“Detective Garcia called,” he began. “They finally caught all the gang members and they are in jail, but Chico got away from them.” He leaned against the kitchen sink with his arms folded. He looked tense. “They are plastering his picture all over the TV and the newspapers. They are following up a lot of leads they got from anonymous tips. It’s only a matter of time before he’s caught.”
Lacy said nothing for a moment while she processed the news. In a way she was glad to find out something instead of sitting around not knowing what was going on. She watched Ryan with a worried look. “Do you think he will somehow find out I’m here and come for me? I don’t want anyone in danger because of me,” she said, starting to panic, thinking of all the wonderful people she had met. Maybe she should leave town, but she didn’t want to run again. She loved Appledale and was happy here.
Ryan stood by the sink with a determined look on his face. “We have Chico’s pictures posted everywhere around town just in case he’s dumb enough to come here. Detective Garcia and the Detroit police are doing everything they can over there and so will we. I don’t want you to worry, Lacy, and don’t even think about running away. We can’t protect you if you’re on the run.” What Ryan really wanted to say to Lacy was “I” not “we,” but he knew he didn’t have the right since he had been the one to back away from her.
She stood up, ignoring the coffee. Her stomach had butterflies in it and she couldn’t sit still. “I know and I don’t want to go anywhere else. I just worry that if Chic
o does show up here someone might get hurt, and I don’t want that to happen. The people here have been so good to me.”
He admired her integrity and honesty. He had really messed up blowing her off because he felt guilty over Emma. It took him too long to finally face the truth. Emma was a manipulative bitch and a liar. She was not brokenhearted over their breakup. How could she be when she was partying up a storm at Thorn’s Bar every night picking up guys? She had even come on to Gabe Wilson, one of his deputies, but he refused her offer and told Ryan right away. Emma was playing games with him out of revenge and not heartache. Lacy had more honor than Emma. She would never play him that way. He had finally taken the blinders off when it was too late.
“Now that you and Logan are a couple, I’m sure he’ll help protect you, too.” He hated saying that out loud. His heart clenched with pain. Lacy belonged with him. He was coming to realize that more and more. Although they had only had one date, he missed her. He had even avoided going into the diner but his mom constantly brought up Lacy’s name in conversations. And if that wasn’t enough, Logan would tell his brother Gabe how pretty and funny Lacy was, knowing Ryan was listening.
Lacy shrugged her shoulders, going into the living room. The kitchen was so small, and standing two feet from Ryan was making her heart beat so loud she was afraid he’d hear it and see she was still attracted to him. “Logan is just a friend, Ryan. He took me out to have fun because he knew I was upset over your behavior toward me and this situation with Chico, but it’s not his responsibility to take care of me. I can take care of myself.”
Ryan followed her and felt a big sigh of relief coming out of him, and some of the tension he felt faded away. Maybe he still had a chance to make things right with her. He couldn’t keep thoughts about her out of his head and he had to give it his best try or he’d regret it forever.
“Lacy,” he said softly in his deep voice, standing in front of her so she would quit pacing and look at him. He put his hands on her shoulder. “You can’t know how sorry I am and how much I regret what I did. I am so attracted to you and our date was the best date I ever had. When I got home that night after taking you home, my ex-girlfriend called, drunk and crying, blaming me for ruining her life, so the next day I had cold feet and made the worst mistake of my life by sending you away so cruelly. I felt so guilty over her phone call that I felt like I had no right to feel so happy when she was so miserable.”
Lacy didn’t know what to say. She admired his honor in dealing with his ex-girlfriend. She’d heard from many people that Emma was mad Ryan dumped her. Emma had bragged to all her friends that she would get him to marry her and she didn’t take it well when he refused. Ryan needed to figure all that out by himself, though, so she kept quiet. She had feelings for Ryan that went deep already, and she couldn’t stop thinking about him no matter how busy she stayed. But she didn’t trust him anymore.
“Everyone in town, including Logan, Gabe, and my own mother, has told me what an idiot I am for letting you go and for thinking Emma was truly hurting when all this time she just hated me for not marrying her and I realized they are all right. She just wanted to pay me back for making her look foolish after she bragged to everyone we would be married soon. Emma saw me as a challenge. I let myself get duped. I wish I would have seen it sooner but I’m through with feeling guilty. I want a second chance with you. Can you forgive me and let me prove to you how much you mean to me?”
Lacy smiled at the comment about people telling him he was wrong. It warmed her heart that people defended her even though she was new in town and Ryan grew up here. “I want to but I’m scared, Ryan. What if she makes you feel bad again? Will you turn your back on me for her again?”
He walked up to her and hugged her tightly for a second and it felt so good to have her in his arms again, then he tilted her chin up so she could see the honesty in his eyes. “Never again, Lacy. I promise you that. I felt more for you after one date than I felt for her in the month we dated. I was bored and she pursued me relentlessly. Maybe it went to my head so I gave in to her, but I regret it.”
Lacy loved the feeling of Ryan’s arms around her. “Okay, I’ll forgive you. I really want to get to know you better, too, but I’m still worried about Chico.”
“It will be okay, darlin’. Strangers are noticed quickly in this town, and Logan and Gabe passed out pictures of him all over town, and Detective Garcia is also working hard to catch him,” he explained, kissing her head softly, glad to have another chance with her and determined not to mess up again. He had never felt this strongly for any woman before, and he had missed her so much in the short time they were apart. He dreamt about her when his eyes were closed and thought about her when they weren’t. Freedom sounded rather lonely these days.
She was biting her lip and looking worried and he wanted to distract her from thinking about any doubts she may have with him or with Chico.
“Want to go to my mom’s Halloween party with me?” he asked, knowing that would get her attention. He hated going to parties, but for her he would gladly do it.
She smiled and looked at him, her pretty brown eyes sparkling with happiness. “Really? Your mom told me you never go to her parties. She said you’re on duty every year making sure no one causes problems because you worry too much.”
He nodded but frowned deeply. “My mom says entirely too much to you. I know she encouraged you to accept dates from all the men that flirted with you,” he complained, remembering how angry and jealous he had been when his mom mentioned it to him. “But this year I want to go with you, so you can tell Logan no when he asks you.”
Lacy laughed; Ryan was cute when he was grouchy. She ran her fingers over his forehead that was scrunched up in anger, smoothing down his skin. “Who said he was going to ask me?”
“Just in case he does,” he grumbled.
Lacy could tell Ryan was still feeling jealous even though he knew the date had been innocent. She didn’t know what to say to relieve his mind that Logan was just a friend.
“Should we have matching costumes for this party? Logan says that’s the in thing with couples,” Ryan asked, interrupting her thoughts. He was going to show Lacy he trusted her by not questioning her about Logan.
“What did you have in mind?” she asked, ignoring his comment about couples. She didn’t want to get her hopes up again only to have them destroyed a second time. Trust would have to come slowly, but she was happy at this moment and she wasn’t letting her fears ruin it.
“A vampire, that way I have an excuse to bite your neck all night.” He bit her neck playfully to show her. Lacy giggled, trying to move away from him because it tickled. “What will I be then?”
He wiggled his eyebrows up and down. “My sex slave of course.”
“Okay, I’ve always wanted to be someone’s sex slave.”
She winked playfully and he growled possessively, “Only mine,” and started biting her neck again until she was roaring with laughter, her fears forgotten.
* * * *