Quite the Catch (6 page)

No
matter what happened, she wanted to keep him in her life, one way or another. Unless
she’d lost the knack, he experienced the same overpowering sense of connection
that she did. She hated long distance relationships and didn’t believe in them
but if she decided to stay, his home in Sallisaw was an hour or less away. If
she returned to Dallas, Tina knew any chance of something more with Joshua
wouldn’t happen.

She
had remained this long without any more reason than that she dreaded to return
to the city, to urban sprawl, and rush hour traffic. Now, Tina thought she
might stay awhile longer, to explore the possibilities with Joshua. Maybe they
would get together, maybe not, but she wanted to try.

First,
though, his situation had to be handled. Reminded of the danger he’d brought
into her life, Tina drew a long breath and held it for a moment. Then she
sighed. She admitted to a little fear, but concern trumped the fear. If
anything more happened to Joshua, she would be pissed, and revenge didn’t seem
out of the question. Gramps always swore Tina possessed a warrior’s heart under
her feminine façade, and he was right. Should the fugitive’s pals
come
calling, she would shoot first and ask questions later,
no matter what Joshua wanted. Defending her land and home came naturally,
probably hardwired into her DNA. Her family had been among the earliest white
settlers of Oklahoma and they hadn’t lost all the independent pioneer spirit,
even after five generations.

Gramps
had predicted she would stay, too, Tina remembered. A few days before he died,
she had sat in his hospital room, numb to the bone with the reality of his
imminent death. He’d been alert almost to the end, his pain diminished with
morphine, and he had taken Tina’s hand in his frail one. “You’re not
goin
’ back,” he had said. It hadn’t been a question but a
statement. “I know you’re not. That’s why I left you the place, so you’d have
something. Someday you’ll be ready to settle down and get busy with life, so
you’ll have my little piece of heaven to do it.”

Then,
she had figured she would be back at work living in Dallas, sharing space with
the other two nurses, and she’d shaken her head. “Gramps, I’ll keep the land
and I’ll spend time here, but my life is in Texas now.”

“Nope,”
he had replied. His eyes had twinkled with good humor. “You think so now, but
things change and they’re
fixin
’ to soon.”

She
had thought he meant his death but now, with no desire to go back to the life
she had built, Tina realized maybe he hadn’t. His claim to be the seventh son
of a seventh son, with a knack for premonitions and knowing the future, didn’t
seem as antiquated or silly as she’d once thought.

Maybe
he’d known what he was talking about after all.

Chapter Six

Joshua
slept through the night and when he woke he thought for one brief moment he was
at home, in his small house near Sallisaw. He often crashed in the recliner,
falling asleep while watching television and until he shifted position, which
brought pain roaring back, he figured that was what had happened. His side
hurt, however, and his body ached as he became aware of his surroundings. He
remembered everything then, where he was, what had happened, and Tina.

The
need to piss roused him from the chair and when he lowered the elevated
footrest, he groaned. His muscles remained sore, although his headache was
gone. Standing brought agony through most of his body, but Joshua took his
first step. When he moaned again, the pile of blankets on the couch shifted and
Tina emerged, blinking and sleepy-eyed.
She
stayed beside me when she could have gone to bed and slept. She’s one hell of a
woman.
“Good morning,” he said.

She
sat up, rubbed her face, and returned the greeting. “Good morning. Don’t get
up. I’ll go make coffee.”

His
bladder would burst if he didn’t get up. “I need to use the bathroom,” he said.
“Then I’ll limp to the kitchen.”

Her
blue eyes, the color of sky and turquoise, sparkled. “Do you need some help? I
doubt you want to collapse on the floor.”

“I
won’t,” Joshua said and stepped forward. Agony shot through his body, powerful
enough to make his head spin. He could walk but it would take more effort than
he had anticipated. “Well, maybe I do.”

Tina
rose and stepped forward, her body mere inches from his. “Better safe than
sorry,” she said. Her arm circled his waist from behind, and because he wanted
more than needed to, Joshua leaned against her. She cinched her grip tighter
and in response, he put his arm around her. They walked like a couple in love
to the bathroom, and when Tina untangled to let him do his business, her breast
brushed against his arm. Heat roared through him with the voracious appetite of
a brush fire and kindled his desire. He hadn’t been intimate with a woman in
awhile
, and it’d been longer since he’d connected with one.
He wanted her, and if pain hadn’t reigned over his body, he thought he would
have taken her.
And she’d let me.

She
fixed breakfast, crisp bacon, hard fried eggs, and toast. He savored her strong
brewed coffee, black,
the
way he preferred it, and
tucked into the meal with genuine appetite. After they ate, Tina insisted he
take the antibiotic and Vicodin but he cut the pain pill in half.

“I
know you’re still hurting,” she said. “Take the recommended dosage.”

He’d
seen enough addicts to decline. “I’m all right. Yeah, there’s still pain but
it’s tolerable and I don’t want to get hooked.”

Laughter
bubbled from her mouth, soft and sweet. “Tough guy,” she said. He thought she
meant it, although she tossed it at him, flavored with sarcasm.

“I
am. You got any witch hazel?”

Surprise
widened her eyes. “I doubt it.”

“It’s
a tincture.”

“I
know what it is,” Tina said. “But why do you want it?”

“It’s
good for bruises,” he replied. “It’ll help the pain, prevent infection, and
help heal the skin.”

“I
thought it was for bug bites.”

Joshua
grinned. “It works for those too. I know it’s
kinda
’
old-fashioned, but my grandma was a healer. Just be glad I’m not asking for
comfrey powder.”

She
surprised him. “I can get it. They have it at the health food store and sell it
by the ounce. It can work wonders. They sell witch hazel just about anywhere,
but I’ll have to go to town to get it—and comfrey.”

It
would be easier if she had the products on hand. “How far is it?”

Her
lips twitched until she smiled. “It’s further to Poteau about nine or ten
miles, and almost six to Spiro. Poteau’s bigger, though, and where the health
food store is located. I don’t mind going if you think either will help.”

“I’m
sure they would but I hate to put you out.”

Tina
stretched her hand across the table and touched his. “I don’t mind. I need to
go to the supermarket anyway. Plus, I could scout the river a little and see if
anyone’s nosing around.”

“No.”
He raised his voice more than he intended but Tina didn’t cringe. In a softer
tone, he added, “I don’t want you to do that. It’ll get you more involved than
you already are.”

“Really?”
She gazed around the room and at
him. “I’ve been harboring you for almost two days since I pulled you out of the
water. I saw you go off the trestle bridge near Coal Creek and I got a look at
the men chasing you. I probably couldn’t identify them in a lineup but they
won’t know that. Joshua, I’m already involved, so let me help.”

If
any other woman had asked such a thing, he would’ve refused without discussion.
Joshua opened his mouth to say no,
then
closed it. Unless
he wanted to call into the district office and talk to his supervisor, he
needed assistance to get on track. And he hesitated to phone because if the
leak he’d long suspected did exist, the bad guys might know what the U.S. Marshals
planned. “You’d have to go armed just in case you ran into trouble,” he said, and
didn’t believe he said it. “Don’t go asking questions or drawing any attention
to
yourself
either. Maybe it’d be better if you went
into town, which I’m guessing is a routine trip for you.”

“It
is…”

“Good.
Then after you get back, maybe you can take the boat out again to get a
gander.” Her sigh reminded him of storm winds, potent and powerful.

“I
could, but I don’t own a boat, remember? I’d have to call my cousin, Charley,
and borrow it. I suppose I can do that, but he’s
gonna
’
wonder. I don’t go fishing all that much or float the river.”

Shit. It had to be complicated
. He repressed an urge to swear
long and loud. “Okay, scratch that plan then.”

“I
trust Charley. He won’t tell anyone, he’ll just give me a hard time.”

Joshua
shook his head. “It’s not a good idea, Tina. The less people
involved,
the better.”

“Then
we go back to my plan.”

As
much as he enjoyed hearing the plural pronoun, Joshua shied away from it. ‘We’
meant two, a pair, and worse than that, a couple. Sometimes he longed for
companionship, a woman to come home to at night, someone to wait and worry, but
he feared it too. If he gave all and got nothing, he’d be shattered. It had
happened once before, and he preferred not to experience heartbreak again. Better
to live lonely than to risk it. But if he did, it would be with Tina.

“All
right,” he said after a long pause. “Same rules, though. You’re going armed,
don’t attract any attention, and don’t take any risks.
None.
And tell me you really can handle a gun.”

Chin
up, she met his gaze and gave it back. “I can. Would you like a demonstration?”

Damned
if he wouldn’t. “Sure. What did you have in mind? Target shooting?”

He
imagined discarded bottles lined up on a stump in the backyard, or something
basic like paper targets, but at least he could determine if she could shoot.

A
slow grin spread across her face. “I can do better than that.”

“Clays?”
It was the only other option that came to mind.

Tina
laughed. “No. Gramps built a shooting range in the basement. It’s probably not
the professional caliber you’re accustomed to but it’ll do. I told you he was
into firearms.”

“This,
I’ve
gotta
see.”

Navigating
the steep basement steps proved difficult and painful but he managed. He might
not have, if not for the railing. At the foot of the stairs, a neat laundry
area boasted a washer and dryer pair but in the room beyond, just as she’d
said, there was a small range. The narrow space had enough room for two
shooters, one on either side of the supports. Each slot had a shelf where the
person firing could rest his or her arms if necessary. The thirty foot long
space ended in a padded wall, complete with targets. A classic bull’s-eye
rested beside a six foot tall black silhouette of a man. On one side of the
room, near the entrance, there was a gun safe. Obviously homemade, it still
impressed Joshua. “This is awesome. I wish I could have met your grandpa. He
must’ve been quite the man.”

Tears
filled her eyes but she smiled, too. “He was and I’m glad you like it.”

“Let’s
see what you can do.”

Her
smile widened,
then
turned wicked. “You bet, Joshua
Jericho Jenkins. Sit back and watch how it’s done.”

With
slow and easy movements, he lowered himself to sit on the hard-packed earthen
floor. He might never manage to get up but he’d be comfortable while she fired.
Tina opened the safe and handed him a pair of earplugs. “It gets pretty noisy.”

He
watched as she inserted a pair into her ears,
then
selected a .45 pistol. Like a pro, Tina checked the weapon,
then
loaded it. Her stance stood as ramrod straight as any
LEO’s
and when she shot, Joshua watched as she nailed the target with expertise. Tina
didn’t miss, not once.

When
she glanced over to see his reaction, he gave her a double thumbs-up. “Damn,
honey, you’re good.”

“I
told you,” she said, grinning wider than a possum. “Would you like to see me
with a long gun?”

“I’ll
take your word for it. If you’re going to town to do a little recon, you’d
probably better get started.”

“I
agree.” She kept the pistol, pulled a box of ammo, and led him upstairs. Tina
dropped the gun into her large purse. “I’ll clean up the dishes, make a list,
and go.”

At
his place, he used paper plates as much as possible and dishes tended to
accumulate before he washed them, but Joshua said. “I’ll wash up. Make your
list and go.”

If
he surprised her, it didn’t show. Tina nodded. “Okay, thanks.”

Joshua
watched her scribble her list: comfrey powder, witch hazel, and a half a dozen
grocery items. She glanced up. “Is there anything in particular you’d like to
eat? I’m going to the store anyway so it’s no trouble.”