Page 71 of The Sheriff and the Outlaw

Daxton cringed, but said nothing as he listened, his eyebrows pulling together in concern, his expression unreadable.

Finally, she told him about pulling the trigger and the gun going off, Logan’s eyes becoming fixed, and how she felt his blood ooze over her body. Then she told him about running and finding the clothes... everything up until Daxton found her in his barn.

When she finished her story, Daxton waited patiently, thinking. “I’ll send word to the Federal Marshal about what happened here. I’m also going to tell him about Harland Duffy, the sheriff in Laramie.”

Josey’s eyebrows rose nearly into her hairline. “Will he be arrested, too?” She had never heard of a lawman being arrested, even if they were as crooked as a dogwood branch.

Daxton chuckled without humor. “Oh, yes!”

“But he’s a lawman—”

“And lawmen are not above the law,” Daxton finished. “It’s obvious that Duffy abused his power, and when you abuse your power, then it’s taken away.”

Just then, Josey saw that the blood was spreading from his shoulder, soaking his shirt. “We need to get you to a doctor... now.”

Daxton nodded as Josey slid her arm around him, under his shoulder. Then he looked over at the other men. “Gentlemen, I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t say anything about what you just heard... or about what happened.”

“As far as I’m concerned, we just caught some notorious outlaws.” Colton smirked as he slid his arm under Daxton’s arm on the other side.

“Same here,” Harrison chimed in.

Wyatt shrugged. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Then he looked over at Josey and winked.

Everyone started laughing.

“Come on, buddy.” Colton took most of his weight off Josey. “Time to see Doc Morgan.” Obviously, he had lost a lot of blood.

“This time, I’m not going to argue with you.” Then Daxton looked over at Josey. “And I want Doc Morgan to check you out, too, while we’re there.”

She knew that he was talking about the baby, as well as her. She just hoped that the baby was okay... after having been through such an ordeal.

Chapter 18

Daxton

“Well, I have good news for you,” Doc Morgan told Daxton at his office, looking at his bullet wound. “It looks like you’re going to live.”

Daxton laughed. “I already knew that.”

“The bullet didn’t hit any bones, but it wouldn’t have hurt you at all if it had hit that thick skull of yours.”

“Hey! Wait a minute!” Daxton smiled, taking Doc Morgan’s ribbing in good stride. “Could you check out Josey before we leave, too?”

Doc Morgan smiled. “I was planning on it. Now, you can wait in the lobby, and I’ll be right in here if you need anything.”

Daxton nodded, sitting up. “Thanks, Doc, but I’ll be fine. Just take care of my girl.” Josey’s eyes were filled with worry. He gently took her hand as she passed, and then pulled her over to him and said in a low voice, “Don’t worry. Everything’s going to be fine.”

She gave him a slight smile, nodding. “It is now... thanks to you.” She placed a hand gently on his cheek as she gazed into his eyes, sending shivers over his body.

“Well, we’d better get going,” Doc Morgan hinted. He was usually a patient man, but Daxton guessed that he wanted to make sure that Josey was all right after the ordeal.

Daxton stood, slipping on his cowboy hat with his good hand. His other arm was in a sling. “I’ll be in the lobby if you need me.” He smiled at Josey reassuringly as he walked out and closed the door behind him. He slowly headed over to the windows and watched the sun start to sink lazily into the horizon, as shoots of orange, red, and yellow pierced the darkening blue sky as snow-capped mountains sparkled in the distance. It was truly God’s country, and he was glad to be a part of it.

As he watched the sun slowly fade in the distance, he thought of Josey, hoping that the baby was unharmed. At that moment, he realized that he already thought of the baby as his, dangerous for his heart. He just hoped that Josey would accept him as her husband. As he waited, thoughts of her invaded his mind of her piddling around the house, cleaning and cooking... her teaching the children how to play Poker, of all things... her fishing with him and his son. Whether she knew it or not, she had already become a part of the family. She had unwittingly ingrained herself into their lives and onto his heart.

“Well!” Doc Morgan came out of the back room, drying his hands on a hand towel, grinning from ear to ear. “I’ll leave you two alone for a moment.” Then he leaned over to Josey and smiled. “I think you two have something to discuss.”

“How much do I owe you, Doc?” Daxton asked.

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