. Would it be okay if I slept on your couch? I promise I won’t check on you every hour, but I’d like to check on you at least once,” Stella said.
Rachel finished chewing her last bite. “Umm, sure, I guess. I think I’m fine, though.”
Stella patted her shoulder. “I’m sure you are but I’d like to be sure. Both my girls are living far away, and I know if they’d had this happen, I’d want someone with them overnight.”
“Then it’s settled. Let’s have you stand up and see how steady you are. If everything is good, I’ll help you get Marcus settled back in bed and then you,” Stella said.
Gunner held out his hand to help Rachel up, and Marcus held his out for her other hand. Gunner hid a smile at Marcus being such a little man. Rachel stood up and seemed steady on her feet.
“All right. We’ll shoo the men out except for Marcus. I’d love it if you could get a good eight to ten hours of sleep tonight,” Stella said.
“But the shop,” Rachel protested.
“Nope. You sleep in. I got a message that the guys are almost done but need at least tomorrow morning to finish. Then I have a crew going in to clean. Tomorrow afternoon at four p.m. is the earliest we can go into the place. Sleep in. Relax. Let me know if you need any food delivered but rest,” Gunner said.
Her smile was all the reward he needed.
“Thank you,” she said.
Stella led them back to the bedrooms, and Gunner headed toward the door with Stone and Flick. Leaving her was the hardest thing he had to do tonight, but Stella would take care of her.
Rachel and the kids needed to know that they had support from all of Bluff Creek.
Flick patted his back. “Way to be the bigger man. Stella will take care of her, and you can work on winning her heart tomorrow. See ya,” Flick said, heading home.
“You okay?” Stone asked.
“I want to tear his father apart piece by piece,” Gunner muttered as they walked down the steps.
“I have a key to the gym if you want to go punch something,” Stone said.
“Why do you have a key to the gym?”
“Sometimes the only thing that calms me down at night so I can sleep is beating the hell out of something. Locks figured the punching bag at the gym was better than asking the members to let me hit them,” Stone said.
Gunner chuckled. He appreciated Locks thinking of them.
“Yep, I think I need that,” Gunner said. At least he could expend his anger if he couldn’t solve the issue.