The Four Stages of Loving Dutch Owen - Debra Kayn Page 0,76
punched her other palm before turning around with a grin.
He stepped forward and spanked her ass. She threw back her head and laughed as she reached for the door.
Buck burst out, almost running into Marla Marie. She ducked in, getting out of his way.
"Everyone inside," yelled Buck.
He walked in with the other men. Always wearing the patch and standing on the outside.
Chapter 34
DUTCH SHUT OFF THE engine of the mower. Taking the full bag off, he dumped the cut grass behind the shed. It took him a full two-hours to knock the grass down around the house to resemble a yard.
He looked over the backyard. It looked better, if not rough. He'd mow again in a few days and shape it up.
He pushed the lawnmower to the door of the shed, inspecting the outside of the outbuilding for any repairs. It looked as if he'd need to buy some shingles for the roof. Tomorrow, he'd clean out the shed, so he had somewhere to store the mower out of the weather.
A job he wasn't looking forward to doing.
Pulling the door open, he held his breath, prepared for the rankness to hit him in the face like it had years ago, and stood staring in confusion at the interior.
The place wasn't a wreck.
He stepped inside. There were several throw rugs spread out on the dirt and two boxes in the corner. He turned around, spotting an ice cooler with two jugs of water sitting on top.
Curious, he moved the water and peered inside. He pulled out a rolled sleeping bag with the price tag still on it.
He put the bag back, closed the cooler, and set the water on top. Moving over to the boxes, he opened the flaps. Canned food?
He straightened, rubbing the back of his neck. There were mousetraps set in each corner with cheese.
Confused about how the things showed up in the shed, he looked at everything again. The house had remained empty since Sue Smith got carted off to jail until the day Marla Marie had taken the deed he'd offered her and moved into the house.
The only person who would come in here was Marla Marie.
He hung his head, inhaling swiftly. The ramifications of what she'd done to the shed hit him square in the gut.
Had she done this recently? Since he'd come back? Why?
He'd given her the house. She had the deed. Nobody was going to take it away from her.
Looking around the small area again, he couldn't comprehend what would make her outfit the outbuilding as if she was ready to move in and live.
She'd set up the shed as if someday, she might have to hide out again.
He squatted. What the fuck was she thinking?
Did she not believe he was going to take care of her? Hadn't he done so since she was ten years old?
Bursting out of the shed, he stormed to the house. He grabbed a beer out of the fridge and looked out the window, waiting for her. She'd gone to the store while he'd cut the lawn.
A quick trip, or so she'd said.
Furious, he guzzled the beer and threw the can in the garbage before getting another one. He was going to wring her little neck.
How many times had he told her he wasn't going to leave her?
He lit a cigarette, contemplating calling her on the cell phone and telling her to get her ass home.
The sight of her as a child, eating the scraps on the picnic table, flooded his mind. He plopped down on the chair at the table, weak at the knees, and cradled his head in his hands.
He should've seen what surviving on her own when a parent should be caring for her had done to her. Starving for food. Starving for affection. Starving to belong to him when he'd found her.
Hell, it was only the other night that she'd woken up from a nightmare and padded into the kitchen to look into the fridge as if to reassure herself that there was food in the house.
He sniffed, swallowing hard. It angered him that she'd suffered alone, reliving her trauma when he was stuck in prison and unable to help her.
The crackle of gravel under tires filtered into the house. He stubbed the cigarette out in the ashtray and went to the kitchen window.
Marla Marie pulled her car into the driveway and parked. He couldn't go out there. He'd scare her to death with the way he was feeling.