Three-Year Rule Read online

  Elizabeth leaned back in her chair and sighed, “I don’t think I can. My stomach is too upset.”

  Amy and Randy were frozen in their seats across from them watching. Amy jumped up and quickly came to sit beside Elizabeth. She said, “I think food is a good idea. We are going to be here for several hours and none of us has had lunch. How about a salad? Sadie makes a wicked evil Cobb Salad.”

  Randy rose and joined in saying, “They also have a great chicken salad sandwich. Come on Josh let’s run and grab some food. We’ll be back before you know it.”

  Amy chimed in, “We’ll be fine. I’ll call you if anything happens.”

  Randy grabbed Josh’s arm and pulled him toward the door.

  When they returned, Elizabeth ate the salad and they sat back to wait. Amy and Randy exchanged glances determined to keep the conversation away from the fake pregnancy as long as possible. Finally, the Vet appeared and announced that Charlie survived the surgery.

  “You should all go home and get some rest. Charlie will be here for a couple of days. My assistant will stay with her tonight. I’m going to keep Charlie sedated. I can call you in the morning with a progress report. If you’d like to see her briefly I can take you back.”

  Elizabeth and Amy followed him to the recovery area. Charlie lay sedated on a padded table. IV fluid dripped slowly through a narrow tube from the plastic bag that hugs next to Charlie’s head into a bandaged area around her neck. Amy broke down as she reached out to touch Charlie’s head. She stroked her ear and said, “Good girl Charlie, you saved mama.” Then turned and hugged Elizabeth,

  Elizabeth smiled at the Vet and said, “Thank you for saving her. She’s the sweetest dog I’ve ever known. She was determined to protect our home from the bear.”

  The Vet smiled and said, “She was very lucky. Most dogs are dead before they reach my office.”

  Elizabeth reached out and stroked Charlie’s back forcing the tears back. Amy released her and headed back to the waiting room. Elizabeth leaned down, kissed Charlie’s nose, and whispered, “I love you Charlie.”

  The two couples chose a booth at Sadie’s. Josh ordered a pitcher of beer and a bottle of wine for the girls. They sat in silence waiting for their drinks. Amy snuggled up against Randy and sighed then gazed over at Elizabeth.

  Josh put his arm around Elizabeth and pulled her near as the drinks arrived. Randy poured the beers as the girls sampled their wine. As if on cue, the jukebox began to play a slow soulful tune.

  Elizabeth leaned against Josh for a moment then pulled back saying, “Don’t think I’ve forgotten what happened.”

  Josh’s face filled with sadness as he gazed at her. She looked so beautiful. He couldn’t remember ever seeing her so vulnerable. He allowed her to slip from his grasp. He pulled his arm back and met her gaze. He could see the pain in her eyes. Pain she thought he was responsible for.

  Josh said softly, “Elizabeth, I’m sorry you are upset but there is no other woman in my life.”

  Randy took that moment and asked Amy, “Would you like to dance?”

  Elizabeth waited until they reached the dance floor then answered, “Josh, what other reason would you have for denying me entry to your house that night? I could hear laughter and a woman’s voice as I walked up to the door.”

  Josh sighed and held her gaze, “That was my ex-wife. She was dropping off my children.”

  Elizabeth frowned, she should have known. So here, it was the beginning of the fall of the pseudo persona and it had only been a few months. “So your children live with your ex-wife?” She began as she slipped into her research mode.

  Josh flashed an irritated look and said, “No, they live with me full time but visit her out of state for most of the summer. I get them back for the 4th of July and they return home in time for school. Aren’t you going to ask me about them? How many I have? Boys or girls? Ages? Do you even care?”

  Elizabeth was startled. His pupils were dilated. His face was sincere. He wasn’t offering any excuses for the divorce or trying to reason away the birth of the children as an accident or by product of the marriage. He wasn’t trying to assure her the kids wouldn’t get in the way of their relationship. He wasn’t embarrassed that he was divorced with children. He was proud of his children. He wanted to share them with her. Her expression softened as all thoughts of the pseudo persona left her mind. She said, “I’m sorry. I do want to know about your children. It’s just such a shock. Why didn’t you tell me about this before?”

  Josh reached out and took her hand. He said, “I’ve learned that you don’t drop the kid bomb on the first date. Frankly, I haven’t been sure where this relationship is going. Then after the speech you gave on TV, I was certain you considered this a casual fling. I don’t introduce my kids to anyone I date. I don’t think it’s a good idea for them to get attached to someone who might only be around for a few months. Now with the baby coming I just don’t know what to think.”

  Elizabeth’s head was reeling. She stammered, “You’re e-wife is pregnant?”

  “What?” Josh said staring at her in confusion. “No! YOU are pregnant.”

  “What?” Elizabeth’s eyes opened wide in shock then she began to laugh.

  Josh glanced over at Randy then back to Elizabeth. She took a deep breath and smiled at him. “I’m not pregnant.”

  Josh smiled then shot Randy a vicious look and turned back to Elizabeth and said, “Can we start over? This whole thing has gotten out of control.”

  Elizabeth squeezed Josh’s hand and said, “Hello, I’m Elizabeth. I’m an author, I’ve never been married, I have no children and I’m not pregnant.”

  Josh laughed and kissed her hand then answered, “I’m Josh. I own a construction company, I’ve been divorced for six years, and I have two great kids, a boy named Josh who’s twelve and a daughter named Molly who just turned six. I am also not pregnant.”

  Randy and Amy returned and sat down across from them as Josh added, “I may however be spending the night in jail after I take the local Sherriff out back and beat the crap out of him.”

  Randy glanced up from his beer and looked from Elizabeth to Josh and back then pointed at Amy and said, “It was her idea.”

  Josh shook his head and smiled adding, “Well then it’s up to Elizabeth.” He turned to her and asked, “You want to take Amy out back or should I?”

  Elizabeth ignored his question and rose her wine glass in a toast saying, “To Charlie,”

  The others followed suit and raised their glasses answering in harmony, “To Charlie,”

  They drove back to the cabin arriving just as Josh’s men were heading down the drive back out to the road. They flagged Josh down and pulled off the narrow drive. Instead of waiting for them to pass, the driver got out of the car and waved Josh over. He climbed out of the truck. Elizabeth glanced up at the crystal blue sky that was beginning to grow cloudy as it gently induced the treetops to sway in a slow dance to its whispered sound. Josh spoke to his men briefly then returned to the truck.

  Elizabeth asked, “Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah,” Josh offered quietly, “They boarded up the window and have the bear carcass in the back of the truck. Mike said to warn you that the place is pretty torn up.”

  Randy and Amy followed in his truck behind them as Josh pulled up in front of the house and helped Elizabeth down out of the truck.

  Elizabeth stood gazing down at the dark stain in the grass where the bear had died. She glanced up the tree following the branches to the roofline. Her heart pounded in her hears as she realized how close she and Charlie both came to death. She turned to gaze into Josh’s eyes as he came to stand beside her.

  Her eyes grew moist with tears as she whispered, “If you hadn’t come when you did and that bear had reached the roof ...”

  “Don’t think about it.” He pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her.

  Elizabeth said softly, her voice deep and throaty with emotion, “You saved my life.” She
wrapped her arms his neck and leaned against him as their lips met. For the first time in her life, Elizabeth forgot about her rules and theories and allowed her emotions to surge upward. Her kiss was deep and passionate. Josh pulled her hard against him as his manhood quickly swelled in response to her passion. Elizabeth’s heart raced as his hands slowly ran down the length of her back to push her firm behind harder against him.

  “Having sex in public is discouraged in these here parts.” Randy’s amused voice came from behind them. He squeezed Amy’s hand delighted their plan appeared to be working.

  Josh reluctantly released Elizabeth and slid his arm around her waist. He shot an amused frown at Randy then turned back to her and asked, “Are you ready to go inside? My boys boarded up the window so it’s secure.”

  Elizabeth glanced at Amy who smiled weakly and nodded her encouragement. “Let’s go take a look.” Elizabeth said with feigned confidence.

  Josh opened the front door and went in first followed by Elizabeth and the others. They stood in the entranceway taking in the chaos. The bay window was completely boarded over with particleboard. The dining table was a pile of wood completely destroyed. Several pieces were scattered throughout the room along with the remnants of the lunch and table setting. The sofa was on its side and the small coffee table was split in two. A musty animal smell hovered about the room mixed with the scent of the particleboard. Elizabeth moved closer to the dining area and slipped on the wood floor. She glanced down and gasped in horror. She had stepped in a pool of blood.

  “Oh Charlie!” She moaned and turned to the others, “This is where the bear caught her! My poor Charlie, she must have been so scared!”

  Amy rushed to pull her back from the pool of blood saying, “The important thing is that Charlie got away from the bear and she’s going to be fine.”

  Elizabeth allowed Amy to pull her back into the kitchen. Elizabeth asked, “Why? Why did the bear do that? I’ve never heard of a bear breaking into a home before.”

  Josh glanced at Randy then back to Elizabeth and said, “Baby, it was hungry. It probably caught scent of the chicken you were grilling and then saw Charlie. Bears are predators and you are right on the edge of the preserve. At least you saw it coming.”

  “Thanks to Charlie,” Elizabeth answered.

  Randy added, “Elizabeth, it really is incredible that Charlie got away. It’s a miracle you both survived. You are both very lucky.”

  “Because of Josh,” Elizabeth said gazing at Josh.

  He smiled and said, “I guess that makes me your knight in shining armor. Maybe that should be your next book, The Knights Among Us.”

  They laughed as Elizabeth embraced him. Amy and Randy sat the sofa upright and began to clean up the mess. Elizabeth grabbed some trash bags from the kitchen as Josh and Randy gathered up the pieces of broken table and carried them to Josh’s truck. The sun disappeared behind the mountains and the sky took on a sapphire hue by the time they deposited the last of the debris in the back of Josh’s truck.

  Josh checked the bay window to make sure it was secure then turned to Elizabeth and said, “We’ve done all we can for tonight.”

  Randy added, “Amy and I are heading to my place tonight unless you need us for anything else.”

  Amy walked over to Elizabeth as she finished washing her hands in the kitchen sink and said, “Are you going to be okay here tonight?”

  Josh answered for her from behind them, “She’s coming home with me.”

  Elizabeth turned to look at Josh. Then turned to Amy and said, “I’m good. I’m going to see Charlie in the morning. Do you want to come with me?”

  “Sure, I’ll pick you up at 9a.” Amy answered.

  Elizabeth gave her a fierce hug and added, “After we make sure Charlie is okay let’s head into town and trade that Mini in for a small SUV for you.”

  Randy came up to them and said, “That’s a great idea. If you don’t mind I’d love to go with you.” He turned to Josh and added, “What do you say Josh? Let’s make a day of it? We can head up to Bear Lake and have a picnic after we get the new car. We could even stay the night and maybe take a boat ride?”

  Amy giggled in delight at Elizabeth and Randy’s suggestions then gasped and turned to Josh asking, “You’ve got a boat?”

  Josh winked at Amy then walked up to Elizabeth and said, “Did I mention that I own a speed boat and have a cabin on the lake?”

  Elizabeth laughed and hugged him adding, “Did I mention that my editor wants me to write porn?”

  That elicited a huge snorting guffaw from Randy that caused several minutes of uncontrolled laughter as they headed outside. Josh hesitated as they headed to their separate trucks. Grabbing Randy by the arm, he quickly pulled his aside.

  Josh spoke quickly in hushed tones, “I need to talk to you. Follow my lead and I’ll explain later.”

  Randy froze confused by Josh’s suddenly serious demeanor. He watched in silence as Josh called out to Elizabeth, “Beth, Randy and I forgot to secure the garage and I want to check out the rear of the house. Why don’t you and Amy take my truck and we’ll meet you at my house.” Josh pulled his keys from his pocket and escorted Elizabeth to his truck.

  Randy glanced at Amy and shrugged, “Go with it.” He whispered, “I’m not sure what’s going on.”

  Amy smiled and turned to head to Josh’s truck. Randy quickly followed and walked with her to the passenger door. He gave her a quick kiss and winked, saying, “Keep her busy, we’ll be along shortly.”

  Amy flashed him a brilliant smile. Josh and Randy stood and watched as Elizabeth turned the large pickup around and headed back down the drive. When they disappeared around the bend Randy turned to Josh and gave him an expectant stare.

  Josh met his gaze boldly and said, “My foreman, Mike said they found a dead fox under the back deck and there is a blood trail across the yard.”

  Randy frowned and said, “So the bear was tracking the fox and charged the house when he smelled the meat.”

  “There’s more,” Josh, added his tone dark and menacing. “Mike said the fox was killed with a bow and there is a blood smear across the base of the bay window.”

  Randy went to his truck and pulled out a large flashlight. He said, “Let’s go take a look around back. We’ll have to come back tomorrow to track the blood trail. I’ll meet you here while the girls are at the Vet; let’s keep this to ourselves in the meantime.”

  Chapter Six

  Elizabeth peered through the window of the small red SUV. The white interior was a stunning accent to the crimson exterior and was totally Amy. The salesman appeared with the keys and happily climbed into the back seat as Amy sat down in the driver’s seat. Elizabeth sat down in the passenger’s seat and handed the salesman her business card with the back facing up.

  He glanced at it and then smiled back at her and winked. Elizabeth turned quickly back facing forward and said, “It’s a shame Randy had to search for that rabid dog but I’m glad Josh went with him.”

  Amy started the car and pulled out of the dealership saying, “We’ll swing by his office when we finish here. He said they should be done by 2pm. That leaves us plenty of time to reach the lake before dark.”

  The test drive didn’t take long. Amy made up her mind before she even got in the car. They signed the paperwork and as Amy thought, she was waiting for accounting to run her credit report and loan details Elizabeth wrote a check for the balance.

  Josh scanned the trees as Randy pointed in the direction of the blood trail. There were several large trees in the distance that offered enough cover and height for a bow hunter. Josh turned back to face Randy who had kneelt down to examine the spot where the fox had died.

  Josh said, “If he used a compound bow then he could have been in those trees over there. It’s quite a distance but a compound bow could have made it easy.”

  Randy nodded and rose, “The fox bled out here.” He pointed down at the dark stain in the dirt.

  Josh ca
me over and surveyed the area. “Looks like they didn’t gut it here there’s no sign of it. The blood pool looks like they sliced an artery and dragged it off toward the cabin. By the tail, I’d wager looking at the trail. There’s no doubt they meant to attract a predator and pull it to the cabin.”

  Randy frowned and glanced up at the sky. He asked, “Sounds like Elizabeth’s stalker has escalated.”

  “Stalker?” Josh asked staring at him.

  Randy said, “They’ve had at least two break ins in the last two months. The first was minor and I believe that’s when Elizabeth’s IPad was taken. A short while later was the destructive invasion that resulted in Amy’s grandmother’s jewelry box theft. I am certain it’s the same person.”

  Josh knew better than to question Randy when he’d come to a conclusion. Randy didn’t speculate. He never spoke until he was certain.

  “Tell me,” Josh asked quietly not sure, he wanted to hear.

  Randy turned to head deeper into the woods. Josh walked beside him listening as he explained, “I found footprints in the dirt outside the front window the night of the break-in. I found the same size tracks near the bay window last night and this morning near the kill zone for the fox. The last two incidents they appeared to be hunting boots. The first prints appeared to be dress shoes. He was in a hurry that night. Large shoes, size thirteen, wide too. This is a big man, six foot 3 to six foot five, but judging from the depth, he’s a lightweight. I’d say for most of his this guy weights around 180-190.”

  Josh asked, “Why Elizabeth? What could she have done to rate this? If it’s a fan, how did he find her?”

  Randy explained, “Stalkers are usually sociopaths. They are very resourceful and devious. A couple of minor comments during a public appearance or an interview could be enough for a sociopath to find her. There’s a service road up back there somewhere that leads to the Preserve’s injured Bird House. Let’s take a look for tire tracks. I called the rangers station and they said there are no animals in the Bird House right now so that road should not show any use.”