Page 35 of The Cowboy's Promise

The disturbing conversation had ruined his appetite and he wanted to leave, but he had to sign the check. That meant facing her again. But as the thought floated through his head it suddenly hit him.

He was no longer smitten.

Her confrontation had shown another side to her.

She’d purposely gone out of her way to humiliate him.

She wasn’t just a sweet, pretty, innocent country girl after all.

She was actually unkind…even nasty.

He was shown her true nature just in time.

Looking out the window he noticed the rain had stopped. He took it as a good sign and began to regain his composure. Soon she would be at his mercy and he’d make sure she apologized.

Everything was working out exactly as it should.

Glancing at his watch he was surprised how much time had passed, and seeing her at a nearby table he gestured for the bill. While he waited his appetite returned, and he enjoyed a few more bites of the delicious pasta. He was washing it down with the last of the red wine in his glass when he saw her walking quickly towards him.

“Here you are,” she said, placing the leather wallet on the table. “I hope you enjoyed your meal.”

“Immensely.”

She smiled down at him, a smile he assumed was insincere, and waited until she’d walked away before looking at the bill. He was tempted to leave her nothing, then changed his mind and added a twenty-percent tip. Considering what she was about to endure it was the least he could do.

* * *

At the hospital all was quiet.

A new deputy named Simon Tagg had taken over the night shift, along with two new nurses, Amanda Burke and Sandy McCabe.

There were eight patients. The nurses were assigned four each, and Amanda was in charge of Courtney McCallum. Though she didn’t know why the girl was being guarded by a deputy and wasn’t allowed to ask, Amanda wanted to spend as little time as possible in the room. During her career she’d seen enough to know you could never be too careful.

When the shift began the nurses had taken the deputy a mug of freshly brewed coffee and a cinnamon roll, then settled in behind the front counter. Most nights were boring and the time dragged, but they both had their laptops to keep them occupied. A downpour had come and gone, and as the hour grew late Sandy left to check on her patients while Amanda stayed behind the counter in case someone came in. When she came back, Amanda stood up and stretched.

“My turn,” she said with a sigh. “Were all your people okay?”

“Yep, except for Mrs. Beardsly. She still has that headache, poor woman, but she said it’s not as bad.”

“At least that’s something. Migraines are awful,” Amanda remarked. “Okay, I’m off.”

Turning down the hallway, she opened each door and found nothing of concern. Courtney McCallum was in the room at theend. Being the furthest from the entrance, it was the one used for prisoners whenever it was available.

“Can I pop my head in?” she asked quietly as she approached the deputy. “And I don’t know if Sandy offered, but I can get you another coffee if you want one when I go back.”

“Yeah, that’d be great, I think it’s about that time,” he replied, rising to his feet, then lifting the key from his breast pocket, he unlocked the door. “I haven’t heard a peep,” he added.

“I’ll just take a quick look. I don’t want to wake her,” Amanda whispered softly. Peering around the door she saw the motionless figure in the bed. “Dead to the world,” she murmured, cautiously stepping back.

“I’m surprised that heavy rain didn’t wake her,” the deputy remarked, turning his key in the lock and checking the handle. “Mind you, sometimes the sound puts me to sleep.”

“Me too,” Amanda said with a smile. “I’ll get you that coffee.”

* * *

Courtney waited a few minutes, then sitting up she had to stifle a triumphant cry. Climbing from the bed, she quickly bundled one of the pillows and the blanket into a shape similar to a body and covered it with the bedspread. Standing back and studying her work, she nodded in approval, then gently collected her clothes from the closet and dressed. Fortunately she’d been allowed to keep her watch and it was in the pocket of her jacket. Slipping it on her wrist, she moved into the bathroom and softly closed the door.

There were four windows.

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