One Southern Cowboy - Jennifer Youngblood Page 0,53

She could vomit at any moment. The park was only a quarter mile up the road. The car stopped at a red light.

In a flash, a car whipped sideways in front of Officer Williams, blocking him from going forward. A startled gasp left Lemon’s throat as a man jumped out, ran around to the driver’s side door, and pointed a gun directly at Officer Williams’s head. The young policeman held up his hands in defeat.

Expect the unexpected, that’s what Ramsey had said. No way could Lemon have anticipated this. She was so certain that everything would go down at Pinkerton Park, especially considering that was the designated spot where Wesley wanted to meet. Making a split-second decision, she grabbed the pepper spray from her purse, threw open the door, and made a mad dash to the adjacent parking lot of a grocery store.

She heard rapid footsteps on her heels. She glanced back. A cry wrenched her throat when she saw Wesley. It shot through her brain that he must’ve been in the car directly behind her. He tackled her. She fell to the pavement, her left hand and knees taking the brunt of the fall. She held onto the pepper spray for dear life as he pulled her up by her hair. She yelped as pain shot across her scalp. Her blood nearly stopped when she felt the cold press of metal against her spine.

“That was a dumb move,” Wesley hissed.

“Let me go!” she demanded, trying to wrestle out of his grip, but he held her fast. The parking lot was lit with pale street-lamps. She prayed Wesley would be too preoccupied to notice the pepper spray in her hand.

“See, you can’t run from me,” he boasted. “I’ll always find you. You’re mine.”

Horror streaked through her. Wesley was crazy.

A black sedan pulled into the parking lot.

Wesley pushed her forward. “Let’s go,” he growled.

Her breath came in short, fast bursts. “Where are you taking me?” Her eyes darted around. Officer Williams’s car was still parked in front of the red light. The other car was there also. It was too dark for her to see if Officer Williams was in the car. Was he okay? Alive or dead? A shudder ran through her.

“We have a lot to talk about,” Wesley said. “I’ve missed you, love.” His voice grew silky soft, lyrical almost. He breathed against her ear, sending a wave of revulsion through her.

“It has always been you,” he said softly. “The moment I saw you, I knew I had to make you mine. You’ll learn to love me as I love you. You’ll see. I can be very persuasive.”

Fear lodged a cold shaft through Lemon’s throat. She got the distinct feeling that if she got into the car with Wesley, she’d never make it out alive. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement as Jaxson’s truck came barreling forward.

Wesley raised the gun and took a shot. It hit the grill of the truck.

“No!” she cried, using the canister of pepper spray lodged in her fist to knock his arm. The gun toppled from his hand and hit the asphalt. As Wesley was scrambling for the gun, she turned off the safety and pressed the button to activate the spray. She made a quick streak across his eyes, just as Lexi had taught her to do.

Wesley swore, falling to his knees and clutching his eyes, which were forced closed. “What did you do?” A succession of guttural coughs overtook him. “I—I can’t breathe!” he sputtered.

Lemon sprinted away from Wesley, going toward Jaxson who’d gotten out of the truck and was hobbling toward her.

The next events seemed to happen in slow motion. Jaxson yelling for Lemon to get down. Before she could react, she heard a shot. She whirled around. The driver in the black sedan dropped his gun as his hand went over his chest. A stunned expression came over his face as he fell to the ground. Lemon turned back to Jaxson’s truck and realized that Ramsey was standing behind the open passenger door. He’d fired the shot.

“Drop it!” Ramsey ordered, aiming his gun at Wesley.

Lemon turned, realizing that Wesley had staggered to his feet. He was holding the gun, but his eyes were swollen shut.

“Lemon!” Wesley screamed in desperation. “Why’re you doing this?” His voice broke. “Can’t you see how much I love you?”

Ramsey’s voice cracked like a whip. “I said drop it! This is your last chance!”

Wesley pointed the gun toward Ramsey’s voice. A shot