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  “Those are lemon poppy seed muffins. I’m starting with half a dozen when I get through here,” she said.

  “You always this hungry after a two act play?” he asked.

  She looked at him with a question in her eyes.

  “What?”

  “Think, Cathy.”

  “Ohhhh!” She made a perfect O with her mouth. “I wouldn’t be able to answer that seeing as how I’ve been to very few two act plays. Most of what I attended was a one act that had a severe time limit on it.”

  He grinned.

  “But I never apologize for my appetite, whether it’s for plain old food or something much, much better,” she said.

  “I’m not sayin’ a word, sweetheart.”

  “Not only is he handsome and sexy as hell but smart too. What more could a woman ask for?”

  “You sure you don’t want to at least talk to the police? You don’t have to press charges since you don’t have much proof. But they could be aware that these two bozos are out there,” Travis said.

  “I’m very sure. I’ve got a plan. Do you have a map in the trunk?”

  “Got Jezzy’s atlas,” he said.

  “Oh, my God, I forgot about the Honky Tonk! Tinker is going to…”

  “I took care of it. Jezzy and Leroy ran the bar last night. The story is that you went to Daisy’s for a couple of days. Amos is the only one who knows the truth and I had to tell him because he’s my boss.”

  “Thank you one more time. When we finish eating I’d like to look at that atlas, please.”

  “Why? I know the way home from here.”

  “We’re not going home, Travis. We’re going to Mena, Arkansas. I’m going to finish this business once and for all. I refuse to live in fear the rest of my life.”

  Chapter 15

  “I don’t think this is a good idea. You should go home and recuperate before you take on Brad,” Travis said as he pulled out onto the highway and pointed the truck north instead of south.

  “Maybe not, but it’s what I’m going to do. Like I said last night, I have no evidence and I could have just pulled Oscar and Duroc’s names out of my ass. Brad could say that I’d met them both because they are related. He’s very good at lying and deception. You’ve got pictures but they could have been staged,” Cathy said.

  Travis tried to poke holes in her theory all the way to Linden but she was right. The two kidnappers were gone and their association to Brad hung by a single weak thread that any first year law student could rip to shreds.

  Cathy pointed to a highway sign. “Take that one. It’s a smaller road but it’s shorter. In Foreman, Arkansas, we’ll get 41 and hook back up with 59 in DeQueen. That way we’ll easily be in Mena before noon.”

  “Reason you want to be there any particular time?”

  “No, but if we are there before noon, I can take care of my business before he goes on his lunch break. I don’t suppose we’ll be back in time for me to open the Tonk tonight, will we?”

  “If we drove like hell, we might,” he said.

  “Did you call Jezzy and Amos this morning?”

  “I did and they said that things were under control. Jezzy said the Honky Tonk was booming last night but they’d cleaned it up before they left. They are going to work tonight and Larissa is helping out behind the bar too. I’m expected back at work for the evening shift tomorrow. Amos said you can catch up whenever you get there. Phone’s right here if you want to call anyone.” He tapped his shirt pocket.

  She shook her head.

  “You want to stop and buy something to wear? At least some shoes?”

  She shook her head again.

  “Cathy, I’ve got money. You can shop if you want to.”

  Tears welled up behind her eyes but she refused to let them spill down her cheeks. “I’d like to stop but only if there’s no chivalry when I pay you back.”

  “Deal,” he said.

  In Maud he pulled over at a convenience store, filled the gas tank, and bought two large coffees. He put three packages of sugar and two containers of half-and-half into his cup, slapped a lid on both, and carried them out to the truck.

  “Thank you,” Cathy said.

  Traffic was light when he got back on the road. They passed a couple of trucks and one Texas Highway Patrol car. Travis wanted to ask a million questions but Cathy needed time to figure out what she wanted to do once she was face-to-face with her ex. Had it been Travis, he would have shot first and asked questions later, but it was Cathy’s problem and for her own peace of mind she had to take care of it herself. However, no matter what she did or how mad she made him, he would not lay a hand on Cathy. Travis would step in if he did and be glad to take care of the bastard.

  “You got any particular kind of place you want to stop? Size of these towns we’re going through hasn’t got much in the way of a shopping mall.”

  “Western wear would be nice. I’ll start looking for signs. Sometimes they advertise out on the highway. You’re not very talkative this morning. You regrettin’ last night?” she asked.

  “Are you?”

  She cut her eyes around at him. “I won’t ever regret last night.”

  “Why? Was it payback for the rescue?”

  Anger filled her dark blue eyes. “It was not payback for anything. What was it for you? Pity?”

  “Hell no. A man would be crazy to pity you. Hell, woman, I have no doubt you would have chewed through that chain if you couldn’t get the lock undone. And you would have slaughtered the rats if they’d have pissed you off two days in a row. Pity? What in the hell put that damn notion in your mind?”

  “Well, we got that figured out, didn’t we?”

  She leaned back in the seat and watched the winter landscape go past at seventy-five miles an hour. Travis thought she was a strong woman, did he? Well, he hadn’t seen her go to pieces when she thought she was going to have to stay in that rat infested hellhole a whole week. And he hadn’t heard the sobbing session behind the bathroom door the night before while she tried to wash the smell and dirty feeling from her body and soul.

  Travis listened to music on the soft country station as he drove. Late tonight or tomorrow they’d be back in their own worlds. Would the night they’d had in the Jefferson hotel make a difference in their lifestyles? It would be so easy to fall for Cathy; he was already halfway there. But in a few weeks he would be on his way to another location and she’d still be at the Honky Tonk. Even if he stayed right there in Mingus and bought a place to settle down, he would never be comfortable with the idea of their blond-haired sons going to school and telling everyone that their mommy owned a beer joint.

  “There’s one.” She pointed.

  “One what?”

  “A sign for a western wear store up ahead in New Boston. It’s supposed to be right off this road if I saw the directions right.”

  “Then that’ll be our next stop. What have you got in mind?”

  “Jeans, shirt, boots. Turn here. I see the sign. Park right there.”

  “I’ll get you up close to the door and then park in the lot. Want me to carry you inside?”

  She spun around in the seat. “You’d do that, wouldn’t you?”

  “I would.”

  “Thank you but I can walk six feet on the sidewalk. Look, it’s not even wet.”

  She opened the door and hopped out. She felt a little like Julia Roberts did in the old movie Pretty Woman when she walked inside and the young sales clerk snarled her nose. At least she didn’t call the manager and ask that Cathy be kicked out the front door for coming inside their store in her sweats and house shoes.

  “Can I help you?” she asked curtly.

  “First I need a pair of jeans. Think you can fit me… Josie?” Cathy read the girl’s name tag pinned right above the company logo embroidered on her blue chambray western cut shirt.

  She looked at Cathy’s long legs. “I can fit you but they won’t be cheap.”

  “I don’t think that’s a proble
m,” Travis said from the door.

  Josie looked at Cathy and back at Travis. Maybe this was one of those consumer tests to evaluate how well the clerks waited on the customers. That had to be the explanation because those two definitely did not belong together. He was so handsome and she looked like she’d been dumpster diving for her clothes behind a dollar store.

  “Okay… I’d say you are a size seven,” Josie said.

  Cathy smiled. “That’s sweet, honey, but I’m a size nine with extra long length.”

  Travis leaned against a wall and listened to Mark Chestnutt’s “When I Get This Close to You” on the local radio station piped into the store through several strategically placed speakers. He tapped his foot to the beat of the song and wished he could ask Cathy to dance with him.

  When Cathy picked out a pair of designer western jeans that cost almost a hundred dollars, Josie’s kindness jacked up.

  “Would you like a shirt to go with those?” she asked.

  “Maybe a lightweight sweater and then I’ll need boots,” Cathy said.

  Josie pulled one from the rack that had wide stripes in two shades of blue. “Right over here. This one is the same color as your eyes.”

  “Do you sell bras?” Cathy asked.

  “Just sports bras.”

  “I’ll try on one in a thirty-four, this sweater, and these two shirts.” She pulled two shirts from a round rack and added them to the jeans. “I’ll decide which one works best and then we’ll look at boots.”

  Travis flipped through a rack of belts. If she bought the blue plaid shirt, the belt with silver lacing would look really good. And if Brad got sassy, the big rhinestone buckle would be right handy to beat the shit out of him.

  Cathy put the jeans on and looked at her butt in the three-way mirror. They fit well and she could justify the price by saying that she hadn’t bought a new pair of dress jeans in six months. She wasn’t really crazy about black jeans but they were damn cute. She wiggled a few times to the song on the radio. The sweater was a little too short in the sleeves so she opted for a long sleeved black western shirt with lace ruffles on the cuffs and collar. Besides, the sports bra didn’t give her nearly enough uplift to wear with a sweater. She folded her sweat bottoms and T-shirt and walked out of the dressing room in the black outfit.

  Travis’s mouth went as dry as hot sand when he saw her. Even with her hair hanging straight and no makeup she looked like a runway model. Why would any idiot ever hit something that looked like that? Brad had cow chips for brains.

  Cathy handed Josie the sweats and the tags from the jeans, bra, and shirt. “I’d like to look at boots now.”

  “Black?”

  “I think so.”

  “Baby Phats?”

  “No, roach killers. Size eight.”

  Josie passed the popular round-toed boots and went straight to the exotics. “Smooth gator and plain leather and a new shipment of Lucchese mad dog black goat leather.” She picked up a pair of good looking black leather boots and handed them to Cathy.

  Cathy ran her fingers over the soft leather. “This is goat?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Josie smiled.

  “Do they run true?”

  “Pretty much.”

  “Bring out an eight and an eight and a half. I’d like to try both.”

  Cathy tried the size eight first and walked around the room on the carpet in both boots before she put on the eight and a half. “They’re a snug fit across the instep but these feel a little too long. I think I’d rather have the eights.”

  “That’s the way they’re supposed to fit. They’ll mold right to your foot,” Josie said. “Never had a single pair brought back, but we guarantee them.”

  “How high is this heel?”

  “Inch and a half.”

  “I’ll take them. All right if I keep them on?”

  “Yes, ma’am. I’ll just put the box on the counter with the tags from your other purchases. Anything else?”

  Travis handed her a black leather belt with a big silver buckle encrusted with rhinestones. “Lace this through your loops.”

  Cathy flipped the belt over and looked at the numbers on the back. “How’d you know my size?”

  “Easy, darlin’. I spanned your waist a few times while we were… dancin’.”

  Cathy giggled.

  Josie pretended she didn’t hear the hesitation before Travis’s last word. “That’s the same goat leather as the boots. It’ll look good with them. Need a hat?”

  Travis nodded. “I believe she does and maybe that duster hangin’ on the mannequin in the window if it’s the right size. You’re missin’ a loop in the back, honey. Here, let me help you.”

  The feel of his hands burned through denim and cotton underpants to sear her skin. Maybe she should make an excuse to take him to the dressing room. It would be a tight fit, but hey, there were three mirrors to make it interesting.

  “Penny for your thoughts,” he whispered softly in her ear as he wrapped his arms around her waist and finished lacing the belt.

  She told him exactly what she’d been thinking.

  “I’ll pay Josie to guard the door if you’ll really do it.”

  “We’d never make it to Mena if we did,” she teased.

  Lord, it was amazing how much better a woman felt all dressed up than she did in sweats and house shoes. But then sweats were so much better than tattered blankets that smelled like rats so it was all relative.

  “You wanted to look at black hats?” Josie returned from the sales counter.

  Cathy pointed to one.

  “That is bull hide and will look really smart with the outfit you’ve put together. Are you going to something special?” Josie asked.

  “Yep, I’m going to a first-class ass kickin’,” Cathy said.

  Josie laughed. “You are funny. Really, are you going to be a rodeo queen or something?”

  “Nope, just the queen of the ass kickin’,” Cathy assured her.

  Josie handed the hat to Travis. “Would you please put this on her? I’d have to get a ladder.”

  A leather hat band decorated with a turquoise conch in the front and brass studs on the underside of the upturned brim decorated the black hat. When Travis set it on her head he brushed a few blond hairs back behind her ear and kissed her on the tender skin right below her earlobe.

  “Much more, darlin’, and you’ll be taller than me and you look like sex on a stick,” Travis said.

  She blushed. “You don’t know how many times I’ve thought the same thing about you. Do I look ten feet tall and bulletproof yet?”

  Travis folded his arms across his chest and studied her. “Ten feet tall, yes, ma’am. Josie, you go get us that black duster up there in the window and we’ll make her bulletproof.”

  Josie scurried away to get the coat from the window but the sleeves were too short and the shoulders too narrow. Her face was a picture of disappointment. The Scully duster would have sent her sale close to a thousand dollars.

  “I’ve got a long leather coat back there made by the same company that would probably look better than the duster and you’d get more wear out of it.”

  “Well, let’s take a look,” Travis said.

  “You got that much money?” Cathy whispered.

  “Yes, I do.” Travis slipped the coat on Cathy.

  Josie clapped her hands. “You are going to be the queen of that ass kickin’ for sure. That’s black boar suede and it hangs just right. The shiny beading looks good with the lace cuffs peeking out, don’t you think?”

  “What do you think?” Cathy twirled around so Travis could see all the angles.

  “Buy it,” Travis said hoarsely.

  “Anything else?” Josie asked.

  “I don’t reckon there’s anything else we can hang on me, is there?” Cathy laughed.

  “I do have some fine lookin’ turquoise earrings that would set off that hat band real good,” Josie said.

  “Well, let’s look at them,” Tra
vis said.

  Josie led them to the jewelry counter where Cathy picked out a pair of short dangles studded with turquoise stones and put them into the holes in her ears. She almost backed out of the whole sale when the girl rang up nine hundred fifty-three dollars and forty-nine cents. She could do without the coat, the hat, the belt, and the earrings. But Travis had a card out and the items paid for before she could say a word.

  “That was fun,” Travis said when they were back in the truck and headed north again.

  “That was very expensive,” she said.

  “You don’t have to pay me back. It was worth every dime to see Josie’s face when she realized you weren’t a bag lady shoplifter.”

  Cathy slapped his shoulder playfully. “I got to admit, I did feel like Julia Roberts when she went shopping in Pretty Woman, but I will pay you as soon as we get home and there will be no discussion about it.”

  “Never saw that. My sisters think it’s a classic. Tell me why it made you think of that movie.”

  “Julia is a hooker and Richard Gere has hired her to stay with him. He gives her money and sends her shopping for something nice to wear to dinner that evening. She was wearing thigh-high plastic boots with a pin holding up the zipper and a short skirt with a skimpy top and she really looked like a hooker. But this shop clerk treated her like dirt and she went back to the hotel in tears.”

  “Did she wear that getup to dinner with him that night then?”

  “No, the hotel concierge took pity on her and made a phone call. She looked fabulous by the time Richard Gere came home from making millions that night.”

  “And Josie made you feel like that?” Travis frowned.

  “At first.”

  “I’m glad I didn’t know. I would have had her manager ring up the sale and put it on his commission,” Travis said.

  Cathy smiled. He was willing to rescue her, take up for her, finance her pretty things until she could pay him back, and deal out revenge to anyone who hurt her feelings. It would be so easy to fall in love with a man like Travis, but Alaska was a long way from Mingus, Texas.