Millie's Second Chance (6 page)

“Oh, God, Wyatt, the ranch looks so amazing. It’s been so long since I’ve been back in Texas. I missed this so much.”

Wyatt smiled as he parked the truck. He pulled right alongside Anthony Lewis’s construction truck.

* * * *

Anna and Stacy nearly ran toward the truck as Wyatt pulled up with Millie.

“Excuse us, Anthony, our best friend is here,” Anna stated, and they took off for the truck. The moment Anna and Stacy saw Millie, the three women screamed then hugged one another as they danced in a circle.

“Oh, God, I’m so glad you’re here, Millie!” Stacy exclaimed and then Anna agreed.

“Damn, woman, you look good!” Eric exclaimed as he approached with Charlie and Ben.

Anna giggled as Eric lifted Millie up in the air and twirled her around.

“Oh, God, Eric, you haven’t changed a bit,” Millie stated.

* * * *

Glancing around at the small crowd that had formed, Millie felt incredibly happy and relieved to be with her family. She wasn’t alone. She was back home in Pearl where she belonged.

As the others greeted her, she caught sight of two very tall cowboys standing near a truck that said “Lewis Construction” on it in in bold, uppercase black lettering. One cowboy was holding a clipboard with papers and the other was chewing on a straw, staring at her. She felt his gaze through the crowd and she was perplexed by the mixed emotions. She felt her cheeks warm. He had that look that could make even the most experienced woman blush. She looked at Stacy, who raised her eyebrows as if indicating how hot the two men were. Millie tried not to laugh. That was so Stacy.

“Millie, let us introduce you to Anthony and Jeremy Lewis. They own the construction company we hired to start the project,” Stacy stated as if she sensed the men staring at Millie.

Millie smiled as Jeremy offered his hand first.

“Nice to meet you, Millie. Stacy and Anna were worried about you. Glad you made it to Pearl in one piece.” As she touched his hand, she felt a tingling sensation travel past her wrist as his words sunk in.

She pulled her hand away quickly and gave a scolding look to Stacy. Stacy cleared her throat and shook her head. Did that mean that Stacy hadn’t informed the strangers about her situation in New York? Damn, she hoped not.

“I’m Anthony,” the other man stated, and she turned back to him. She shook his hand as not to be rude and she noticed that his hair was crew cut short as opposed to Jeremy’s who had his tied back neatly. Looking back at Jeremy as she released Anthony’s hand Jeremy winked at her with chocolate eyes. He was a flirt, she could tell immediately, and damn if her body didn’t react instantly to it.

“Nice to meet you both. So what is this secret project you two have been hiding from me?” Millie asked.

“No secret, just something we think that you’ll be interested in helping out with and being part of.” Anna winked at Stacy.

“What is it?”

“Jeremy, can you show Millie the blueprints of the construction site and the main page?” Stacy asked.

“Sure. It would be my pleasure.” Jeremy smiled at Millie as he looked her over again. When he and Anthony turned away, Anna gave her a nudge in her shoulder and a wink. She shook her head at her friend. Millie was done with men, especially the flirtatious kind. Plus, she was doing her best right now not to break down and cry. She had no idea what would come of her leaving New York and losing her job so suddenly. For all she knew, Frank wasn’t even in New York and was just messing with her like always. But he had sounded so confident. She had done what Stacy and Anna told her to do and what Detective Flynn suggested and left town. She had contacted Detective Flynn and given him Wyatt’s number at the Sheriff’s Department as well. Wyatt was also the detective that arrested Frank and helped Stacy save Millie’s life. Although he had no grounds to locate Frank and arrest him, he suggested that she take Frank’s threats seriously and take a vacation. She swallowed hard as she tried her hardest to submerge her emotions.

* * * *

Jeremy opened up the blueprint on the hood of his truck and then realized that Millie was too petite to see that high. His truck was an extra-wide load and very big, just like him and his brothers. He and Anthony were tall, stocky, and muscular, while his brothers, Dalton, Hank, and Marco, were trim and fit, keeping their military physiques like true martial artists.

“Grab the other end, Anthony, so she can see it better.”

Millie slowly moved closer and he noticed she kept her hands clasped in front of her as if she were afraid to get too close to either of them. Jeremy smiled. She was a mighty fine-looking woman, with brown hair tied up in a ponytail and dark blue eyes that almost looked too large for her smaller features. They were the first thing he noticed about her. Then, of course, he noticed her hourglass figure. She was a knockout and dressed very conservatively in a black, sleeveless one-piece dress and a white sweater. She looked sweet.

“Is this a new development you’re putting in on Cantrell’s land next to the shelter?” Millie asked.

“This is something we’ve talked about in the past but with no real direction. Your ideas and accomplishments in New York kind of helped us zero in on our idea, Millie. As you know, we built the women’s shelter so that women in trouble or on their own with no place to go can come here and have a new start,” Anna stated, and Millie smiled. Jeremy watched as the tears hit her eyes and she lost coloring in her face.

“We want you to be part of this, Millie. We have a new friend, Lena, who has some really great ideas as well. She’s had to deal with so much on her own, just like Anna and me and, of course, you, too. The four of us will organize and run the place. We were thinking about making a series of specialty shops. Maybe a place where you can sell the jewelry you make and other women can sell things they’ve made as well,” Stacy added.

“Yeah, we’re going to have small cottages, some single and some multifamily, so that women can share or so that women with children can live there while they work. We’ll have child care services and we’re even thinking about other forms of income for the women so they can eventually support themselves,” Anna added.

“I’ve been in contact with some government agencies offering education grants and scholarship programs we can do online. Plus, with your background as a fundraising coordinator and financial coordinator, we could maybe use your connections to help us expand and really help these women out,” Stacy stated.

Jeremy remained, watching Millie. She looked shocked, but he saw something else in her eyes, something that made him feel like she knew how the women felt and perhaps had been in need at one time herself, or maybe she was just touched by the idea Anna and Stacy had.

“This is amazing. This is exactly what I’ve been wanting to create in New York.” As she said the words she covered her mouth and began to turn away. Anna and Stacy were immediately by her side.

“It will be okay, Millie. He can’t get to you here,” Stacy whispered, but Jeremy heard her. Immediately, he felt as if a fist tightened around his heart. Was this beautiful, sophisticated-looking woman in some kind of trouble?

He looked at his brother, Anthony, who held the same concerned expression. Anthony was a control freak. He ran their business and he ran it well. If he were concerned over Millie, he would get the answers he was looking for. Jeremy hoped that his brother remained quiet.

“Why don’t you guys call it a day? I’m sure Stacy and Anna picked your brain all afternoon about the construction.” Wyatt placed his hand on Jeremy’s shoulder as he watched the ladies head toward the house.

“Is she all right, Wyatt? I mean, is she in some kind of trouble?” Anthony asked and Wyatt looked at Jeremy then Anthony before he glanced toward the women as they headed for the porch.

“It’s not my place to say, but thanks for your concern.”

“She seems real nice and Anna and Stacy talk about her a lot,” Anthony added.

“Yeah, they’ve been friends for many years. All three of them went through a lot of hard times back in New York.”

“Well, Pearl is an amazing place. You let us know if you need anything. We’d get here in a flash, Wyatt,” Anthony offered, and Wyatt smiled.

“Thanks.”

Jeremy folded up the blueprints and got into the truck as Anthony got behind the wheel and they headed out of the Triple C.

They were quiet as Anthony drove the truck.

“She was real pretty wasn’t she, Anthony?” Jeremy asked as he looked out across the open land and wondered about Millie.

“She sure was. Seemed real sweet and timid, though.”

Jeremy nodded his head in agreement.

“Did you hear what Anna and Stacy said to her back there? The part about him not finding her here?” Anthony asked.

“Sure did. Kind of makes me wonder if she’s running from trouble.”

“Well, if she is, there’s no safer place than Pearl. Not with so many deputies and cowboys looking out for women and children.”

Just then, they passed by Marie Lamorte’s place.

“At least she’s staying with Anna and Stacy,” Anthony stated.

“She’s not staying with them. She’s staying in that cottage on Marie’s ranch.”

Anthony turned toward his brother with a scowl on his face.

“All alone? Marie and Ron are away, right?”

“Yep.”

“Well, maybe we’ll be sure to stop in and see Millie just to make sure she’s okay.”

Jeremy smiled. He was all for that. Any chance to get another gander at Millie would make his day.

“So let me understand this correctly, Millie. Detective Flynn said he couldn’t do anything and that it might be wise to take the vacation while he checks things out unofficially?” Wyatt asked as they all sat around the porch. It was Anna, Stacy, Wyatt, Ben, Charlie, Eric, and Max.

Millie nodded.

“I got the phone call on my way home from the awards dinner. He sounded so close by. It gave me the chills and my gut instinct was to run, but I didn’t. I called Flynn and he said he would check things out. He confirmed that Frank was released early on good behavior and under the personal recommendation of his therapist. I waited out the weekend and then…”

Millie took a deep breath and tried to control her emotions. The thought that Stewart made her boss fire her still irked her.

“Then what? What happened?” Anna asked.

“I got fired Monday morning over the phone.”

“What?” Stacy and Anna asked simultaneously.

“Stewart’s doing.”

“What a loser!” Stacy stated with a scowl on her face and Millie smirked then chuckled.

“He is a loser. I guess I really know how to pick them.”

Anna reached over and touched Millie’s knee. “Not all men are like Frank and Stew. I can’t believe that Stew would stoop that low.”

“Well, he did and a few minutes after that phone call I received one from Frank. That was intense.”

“He said some bad things, huh?” Stacy asked and all Millie could do was nod and then rub a hand over her mouth as she took a deep breath then released it unsteadily.

“I had no choice but to leave New York. He said he was coming to get me. So I took the time to grab some things and pack, then called you and headed here.”

“Is this detective going to stay in contact with you and investigate where Frank is and if in fact he’s out of prison?” Ben asked.

“He called before I boarded the plane to tell me that Frank was definitely released early on good behavior and that the parole office said Frank declined the recommendation of heading toward a shelter because he had a place to stay. I think he meant my apartment.” Millie took a deep breath.

Anna squeezed her hand. “We’ll protect you here, Millie. You can stay here for as long as you need to.”

“I don’t know what I’m going to do. Things were getting crappy back in New York anyway,” she admitted as she looked at her clasped hands.

“Honey, what else was going on?” Wyatt asked her. She swallowed hard and she hoped that Wyatt and the others knew it was difficult for her to talk. Maybe it was best that she talked with Anna and Stacy first. Not that she was uncomfortable in front of their men, but she was embarrassed by her stupid decisions. Things could have been worse.

“I’m going to stay in touch with Detective Flynn. I know you trust him and he seems like he’s concerned over your well-being,” Wyatt quickly added.

“Yes. I trust him. When Stacy stopped Frank from killing me, Detective Flynn followed minutes later. He did everything he could to get Frank the maximum sentence. That’s why it’s so surprising that he’s out in under two years’ time.”

“We’ll check it out and keep on top of things. You be sure to let us know if Frank tries to contact you,” Ben added.

“I will, guys, and thank you for everything.”

“Hey, that’s what family is for,” Stacy added, and Millie smiled.

* * * *

Stacy stood by the counter in the kitchen making a pot of coffee. Anna sat in a chair at the table while Millie held baby Hope in her arms.