He wanted to reach for her, to draw her into his arms and just hold her and reassure her that she was safe. The cynical side of him gave a silent laugh. Sure, Whitefeather, safe as a mouse in a building with a cat. Those three guys had not given up their hunt. The snow might slow them, but eventually they would find out who drove a blue pickup and where he lived. And they might do it in spite of the storm.
What was it about this woman that had brought out the protective instincts in him from the first moment he had seen her? She was almost as tall as he was, taller than nearly all the women he had ever known. She was independent, resourceful and capable of caring for herself. Capable of eluding the three hoods after her, so why did he have all these protective feelings on full throttle? And if she didn’t stir his protective instincts, she stirred his desire, which should have been even more unlikely in her garish makeup and baggy clothing. The fuzzy sweater looked like a molting bear. And she had to be six months pregnant!
Colin rubbed the back of his neck. “I think some lawmen I know would listen to your story.”
She shook her head. “Sloan’s got powerful friends. You’d be surprised what he can do. I used to think I could find protection from his brutality, but everyone covered for him.”
“He might not be so powerful here.”
“The first thing you know, I’d be whisked right back to Louisiana and placed in an institution and the public would be told I’m ill or mentally unbalanced. Sloan would manage it. I don’t want to go to the police.”
“All right, no police, but I think you’re making a mistake.”
She shook her head stubbornly. “I know what’s happened in the past when I’ve tried to get help.”
“How do you think you’ll get away from him?”
“I’m going to California where I have a friend who will help me. Sloan won’t find me there. It’s a matter of time. Once Sloan is defeated or elected, he’ll forget about me. If he’s defeated, it won’t help to get me back. If he’s elected without me, he won’t care what I do. Right now he wants me at his side. He thinks it will give the proper image for him. And he’s annoyed he can no longer control me.”
“Are you really divorced from him?”
“I’m telling you the truth. Yes, I am.”
“If you’re divorced, it’s a matter of public record and the reporters should have already picked up on his marital status.”
“He has contacts at newspapers and he can give them a story about my mental condition. It’s still early enough that he’s not in the limelight yet.”
Colin Whitefeather’s expression was a thundercloud that made her feel like running.
“I didn’t mean to bring trouble down on you and I’ll be gone tomorrow,” she said swiftly, trying to appease his anger. “Then those men won’t bother you.” Her pulse skittered as she watched him. He looked fierce and angry, and she had no doubts about his strength.
“They’ll find out who drives a blue pickup in this area.” The moment Colin said the words, she flinched as if he had struck her. “They can’t find us tonight. I can guarantee you that.” His gaze flicked over her figure again. “When’s the baby due? About March or April?”
“No. Actually, the due date is next week.”
“Next week! You don’t look that far along,” he said bluntly.
“That’s probably because of my height.”
He barely heard her answer. Anger rose in him, that she was being so careless about the coming event. “You shouldn’t be on the run. You need to be with relatives or a friend. You need to have a hospital lined up and not be racing across country with three goons chasing you.” As a cop, he had seen too much death and destruction. He had reached a point where he treasured birth and life, feeling a quiet joy with every foal or calf dropped on his place. He wanted to shake some sense into the woman, but the last thing this woman needed was to be shaken. She needed a loving husband’s strong arms and support. “Where’s your mother?”
“She died a year ago. I don’t have any family. But I’ll be all right. When the time comes, I’ll go to a hospital,” she answered stubbornly.
“Have you even seen a doctor?”
“Yes, I have regularly. I go to clinics in cities where I’ve traveled.”
He ran his fingers through his hair. “Damn, your baby’s due—you’re not carrying any clothing except whatever you have stuffed in your big purse. What will you do for diapers and formula? You know if those men are following you, they’ll take you and the baby back to Louisiana.”
She raised her chin and defiance filled her eyes. “They can’t steal a baby out of a hospital. I’ll manage. I had hoped to get to California before the delivery. This snowstorm has complicated my life. And I thought I had lost the men until this morning. I had planned to get a plane today in Tulsa, to Denver, and from Denver to San Francisco. I thought I would be in California tonight.”
“That’s cutting it damned close. You have a friend there?”
“Yes, Paula Kurczak, and she knows about the baby. Paula has a little girl and she still has her baby things.”
“Don’t you know that babies don’t always arrive on the exact scheduled date?” He was fighting to bank his exasperation with her. He should stop grilling her, but he was shocked at her lack of preparation for the baby.
She smiled, her eyes crinkling at the corners, a dimple appearing in her cheek, her white teeth flashing, and he felt as if all the warmth of the room had drawn itself into her smile. In spite of her ill-fitting clothes and garish makeup, she looked adorable, and he could understand why the ex-husband wanted her back.
“I’ll be all right. And my baby will be all right.”
“Have you had an ultrasound? Do you know whether you’re having a boy or a girl?”
“Yes and no. I did have an ultrasound and everything was fine, but I told them I wanted to be surprised, so I don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl.”
He stared at her in consternation. One week until her due date. “When this storm stops, if you won’t go to the police, I’ll drive you to Tulsa and put you on the plane to California.”
“That would be nice of you,” she said in a subdued voice.
“Do you want to call your friend in California?”
“Paula knows I’ll be there some time this week. I told her I would call from the airport when I land.”
He wondered whether there really was a friend in California, yet there was no big reason to lie to him. He barely knew the woman. He shouldn’t care. One week until her delivery date. That revelation gave him more jitters than the thugs had. Babies had their own schedules.
“Want a refill of hot chocolate? There’s more on the stove,” he said, trying to defuse the moment and calm his own nerves.
“Yes,
