Raising a Cowgirl by Jana Leigh
“That is all I ask,” David said, smiled, then held out his hand.
Gage shook his head and shook it and they did the one-armed man hug before laughing and filling their coffee cups. “Let’s get to this,” David said and they went to the room where they were going to build a headquarters. They were surprised to see the phones were already there, as well as a few desks.
“I will call Jolly,” Gage said and picked up the phone and began to dial.
“I will do the board,” David said and picked up a dry erase board that was leaning against one of the desks and set it on the top of the desk. He felt comfortable with this piece. It gave him and everyone at a glance exactly what they knew.
David knew from experience that it helped if they were stuck to figure it out. A few times, David had solved cases with the board because he could make connections where he had not seen them before.
A man’s voice boomed over the phone, “Gage?”
“Hey, Jolly, what’s the news? David Connor is here, he is the Sheriff around here, and my boss, I trust him with my life,” Gage said and smiled at David.
“Good to meet you. This is what we have so far,” the deep voice rumbled. “Alex and Slone are on their way back in the morning. They have the files you requested, although we will talk about how they got them. Jessie and Drake are traveling with the stuff that was packed, along with what he took when he went to Jolie’s house. You get to deal with her, and explain that, and also why you terminated her rental. Thane and Mason are remaining behind, they are battling the rest of the shit, like the VA, and the people from the Survivor's Center where the list of people who have called and tried to find you or family members to find out where you are. So far we are hitting a dead end, but once Alex and Slone get back with the files you can go through and see who looks good and who doesn’t.”
“Okay, what about Marie?” Gage said grimly.
“They are doing the autopsy and then we will get reports, we have made the arrangements you requested for the funeral. Also, we have taken all the birth and doctor records of Sammi and are sending them to your email. That way you can get her records to the local doc. Anything else you need we can get?” Jolly said.
Chapter Eleven
Jolie groaned as she tried to roll over. The pain hit her again, what the hell happened to her, she wondered. Damn, it felt like she was on a two day drunken spree and waking up on the third day with her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth.
She needed coffee and possibly a bottle of aspirin. Jolie pried her eyes open and looked around. Wait. Where the fuck was she? Shit, the memories slammed back into her and she felt the grief, the terror, even the helplessness of losing her friend. Marie was really gone.
“Sammi!” she screamed and struggled to sit up to find the small bundle. She had to be here, after everything they had been through, losing her now would be tragic.
“Jolie,” a voice said.
She refused to listen and kept screaming Sammi over and over. If she was a pain in the ass they would surly bring the baby.
“Jolie,” the voice said and shook her.
She finally opened her eyes and stared into Gage’s face on one side and David’s on the other. “Thank God,” Jolie cried and tried to throw her arms around them, but the pain hit her and she ended up screaming and cupping her right arm close to her.
“Crap, get the pain meds,” Gage barked and Jolie felt the bed dip and move as David leaned over while Gage pushed her back gently until she was lying against the pile of pillows propped up.
“What is going on?” Jolie asked confused, she felt like she hadn’t brushed her teeth in a week, and she felt her hair plastered to her head and neck, indicating she had been sweating while she slept, gross.
“You have a fever, babe. Your wound developed a good infection, the doc wanted to take you to the hospital, but we hired a nurse. You have been in and out of it for the last four days. We stayed with you, and finally your fever broke last night,” David said and poured a glass of water and held his hand out with what looked like a pharmacy in his palm.
“Sammi?” Jolie asked and took the pills and water David offered. She sighed and leaned back against the pillows.
“Lou and Sable have been taking care of her. Alex and Slone are back and overseeing the renovations, but so far you slept through them.” Gage laughed.
“Great, what renovations are we talking about?” Jolie asked tiredly. She was feeling the meds already, what the hell had they given her.
David and Gage looked at one another and had a guilty expression on their faces. Jolie caught it, but she was becoming so sleepy that she tried to force herself to stay awake. However, the last thing she remembered was muttering, “I saw that.”
Over the next few days after Jolie’s fever broke there was a whirlwind of activity and arguing. Gage was becoming short-tempered about the lack of information they were receiving, and the lack of help. The only good thing either David or Gage could say was that Jolie was getting better, and mouthier.
“I am getting up today and that is final. I need to know what is going on here. It still doesn’t make sense. How in the hell did Marie and Sammi become a target?!” Jolie yelled.
Gage rolled his eyes, so far they had not given Jolie any specific details because she was still grieving and upset. Gage understood the feeling, but he was used to compartmentalizing his emotions.
“We will explain it when you are better, for now just know we are doing everything we can to get this straightened out,” David said.
“Right and that included giving my apartment up, do you know how hard it is to find a clean, cheap place to live in San Diego. It took me months to find that place and you terminated my lease without a flinch.” Jolie glared at both of them.
If it weren’t so serious, David would have laughed at the indignant look on her face.
“Honey, listen, we told you. They found you and Sammi at the hotel, they would have found your place, and since they shot you without a thought, I am pretty sure your stuff would not have lasted much longer. They wanted to terrify you,” Gage said dryly. “And the doc said one more day in bed, then you can get up a few hours a day to build your strength.”
Jolie snorted, “I am sure you always pay attention to doctors' orders, right. I know my body and you don’t, I am getting up and sitting in that chair right over there.”
Gage rolled his eyes and knew he was fighting a losing battle. Over the last few days, they had talked and gotten to know each other a little better. David and Gage knew she was hardheaded and stubborn, as well as loving and kind. It was a strange mixture. One that Gage didn’t try too hard to figure out or it would have driven him nuts.
One thing they had both decided though, is they both had an attraction to the woman, and Gage and David had talked well into the night the last few nights, talking about how they would deal with the situation to make it work. It was going to be interesting, Gage knew.
Alex popped his head in the door and smiled. “Jolie, good morning. Lou wanted me to tell you that breakfast was on its way, and Sable and the baby are on their way to join you for breakfast as well. David and Gage, Lex and Andre have something.”
Gage nodded and looked at Jolie and smiled. “Well, if you are going to sit up, let’s get you there so you won't damage yourself trying to get up on your own.”
Jolie stuck out her tongue and then held her good arm up, the one she was shot in was still sore and tender, the doctor said she was going to have to start physical therapy soon since her muscles were weakened a little.
She would never admit it but she like the two men. And they had been hinting around about her staying in Healing for a while and she was beginning to warm to the idea. She loved the peaceful atmosphere, and above all, she was not leaving Sammi until she knew the little girl was safe. Besides, the guys said she couldn’t go home until they figured out who was after them. It was crazy to think little old her had somehow gotten a bullseye put on her back.
“Bathroom, Jeeves,” Jolie order Gage when he picked her up. One eyebrow raised at her tone and she smirked at him.
It was good to have this distraction. Losing Marie and thinking about the pain she endured was hard. In the late night, that is when Jolie grieved silently and tried to come to terms with how much her life had changed in the blink of an eye.
Gage carried her through to the bathroom and sat her on the edge of the lovely bathtub she had yet to swim in. Although she longed to be able to soak for an hour in the steaming hot water, she was not happy that she had to give herself sponge baths and rely on the guys to wash her hair. The intimacy was strange but comforting somehow. For some reason she knew the men were interested in her, just like she was attracted to them, but she was still not sure she was ready to talk about that with them.
Since they had begun to talk, they had explained more about the small town and its ways, and Jolie of course had to ask Sable a few questions just 'cause she was curious about how things worked.
Sable had told her to ask anything she wanted, that she was an open book. It seemed like she was serious about the questions, too, because Jolie had gotten a brief overview of how things worked. Although the personal questions like what, went, where, and how, Jolie had not felt like she should ask yet.
Sable’s friend, Desire, had come over a few times as well, bringing treats for the baby, and getting to know Jolie. Although she had been a little shy around the women at first, Jolie was feeling more and more comfortable with them. It was nice to be able to talk to women easily, it was not something Jolie had ever done before Marie, and personal relationships were harder than professional. Although Jolie knew intimate details of her patients' lives, they were certainly not someone she could sit down with, watch a runway model show or a wedding dress show with, and feel comfortable.
Jolie and Marie had always watched those shows in order with each other, then make fun of the people or the clothes. There was not too much in between. Now her horizons had been expanded to tiny beauty queens and dance moms. Sable and Desire had acted exactly the same as Marie and her, making fun and being offended at the behavior of some of the mom’s. It was entertaining to listen to them rant and rave while throwing popcorn and treats at the TV screen.
“When are you going to tell me what is going on?” Jolie asked Gage while she was brushing her teeth after he handed her a toothbrush.
“I told you, when you are feeling better, there is a lot going on right now. Alex’s fathers and brothers have been in and out of this place. They are staying over at David’s right now. It has become grand central, and things are changing fast, I don’t want to tell you something to make you worry and then tell you something else a few hours later. Right now you have to know David and I are protecting both you and Sammi, as well as our friends and families,” Gage said honestly and crouched down so he was balanced on his toes and looking her directly in the eye.
David appeared in the doorway and grinned when he saw Gage getting closer to her. Gage took the toothbrush and handed her a glass of water to rinse with, and when she was done he turned her face until she was looking down at him and smiled. “Until this is over, we are in this together, and when you are feeling up to it, I think showing you will be easier than explaining to you what is going on.”
Jolie felt a tingle in her cheek where he touched her and she nodded slowly. Damn, he was hot, both of them were. The more time he spent with them the more she was coming to realize they were protecting her and taking care of her, not because they had to—because they actually cared.
She was a cynic though, meeting a man let alone two when in a stressful situation was not wise. First of all, the tension and emotion could wreak havoc on your equilibrium. Second, were two sexy and overbearing men who thought they were protecting her by not telling her certain things. Jolie knew even if she went down and saw the board, which Desire and Sable had kept her up-to-date with some of the information, the men wouldn't explain it. The testosterone in the house at times was even overbearing. Each of the men had come up and talked to her.
Dallas and Noah gave her Bailey’s phone number because the woman was like a tornado with shopping. Andre and Rex were both great and had also given her their wife’s phone number. Of course, the men had gotten her a new one, a phone that Gage and David supplied her with that was safe to make calls with. However, before she could even program the numbers into the phone the women had conference called her. Those three were like a force of nature when they set their minds to it.
Calli, who was Steve and Jolly’s wife, was wonderfully bubbly and sarcastic in a humorous way. Bailey and Cali designed and sent a little cowgirl outfit, complete with boots and hat for Sammi, it was even funnier when she sent her a matching one as well. Red, white and blue were the colors and she loved them. But the women were scary, the boxes arrived daily from them and she had yet to open the newest and the biggest. She was a little afraid of what was inside since they were talking about replacing her business attire with cowgirl ones. She would look like Annie Oakley if she weren't careful.
“What about the funeral?” she whispered and saw the pain in Gage's eyes as he looked at her.
“Today, and no we can’t go, but she is with Raider now.” Gage smiled sadly.
“How could you know that?” Jolie felt a tear slide down the corner of her eye. This was the most she had dared to ask him about Marie and Ted, she needed to know they were buried together so she could take Sammi when it was safe, and talk to her about them. With all of the things that were brought here from San Diego, there had been toys, clothes, and pictures for Sammi.
“I just do.” Gage shrugged and looked over his shoulder.
Jolie sighed and knew she was not going to get a straight answer, but she couldn’t let it go. “When will we be safe enough to go back?” Jolie asked.
David appeared at her other side, crouching the same way and wiping the tears that were flowing now.
“Aw, sweetheart, we are trying. But we can’t lose you, too,” he whispered and she frowned.
“Why?” Jolie asked confused. She saw the two men look at each other, communicating somehow and then turn back to her.
“Because you are important to us,” Gage stated and then leaned in and kissed her. Since the first time they had kissed, she knew it was going to happen again. But over the last few days, a peck on the cheek, or nose wasn’t too hopeful. This kiss was a statement, slow, soft, and sweet, teasing her lips and getting her to open her mouth to him. She could feel her breath hitch, my lord, this was so much better than she remembered. His lips were firm and forceful making her want to sink into his arms and let the world fall to the wayside. She needed to feel something other than pain or annoyance.
David waited and when Gage pulled back, he turned her head to him and smiled. “We are fixing to show you what we mean as soon as you get better,” he said and kissed her just as sweetly. His lips were a little softer and fuller, but the effects were still the same. Damn, these two are lethal to her state of mind.
When he released her, she ran her tongue over her bottom lip and combined their tastes. Then it hit her what they said, “Wait, what, we? What are you talking about?” She knew but she wanted them to declare their intentions right off the bat. She was very wary and she needed to know what they expected.
“Yep, now, let’s get you out there and ready for your audience, I can hear Sammi coming.” Gage laughed at her stunned expression.
“But, I asked a question.” She pouted and folded her arms over her chest.
“Yes, you did.” David laughed. “One you know the answer to, you are not the only one who has spy’s everywhere.”
Jolie groaned and closed her eyes. Sable had laughed when she told her yesterday the conversation had been on her at breakfast. Lou was convinced the guys needed to give her a little bit of pampering instead of hitting on her.
Sable laughed when they brought her out. She stood with the smiling Sammi who waved her
Jolie waved her hand at Sammi and smiled, “Of course they did, the big assholes.”
“Nice talk in front of the baby, ladies,” Gage grumbled.
“Stop reading the book ‘What to Expect Now that You have Given Birth’,” Jolie teased.
“Useful information, thank you,” Gage said proudly. Since he had gotten the book, he had been spouting off ideas for Sammi.
“Yeah, well, some of them are wrong,” Sable said.
“How is that?” David asked.
“Well, the section on changing a diaper said you needed to make sure her unmentionables were thoroughly cleaned. They failed to say that it did not mean give her a bath with the spray hose every time she pooped,” Sable said dryly.
Gage frowned. “But the wipe things are thin and give me the creeps. I mean what if they tear. Nah, easier our way.”
“I agree,” David said and folded his arms across his chest.
Sable laughed and said, “Okay and the bottle temperature, does not mean you have to use the meat thermometer every single time you heat it up. It said using your wrist to determine if it was hot enough was good.”
“No, what it said was, that body room temperature was perfect and any hotter could cause her taste buds to be damaged, and her throat to swell if burnt,” David said and nodded at Gage.
“Yes it did, it also said microwaving it was not good that heating it on the stove with water was the best,” Gage pointed out.
“Please, use the freaking tap water on warm. You are creating too many steps,” Sable growled.
“No, it said the babies need some of the nutrients from tap water, but the bottle itself should be sterile before putting water into it, and the easiest way to do that was by boiling the bottle, and using the still hot water to heat the formula.” Gage said seriously.