He unconsciously adjusted his hand from lacing with hers to glide his fingertips along the insides of her fingers as he smiled and continued to give it to her.
“So his attorney smartened up and sat down with our prosecutor. Unfortunately for that asshole, the prosecutor was handed all he needed to drive a hard bargain, this being something he did. This means that guy signed a deal admitting he committed three felonies. They dropped the breaking and entering to focus on trespass and stalking, mostly because trespass is much the same crime and holds the same punishment as breaking and entering and stalking will mean he can’t come near you even after he’s out. Not to mention, the prosecutor wanted to push that the sentences would be served non-concurrently. This means the man is out on a twenty-five-thousand-dollar bond and has to a week to get his affairs in order before he turns himself in to serve non-concurrent terms of two and a half years each for trespass and assault, one year mandatory protection order after he’s out, and in the meantime he’s not allowed within one hundred yards of you.”
She gasped and her fingers curled back into his hand.
“Five years?”
“He’ll be due for parole a lot earlier, sweetheart, but criminal trespass and assault hold up to twenty years each, and if Judge Bereford was feeling any more ornery than he was today, something he said he would be if they forced a jury trial, he could have that.”
“Ohmigod . . . I . . . ohmigod, that’s . . .”
She trailed off in order to bust out laughing.
He twisted her hand in his and brought it to his thigh, giving himself the added gift of looking at her a couple of times while she laughed.
When her laughter died down, he noted, “I take it you like that.”
“Not thinkin’ I’ll be scared of my kitchen anymore,” she said as reply.
“Good,” he muttered.
She grew silent but ended it to remark quietly, “It’s Nat, isn’t it?”
He drew in breath and let it out, thinking he’d never thought she was stupid but not knowing until then how smart she was.
“Yeah,” he confirmed.
“That’s sad,” she said.
“It is. It’s also a deterrent,” he replied. “Two serious felonies committed in his county in a short period of time when that shit doesn’t happen here, the judge is sending a message that anyone else thinks they can pull something like that, they should think again.”
“Yeah,” she agreed.
“A lot of the time the system is a mess, sweetheart. Twisted up with plea deals and cops screwing around, not doing their jobs right or havin’ the need to prove who’s got the biggest dick and judges worried about their next elections. It’s not only good that it worked this time, it’s good that it worked the time it needed to so you can move on. So that’s it. You take tomorrow off, give yourself a day to start the process of healing, then you heal and move on. You with me on that?”
“Yeah, Hix.”
He lifted her hand, touched it to his chest then put it back to his thigh relieved she’d agreed to take a day off.
Once he did that, and her fingers had tightened in his hold after he did, he told her, “You should know, Gemini was at the hearing.”
“So word got out before I showed at Lou’s with my nose like this,” she murmured.
“Actually, no,” he replied. “I asked Hal to call him yesterday.”
He felt her eyes so he glanced at her before looking back to the road and he kept talking.
“Did that for a variety of reasons, baby,” he said quietly. “First, it’s about you and how I know Gemini is with you. Second, it’s about Gemini and how he runs his business. This started in his club, and as a courtesy, not so much as the man in your life who holds the position I hold so I was in the position to make sure he knew, but more as the sheriff of this county who should extend a courtesy like that to a man like him who runs the business where this all began.”
“That makes sense.”
He was glad she thought so.
“You need to call him,” he said. “He’s worried about you.”
“I need to call a lot of people,” she muttered. “I cleared this afternoon but I have a full schedule tomorrow. Think I’ll keep Mrs. Whitney’s appointment tomorrow night, though. She’ll freak at the bandage but she’ll get over it and she needs the company.”
“Mrs. Whitney?”
“My at-home client. I go see her every other Tuesday.”
“You take at-home clients?”
Her hand moved in his as an extension of her shrug. “Just her.”
“She sick or somethin’?” he asked.
“No. Her husband has zero brain function so he’s essentially in a coma, dying a very sad, very slow death in their bedroom upstairs.”
“Jesus,” he muttered.
“I know. It’s awful. She doesn’t get out much. She’d be okay with me rescheduling but, you know, after a day and a half of rest, I should be good to do a wash, rinse and set so she’ll have someone to talk to who can actually talk back for an hour or so.”
Taking care of her brother.
Taking Lou up on a challenge of mud wrestling.
Going to the home of a lonely client to do her hair and give her a little company.
You’re about to embark on a fabulous journey of discovery.
Gemini had been right.
And Hix had been a total moron, putting at risk a future that included having Greta’s ass in his Bronco at his side.
“Hix?” she called when he fell silent.
His voice was gruff when he pushed out, “Yeah?”
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yup. All good,” he said, squeezing her hand.
“Can I tell you something?” she asked.
He wanted to learn everything about her.
“Absolutely.”
“If this doesn’t work, you know, between you and me . . .” she began.
His chest got instantly tight.
“Just sayin’, I’m totally stealing this Bronco, loading Andy up and we’re heading to Mexico. I feel safe in telling you this because you’ll never find us. But just so you know, we’ll keep her safe so you’ll at least have that,” she finished.
“And, you know, just sayin’, I lose this Bronco, sweetheart, I’ll go to the ends of the earth to find her,” he returned, the tightness disappearing from his chest.
He loved his Bronc, but he wouldn’t be looking for his truck.
“Hmm,” she mumbled.
“Seems it’s best we work on gettin’ along, baby,” he suggested.
“Maybe you’re right,” she replied then asked, “Can I drive her?”
“My ass isn’t in her, yes.”
“Is that an alpha-male thing?”
He bit back a surprised bark of laughter and asked back, “Is it a what?”
“An alpha-male thing, you know,” her voice dropped low, “me man, me drive, you woman, you ride.”
He chuckled. “No, it’s I own this beast so I drive it if I’m in it so she knows she always has my love, but I’m totally cool you wanna take her for a spin if I’m not around.”
“Okay then,” she said, sounding amused.
“Okay,” he replied.
With that, he drove Greta to the hospital.
Hix also chuckled a lot as he drove Greta to the hospital.
She ended up with only a piece of tape across the top of the bridge of her nose.