Devil in Texas (Rugged and Risque 1)

“I’m over here,” Ginger chimed in. She was sitting on the back step of the ambulance, another EMT attending to her.

“There wasn’t anybody else in the shop, was there?” the fire captain asked.

“Not that we know of,” Ginger said.

“No,” Lydia confirmed as she moved forward, having been standing off to the side. “I didn’t see anyone in the store. I didn’t know Ginger was in the attic. Or that Liza was with her.”

“What were you doing in my store?” Ginger asked, ignoring the EMT next to her and getting to her feet.

Lydia’s face flushed. Her gaze shifted from Ginger to Liza, then back. She didn’t speak for a few moments. When she finally did, however, her attention turned to the fire captain. “I’m the one who started the fire. It was an accident. Truly it was.”

Jack felt Liza go stiff in his arms as she gasped in surprise.

Lydia rushed on. “I just came in to speak with you,” she said as she returned her attention to Ginger. “And I saw your window display.” She wrung her hands as she admitted, “I was just so…shocked. And appalled. I just…I knocked over the candles. On accident!”

“Oh my God,” Liza said on a sharp breath.

Ginger sank back onto the step of the ambulance. “You set my store on fire?” Her voice was a mere whisper.

“Not on purpose, Ginger. I swear! Of course, I would never do such a thing!”

Liza moved in Jack’s arms and he let her. He knew what was on her mind, and he wasn’t going to stop her from saying it. He held her loosely, keeping her steady as her gaze locked with Lydia’s.

“How dare you,” Liza said, her anger laced with the pain that was no doubt burning through her from head to toe. “You selfish witch.”

Lydia gasped. Ginger’s head snapped up, her eyes wide.

Liza didn’t stop. “Are you so blinded by the light that you can’t see what you and your husband and his followers are doing to this town? To the people in it? You’re destroying their lives, Lydia!”

“No!” Lydia was quick to say. “That’s not true! This was an accident!”

“It’s not just about the fire, Lydia. What about before that? Trying to keep Ginger from selling her goods? Turn

ing people against her by convincing them it’s a sin to go into her shop, to buy things from her? You destroyed her business long before you set fire to it. Now you’ve destroyed everything she’s worked so hard for. Every penny she’s ever saved was in that store and now it’s gone!”

Lydia turned to Ginger, opening her mouth to speak, but Ginger turned away.

“It’s not just her you’re hurting, Lydia,” Liza continued. “What about the other bar owners in town who had to close their doors because of the stupid laws being passed around here? What about their families and their homes and their livelihoods? They can’t possibly survive here! What about Jack?” she demanded, her argument gaining strength if the speed of her words and the intensity of her sore voice were any indication. “A man who’s always been on your side! He’s always been there for you, and your idea of thanking him for his friendship is to run him out of business?”

“I didn’t know!” she shot back, but it was clear she had some idea of what the curfews and ban on alcohol were doing to the town. To his business. “I didn’t realize the full extent,” she said to Jack in a softer voice. “Not until this morning, when you told me things were tight. I never thought any of this would impact you.”

“How could it not?” he asked once again.

The reverend’s car drove up at that moment and as he climbed out of the car and ducked under the police tape—because no one would dare stop him—Liza took that moment to turn to Jack.

She said, “You running for City Council is the best thing to happen to this town. I didn’t tell you this before, but back in New York, I was the director of Public Relations for the country’s largest industrial risk insurer.” Her thought got momentarily derailed, however, as she turned to Ginger and asked, “You have insurance, don’t you?”

Ginger nodded. “Of course.” And breathed a sigh of relief for the tiny miracle. “Thank God.”

Liza turned back to Jack, who still held her in a loose embrace. She said, “I know more than a thing or two about public campaigns. If George doesn’t take offense, I’d like to take over management of your campaign. You’re going to win this election, Jack Wade!”

Jack grinned. That meant she was staying. “Darlin’, consider him fired.”

She turned back to Lydia, who’d been joined by Reverend Bain. “If this fire isn’t a wake-up call, our campaign will be. You can bet your sweet asses on it.”

Jack laughed. He hugged her to him, albeit gently. “You are a breath of fresh air in this town, sweetheart.”

She smiled up at him.