Cowboy Up(86)

“You and . . . John? Y’all were the ones messin’ up things with the rebuild of my store?” It takes everything in me to keep my voice calm as the panic starts to flow quicker. I just need to keep her talking. Keep her mind distracted. One more step. My hand slowly moves behind my back and I wait until I have an opening, finally being close enough to grab a knife, but not wanting to get shot when she realizes what I’m up to.

There’s no way I’m going to give up without fighting to keep the beautiful life I have—I’ve got too much to live for.

“He didn’t want me to, but I had to finish what I started. Saw right through his stalling and realized he wasn’t really on my team. Stupid motherfucker. You know, I’d hoped it wouldn’t come to this. Now I’m goin’ to be cleanin’ up your blood in my kitchen. You dirty everything up. I should just light this place up so Clay and I can move on without your filth.” Her chest heaves and her eyes narrow as her face gets bright red. “You just couldn’t leave though, could you! Even with your stupid fuckin’ store gone, you still didn’t go. NO ONE WANTS YOU! You’re nothin’ but a paid whore now, moochin’ off my man and livin’ off his dime. There isn’t anything for you here!”

“You’re wrong,” I whisper, wincing when the unhinged madness in her eyes amps up. In my inability to keep from defending what Clayton and I have, I might as well be throwing out a challenge to this madwoman.

“I’m wrong?! I’m WRONG?! You did NOT just say that. There isn’t shit for you here! All you are and all you’ll ever be is a warm hole.”

“How did you get Clayton out of the house?” I hedge, knowing I need to steer her into something a little safer than my relationship with Clayton so I can get out of this kitchen alive.

She grins, evil and wicked, clearly proud of herself. “That dumbass ex of yours.” She laughs, the sound nothing short of vile. “You know, all he wanted to do was apologize. Stupid bastard. I finally realized what he was doin’ when he tried to stop me tonight. The whole time he’s been tryin’ to stop me—I just didn’t realize it until today. Slipped up, he did. Told me you had a diamond on your finger—my diamond—and that he was fuckin’ happy for you. Fool. Found out not long after that Clay married your dumb ass tonight. John couldn’t hide it any longer. He was just blowin’ smoke up my ass, protectin’ you the whole fuckin’ time by keepin’ me from doin’ what I wanted to do all along. Always had a reason why we shouldn’t hurt you. Well, joke’s on him since he damn sure can’t protect you with a bullet through his brain.”

“My God,” I gasp, not dwelling on the thought of John being dead, but recognizing just how far past sane this woman is. There will be time later, when I make it through this, to reflect on everything she’s said tonight—and I will make it through this.

“I made sure to leave Clay that stupid fuck as a present. Left him right next to the ashes of that ugly gazebo I hear you married my man under.”

My heart clenches. Clayton worked so hard building that in our spot. “He’s not goin’ to forgive you for this, Jess. You might think hurtin’ me is the answer, but he’ll hate you more than he already does if you go through with this.”

“HE LOVES ME!” The gun jumps as she waves it in my direction, spit flying from her mouth as she growls. “You don’t know anything!”

“I know everything!”

“Clay loves me. He always has. He was comin’ back to me!”

“He hates you! The second you killed his baby, you made it so he wouldn’t ever feel anything more than hate when he thought about you. When he finds out what you’ve done, he’ll do one more than just hate you. He’ll forget about you. Because that’s what MY husband does when someone wrongs him and doesn’t deserve his forgiveness.”

“Shut up!” she screams, shaking her head and banging her free hand against the side of it.

Taking advantage of the insanity inside her bubbling over, distracting her enough that she lowers the gun just enough so it isn’t pointed at my head anymore and her eyes are no longer wildly hunting me as though I were prey, I lift my hand and grab the first knife handle I reach, pulling it from the block behind my back.

“All he had to do was give me that diamond and I wouldn’t have had to take care of the problem.”

“The problem?” I gasp.

“He didn’t even want a fuckin’ little snot-nosed brat. He said he never wanted them, but I knew he’d marry me if I was carryin’ his child—then I could take care of it and we’d still have each other.”