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 I don t care. I ll watch whatever you like, she responded in a
merry tone.
 No chick flicks today. You are, by far, my favorite sister-in-law.
At the theater, Branda let him pick the movie and guide them to
their seats. Thirty minutes later, her hands were covering her eyes and
she was wishing she d picked the movie. All the blood, guts, and
screaming had her wanting to run. But not wanting to hurt his
feelings, she stayed glued to her seat.
He chortled and whispered,  You can look now. The bad guy is
gone.
She uncovered her eyes and watched the movie until the killer
came back then she covered her eyes again.
Once the coast was clear, he d whisper  All s clear and she
would uncover her eyes. They did that throughout the entire movie.
When it was over, she hurried out of the theater.  Next time I m
picking the movie.
 You re on. Now we have one more stop. I think you re going to
need it after the way you handled that movie.
 Where are we going?
 It s a surprise.
He was right about the surprise part. She grinned when he pulled
into the parking lot of an ice cream shop.
 I love this place. My mom used to bring us here when we were
kids. They have the best ice cream and cheesecake.
Inside, he insisted she get three different flavors of ice cream.
One bite in and she was hooked.  This is delicious. You said you
used to come here when you were a kid?
 Yeah, Mom brought me and the twins here a lot. It s a happy
place.
Blessed Times Two 215
Glancing around, Branda had to agree. Two families were sitting
with their kids in the corner near the shop s toys. The kids were
laughing and playing. Ice cream covered their lips. A couple sat two
tables away, holding hands and whispering to each other. A man sat
in the opposite corner, eating cheesecake and doing something on his
laptop. Trent was right. Everyone looked at ease and even happy.
Turning a smile in his direction, she commented,  I like this place.
Thanks for bringing me.
 Anything for you. Stay here. I ll be right back.
Trent went to the truck then came back in and ordered two
coffees.
He put a coffee down in front of her then sat down.  I believe
that s the way you like it.
She sipped it.  Perfect.
Pulling a deck of cards out of his pocket, he said,  Go Fish or
Spades?
One brow arched.  I thought you d say poker.
 I wanted to, but cops come in here too often. It d be my luck I d
be winning big time and they d come in here and bust the game up.
I d never get my money out of you then.
Laughter burst from her mouth. When she had it under control,
she said,  Spades it is then. You re not going to get mad if I win, are
you?
 I never get mad while playing cards. Anger makes you lose focus
and is a sure-fire path to losing.
 I ll keep that in mind. Branda raised a brow at Trent then tried
to rattle him.  Prepare to lose, Cortino.
In response he merely smiled, and she knew she was in trouble.
An hour later, they called it a draw and deemed themselves both
winners.
Before they left, Trent bought a cheesecake, saying it was like
tasting a little piece of heaven.
216 Dakota Dawn
Later that night when they sat in the kitchen eating a piece, she
had to agree with him.  You were right. This is heavenly. She looked
down at her hands for a moment then looked back up at Trent.
 Thanks for entertaining me today. It s just what I needed. I promise
to be better from here on out.
His voice was low and filled with emotion.  It s good to have you
back.
* * * *
The last two days had gone by in a flash. Troy had called the day
before, but the line had gone dead before she could talk to him. Trent
had just finished telling Troy she was staying with him in their house
when the line died. She missed them so much. Trent was great, but he
wasn t the twins. Her heart, body, mind, and soul craved their
presence. Without them she felt lost. It was killing her not even being
able to hear their voices. Trent reassured her they d be back as soon
as they could. As if clinging to a lifeline, she held tightly to his words.
They d be back soon, and all would be well.
Today Branda had been busy making cookie and fruit
arrangements. She had just dropped off the last of the food at
Gaven s, and with a sigh of relief, she headed for the door.
Walking out of Gaven s Pub, she bumped into someone. Looking
at the person, she was about to apologize. A scream pierced the air. A
second later, she realized it was her. Jumping back, she ran back into
the pub and ran straight into a hard frame. Thinking she was caught,
she screamed again and started struggling. The arms around her
tightened.
 No, no. Nooo! She tried to remember her moves. Eyes tightly
closed, she tried a few of the techniques as they came to her, but her
opponent was better than she was.
Dropping to the floor, she tried to get away, but her opponent
followed her down, crushing her beneath his weight. Kicking out, she
Blessed Times Two 217
tried to hurt him, but he locked his legs around hers, blocking her only
way to fight back. A sob escaped her throat. Her left forearm started
hurting. Feeling the slice of a knife and warm blood running down her
arm, she sobbed louder. What would he do to her this time? Fear
grabbed her and made it hard to breathe. Lungs burning, she gasped
for breath.
 Hey, hey. Branda open your eyes, honey. It s Gaven, honey,
open your eyes. Tell me what s going on. Look at me. If you don t
look at me, I can t let you go.
Softly spoken words enveloped her. The voice sounded strangely
familiar. Opening her eyes, she looked straight into worried, light
brown eyes. Something in her brain clicked.  Gaven?
 Whew! You scared me there for a bit, honey. I m going to
release you now. In a smooth controlled motion, he released her,
stood up, and then helped her up.
Gaven moved, and she spotted a man standing behind him. All the
color drained from her face. Roy Smyth! Her body started trembling.
A heavy fear-filled fog swirled around her. Branda felt weighted
down by it.
 Is she going to be all right, Gaven? I swear all that happened was
that we bumped into each other at the doorway. She didn t hit her
head or anything. The man sounded upset.
Gaven s gaze shifted back to her.  Oh, shit! Through the fog, she
realized Gaven had picked her up and was carrying her to a chair.
 Doug, call 911.
The man who d scared her so badly couldn t be Roy. He was in
prison and his voice was different. Gaven knew this man. Looking
down at her arm, she realized it wasn t bleeding. Taking a peek at the
man, she noticed he had blue eyes not dark brown.
Putting her head in her shaky hands, she mumbled,  Don t call
911. I m fine now. I just want to go home.
Checking her out, Gaven agreed she looked a little better. Facing
the bar, he called out,  Get me a water and a double shot of rum.
218 Dakota Dawn
Turning to the man she had bumped into he said,  She ll be all right,
Davey. Go get a drink on the house. Returning his attention to
Branda, he softened his tone.  EMS will be here in a minute. There is
no way to stop them. You want to tell me what happened?
Shaking her head, she mumbled,  It& it was nothing. I just
thought I saw someone from my past, that s all. I promise I m okay, I
just want to go home.
Yelling over his shoulder, Gaven ordered,  Call Trent and tell him
I need him here pronto.
Rushing over to them, one of the waitresses set a glass of water
down by Branda and handed the rum to Gaven. He drank half of it
then nodded at the waitress.  Thanks. He focused his attention back
on Branda.  Drink some of your water. It will make you feel better.
With a still shaky hand, she did as he asked.  Good girl. Who are you
so afraid of?
She rubbed her left arm unconsciously.  It was silly, really. Don t [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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