Accidental Knight: A Marriage Mistake Romance(43)

I go into the tack room, and sure enough, the lever is down. I flip it up and make a mental note to make sure that can’t happen again as I move over to Edison.

He tosses his head restlessly a few times and nickers as I unwrap the candy.

“All right, all right, it’s coming. Hell. Had I known a stick of peppermint turns you into a well-trained Labrador, I’d have been buying these damn things by the case.” Pulling the last of the cellophane off it, I tuck the wrapper in my pocket and hold out the cane for his taking.

He sniffs it, but then lifts his head, ears twitching, and looks toward the door. A few seconds later, he starts turning his back.

“Aw, come on. Really?”

He keeps staring at the door, as if ignoring me.

On second thought, fuck 'as if.' Yep. He’s ignoring me.

“She can’t come out here tonight, if that’s what you’re waiting for.” I drop the candy in the trough near his feed bucket. “Just me. Sorry to disappoint, your majesty.”

Sighing, I give him some grain, then secure the barn doors and the corral gate, before collecting the SD cards from three cameras. I hope they caught something.

I survey as much as I can in the darkness. Everything looks secure.

Returning to the house, I pause in the kitchen and hear the shower still running. While I’ve got some privacy, I flip open my laptop on the far end of the counter.

There are a couple pictures of the Ford. It has a South Dakota plate.

The few shots of the men are blurrier, but if someone knows them, they might be recognizable. The cops have the software to enhance this stuff, too. I fire off an email to Shelia with everything attached.

The shower’s still running. Too long for my liking.

Slowly, I head over and tap on the door with one hand while grabbing the knob with the other. “Bella? You alive? I’m coming in.”

I figured she’d freak, but I don’t hear her. Fuck.

Tearing open the door, I stop at the entrance, find her standing at the sink, brushing her hair.

It’s darker and longer when it’s wet. Her shorts are short, and the t-shirt hangs loose, but form-fitting. I tighten every muscle in my body and enter the room.

“What the fuck? Why’s the shower still running?”

“So you’d think I was still in there and give me some peace and quiet. Apparently, that’s in short supply.” She sets down her brush and looks at me in the mirror. “I assumed you were listening for it to stop.”

I shut off the water, then meet her gaze in the reflection. “I was.”

Twisting about, she hobbles toward the open doorway, keeping the weight off her sore leg. “Did you give Edison his treat?”

I snort, quirking a brow. Even her hobble is almost graceful, putting a certain shake in her ass that borders on irresistible.

“Tried, darlin’. But he wouldn’t take it.”

Bella smiles and laughs. “Oh, I should’ve known. He wouldn’t take them from Gramps either.”

I fold my arms across my chest, just watching as she crosses the room.

Once she reaches the door, she turns. “Look...we need to talk.”

Famous last words.

“We will.” I walk as far as the cabinet and open another door, taking out the first aid kit. “But save it for after we patch up your leg.”

The scrapes on her face barely show, other than a bruise that’s starting to deepen under her left eye. My jaw tightens.

Her injuries could’ve been worse. That’s what really pisses me off.

If I’d been ten seconds faster, they wouldn’t have happened in the first place.

It happened because I’d let her out of sight. Something I can’t ever afford to do again.

Bella heads into the kitchen but stops where there used to be an archway off to the side. It’s a door now. She opens it and clicks on the light.

“Why’s there a bed in the dining room?”

“Because it’s only half a dining room now.” Sighing, I walk past her and set the first aid kit on the table.

“You mean...Gramps slept down here?”

I walk to the sink and wash my hands. My silence is her answer.

“Drake, why?”

I dry my hands and walk back to the table. This isn’t a conversation we should be having. Fuck, how much agony can you jam into a single day?

Even before his first heart attack, Jonah had slowed down considerably. Probably from the secret blockage in his heart.

I open the kit and offer her the best answer I can. “The bathroom was closer for him. Easier. No stairs to climb.”

Her voice drops to a whisper. “How long? How long was he sleeping down here? Living like this? Jesus, if I’d only known...”

“About a year. Maybe add a few more months.”

She turns off the light and shuts the door. Limping, gingerly keeping the weight off her leg, she walks to the table and sits down.

“So that’s the real reason why the kitchen and half the rooms in this house were remodeled.” She closes her eyes, shaking her head. “Why didn’t he tell me?”

“Kitchen was for you, Bella. You’re wrong about that one. He knew, if you decided to stay, you deserved better.” I sit down and pull my chair over so we’re facing each other, then reach down to lift her leg to my lap. “The rest, well, he didn’t want you to know. Simple as that.”