“Right. Probably Walmart, I need a few things besides groceries.”
“Meet you at the cabin later?”
“Sooner than later.”
“Keep your gun in your purse when I’m not with you, Charley.”
“Okay.”
“All right,” Sully said with a nod. “Be on the alert.”
“I will be.”
Sully pulled her into his arms, and when her lips met his, she kissed him. Letting him know she cared, she gently leaned into him during the kiss. Where had this woman been all his life? “Do you want me to go with you, Charley?”
“No,” she said, splaying both hands to his chest. “I’m a big girl. I’ll be fine.”
“You’re a little girl,” he said, towering over her. She slid into the Jeep and rolled down the window. Sully shut her door and said, “After I close the shop, I’ll come to your cabin.”
“Here’s an extra key in case you happen to get there before me.” Charley handed him a key and he caught her hand. Bringing it to his lips, he kissed the back of her fingers. He let go and as he walked away, she called out, “Want to flirt with me at the cabin tonight?”
Sully made a half-turn, and with a wink said, “You’ll need a wheelchair.”
“Sully!” Charley squealed and laughed.
Chuckling, he climbed into his truck and followed her from the parking lot to the highway. There, she turned west toward Pikes Peak, and he watched her fade into the distance. She wouldn’t go to Old Colorado City, would she? No reason to, right? No, she wouldn’t, Sully decided and turned east. Whothe hell was the maniac killing women in their twenties? All of Colorado was acutely aware of the murders. Hell, the reports were on the national news. The whole country was watching. No sooner did he turn on the radio than the mayor was talking about the closure of businesses and dip in tourism blamed on the Cave Killer’s murder spree.
A spree? Yeah, it was. Sully gripped the wheel and turned into the Ranchers Gun Club and Shooting Range. He recalled Roy telling them about Rod Vaughn’s visit and suddenly wondered what caliber bullet had killed Charley’s mother. The gun he’d taken off Vaughn used a .38. The cops wouldn’t give him the information he was looking for, but they might share it with the former El Paso County Sheriff. Pulling into his usual parking spot behind the store, he pulled out his phone and called his dad. He knew Owen Custis would do his damnedest to find out.
That afternoon, a steady stream of customers kept Sully and Roy busy. Almost every one of them mentioned the murders in Old Colorado City. So, the killing spree that was bad for most businesses was good for his. Sully well understood the need to feel safe. He’d given Charley a gun merely hours earlier. When Sully glanced at the clock, he and Roy started winding down the shooting booths and finishing sales in preparation of closing up shop. It was a record-breaking day at the cash register. Twenty minutes later, Sully was locking the door behind him and Roy. They spoke for a couple of minutes in the parking lot, and then Sully got into his truck. He read a text from Randy. The horses were in their stalls, brushed, watered, and fed for the night. He mentioned Rain in particular. She was fine. Sully headed to the cabin on Triple C Ranch-South.
When he turned onto the gravel drive and steered toward the log home, a sense of peace fell over him. The Jeep was parked at the hitching post, and warm lights spilled out ofthe cabin windows. Plush green cushions, matching the rockers and shingles on the roof, now adorned the rocking chairs. Two big clay pots bursting with yellow mums, surrounded by bright orange pumpkins, ornamented either side of the stained glass door. The cedar door was wide open, and when he got out of his truck, a gentle breeze brought a whiff of delicious smells his way. He walked onto the porch and looked into the cabin. On the left, a crackling fire burned in the hearth in front of a sofa newly decorated with pillows and a matching throw. To the right, the table was set with a white tablecloth, pretty dishes, silverware, and two wineglasses. A bottle of red wine along with a colorful bouquet of pink tiger lilies, red roses, and lavender columbines were the centerpieces.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
“Boo!” Charley said to the handsome rancher on her porch. Coming from around the back of the cabin, she smiled at him.
“Boo,” he said back to her. With a nod toward the decorative additions to the cabin, he said, “You’ve been busy.”
“It’s called motivation,” she subtly complimented him. Holding up what was in her hand as she climbed the porch steps, she said, “I remembered seeing these wild cattails in back of the cabin.” She wrapped her empty hand around Sully’s biceps muscle and pulled herself close. With a grin, he lowered his head and kissed her. She bent over then and stuck the cattails in strategic spots among the yellow mums. “Did you know that in Victorian times cattails were a symbol of peace and prosperity?”
“I did not know that,” Sully said. “But I thought when I pulled up how peaceful the cabin looked with your touches. All it needs is a hound dog asleep on the porch.”
“I miss having a dog,” she said, stepping into the cabin. “I had the sweetest little beagle, named Bingo, all through high school and college. Bingo would go to the flower shop with me and stay all day. But she’s gone now.”
“I love dogs and have had a couple over the years,” Sully said as he followed her into the cabin and shut the door. “A large dog could provide some protection.”
“Have a seat,” Charley said and pulled out a chair at the table for Sully in the cozy dining area of the great room. When he sat down, she handed him a corkscrew and the bottle of wine. Walking to the stove in the nearby kitchen, she asked, “What kind of large dog?”
“My favorite was the black Labrador retriever I had during and after college,” he replied as he twisted the corkscrew. “Labs are a friendly, loyal, and energetic breed. In middle school and high school, I had a German shepherd, like Cash and Tracy have now. You met Dude, their dog,” he reminded her as she nodded. “Derek and Chloe also have a German shepherd named Spike.” He popped out the cork and poured two glasses of wine. When she came to him, he handed her a glass. “What shall we drink to?”
“A large dog?”
“A large dog.”
Sully pulled her onto his lap, and they clinked their glasses. After a sip of wine, when Sully kissed her, Charley tingled. She’d made love to him three times within the last twenty-four hours, and yet she’d thought of little else all day. She couldn’t get enough of this man. That was a first and she couldn’t explain it. It was just…Sully. And only Sully. Charley told herself not to question it, but just to enjoy it.
“Do you like salad, salmon, and scalloped potatoes?”
