Only By Your Touch (31 page)

“When I hit him on the nose, he let me go. He’d been drinking.” Chloe lifted her hands in helpless perplexity. “What should I have done? I didn’t know if he’d ever done such a thing before. I thought maybe it was just the alcohol. You know? I didn’t want to ruin his reputation and possibly his whole life over one stupid mistake.” She sent Ben a miserable look that made him wish he could make all of this go away. “There was also his badge to consider. I’m new to town. Who would have believed me? Not even Sheriff Lang took my story seriously.”

Ben wished now that he had more forcefully insisted on accompanying her to the department that day. Whether the sheriff held him in high regard or not, at least Ben could have corroborated Chloe’s story to some extent, which might have made Lang listen up.

“If you didn’t think Lang would believe you,” Frank
asked, “then why did you bother to tell him about it at all?”

“I couldn’t be positive it was an isolated incident,” Chloe replied faintly. “I was afraid Bobby Lee might do the same thing again with one of my successors, and I felt it was my responsibility to at least tell the sheriff what had happened, whether he chose to believe me or not. That way, if it occurred again, he’d be more inclined to believe the next woman.”

The deputy nodded and then sighed wearily. “I can understand why you hesitated to press charges, and to be absolutely honest, after being in this line of work for so many years, I wish more people would think twice. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case. It’s also a documented fact that an appalling percentage of women play the rape card just to get even over a real or imagined slight.” Frank passed a hand over his eyes. “In most instances, those women bring up past incidents that they failed to report. Unfortunately for you, that’s a red flag to an investigating officer.”

Chloe’s hand felt icy. Ben rubbed his thumb over the backs of her slender fingers, lending her what little warmth he could. “Is it a red flag to you, Frank?” he demanded, not attempting to keep the anger from his voice.

Frank squirmed on his chair. “Let’s not personalize this, Ben.”

“I’m sorry, but it’s starting to feel pretty damned personal. It sounds to me as if you’re implying that Chloe may be playing some vicious little game, trying to get even with Bobby Lee. That’s not only preposterous, but it’s damned insulting.”

“I’m not implying any such thing.”

Ben tightened his hold on Chloe’s hand. “Then you’d better clarify your meaning, Deputy. Going on
what you just said, I’m ready to call an attorney and peel the paint off the walls down at that damned sheriff’s department. There are laws in this country to protect women, especially in the workplace. How would Sheriff Lang like to have a huge sexual harassment and attempted rape lawsuit filed against him? Correct me if I’m wrong, but he is an elected official, isn’t he? Win or lose, if we make enough noise, we could seriously hurt him at the polls.”

Frank puffed air into his cheeks. “I don’t run the show, Ben. I don’t blame you for being angry, but let’s keep it in its proper perspective.”

“You’re basically saying that without any proof to back up her story about tonight, it’s unlikely that Chloe can do anything. Isn’t that right?”

“I’m saying that her failure to press charges the first time could backfire on her now. That’s all. It casts a suspicious light on her whole story.” Frank flashed Chloe another hangdog look. “It’s not a matter of what I think. I know Chloe personally. I don’t believe for a second that she would concoct a crazy story just to get a man in trouble. I’m just laying out the facts and telling you how others may see things.”

Ben forced himself to sit back in his chair. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d been so pissed. “I picked Chloe up on the highway that night, Frank. I saw the state she was in. Her blouse was ripped half off her. She was smeared with blood. And, in my opinion, she was in shock.”

“Where did the blood come from?”

“She whacked the bastard on the nose to get away from him,” Ben explained. “It must have given him a nosebleed.”

“Do you still have the articles of clothing?” Frank asked Chloe.

“No, I threw them away. I couldn’t fix the blouse
or get the stains out of the undergarment, and I couldn’t bring myself to wear either of them again.”

Frank pursed his lips and jotted more notes. “I believe you, Chloe. Please don’t misunderstand. But the sheriff has to abide by the law, look at the situation and allegations, and decide, to the best of his ability, if Bobby Lee actually did anything wrong. As it stands, the deputy didn’t finish what he came here to do, so we don’t really have much on him. There are no marks on you to corroborate your story about this evening, nothing to prove he reentered the house after he left the first time.”

“Are you saying that nothing can be done because I managed to stop him from raping me?” Chloe sent Ben an incredulous look.

“I understand your frustration,” Frank commiserated, “but we have to have proof before we can make an arrest. And even if we can come up with some proof, we’re still talking about an almost rape, not an actual one.”

He made it sound so trivial. An almost rape. By the sudden tightness of Chloe’s grip, Ben knew the words had struck home with her, and that they hurt.

“He threatened to kill my son,” she whispered. “He said he’d bash his brains in if I didn’t cooperate. And you’re telling me that he may be back on patrol tomorrow as if nothing happened?”

“I’ll do everything I can to see that doesn’t occur. If what you’ve just told me is true, he shouldn’t be wearing a badge.”

“If?” Ben sat forward in his chair again.

“I don’t make the rules, Ben. I just follow them. That being the case, I can’t make any promises.” Frank looked tired. “When Deputy Schuck told Chloe that he’d covered his ass, he wasn’t blowing smoke. The state dispatcher heard the exchange.” He swung
his hand. “He didn’t force a door or window to enter the house. The only footprints outside are undoubtedly his, and he had a reason to be out there, which makes it appear that she fabricated the attempted burglary. There’s also the dinner-date incident to corroborate his story. He’s laid the stepping stones very carefully.”

“If he weren’t a deputy, what follow-up would be done on a call like this?” Ben asked evenly.

Frank shifted on the chair and flexed his shoulders. “If you’re implying that Bobby Lee may get preferential treatment, I won’t argue. He’s been a deputy in this county for going on twenty years, and he has a spotless record. I’ll also remind you that if he weren’t a deputy, he never could have pulled this off.”

“Point taken.” Ben gave Chloe’s hand a reassuring squeeze. “It just seems to me a piss-poor way to do things, Frank. What if he follows through on his threat and comes back? Chloe will be hung out to dry.”

Frank nodded. “Unless I can come up with more than I’ve got right now, you’re probably right. I’ll do my best. That’s all I can say.”

Ben stood to see Frank to the door. “However it turns out, I appreciate your coming over. I know I dragged you out of bed.”

“Not a problem,” Frank assured him. “Trust me. Good cops don’t like bad cops. If I had my druthers, Schuck would be suspended until further investigation.” He tipped his hat to Chloe. “Let’s hope that champagne cork blacked both his eyes and he’s got goose eggs on his head. If so, maybe, just maybe, I can nail him.”

After Frank left, Chloe just sat and stared at the surface of the table. Ben rubbed a hand up and down
her spine. She felt violated. It made no sense, because Bobby Lee had barely touched her, but he’d raped her with words. The images that he’d painted in her mind would remain there for a very long while.

“Sweetheart, you sit tight, okay? I’m going to gather up your things in pillowcases.”

Chloe blinked. “What?”

“I’m not leaving you and Jeremy here. You’re coming to the ridge.”

“I can’t do that. I have a job and—”

“I’ll drive you back and forth to work.” He caught her chin in his hand. “I’m not leaving you alone. Understood? You’re coming with me.”

Once at the ridge, Chloe felt as if all the starch went out of her spine. It was all she could do to walk to the door. Diablo greeted them in the entryway. He was so happy to see Chloe that he actually wagged his tail. While Ben disappeared to put Jeremy to bed, she sank to her knees to hug the wolf.

“Oh, Diablo, I wish you’d been there,” she whispered against his ruff. “You would have protected us. I know it.”

Diablo snuffled her hair and whined. Recalling the first time she’d ever seen him, she buried her face in his fur and sobbed. She felt so battered. So filthy. She remembered the sick delight in Bobby Lee’s eyes and started to shake again. In an attempt to collect herself, she struggled to focus on other things.
Diablo
. And
Ben
. And
Methuselah
. She had been reluctant to come here, but now she was very glad that Ben had insisted. This place had become more of a home to her than where she actually lived.

There was no denying it. Her family was here. All the animals she’d cared for every day and come to
love—and the man, with his raven hair and soulful eyes. She belonged here, not in that awful little house down on Ponderosa Lane.

“Chloe?”

She jerked her head up and wiped her wet cheeks. She’d tried so hard to stand on her own two feet. Now, here she was, on her knees in Ben’s entryway, sobbing her heart out with her arms around his dog.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“Damn it, don’t say you’re sorry.” He crouched beside her. After studying her face for a moment, he smiled slightly and brushed at her cheek. “Diablo is a generous soul. He’ll share his coat with anyone.”

Chloe scrubbed a trembling hand over her mouth and sniffed. “He can share it with me any time he wants.” Tears sprang to her eyes again, which made her impatient with herself. “Someone opened the floodgates. I’m not usually a sniveler.”

“Sweetheart, you’re not being a sniveler now. You’ve had a hell of a night.”

“It’s just—” She shuddered. “I keep flashing back. You know? I couldn’t get the wire thing off the champagne bottle. I pushed and pushed. It was all I had as a weapon, and for what seemed like an eternity, I stood there, shoving on it, listening to him go on about the things he wanted to do. It was—” A knot formed in her throat, and she couldn’t say more, so she settled for shaking her head.

Ben sighed and curled a big hand over the back of her neck. “Come here,” he urged.

At the back of her mind, Chloe knew it was irrational to so deeply yearn for his touch, but at that moment, what dimly made sense and what was clamoring at the forefront of her mind were in direct opposition, and the clamoring won out. She leaned forward,
letting him gather her close. His arms curled around her, strong yet gentle. As always, the instant he touched her, a tingle of warmth moved through her.

“You know what you need?”

“No, what?” she whispered against his shirt.

“A huddle cuddle.”

“A what?”

“It’s my mom’s phrase. When I was a kid and bad things happened, she’d hold me on her lap in the rocker, and we’d just talk. A huddle cuddle.”

Before Chloe could anticipate what he meant to do, he scooped her up into his arms as if she weighed no more than a child. “As for what’s wrong with you, Chloe, he might have killed you and Jeremy, as well. I think you’ve held yourself together amazingly well, considering.”

She loved his strength—the wonderful dizziness that came over her as he walked with her in his arms to the living room. When he sat on the sofa with her cradled on his lap, she liked that, too. Hugging his neck, she pressed her nose to his throat and took deep breaths like a junkie sniffing glue.

At the back of her mind, she wondered if she was losing it. She’d come very close to being raped, one of the most horrible experiences a woman could endure, and she’d escaped by the skin of her teeth. She should be recoiling from Ben’s touch right now and needing her space. Only this was what she wanted, to be with him—heart to heart, flesh to flesh, with his hardness and heat forming a shield of safety all around her. Maybe it was weak of her, but for now, the stores of strength that had seen her through so many difficult times seemed to have drained out of her.

His touch was completely asexual, the kneading motion of his hand on her arm, shoulder, and side
searching out all the knotted muscles and melting away the tension. Soon Chloe felt like a puddle of warm gelatin smeared over his broad chest. She closed her eyes.

“You have magic in your hands,” she whispered. “Little wonder the animals love you so.”

She felt his lips graze her hair. “Yeah,” he said huskily. “Magic in my hands. But that’s a subject for another day. For tonight, I think we need to concentrate on you and how you’re feeling.”

Right then, Chloe felt as if she had no bones. She nuzzled her nose against his collar. She’d cared deeply for Roger, and in many ways, she would always love the memory of him. But her feelings for him had never run this deep. Or been so completely consuming.

“I love you, Ben.”

He was silent for a moment. Then in a low whisper, he said, “You love your idea of me. You may feel differently when you learn who I really am. There are things I haven’t told you, remember. Maybe it’d be better if you keep those feelings on ice for a while until we can talk.”