Texas Forever (The Tylers of Texas 6)

Marge cleared her throat. “Like I said, he came in just before I got off shift. It was coming up on one o’clock. He sat down at the counter. Handsome man, I remember. The other girls were stealing looks at him, too, sort of giggling. I gave him a menu. He pushed it away. Said to just give him a cup of coffee and a slice of that apple pie in the case behind the counter.”

“So you did?” Pearl prompted as Erin listened, barely breathing.

“I did,” Marge said. “I turned away to get his order. When I put the pie and coffee on the counter, he was watching TV. The one o’clock news had just come on. I wasn’t paying attention to it myself. But all of a sudden he put down his cup and stood up. I asked him if everything was all right, but it was like he didn’t hear me. He just took a bill out of his wallet, dropped it on the counter, and walked out. Hardly took two bites of that pie. But here’s the strange part. When I picked up that bill, I saw that it was fifty dollars! Fifty dollars! My stars! I don’t think he even looked at it. That’s why I remember him, even apart from his bein’ such a feast for the eye.”

Pearl switched off the machine. “Thanks,” she said.

“Did I do all right?” Marge asked.

“You did perfect, honey,” Pearl said. “You don’t happen to have that bill, do you?”

“Why, I just might. When I first found it, I thought sure he’d realize his mistake and come back, or at least call. So I put it in an envelope and stuck it under the tray in the cash register. If nobody’s moved it, it should still be there.” She opened the cash drawer and lifted the tray. “Here it is!”

Erin had cash in her shoulder bag. She found two twenty-dollar bills and a ten. “Here,” she said, thrusting the cash at Marge. “Keep it for yourself. I know that’s what Luke would want.”

“Wait,” Pearl said. “I want a picture of you, Marge, with that bill. Then we’ll take it.”

Pearl snapped a couple of pictures with her phone. Then she took the bill, zipped it into a plastic evidence bag from her purse, and tucked it away.

“I hope you’ll let me know what happened to that poor man.” Marge picked up her purse, which was stashed below the counter.

“I promise to let you know,” Erin said. “When this is over, he might even want to come back here and thank you in person.”

“Well, now, that was time well spent,” Pearl said as Erin helped her into the car. “If nothing else goes wrong, when I present this evidence to the sheriff, we should have your Mr. Maddox cleared and out of jail by morning, if not sooner.”

Erin slipped into the driver’s seat, started the car, and pulled onto the southbound freeway. “It sounds like wonderful news. But after all the awful things that have happened lately, I know better than to celebrate too soon. Can they get Luke’s fingerprints, or maybe DNA, off that bill?”

“Not easily, and probably not anytime soon, especially since the bill’s an old one that’s been handled a lot. But just having it will back up Marge’s account. That should be plenty for a solid alibi. Luke couldn’t have killed your father and shown up at that diner in Plainview an hour later. Don’t worry, dear. Everything’s going to be all right.”

“Yes. Thank you so much, Pearl,” Erin said. But she knew that even w

ith Luke free, everything was far from all right. She would still be dealing with the drought and the bank loan. And the most troubling question of all remained to be answered.

Who had murdered her father?

* * *

“You can go, Maddox.” The sheriff shook his head as he unlocked Luke’s cell. “Your alibi checked out yesterday when a waitress at that diner recognized your photo. The court’s dropped all charges.” He tossed Luke a plastic bag with his clothes and boots inside. “Put these on and toss that jumpsuit in the laundry bin on your way out. The clerk up front will have your wallet, your keys, your phone, and your gun.”

Groggy and red-eyed after a sleepless night, Luke shoved the hated orange jumpsuit down off his body. Maybe he was dreaming. Maybe he was about to wake up to the real nightmare that he was still a prisoner, caged in this damned cell, charged with a murder he hadn’t committed.

He couldn’t just be free to go. He didn’t have that kind of luck. But before the dream ended, he was going to get as far away from this place as he could.

Everything was here—shirt, jeans, boots, even the belt they’d taken right away so he wouldn’t hang himself with it. He needed a shave and a shower, but it wasn’t going to happen here. Raking his hair out of his eyes, he tossed the jumpsuit and, with an armed deputy watching, strode up to the window to collect his other possessions. Too bad his rig was at the Rimrock. Otherwise he could just take it and go—get the hell out of Erin’s life. He loved her to the depths of his restless soul. But he was no good for her. He’d already caused her far more pain than she deserved.

The truth had come to him in the dead of a dark night. Erin was young and bright, with a promising future. She needed to be free to meet the right man and make the right choices. He was older and had already seen too much of the dark side of life. Even if he didn’t end up in prison, he needed to be man enough to walk away before he ruined her life.

Now, from the shadows of the hallway, he could see her. She was standing in a shaft of morning sunlight that fell through the high window of the jail’s reception area. Dressed in jeans and an old denim jacket with the sleeves cut out, she looked like an angel, her golden hair framing her face like a halo.

As he walked into the light, she saw him. A little cry escaped her lips. She flung herself toward him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Despite his best intentions, Luke couldn’t have kept her back if he’d wanted to. He held her close, letting her kisses flood him with the joy of being with her and being free.

As their embrace broke, he realized they weren’t alone. Several people, all strangers, were seated in the row of chairs that lined the wall. The ones he could see looked as if they were trying not to smile.

“Erin, we’ve got an audience,” he murmured.

“I know.” She was beaming with happiness. “We don’t have to hide anymore, Luke. I don’t care if the whole world knows I love you!”

He stifled a groan. Leaving this passionate, vulnerable woman was going to be the most painful thing he’d ever done. But right now his gear and his rig were all back at the ranch, and she was his ride. He would find a way later.