RAIN WOKE UP disoriented. The bright morning sun shining in her eyes, her tongue thick and dry. Brody sat beside her, his image shifted hazily, doubling, then returning to his normal, handsome form. He looked haggard, his face pale, dark circles marring the underside of his eyes. His cheek rested against his fist, his elbow propped on the arm of a chair as he watched her. When it registered she was looking back, he leaned forward and laid his hand on her shoulder.
“Hey, honey.”
“Hey yourself. Where are Dawn and Autumn?”
“Outside in the hall with Pop. I didn’t want them to wake you up.”
“What happened? Everything’s a little fuzzy.”
“You have a mild concussion. They set your arm in a cast. You broke three bones in your hand. I need to teach you how to throw a proper punch.”
“I did okay.” She defended herself. “Did you see Roxy’s face?”
That got her a smile. Not a big one, but the corners of his mouth went up.
“Yeah. She was screaming in the ER while they reset her nose and taped her up. She’s got two black eyes to go with it and a nasty bruise on her jaw.”
“Did you see Autumn stomp on her foot?” Rain didn’t hold back the smile.
“She got her good.” Brody let his pride show in his voice. “Her mama taught her well.”
His fingertips slid from her shoulder over her chest to the bandage taped to her skin.
“They put in eight stitches.” His voice grew husky with emotion.
“How many did you get?”
“None. The cut wasn’t so bad. It’ll heal. They cleaned it and put a bandage over it. It’ll leave a scar, but hey, you love my scars.”
That made her smile. “I love you,” she corrected.
“I love you, too.” He dropped his head and shook it. “I almost lost you yesterday.”
“You saved me yesterday,” she disagreed. “Thank you, Brody, for rescuing me.”
“I was almost too late.”
“Almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades,” she teased.
“Don’t remind me.” He combed his fingers through his already disheveled hair and stared at her. “I got lost again. They took Autumn, and I fell into a nightmare. Dawn was screaming for me to get Autumn back, but I didn’t hear her until it was too late.”
His head fell forward and rested on the bed beside her. She buried her fingers in his hair.
“Brody, it’s not your fault.”
“I called the psychiatrist last night. We had a long talk. He thinks now that this is settled, I’ll be better able to cope without all this stress in my life. We’ll have regular appointments three days a week until I can cope better.
“When you screamed for help and I saw you lying there . . .”
“I yelled for you because I was afraid you’d kill that guy, and they’d take you away from me.”
“I lost it when I saw him with that knife, trying to kill you.”
“What happened with the police and Dylan?”
“Roxy’s boyfriend has been charged with aggravated assault, a felony. He’ll go to jail. As for the kidnapping, it’s a gray area the prosecutor is trying to sort out. Roxy is the biological mother. We don’t have any papers specifying any kind of custody arrangements. Owen is working a deal. He’ll try to get Roxy to sign the papers relinquishing her rights to have all charges dropped against her and the boyfriend for taking Autumn. Technically, Autumn was living with me, her father, so Roxy didn’t really have a right to take her without my permission or knowledge. At least, that’s the case Owen is building.
“We have something else on our side. Don’t go ballistic.”
“What?” she asked, concerned.
“They charged Roxy with child abuse. She hit Dawn.”
“What?” Rain exploded and tried to sit up. Brody held her down. “Is she okay?”
“She’s fine. Roxy slapped her, left a bruise on her face. She also shoved her pretty hard and made her fall and scrape up her knees.”
“Oh God, Brody. Bring her in here.”
“In a minute. They’re both fine. Owen and Pop have stayed with them every minute.”
The door opened and Owen walked in smiling, wearing a suit, and carrying his briefcase.
“Hi, beautiful. How are you feeling?”
“Great if you tell me Roxy is behind bars.”
“She’s being released as we speak. Sorry.”
“Explain,” Brody demanded.
The smile on his face spoke volumes. Things had finally gone their way.
“She signed the papers. Autumn is yours. She also agreed to sell the bar to you, Brody. I’ve agreed to settle her debts, pay for the liquor license renewal, and give her a cash settlement on your behalf.”
“How much?” Rain asked.
“After the payments for the bar, she’ll get one hundred thousand. It’s what Brody agreed to pay her if she signed the papers and left town for good. Just to get the point across, I’ve taken out a restraining order. She’s not to go within one hundred yards of any of you, including Dawn.
“She’ll be gone tomorrow. Robert, the boyfriend, will remain behind bars. He’s got an arrest warrant in Nevada for possession with intent to sell. He’ll be prosecuted and serve time for both charges as well as the new charges for assaulting you.”
“So, it’s over,” Rain said, unable to believe they’d finally gotten Roxy out of their lives.
“Not quite.” Owen opened his briefcase and pulled out a folder. “You need to sign these. I’ll file them with the courts at the same time I file the papers Roxy signed.”
“What are these?” Rain asked.
“The adoption papers. It’ll take a few months to finalize, but once it goes through, Autumn will be your daughter legally.” Owen handed her a pen to sign the papers marked by little red arrow tabs.
Rain locked eyes with Brody, her broken hand poised over the papers, ready to sign. He brushed his fingers over her hair and leaned down and kissed her forehead.
“She’s your daughter, honey. Sign the papers.”
Rain reached up and touched her fingertips to his chest over his heart. The cast prevented her from laying her palm flat. “She’s our daughter.”
Rain signed the papers. Finished. Over. Finally, they could be a family.
“You know, my daughters have a different last name than me.”
She hoped Brody would take the hint and hurry up about asking her to marry him. Impatient to be his wife, she pushed. “Do you have a wedding license application in there, too, Owen?” she asked with a hopeful lilt to her voice.
“I didn’t ask you yet,” Brody teased. “But I will.” Her eyes danced as he grinned at her. Yes, he would ask, and when he did he’d get it absolutely, perfectly right.