“Sharon Lynn is staying with me. Janet has a timetable posted on the refrigerator door. There’s no way I’ll be late,” she promised.
Of course, she hadn’t counted on getting stopped for speeding halfway to the chapel. Even as she hit the brakes, she glanced at the speedometer and noted that she was barely exceeding the posted speed limit.
Ready for an argument, she glanced up into Tate’s amused eyes.
“Going somewhere in a hurry, aren’t you?”
“You do realize if you keep me out here on the side of the road, I will be late and Justin will worry and the whole family will get in on the act?”
He grinned. “Which is why I decided to be your escort. I don’t want any other law enforcement officer coming along and delaying this wedding.”
She regarded him curiously. “Why is my marrying Justin so important to you?”
“Because the second you get back from your honeymoon, I’m going to follow Doc Dolan down to the Gulf Coast and spend the rest of my days fishing. Already have my place picked out and my wife’s chomping at the bit to get going.”
“Which means what for Justin?”
“That he’ll be sheriff, if he wants the job.”
“Have you told him that?”
“Nope. It’s my wedding present. I’ll tell him at the reception.”
Patsy grinned. “It’s better than another blender, I’ll give you that.”
“Come on, then, girl. We’re wasting time. If you’re late, Harlan Adams will have the state troopers, the Texas Rangers and Lord knows who else out here looking for you.”
When they reached the church, Justin was indeed pacing around outside, with his grandfather right on his heels. The pair of them glared at Tate, who wisely scooted inside without getting dragged into a discussion over his role in her delayed arrival.
“You can go on in now, Grandpa. The wedding’s about to start,” Justin said, his relief evident.
When they were alone, he scowled at her. “I ought to have you arrested, you know.”
“For what? I haven’t done anything.”
“Sure you have. You stole my heart.”
Patsy reached up and cupped his face in her hands. “For a lawman, you sure do have a way with words.”
And then she kissed him, which was why, forever after, everyone in Los Piños would talk about the fact that Justin Adams kissed his bride before the wedding and almost never made it to the chapel at all.
* * *
The Unclaimed Baby
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter One
Sleet slashed through the bitter cold February night. A few hours from now it was expected to turn to snow, layering over ice in a way that would leave the roads treacherous. Sharon Lynn stood in the doorway at Dolan’s Drugstore and shivered, even though it was plenty warm inside. It was Friday night at eight, an hour when the store should have been closed, but she’d taken to keeping it open later and later. It meant she didn’t have to go home to an empty house, didn’t have to go to sleep and face the nightmares.
Even though months had passed, the images came back whenever she closed her eyes. The bright headlights glaring into her eyes, weaving across the center line of the quiet country road. The screaming crunch of metal against metal, then just the screaming. Her own and Kyle’s.
And then just her own.
That summer night had been clear, with a vibrant sprinkling of stars and a glorious full moon. No danger on the road then, except for a man who’d had too much to drink.
She had been married for little more than a split second when the tragedy struck. It had been their wedding night, a night she had been anticipating and dreaming about for years, it seemed. She was finally Mrs. Kyle Mason and the rest of their lives was spread out ahead of them, a storybook future with a houseful of kids and her wonderful family nearby. In the Adams clan, family meant everything and she’d been waiting a long time to start her own.
Then, in the blink of an eye, her marriage was over and she was alone again. Worse, she had been driving the car, and even though the accident was another driver’s fault, Sharon Lynn had been consumed with guilt and grief ever since, wondering if there hadn’t been something—anything—she could have done to prevent it. For weeks it had taken every bit of strength she had just to propel herself out of bed.