The Best Bride Part 3

"rebecca?"

she nodded. "and a pink toothbrush."

elizabeth brushed the blond hair out of her daughter's eyes."

"sounds like you had a full evening. did you sleep all right?"

mandy nodded. "i had one bad dream, but i hugged mr. bear and told him what had happened, and he said he'd take care of me until you were all better. are you all better, mommy?"

elizabeth swallowed hard. she'd never loved anyone as much as she loved this little girl. she squeezed her. almost, honey. the doctor is going to let me go home tomorrow morning."

"are we going to our house? the one with the bunnies?"

when she had accepted the job, elizabeth had rented a house. while she'd stood in the kitchen and looked out at the backyard, she'd seen three rabbits scampering across the yard. she'd told mandy about them and her daughter was very anxious to make their acquaintance. "no. we can't move in there until october first. that's about three more weeks"

"so where are we going tomorrow?"

elizabeth could feel travis's gaze on her. he'd asked the same question. she still didn't have a decent answer. "we'll be fine."

"okay. " mandy picked up her bear and slid off the bed. " travis said we could go to the movies tonight, mommy. he said we could have popcorn and hot dogs and candy. " her body quivered with excitement." and if i'm really good, i can stay up past my bedtime."

travis cleared his throat. "she wasn't supposed to tell you that last part."

"i appreciate you doing this for me," elizabeth said, wondering how it had all gotten out of hand. " she's my responsibility and i- "

travis pushed to his feet and held out one hand to stop her. "you're not in la. anymore. glenwood is a small town, elizabeth abbott, and we take care of our own. as of thursday night, you're one of us. i'm on duty today, so i'm going to take mandy with me to the station. we're right across from the park. i'll see that she gets exercise and decent food and is in bed by nine. my housekeeper promised to come by and make sure i'm doing it all correctly."

"why are you doing this?"

"because i don't have any plans for the weekend and i've always been a sucker for a pair of beautiful blue eyes."

elizabeth felt a rush of disappointment that her own eyes were brown. she wanted to believe him, believe that it was just about people helping each other. the way he said it, she was almost willing to buy into the myth of small towns. but she'd believed before, had trusted before, and that trust had been betrayed.

"i hate to impose," she said.

"you don't have a choice," he answered. "what else are you going to do with her?"

she glanced down at the iv needle taped to her hand. she didn't have an answer to that one, either. "thank you. again."

she looked up at him. humor danced in his eyes, humor and a little bit of compa.s.sion. as long as it didn't change to pity, she could survive. and somehow, she would pay him back.

he retrieved his hat and settled it on his head; then he held out his hand to mandy. the little girl collected her giraffe and tucked it next to her bear. she grinned at her mother and slipped her hand in his. "by, mommy."

"by, honey."

Elizabeth watched her daughter act so trustingly with this stranger. maybe mandy hadn't been scarred by the experience as badly as she'd feared. maybe mandy was going to be fine.

travis paused by the door and looked at her. the stetson hid his eyes from view, but she saw the quick smile flash under his black mustache. her heart fluttered foolishly. the man was handsome as sin."

"i'll call before the movie," he said."

"so you can talk with mandy."

"i'd like that: '

"rest," he commanded. "the nurse said you'll be released around ten in the morning. i'll be here around nine thirty '

"you don't have to stay," she said quickly. "but i appreciate you dropping mandy off."

"i'm not dropping her off," he said. "unless you can come up with something better than that motel, elizabeth, you're coming home with me."

**skip**

chapter three.

travis left mandy at the sheriff's office in the center of glenwood and walked past his patrol car to elizabeth's white car parked on the street the t-bird started instantly he s.h.i.+fted into gear and checked the mirrors before pulling out and heading for the motel.

within ten minutes, he stood inside the small rented room, staring at the suitcases stacked in the corner and at the personal items scattered around. a pair of high heels poked out from under the bed. a yellow blouse rested over the back of a chair. the faint scent of perfume lingered in the air. he sniffed appreciatively. he missed having a woman living with him.

his wife had left both him and glenwood three years ago, returning to town only long enough to sign the divorce papers and wish him well with his life. he didn't resent her or the split. he should have known better than to marry. haynes men didn't make good husbands or fathers he came from a long line of men who failed at marriage but he'd wanted to prove his father, brothers and uncles wrong, so he'd married the pretty, dark-haired woman he'd met in college. she'd been shy but quick witted -and hot as h.e.l.l in bed. all the ingredients had been there. still the marriage had fizzled and he'd learned his lesson firsthand. haynes men made great cops, but lousy family men.

travis placed an open suitcase on the bed. he folded mandy's nightgown and picked up her toys. in the bathroom, an open cosmetic bag sat next to the sink. he collected the compacts, tubes and brushes on the counter and placed them into the bag, stopping long enough to pick up a bottle of perfume and sniff the cap. he would have thought elizabeth abbott to be the floral type, but the aroma was spicy. not overpowering, just intriguing. he dropped the bottle in with the other cosmetics.

after checking the shower and behind the door for clothes, he returned to the bedroom and packed up the remaining items. a white cotton nightgown had been carelessly tossed over a dresser. he folded it carefully, noticing the row of tiny b.u.t.tons up the front and the lace ruffle around the neck and arms.

he could see elizabeth in something like this. it would fall about midcalf on her. not the least bit s.e.xy; the cotton wasn't see-through. and ye the brushed his thumb over the soft cloth. there were always plenty of women around him. just because he wasn't good husband material didn't mean he wasn't a great date and an accomplished flirt. but he'd liked living with a woman. he missed the day-to-day familiarities, the verbal shorthand, the slow, sensual s.e.x that could take hours. there'd been no need to hurry; he and julie were supposed to have had a lifetime.

"getting soft, haynes," he muttered, then shoved the nightgown into the suitcase.

he opened drawers and pulled out clothes, ignoring the feel of the lacy panties and bras, quickly filling the luggage when everything was packed, he loaded the trunk of the car and paid the motel bill. then he headed for the hospital.

he didn't know what he was going to say when he saw her. if she'd made other plans, he would drive her to where she was going and be done with her. if she hadn't, she was coming home with him. there was no way in h.e.l.l he was going to let her and mandy tough it out in that tiny motel for the next three weeks. tough it out, h.e.l.l. they would starve.

as travis walked down the hospital corridor he wondered which it would be. he'd left her sputtering yesterday when he'd made his announcement that he intended to take her to his place. last night, when he'd called to let mandy talk to her mother, elizabeth had been coolly insistent that she was not his problem. louise had told him to use the famous haynes charm, but he hadn't felt right about sweet talking elizabeth into anything.

he reached her door and pushed it open. she sat on the edge of the bed, dressed in the same shorts and tank top she'd been wearing friday. her hair was freshly washed and hanging loose about her shoulders in a ma.s.s of s.h.i.+ning brown waves. a wisp of bangs reached almost to her eyebrows she was trying to pull on socks and didn't see him in the doorway. she bent down to slip on her socks, but she only got halfway there before grunting in pain and straightening she raised her left foot toward her right knee, but that action caused her to clutch her side.

"of course you'd rather rip out your st.i.tches than ask for help," he said from his place in the doorway. he pushed back his stetson and walked into the room.

she looked up and stared at him. faint color stained her cheeks. "i'm not leaving with you," she said flatly.

"fine. where are you going?"

"back to the motel." fire flashed in her brown eyes. "i've already called for a cab."

he walked forward slowly, stopping when he was in front of her. even sitting on the hospital bed, she had to tip her head back to meet his gaze.

"not while i'm around," he said, folding his arms over his chest. "this isn't los angeles, elizabeth. it's a small town, and it's labor day weekend. most of the businesses are closed, including the restaurants. how are you going to feed mandy? there's no kitchen in your motel room. is she registered for school?"

elizabeth slowly shook her head.

"who's going to do that? who's going to walk her to her cla.s.s on the first day? even if you find take-out places to deliver food, do you have the cash to pay for it, or are you going to have mandy go to the bank to get more money?"

"stop it," she said softly. "just stop it: ' defeat darkened her eyes and made her shoulders slump forward. he felt like a heel, but there was more at stake here than her pride."

"you've got to think of mandy," he said, perching next to her on the bed.

"she's all i have thought of. i've lain in this bed thinking about nothing else." she brushed her bangs off her forehead. "i just wanted to make a fresh start."

"you have. so things aren't going exactly as you planned them. it could be worse."

"yeah?" she turned her head to look at him. "how?"

he grinned. "it could be raining: ' a smile twitched at the corner of her mouth. "i happen to like rain: '

"sit back," he said, jerking his head toward the pillows "qyqq, he leaned forward until his face was inches from hers. he was close enough to see three faint freckles on her nose, close enough to inhale the scent of her body. it wasn't that spicy perfume, but it was still mighty appealing. close enough to see the rise and fall of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s under her red tank top. close enough to study the shape of her full mouth and feel the stirrings in his body. women of all ages, shapes and sizes got his attention, but when the lady in question came in a package this tempting, it was hard to think about anything else.

it was part of his job, he told himself. he would have taken her in if she'd been a fifty-year old man with grandkids yeah, he would have taken her in, but it wouldn't have been nearly as much fun.

"do it," he growled.

she scrambled away from him and leaned against the pillows, drawing her legs up onto the bed. he grabbed one ankle and set her heel on his thigh. she started to pull away. he clamped down.

"you are the most stubborn woman i have ever met," he said, slipping the sock over her foot.

she had small feet, and her toenails were polished a bright pink, he noticed as he slid on her athletic shoe and tightened the laces. trim ankles and a nice tan. he thought briefly about tan lines, where they would start and end and what color her pale b.r.e.a.s.t.s would be, then he told himself he was on duty and to can the s.e.xual interest.

he put that foot down on the bed and grabbed the other one. when he pulled the sock over her instep, his thumb brushed against her skin. she jumped and giggled. he looked up."

"ticklish?"

"very." her smile faded. "thank you for everything."

he studied her for a moment."

"i live in a big old house on the edge of town. six bedrooms. i'm restoring it. there's a yard and a playroom and a lock on the bedroom door. i'll charge you twenty bucks a night if it makes you feel better.

when you can move around, you can cook me dinner on the nights my housekeeper doesn't work, because i'm d.a.m.n tired of frozen dinners zapped in my microwave. if you still feel guilty, you can even do my laundry. louise will be thrilled. in three weeks, when you can drive, you can move into your own place and we'll part friends. deal?"

she searched his face as if trying to see what he got out of the offer. he wanted to tell her it was just his job, but he knew deep in his heart he would be lying. he would have made the offer if she'd been old and bald and male, but he wouldn't have wanted her to say yes so badly. it was, he realized with a touch of chagrin, his way of playing house. he would never have a family of his own, so for three weeks, he could pretend.

"it's not that i don't trust you," she said slowly, "it's just that"

"you don't trust me."

she stared down at her hands. "i'm sorry. it's not personal"

"you don't have a choice, darling'. i'm the best of a bad situation. where else are you going to go?"

she bit her lower lip, then looked at him. the raw pain in her eyes made him straighten. it wasn't about physical discomfort, he thought, wanting to turo away, but unable to tear his gaze from hers. it was about some secret in her past. she'd said she'd come to glenwood to make a fresh beginning. he understood that. lots of people left places to start over. but she'd left something mean and ugly behind something big enough to make her not trust anyone. a man. he wondered what the b.a.s.t.a.r.d had done to her.

she nodded once. "if it wasn't for mandy, i'd say no, but you're right. i don't have a choice. she's the most important part of my life. i accept your offer: she held out her hand, then drew it back. " but i won't do your laundry"

he laughed. "deal." they shook hands. he finished putting on her other shoe, then stood up. "i'll tell the nurse you're ready to go."

elizabeth watched him leave. in his cowboy boots and stetson hat, he looked more like a cow town lawman than the sheriff in a sleepy california town. she wanted to trust him. desperately. she sat up straight and s.h.i.+fted to the edge of the bed. it wasn't possible. she would never trust any man again. worse, she would never trust herself.

travis was right. he was her best choice. right now her options were extremely limited. but when she could drive and move into her rented house, she would pay him what she owed him and disappear from his life.

she heard conversation in the hall. travis came in, followed by a nurse pus.h.i.+ng a wheelchair."

"all set? " he asked.

"yes." she stood up and stepped toward the wheelchair when she was settled, he put the small bag containing her personal belongings on her lap and pushed her out of the room.

she was surprised to see the t bird parked in front of the hospital. "this is my car"

"i know. did you want to go home in the patrol car? you're just like your daughter. she's always trying to trick me into using the siren."

she laughed. "i don't need a siren. i'm just surprised. i was afraid my car was still parked on the side of the road: ' he set the brake on the wheelchair and opened the pa.s.senger door. "i had it moved to the sheriff's station. not that we get much car theft up here."

she stood up slowly. he offered his hand and she took it. his fingers felt warm and strong as he guided her toward the car.

"watch your head, darling'," he said, wrapping his other arm around her waist and easing her down.

the incision pulled slightly and she winced. "i'm fine," she said, before he could ask. she looked up at his eyes and the thick, dark lashes framing them. for a heartbeat, his gaze dropped to her mouth. she had a fleeting thought that he was going to kiss her, and her body tensed in antic.i.p.ation then he stepped back and the feeling disappeared, leaving her surprisingly disappointed.

what was wrong with her? she asked herself as travis gave the nurse the wheelchair, then came around to the driver's side of the car. she wasn't interested in him or in any man. dear G.o.d, hadn't she learned the biggest lesson of all?

travis didn't glance at her as he slid inside. she wondered if he'd seen the expectation in her face. embarra.s.sment filled her. she slumped in the seat and closed her eyes.

something warm brushed across her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. she jumped and her eyes flew open.

"seat belt," travis said, pulling the belt down and locking it into place.

she stared at him and her heart fluttered foolishly. he'd simply b.u.mped her when he'd grabbed for the restraining device. why me? she wondered and sighed.

"i thought we'd go straight to the house," he said, tossing his stetson to the back seat. "i want to get you settled. mandy is at the park with kyle: '

"kyle?"

he started the engine and pulled out of the parking lot. "one of my deputies and my youngest brother. she's already twisted him around her little finger."