watching the house, because he came to the back door almost immediately after the twins left. He said Mayor Croft had been overbearing and tactless, and that he didn’t blame me for turning them down. He said he had come, not at Croft’s behest, but on his own, to make me a better offer. I don’t know what he was going to propose, because that’s when the shooting started. The instant I heard the gunfire, I had a premonition, a sick feeling.”
She touched her stomach. “I took off running. Landry came after me, and caught up. From there, you know. You saw.”
“The coward ran and got away.”
“Mike was lying in the street, and Davy was dead. They made such easy targets as they came out of the curve in the road.” She appeared to want to say more, but her throat seized up. She had difficulty swallowing.
“Laurel, it wasn’t lawmen who ambushed them.”
She looked down at the floor, but he didn’t think it registered with her that the puddle around her muddy shoes had been formed by her dripping clothes.
“Sheriff Amos called it sabotage,” she said. “Moonshiners mistaking the twins for rivals. And they were. They were. For me.” She pressed her fist to her chest. “I let them go tonight, knowing the danger.”
She covered her face with her hands and began to sob. “Irv kept telling me it wasn’t a lark. You warned me. But, no, I was conceited and stubborn, and thought that I was above the fray, that I couldn’t be touched. And because of that vanity, Davy died.”
Sensing that she was about to collapse where she stood, Thatcher crossed over to her and enfolded her in his arms. “The O’Connors knew they were playing a dangerous game. They knew the risks.”
“But it’s my fault.”
“No, Laurel. They loved the thrill. With or without you, they would have become part of this trade.”
“I tried my best to talk them out of going tonight. Honestly, Thatcher, I did. But they were bent on it. If Mike lives, he will never get over losing his brother. Never.” Her forehead dropped against his sternum and she began to sob harder. “I can’t do this anymore. Even if I wanted to continue. I can’t. I can’t risk another life.”
“You’ve got to stop risking your own.” He scooped her up into his arms and headed for the staircase.
Feebly, she pushed against his chest. “Let me down.”
“You’re sopping wet. Your teeth are chattering, and you’re about to drop.”
He carried her into her bedroom, set her on her feet, and propped her against the wall. He went around the room pulling down the window shades and lit the lamp on her dresser, keeping the flame low. He folded back the bedcovers.
She hadn’t moved from where he’d left her. For the longest time, they stood facing, staring into each other’s eyes.
“You’re fragile right now,” he said. “I promised I would never take advantage of you, and I meant it. I’m putting you to bed. If you don’t want me in there with you, say so now.”
She didn’t move or speak.
Keeping his eyes locked with hers, he reached down and untied the thong holding his holster against his thigh, then unbuckled the gun belt and set it in a chair. His coat was wet. It clung, but he worked himself out of it. He flipped his braces off his shoulders, opened several buttons of his shirt, then impatiently pulled it over his head. Shoes and socks went next. He unbuttoned his fly but stopped there.
He knelt in front of her and slipped off her shoes. Sliding his hands up her legs under her skirt, he found her garters, rolled down her stockings, and peeled them off her chilled feet.
When he stood up, he reached behind her head, pulled out what few pins remained in her hair, and dropped them to the floor. As her hair tumbled down her back, he combed his fingers through it.
“Thatcher, I—”
With abject misery, he moaned, “Please don’t shy from me, Laurel.”
“I’m not. It’s just…” In a purely feminine, self-conscious gesture, she touched the tear tracks on her cheeks, then moved her hand down to her collar, which she drew closed over her throat. “I’m not very tidy.”
His heart thumped with restored anticipation. Her voice was husky from weeping, and so seductive he wanted to trap it inside her mouth and taste it. “I don’t need you tidy. I need you now.”
He placed his hands flat against the wall on either side of