Firestorm (28 page)

Jake’s home soon would be her home.

Keeping that in mind, Kate decided she needed to move everything she wanted to keep, now. She wouldn’t send much furniture—only a few pieces that had special meaning to her—so they’d have enough left to use here while his job demanded he be near the Groveland oil field.

The sound of the back door opening startled her.

“Jake?” she called out as she levered herself out of the chair.

“I’m in here, honey. What smells so good?”

She smiled when she caught him sneaking a peek inside the oven. “Chicken casserole. And green beans.”

“I’m starved. How about a kiss?”

When she moved close to him, his arms came around her like a vise. He deepened her kiss with a deep, hard thrust of his tongue. When he broke the contact and set her away from him, she saw him shudder.

“Is that about ready?” He looked tired. From the look of his stained jeans and dusty boots, he’d been busy out at a well site.

“Give me five minutes. Do you want to wash up?”

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Jake frowned. “Yeah, I want to clean up. You’d better get used to this, though. I work, I get dirty. I won’t be coming home squeaky clean after I’ve been out in the fields.”

“I don't expect you to. I have seen you dirty before, you know. Remember when the well came in and you came running up here and kissed me? You might as well have taken a bath in crude. But I loved it. You don’t need to clean up on my account.” She glanced his way, wondering why he suddenly had gotten moody.

“Sorry. It’s been one helluva long day. I’ll feel better once I wash off some of this Mississippi mud.”

Jake didn’t much like the surly guy staring back at him a few minutes later from the wavy old mirror above a sink that sat precariously on a shaky pedestal in the downstairs bathroom.

Kate hadn’t done anything to deserve his sarcasm. And he had no business taking out his anger at Alice on her. Frowning, Jake scrubbed the worst of the grime off his hands and forearms.

His ex-wife had no sense.

Alice must have lit out from Houston the minute she’d left his office yesterday, because by the time he’d arrived at the well site, she was already there, working on Skip to let the pressure off her precious insane husband.

It had pissed Jake royally that he had to spend the time he’d set aside for studying new seismic readings, persuading his friend to pay no attention to Alice’s drivel that she’d get his drilling company blackballed by all the Texas independents—and that by the time GreenTex got through with Yates, the other company’s credibility in the industry would be zero.

Now, instead of spending most of the night pleasurably occupied in bed with Kate, he was going to have to devote that time to reconciling his gut feelings about where they should sink the next wells with Fish’s scientific projections.

Skip had a crew here, idle, and another on its way from west Texas. Every day Jake delayed deciding where to drill, he was pouring money out for nothing. Thanks to Yates and his sabotage, GreenTex was operating too close to the edge to waste thin resources.

Knowing Alice was close by unnerved him, too. He didn't put anything past her. In fact, he’d been relieved not to have heard from Kate that his ex-wife had paid her a visit while he was gone.

Unfortunately she could always show up tomorrow.

How would Kate feel if Alice asked her to intercede on behalf of her present husband? More important, at least to Jake, was the question of how Kate would react when he refused to let up on Yates. He didn't know.

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Not knowing had him as surly as a rattlesnake who hadn’t caught a mouse for weeks. He toweled his hands and face dry and tried to wipe the sour expression off his face.

When he joined Kate, she had set dinner out on the kitchen table. The coffee bubbling on the back of the old gas stove put out a pleasant, stimulating smell. And the fragrant steam coming off that chicken thing made his mouth water.

There was something calming about the look and smell of home-cooked food, Jake decided as he sat down and began to eat.

He knew one thing. He’d do whatever he had to, to keep Alice and her desperate efforts to free her bastard of a husband from disturbing the peace he’d found with Kate.

“I’ve got to work tonight,” he said, hating to break the comfortable silence. “Skip needs to start setting up rigs tomorrow for two new wells.”

“So soon?” She looked disappointed.

Hell, she couldn’t be any more disappointed than he was that they’d miss out on sex for the first time in nearly a week. “Yates and his hirelings have already put us off schedule. You’re gonna be family, so you’ve got the right to know I have to get big production out of this field, fast. If I don't, GreenTex just might go belly up.”

“But you’ve got millions of dollars’ worth of equipment, Jake. And what about the planes and that office building you dislike so much?”

“All that costs a bundle to keep running. This field will put us back on top or bust us, depending on how fast we can get it into full production. The sabotage here and out near Lubbock has us months behind schedule. Now I have the added job of seeing that Yates gets the punishment that’s coming to him.”

“Who is this person? And why did he target your company for his dirty work?”

“A rival oil man.” Jake wished he could leave it at that. “And my ex-wife’s husband.”

Kate’s eyes widened. “What?”

“Yates Oil and GreenTex have been competitors since long before I was born.

>From what I know, the competition was friendly until about fifteen years ago, when my father and Durwood’s bid on the same offshore leases. Yates got the properties, but when they ended up being worthless, Durwood started spreading rumors that Dad and Scott had bid up the price, knowing that they would drop out and leave Yates with expensive drilling sites that had no value.”

“But that’s not justification for this man to blow up oil wells.”

“Durwood was always a hothead. When he took over Yates Oil after his father died a few years back, he swore he would get even with us about that offshore deal. He left his wife and started sniffing around Alice every chance he got. She resisted him for a Ann Jacobs

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good long while,” he said, giving his former wife credit for remaining faithful for most of the years when he’d spent so much time far away from home.

Jake rubbed the back of his hand across his head, which suddenly ached unbearably. “Alice is here. She’s doing everything she can to get the bastard out of jail.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“So am I. I wouldn’t have mentioned her, except that she may come skulking around here, trying to get to me through you. She already tried to get Skip not to testify about the seriousness of the charges.”

With his thumb, Jake massaged the soft, dry palm of Kate’s hand. “I thought I’d made it clear when she came to me in Houston, that I’m going to take great pleasure in seeing Durwood Yates rot in a Mississippi prison for as long as I can manage.”

“Because Alice left you for him?”

He let go of her hand and clutched her shoulders in a vice-like grip.

“No,” he spat out. “I’m damn tired of hearing Scott, and Skip, and now you, wondering if I place more importance on Yates having married my ex-wife than on him doing his best to put my company out of business. Because you’re going to marry me, and because you didn’t have to stand and watch them bury a good man and a loyal employee who died in one of the explosions Yates orchestrated, I’m answering your question. Once. But don’t ever ask me again.”

“I'm sorry.”

She shook so hard, her tremors traveled up his arms into his own body. Guilt slammed into him, because the last thing she deserved was having him take out his anger on her. Deliberately he loosened his grip and softened his voice.

“As far as I’m concerned, taking Alice off my hands was the only favor Yates ever did for me. They deserve each other. I want to see Durwood in prison because he and his hirelings have killed one man and risked the lives of a lot of others. And because they’ve damn near put GreenTex out of business.”

“All for revenge? How horrible.” Kate shuddered.

Jake guessed that it would take her time to digest the extent of Durwood Yates's hatred. He pulled her in his arms and fueled another kind of flame, the kind he hoped would burn away his bitterness and pain.

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Chapter Fourteen

The next few weeks passed quickly. Every day, Kate expected Jake’s ex-wife to seek her out, but so far Alice hadn’t come around.

She’d packed the remnants of her family’s history, and yesterday movers had come to haul them to Jake’s ranch. Tomorrow, the junk man would come get the discards—

remnants of a hundred and fifty years’ of junk that Kate didn’t want to keep.

The house looked bare now, emptied of all the furniture except for a few worn pieces she would keep as long as Jake’s work kept him coming to the Groveland oil field.

She’d miss her home. Maybe Jake wouldn’t mind if she kept it. She’d like to bring their children here someday to show them her roots.

Kate visualized dark-eyed boys that looked like Jake, perched precariously on a fat limb of the old chinaberry tree down by the barn. Suddenly her smile faded.

She had no idea what Jake's long-range plans might be. He’d been so busy, they hardly had been able to snatch a minute to talk. Every day since they'd been back, he’d come to the house after spending twelve to fourteen hours at the new drilling rigs.

They’d eaten and made love—that is, they’d made love when he didn’t have to rush back to the trailer to do paperwork he hadn’t found time for during the day.

Would it always be like this, or would he find more time for her after the trials of Yates and his cohorts were over?

Kate was frustrated. She’d talked more with Adele and Deb than with Jake. Every day, one or both of them called with questions about the wedding. And every night at dinner, Jake shrugged off her concerns that their wedding was getting out of hand.

The pond beckoned her, tempting her to go there, relax, and enjoy her favorite spot beside the cooling, greenish water. But she couldn’t leave the house. Becky was coming, eager to see pictures of her bridesmaid’s gown and hear the latest about the wedding.

This whole business was getting to Kate. Half of the time she wished she and Jake had just gone somewhere, found a judge, and said their vows. Deep down, she guessed, she was afraid he’d change his mind and decide he didn’t want her after all.

She forced away her worries and sat down on the window seat where her mother had often curled up to read or embroider. Idly, she flipped through the pages of a notebook Adele sent, knowing Becky would expect a detailed recounting of the preparations going on in Houston.

With her finger, she traced tiny violets and leaves beaded in shades of pale lavender and green on the small sample of ivory silk Adele had sent to show her the design Cecilia was working on for her wedding gown. Kate couldn't help being excited.

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She was going to feel like a princess in that dress.

If only Jake loved her, she’d be the happiest woman alive.

* * * * *

Jake dared not name his feelings love, but he cared for Kate. Every day, he felt a stronger emotional pull toward her.

Guilt ate at him. Getting permits and coordinating the efforts of three drilling teams left them precious little time together.

Now he was wasting some of that time in the Calder County district attorney’s office, summoned because Alice had fed the man a pile of crap about him framing Yates to get revenge.

“I don’t have all day,” he snapped to the bored-looking, forty-ish receptionist who had been staring at the same magazine since he’d walked through the door.

“Mr. Randall will see you soon,” she replied, returning her attention immediately to her reading material.

Jake rose and headed for the inner door. “Randall will see me now or not at all. He set this appointment for two o’clock. I didn't.”

“All right. I’ll go tell him you’re in a hurry.”

Jake watched her disappear through a scarred doorway. When she came back, she motioned for him to come on in. Randall greeted him with a politician’s smile and a crushing handshake.

Jake paced, too angry to sit still while the lawyer recounted Alice’s story. When Randall paused, he stopped and made eye contact with him.

“I’ll admit on the stand to having been stupid enough to marry Alice. But you’re way off base if you believe the reason I want Yates behind bars has anything to do with him having married her after we divorced. Hell, you have my statements, and plenty of witnesses to back them up, about the trouble the man has made for GreenTex over the years.”

“Look, Mr. Green. I want Yates convicted on every count. I'm running for the state senate next year, and winning this case will put me head and shoulders above the guy who’s planning to run against me.

“Not to mention, of course, that my primary goal is to uphold the law,” Randall added with another down-home grin. “Can you tell me honestly you’d be pushing this so hard if the man hadn’t stolen your wife?”

“Damn it! If anything, I'd give the bastard a medal for that.” Jake slammed his fist down on Randall’s cluttered desk.

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“You’re not still smarting about her leaving you?”

“I'm smarting so much that I’m marrying Kate Black in five weeks. But I thought you knew that.”

“I’d heard you and Kate were gonna get married,” Randall said. “Still, I’m worried about your ex-wife getting on the stand, persuading the jury you’re lying about Yates to get back at him or her. She’s one hell of a looker.”

Jake shrugged. “If you’re going to stew over it, I can’t stop you. Personally, in your place I’d be jumping up and down with glee. Durwood Yates gave you an ironclad case against him when he hired his arsonists. You’d damn well better convict him, if you don’t want a lot of GreenTex money going to your opponent’s campaign for that senate seat next year. Kate and I will be at the trial. I’ll make sure it’s obvious to the jury and everyone else that I’m not pining over Alice.”