A/N: Let me know what you think about this chapter. Love those reviews; they keep me going. Thanks to all who have been reading and reviewing!

Chapter 6

"I still think this is a real bad idea, Paige," Bubba said as he led her downstairs to the Sparta City Jail. "I don't want him tryin' to talk you into something."

Paige snickered. "Those days are long, long gone, Bubba. If he wants to talk to me so all fired bad, then I'll talk to him. With him on the other side of the bars, as it should be."

"You've got a point, there," he answered. "I'll be right outside if you need me," he said before opening the door to the jail cells.

"Never figured otherwise," Paige replied and gave him a quick kiss. She walked through the open door to Corey's cell. She stood in front of it. "All right. Speak your piece."

He jumped up and looked around. "But this isn't private enough," he whined.

Paige dragged a folding chair to the cell and sat down. "This is as private as it's gonna get. Say what you have to say now. This is it."

Corey looked taken aback, but got his chair as close to her as he could. "Paige darlin', you know I love you, don't you?" When she didn't respond, he said, "I do! I know I made a lot of mistakes, but I'm sorry. I want you back. Please. It'll be different this time. I promise!"

"So the horrible things you said to me in the newspaper lobby on Friday afternoon… All that was… what?"

"I was just so upset! You make me say things like that! I wouldn't say them if you didn't make me say them!" Clearly, he thought he was making some kind of headway.

"I didn't make you say a damn thing."

"You told me you didn't want to talk to me and you didn't even want to look at me! How can you say those things to someone you care about? I wouldn't say them if you didn't say awful things to me!" His tone was becoming more wheedling, but Paige was immune - and had been.

"I'm not arguing with you. Say what you need to say."

"And what then?"

"Then I leave to go to work." Her voice was icy.

He looked stricken. "But what about us?" What a fraud he was, Paige thought.

"You say whatever it was that you wanted to say to me."

He paused a moment. Regrouping, Paige knew. He wasn't used to having anyone tell him no. His face turned crafty. "You owe me, Paige. You know you do."

She nodded. "I thought you might bring that up. So I have my list, signed by your attorney and mine." She took a sheet of folded paper from her purse and shook it out. "Alrighty. Let's see. I returned all the jewelry you gave me: wedding ring, engagement ring, diamond choker and bracelet, diamond circle pendant, sapphire cocktail ring. I returned the car keys and title to the BMW. I moved out of the house at my own expense. I sold my wedding gown and most of my bridal shower gifts to pay you back the costs of the honeymoon. I returned all the wedding gifts to you. All the clothing you bought me that was unworn - which was most of it - I returned to your attorney, with the tags still on the garments. My attorney had my name removed from all the accounts. My accounts now are mine only. I didn't ask for any alimony, and my lawyer made sure I'm not named in any of your financial or estate papers. Your attorney signed off on all this. This document says I am released from any and all financial debts or obligations to you."

Bubba and Virgil were listening to the conversation on the jail intercom in the interview room. "She left that marriage broke and alone," Bubba growled.

"But even that must have been preferable to staying in a relationship with Corey Grayson," Virgil replied. Bubba nodded.

"So," Paige continued. "That about takes care of anything I owe you."

"What about the time? The time I invested in you?"

She shrugged. "Sorry about that. But it was only six months, so you didn't lose too much. And if you stop stalking me, you can spend the rest of your time doing whatever you want to do. Now, is there anything else?"

"You were my wife! You belonged to me!" he said, his tone getting a little more hysterical. Bubba went to the door of the jail.

"No, Corey. You can't own a person like you do a car. So. If you don't have anything else to say, here's what I say to you. Same thing I said at the newspaper: I don't love you. You don't love me. I don't want you. You don't want me. You just want to control me since I left you, and not the other way around. But we're done. Over. You won't change my mind. You won't manipulate me into giving you another chance, just so you can treat me like crap and then salve your ego by dumping me. But I tell you what: I'll tell the world you left me because I was a crazy psycho bitch. I don't mind saying it, if it'll make you leave me alone."

"I'll leave you alone on one condition." He was back to oily.

"I know I'll be sorry I asked, but what?" Paige said.

"You sleep with me one more time. Just once more. So you'll remember how good we were together."

Virgil had to hold Bubba back from the door.

Paige pinched the bridge of her nose. "No. I'll tell everyone I know you were a fabulous lover and dumped me because I stink in the bedroom, but no. I will not sleep with you again. Not if I have anything to say about it." She saw the gleam in his eyes. "And Corey, hear me when I tell you that if you try to rape me, that I'll be the one to hunt you down, and buster, I'll tie you up and make sure you have to piss through a tube the rest of your miserable life. And then, I'll slice your balls off, fry them up and eat them in front of you!"

At that, Virgil doubled over laughing, and Bubba chuckled. "Bubba, you'd better watch it!" Virgil said through gasps of laughter.

"I don't have to force a woman to do anything," he smugly replied and Virgil laughed again.

"So you think about that, Corey Grayson," Paige continued. "You think a long time about it, if you have any ideas at all about trying to force me to have sex with you. You want to keep your family jewels, you'll keep 'em in your britches, all zipped up." She stood and put the chair back at the desk.

"No, Paige! You need to give me another chance! You have to!"

She stood in front of him, hands on her hips. "Corey, I don't have to do a damned thing in my life, except stay white and die. Leave me alone. Stop looking for me. Stop trying to contact me. The answer will not change, and you can't make it change, no matter what you do or say. You're not gonna bamboozle me into getting messed up with you again. Once was more than enough. Stay away from me." And with that, Paige walked to the jail door and Officer Peake opened it for her. As she left, she heard one of the other inmates say, "Dude, I'd stay away from that chick! She meant what she said."

"You're damn right I meant what I said," she muttered, only to look up into Bubba's smiling face. "You heard all that?"

"I sure did," he said, chuckling. "I don't know about that knothead ex of yours, but I took you seriously!"

"He ought to. I was serious. I'll castrate him."

Bubba's grin widened. "And that's just what he deserves."

Virgil came out of the interview room, still snickering. "Paige, I don't know when I've been so entertained." He looked toward the jail door. "He's a head case. He needs a padded room somewhere."

"I couldn't agree more, Virgil," Paige said. "And I don't think for one second that's the last I've heard from him. He didn't want to talk to me to say whatever he felt was unsaid. He was just trying to manipulate me into doing what he wanted me to do. Well, those days are over!"

"Which is how it oughta be," Bubba answered. "If I could just legally get my hands on him for about 30 seconds, I guarantee he'd never bother you again."

"Bubba…" was Virgil's warning tone.

"I said legally, didn't I? I'd just like a chance to be - creative - for a little while. That's all."

That made Paige and Virgil laugh as they walked up the stairs back to the station. The Chief saw them and waved them into his office. "Well, did that solve anything? Did he say what he wanted to say?"

Paige rolled her eyes. "He didn't really want to say anything, Chief. He just wanted to play with my mind for a little while."

"Well, did he? Play with your mind?"

She shook her head. "Nope. Not for a hot second. If he told me the sky was blue, I'd know it had turned green on us."

"Fine, fine," the Chief said with a chuckle. "That's what I like to hear. Bubba, if he gets out in the next two or three days, you and the crew keep an eye on him. A close eye, y'hear?"

"Yes, sir, we sure will," Bubba assured his Chief.

As Bubba and Paige walked out the front door, he asked, "You OK? I know he was pretty obnoxious."

She grinned at him. "I can handle obnoxious. Just make sure you fumigate his cell when he bonds out. And de-slime the floor. It's gonna need it."

Bubba threw his head back laughing at that. "Paige, darlin', you're just too much."

Paige was finishing up a chicken casserole for supper. She thought Bubba might come by, but didn't know for sure. She had the ingredients for the casserole, and if he didn't come for supper, she'd just pack the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. She took the dish out of the oven and left it to sit for a few minutes, when there was a knock on the door. Paige started until she remembered Corey was in jail until at least the next day.

She went to the door and checked the peephole. She smiled. It was Bubba. She unlocked and opened the door. "Hey hon. Come on in. I've got supper almost ready. You're just in time."

His expression was grateful. "I shouldn't expect that of you, Paige."

She rolled her eyes. "I was gonna cook anyway. Now I don't have to eat alone. Take off your coat and come on into the kitchen. I'll just bring out the salad. Sweet tea?" He nodded.

As they sat down to eat, Paige asked, "What's going on, Bubba? Something's up."

He sighed heavily. "Just a case that came up this afternoon. We got called out to a child abuse case." His face was sad. "It was just awful."

"I'm so sorry, Bubba. I know those are bad. Were you able to get the child out of the home?"

"Yeah. That poor kid. I don't know if he'll ever be right. It's gonna take a long time."

Paige reached across the table and took his hand. "Well, at least he's out now. And he knows that someone in the police department cares about him."

Bubba gave her a small smile. "Yeah, I guess so." He continued eating. "At least having a good supper helps. Is there anything you can't cook?"

She chuckled. "Lots of things. But I'm not afraid to try new recipes, and I've kind of surprised myself a few times. Not everything works out, but my winning percentage is pretty good."

"Well, anytime you need somebody to test your experiments, you know where to find me."

"I'll remember that," she replied and grinned. "You're about finished. Go on into the den and watch a little TV, if you want to. I'm just gonna load the dishwasher and put the leftovers up. Be there in just a couple of minutes."

"OK." He stood. "Everything was delicious, like always. Thank you."

"Thank you!" She gave him a peck on the lips and motioned to the den.

When she got into the den, the TV was on, but Bubba was sound asleep on the sofa. She snuggled next to him and he automatically put his arm around her shoulders. He cared so deeply, Paige thought. No wonder he'd been hurt so many times, and no wonder he was so leery about getting into another relationship. Anita had talked to Althea Tibbs, who naturally knew about most of Bubba's past girlfriends since she and Virgil had been in Sparta. And she shared the information with Paige. Some of his exes had really screwed him over. It was especially sad because she knew Bubba would never treat a woman that way. It just wasn't in his nature. He was protective and had his own ways of dealing with the female gender, not all of which Paige agreed with, but he wasn't into mind games, and he was honest and clear as spring water. But some women just thought it was good fun to use those protective instincts to their advantage and then drop him like a rock because they didn't think he was smart enough, or sophisticated enough to suit them.

He woke and held her close, kissing the top of her head. "That's one of the worst cases I've seen since I've been on the force. You all will probably have it in the paper in the next day or two."

"You know I'll respect that child's privacy," Paige answered.

He sighed. "I shouldn't even worry you with this kind of thing. Not when you've got enough on your plate already," Bubba said, and made as if to stand.

"Sit yourself back down, Bubba Skinner," Paige answered. She knelt in front of him on the sofa and took his hands in hers. "Listen to me. You're always taking care of everyone else. Me. The Chief. A crime victim. Time for someone to take care of you for a change. And hon, if it bothers you, I want to know about it. You have a stressful job. You need to talk to someone about it. If I can't deal with it right then, I'll let you know, OK?" He nodded and Paige moved back to the sofa beside him. "And I know you're not comfortable talking about how you feel. I get it. It's hard for you. But holding it all in is no good, either. I don't think you're less than a man, Bubba. You're more of one for having these feelings." She climbed in his lap, a knee on either side of his thighs, put her arms around him and her head on his shoulder.

Bubba put his arms around Paige and wondered how in the world he managed to find this woman. He held her close to his chest, feeling her warmth and softness against him, but knowing inside, there was steel. She was a tough lady in a lot of ways. But she melted to him when he kissed her and was all heat and sugar when they were in the bedroom. He didn't understand it. There was a lot he didn't understand about her. Mostly why she wasted any time on him. "You're a good woman, Paige Pepper."

"And you're a good man, Bubba Skinner. Your Mama didn't name you Bubba. What's your given name?" she asked.

"Bubba does fine for me," he said.

She laughed. "Obviously. But what's on your driver's license?"

He reached to his wallet, opened it and drew out his license. He handed it to her.

"V.L. Skinner? That's it? No names to go with those initials?" Naturally, his photo was sexy. Her driver's license made her look like a psychotic rat.

"There's names that go with them. I just don't use them," he rumbled.

"Apparently." She returned his ID. "Will you ever tell me?"

"Maybe. One of these days." He cleared his throat.

Paige laughed. "You forget I'm a reporter and finding information is what I do for a living? I can find your birth certificate."

"Can we drop this line of conversation?"

She could tell he was extremely uncomfortable with the subject, so she replied, "Sure. You want to hit the sack? I think we've both had a long day."

He nodded. "Yeah. Too long. You go on and I'll make sure everything is locked up."

"All right." She kissed him softly.

She was almost asleep when Bubba got into bed and snuggled to her. With his arms around her, Paige dropped into a dreamless sleep.

Judge Culley looked like a cartoon character sitting at the judge's bench. Short, wizened, with purple plastic glasses half as big as his head, he did look a little like a real-life version of Mr. Magoo. Bubba always grinned inwardly when he saw Judge Culley on the bench. But there was nothing comical about the way he ruled on cases.

He peered at Corey Grayson, whose fancy Atlanta lawyer had arrived and was standing next to him. Tackett Howell, of Howell, Howell, Bledsoe, and Tucker, Attorneys-at-Law, was tired of his reckless client. There were just too many restraining orders on him, although his client's stalking of Paige Pepper was the most annoying.

"Mr. Howell," said Judge Culley. "You have a problem on your hands. Some judges don't take restraining orders too seriously. I'm not one of them. I'm of the opinion that, if someone goes to the trouble of filing an order against someone, there are probably solid grounds for it. And several people have gone to that trouble with your client - and a few of them are from the complainant today."

"My client has not harmed the complainant in any way," Howell said.

"Phooey!" Culley snapped. "He's a menace to society. He ought to be locked up in a mental hospital."

"Objection, Your Honor!" Howell said, outraged - even though he felt the same way. Bubba sat in the back, chuckling. When he saw Judge Culley had this case and the arraignment hearing, he was tickled. Culley had long since stopped caring what he said in open court, and he was no respecter of persons. He didn't have to be.

"Shut up, Mr. Howell. I know you have to put up some kind of defense. Now then. Mr. Grayson. What's wrong with you? You can't let this relationship go because YOU didn't end it? I know who you are. You're a spoiled, entitled, trust fund brat, and you've been unsupervised for much too long. You can't deal with the word 'no'. Well, here's a newsflash for you. The lady has said 'no' to you more than once, and by God, you're going to respect that no here in Sparta, Mississippi! I'd advise you to leave town and not come back, in fact."

"My family will take care of you!" Grayson shot back.

Judge Culley laughed out loud. "Your family doesn't care two cents about me! If they had any real sense, they'd cut you off so you'd have to work fast food, but they have no interest in anything you do, especially if it's criminal. And now, you have a charge of reckless driving and reckless endangerment you also say you're innocent of. Reckless endangerment is a Class A misdemeanor, Mr. Grayson, although it probably should be a felony. So I have the pleasure of deciding what to do with you until a trial can be held."

"I ask that my client be released on bail, Your Honor," Howell said.

Judge Culley cackled again. "Of course, you do. And while he's awaiting trial, he can bother the citizens of Sparta who don't kowtow to him. So here's the deal. If he pleads guilty and immediately - and I mean right now - leaves Sparta, and doesn't contact anyone in town for any reason, I'll accept the guilty plea and will suspend his sentence, and he's free to go. However, if he sets foot in the city limits again, or violates that restraining order, all bets are off and he spends six months in jail and pays a $6,000 fine. And just to make sure everything is done in decency and order, so to speak, I'm asking two Sparta Police Officers to escort your client to his hotel, allow him to pack and settle his bill, and then follow him to the city limits, and make sure he leaves. Is that acceptable to you, Mr. District Attorney?"

Darnell nodded. "That's fine, Your Honor. We just want him out of our town."

"We're in agreement, then. Mr. Howell, does your client wish to change his plea in exchange for this leniency? Otherwise, I assure you I'll have him in jail until his trial. I don't trust him not to do something equally stupid if he's out on bail."

There was a spate of angry whispering between Howell and Corey. It ended with Corey sulking in his chair and Howell stood. "Your Honor, my client accepts those conditions and changes his plea to guilty."

"Excellent. The clerk will file the paperwork. And Lieutenant Skinner, I trust you'll handle sending two officers with him."

Bubba stood. "I'll take care of it, Your Honor."

"That's what I like to hear. But remember, Mr. Grayson: Sparta is off limits to you if you want to stay out of jail. Mr. Howell, please attempt to impress on your client the seriousness of his situation. I can tell he doesn't understand the law applies to him too, but it does. Please try to help him understand he will face the full sentence for his misdemeanor if he comes back."

"I will, Your Honor," Howell said with a sigh.

"I don't envy you. Court is adjourned." Judge Culley banged his gavel and left the room for his chambers.

Bubba went forward, shook Darnell's hand and looked at Howell. "I'll meet your client in front of the courthouse when the paperwork's finished."

Howell nodded and Bubba grinned evilly at Corey. "I'm gonna supervise your exit from town myself." He left to wait on Grayson. If only he could have five unsupervised minutes with him, he knew Corey would find it very educational.

Bubba and Officer Peake waited outside the hotel while Corey packed and loaded up his car. When Tackett went to get a soda from the lobby machine, Bubba turned to Grayson and put his nose within an inch of Corey's. "Don't you come back here. I'll track you down, and I'll make sure you leave in an ambulance - or a hearse. And I'll promise it'll be ruled self-defense. So don't try me, boy. There's nothing I'd like better than to take you apart and let the buzzards have you. So if you want to stay healthy, then stay out of Sparta. And you sure as hell better stay away from Paige Pepper. Don't you call her, send her any mail, or anything else. Nothin' else. Y'hear me?"

Corey saw something in the lieutenant's eyes that made even his depraved heart turn to water. It was a certain death warrant. He turned away without a word. Bubba just raised an eyebrow.

Bubba breathed a small sigh of relief when he saw Grayson's car leave Newman County. But he wasn't letting his guard down. He knew this wasn't the last he'd seen of Corey Grayson. But at least there was a suspended sentence in the offing if he came back.

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