Read Online Lone Star Legacy by Roxanne Rustand - Free Book Online Page A

Why?
    Setting his jaw, he did a three-point turn and headed back to town at roughly the speed of light.

     
    B ETH STEPPED OUT into the cool night air, with Sophie asleep in her arms. Walt stood behind her in the open doorway of the clinic.
    “Sure you don’t need some help getting home?” he called after her.
    “I’m almost there already. But thanks.” She crossed the parking lot, sidestepped through the wiry bushes marking the property line and wound through the assorted car parts and litter in her backyard. Glancing over her shoulder when she reached her door, she saw that he was still watching her, like a kindly grandfather making sure all was well.
    She waved farewell to him, then shifted Sophie’s weight against her shoulder and reached out to unlock the door.
    Footsteps crunched on the dry grass, approaching from the side of the house.
    Oh, God. Biting back a scream, she fumbled with the key. Missed. Tried again, her heart battering against her ribs and her palms slippery with sweat.
    A tall figure came around the corner of the back porch. “Beth? It’s me—Joel.”
    Her knees went weak with relief, her fear abruptly turning to anger. “You scared me half to death.”
    “Your place was still dark, and the lights at the clinic went out when I pulled up in front of your house, so I figured you were on your way home. Here, let me help.” He lifted Sophie and settled her against his own shoulder, then followed Beth inside to the narrow entry and on up the stairs.
    “Why did you come back?” She knew the tone of accusation in her voice sounded sharp and petty, but she couldn’t help it. “You were certainly in a rush to leave.”
    From behind her, she heard him sigh heavily. “I…was.”
    She kept moving on into Sophie’s room, settled her in bed, then came out to the living room and leaned a shoulder against the wall, her arms folded. “Well?”
    “I—” He fell silent for a moment, his eyes bleak. “I’m sorry. I should’ve stayed.”
    “I managed.” Her voice was clipped. “So you really didn’t need to come back.”
    He moved farther into the room, surveying the dark shadows, then turned back to face her. “Why were you afraid to answer the phone, Beth?”
    His grim expression demanded answers she didn’t want to give. Not if it meant stirring up his interest in her past. “I’ve…had a few prank calls,” she hedged. “I don’t know who—the caller ID always just says ‘unknown.’”
    That part was certainly true, at any rate.
    She pivoted into the kitchen to start a pot of decaf. Part of her wanted to tell him everything, but what could he do, after all? The Chicago police certainly hadn’t been any help.
    “Did the calls start after you moved here, or before?” He soundlessly came up behind her, rested his large hands on her shoulders and gently turned her around.
    “Well…” She sighed. “Before.”
    His eyes were troubled as he studied her face. “Same guy?”
    She shrugged away his concern. “These days, it’s all too easy to find a phone number on the Internet.”
    “Has he threatened you in any way?”
    “Sort of.”
    “Sort of?”
    “He threatened to come after me.” She pulled back and turned to fill the coffeemaker reservoir, then pulled packages of filters and ground French roast from the cupboard. “But he probably doesn’t even know where I live…exactly.”
    “No? Reverse lookup on the Internet will identify the address and name connected to almost any listed number. How did you list your new phone?”
    “Crystal’s Café, with the street address.”
    “Not your first and last name?”
    “Nope.” She measured out the coffee, then shut the lid on the coffeemaker and flipped the switch on.
    “But information on property ownership is online, too. Public county records, in most states. He could probably figure out the address, since you and your sister have owned this place for a number of years.”
    “Five,” she whispered, bracing her hands