Chapter 18

Smokin' Hot Feeb

Winona tip-toed downstairs, asking Gayle to keep an ear open for Willa. She and her sister had made up the inflatable mattress. A queen size, it was bed height and very firm, much more comfortable than she imagined it would be. The only thing that was missing was Raylan.

She made her way into the den where her father was snoring in the recliner. He sometimes slept there. It didn't look that comfortable, but he hated the hospital bed they'd brought in, and at this stage, she felt he could sleep whatever he wanted. She looked over and saw Raylan stretched out on the sofa, also sound asleep.

Softly, she walked over and knelt down beside him. "Hey, Cowboy," she whispered. "How about coming upstairs to bed with me?"

No response. Raylan was out but good.

"Did Daddy talk your ear off?" she asked, lightly brushing strands of hair off his forehead with her fingertips. "Or was it you who talked off his?"

Raylan remained asleep, breathing steady. She wistfully looked at him and smiled. He and her father had never been close, in all the years they were married. It did her heart good to think that Raylan would spend time with her dying father, especially after coming off such a long trip. Especially when she knew he had other things on his mind. She also knew he did it for her, and she loved him even more for it.

She walked over towards the window and pulled a blanket out of the storage chest. Walking back to the sofa, she gently pulled off Raylan's boots and covered him. Turning off the nearby lamp, she leaned down to kiss him and whispered, "You owe me one, Cowboy. Or maybe it's me who owes you."

-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-

"Coffee?" Gayle held up the carafe as Raylan stumbled into the kitchen the next morning.

"Please." He sank into a chair, massaging the back of his neck with one hand.

"Want some aspirin, too?" she asked, figuring he probably had a hangover.

"Got a crick in my neck," he complained. "Yeah. That'd be good."

Gayle set a cup in front of him. It was hot. "Sleeping on a couch will do that," she said, reaching up in the cabinet for the aspirin bottle and then, handing it to him. "But it was nice of you to watch over Daddy. Did he sleep all night?"

"Must've," Raylan yawned. Popping the cap off the bottle, he swallowed two caplets, dry. "He was still in the chair when I woke up. He's in the bathroom now. Wade's gonna check on him."

"I'm making scrambled eggs. Do you want some?"

"Yeah, that sounds good. Where's Winona?"

"Believe it or not, still asleep," Gayle chuckled. "Willa was up for a bit around five and when she went back down, Winona went back to bed."

"I don't blame her," Raylan said, stifling another yawn. "I'd love to join her, but I need to get into the office and talk to Art." He pulled out his cell phone. "I should text Anna, tell her I'll pick her up."

"You can shower in our bathroom if you don't want to wake Winona and the baby," she suggested, passing him a plate of steaming hot, soft scrambled eggs with a couple of slices of rye toast.

"Thanks," he said. "I might take ya' up on that." He finished up with his text. "Guess it's a good thing my bag's still out in the car. I fell asleep before bringin' it in last night."

Gayle joined him at the table with her own plate of eggs. But before taking her seat, she passed him one more thing. "I had a key to the house made for you. I know you came here to work on a case and your hours could be . . . unpredictable. You are welcome to come and go here, any time, day or night."

"Thank you," he said, looking down at the key in hand. He couldn't help but think about how things had changed between Gayle and him over all these years. "Gayle." He looked up. "I'm so sorry about Davis. I know how hard this is. On everyone."

Fighting back tears, she gulped down the lump in her throat. All she could do was nod.

Raylan leaned forward. "I can't promise I'll be here every night or at what time, but I'm happy to sit with him when I am here. He don't seem to mind me so much anymore."

Pushing a bite of eggs onto her fork, Gayle smiled. "He thinks he's got his own private marshal to get him out of scrapes with the fire department or whatever else he can stir up."

"Well . . . what else are son-in-laws for?" Raylan took another sip of his coffee with a little smile coming over his face. "It's the least I can do for him. Be his wing man."

Gayle chuckled. She had never seen this side of Raylan before. He let his guard down, or maybe she'd let down hers. At any rate, she could see why Winona liked him so much. When he was easy, he was easy to be around. "Just don't encourage him to kick up his heels too much."

"Just so ya' know, he's talking about takin' a road trip. To Nashville. To see some of his buddies one last time," Raylan recollected the prior night's conversation.

"Was this before or after going on his last big fishing trip?" she shook her head smiling. "God Bless, Daddy. His spirit is willing . . . but his body's not keeping up."

Raylan popped a big bite of eggs in his mouth, followed by a bite of toast. He washed it down with more coffee before speaking. "Yeah, he was talkin' about some golly whopper he was after that he never got to catch. Back in Nashville."

"Marrowbone Lake," she said wistfully. "We spent a lot of family vacations there growing up. That's where Winona learned how to swim. The hard way. After I pushed her into the lake."

"Really?" he said, his eyes squinted in disbelief. The two sisters had always seemed so close.

"Well, there was this boy," she admitted. "His name was Dana. I was eliminating my competition," she chuckled. "I thought if Dana knew that she couldn't swim, that would sink it for Winona. No pun intended."

"That was kinda mean. Wasn't it?" he sounded surprised.

"It was. But if it makes you feel any better, my adolescent plan backfired," she continued. "When she was floundering out there in the water, Dana jumped in to rescue her. And then, he spent the rest of the summer teaching her how to swim."

Raylan smiled. "Dana, huh?"

"Yes, Dana Richardson. Ask her about him." She had just thrown her brother-in-law a bone. There was a first time for everything.

-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-

"You're awful quiet," Raylan said as he easily maneuvered the Lincoln into the express lane headed for Lexington.

Anna sipped her coffee and shrugged. Part of her was bursting to tell Raylan her and Adam's news, but the other, more cautious part of her, sent up warning signals. She took another sip of coffee and decided it best to change the subject. "So, tell me about your office. You've mentioned Art, but I know you aren't the only Marshal in Lexington."

"Heh. No," Raylan chuckled. "There are four of us under Art, plus staff. Tim Gutterson, he's our sniper. Former Army Ranger. We get along, have each other's back, but I can't say I know him that well. He's kind of an enigma. He has a real dry sense of humor you'll appreciate. Then, there's Rachel Brooks. She's straight-up by-the-book, and an excellent Marshal. I work with her a lot. I think Art keeps hopin' she'll rub off on me."

That earned a smile from Anna. "Yeah, they assigned me a partner like that for a while."

"Did your partner rub off on ya'?" Raylan grinned.

"What do you think?" she returned the smile. She couldn't help but note his sense of humor was growing on her.

"Then, there's Nelson," Raylan returned to the office roll call. "He transferred in 'bout the same time I did. His wife's from Lexington. They've got twin girls. I think they're five. He's a by-the-book guy, too, but not as sharp as Rachel. She's gonna make Chief one day."

"Sounds like you have a lot of respect for her."

"Oh, I respect Tim and Nelson, too," Raylan said. "And they'd all have my back if need be. But yeah, Rachel's got what it takes."

Raylan pulled into the parking lot and parked the Lincoln. He then led Anna in through the back of the courthouse building, up the elevator, and into the Marshals Service offices.

"Well, well, well. Look what the cat drug in," Tim started in immediately, as if he'd been lying in wait. Flatly, he asked, "Did you bring me back a souvenir? Did you see the pandas?"

Raylan shook his head and smiled. "No and, uh, no. Deputy Marshal Tim Gutterson, may I introduce Special Agent Anna Rulé from the FBI? Anna is here from the task force, to work on the Arndt case."

"My pleasure," Tim said, looking the Agent up and down. She's fine, he thought to himself.

"Likewise," Anna nodded.

"Where's Rachel? Art?" Raylan asked.

"Not in, yet," Tim answered. "It's Rachel's turn to make the coffee run. Technically, it was your turn," he said to Raylan. "And it will be your turn every day for about a week. That ought to make us all square."

"The coffee here is lousy," Raylan explained to Anna. "We take turns bringing in some decent coffee for all."

Tim was preoccupied, texting. "Guess I better tell Rachel we need another one. How do you take yours, Anna?"

"Could I get a skinny latte?" Anna asked.

"You can get whatever you want," Tim said, still texting. "Raylan's buying."

"I'll buy hers, not yours," Raylan informed Tim.

-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-

"Engaged?!" Winona shrieked. Willa, startled, looked at her mother with wide eyes. Winona shifted her baby girl to her hip and hugged Adam. "I'm so happy for you both! I can't wait to see the ring."

Adam gave her a lopsided grin. "Well, my proposal was a bit spontaneous."

"There isn't a ring?"

"Not yet."

"Well," Winona said. "Wade and Gayle are taking Daddy to an appointment, and Mama is going to lunch with some friends she hasn't seen forever. That leaves Willa and I free to go ring shopping with you, and I know just the place to start."

An hour later, with Winona driving Wade's car, they headed for Winona's favorite jeweler, Rosenberg's, in Lexington. "I'll text Raylan and let him know we're here," she said, chattering away. "That way, if they get a break they can meet us for lunch." She smiled at Adam. "We can celebrate the good news."

Inside the store, Winona walked purposefully past the cases of watches, necklaces, and bracelets to a special case in the center of the room. "They do the most gorgeous work here," she said. "It's all done on site, not like the big mall jewelry stores."

A slim dark haired woman in a beige linen pantsuit approached them, smiling. "What a darling baby girl. Is there something I can help you with?"

Winona jabbed a finger at Adam. "HE needs an engagement ring. I'm just here for moral support and a second opinion."

"Oh?" The woman took a key from her pocket and unlocked the back of the cabinet, taking out a tray. "These are some of our newer designs. I especially like this one." She slipped a pear-shaped gem in a fancy gold setting onto her finger.

Adam shook his head. "Anna doesn't wear a lot of gold." The clerk showed him several others, and he dismissed each one. They were all beautiful, but this ring had to be perfect.

"What about this one?" Winona pointed to an emerald-cut stone in a modern-looking platinum setting. "That looks like Anna," She remarked. "It's feminine, but not fussy."

"Can I see that one?" Adam asked.

The woman slipped it out of the tray and placed it in Adam's outstretched palm. He gazed at it for a moment, then turned it over, glancing at the band and the underside of the stone.

"What's also nice about this ring is its smooth. It won't catch on her clothing or interfere with her work," Winona noted. A ring compatible with firearms. She remembered making the same considerations when she shopped for Raylan's ring, so long ago.

"How much?" he asked.

The woman recited the price from memory. "$5,200. That diamond is 1.25 carats and the setting is our finest. We are currently having a 10% off Founder's Day Sale, so that would bring it down to $4,600. Plus tax of course. Sizing is free."

To Winona's surprise, Adam didn't flinch at the price. "Can you hold it for me until this afternoon?" He asked. "I'd like to pay cash, and I need to find a branch of my bank here in town."

"Certainly, Sir." The woman smiled, thrilled at the prospect of making a big sale, and not on credit to boot.

While Adam filled out a slip with his name and cell-phone number, Winona continued to stare into the case. When she and Raylan married the first time, they did it on the fly at the courthouse in Salt Lake City, the week before he had to be at his new assignment in Dallas. There hadn't been time for an engagement, or money for a ring. They hadn't even gotten real wedding bands until their first anniversary. She still had hers, somewhere. She had no idea what happened to Raylan's.

Gary had gotten her a huge ring, of course, and for a while she'd enjoyed showing it off. But by the time Raylan came back into her life she'd stopped wearing it, seeing it for what it was, another of Gary's ostentatious displays of wealth he really didn't have.

"You want to get married again?" Adam said, sliding up beside her.

"Gah!" Willa reached down for the shiny objects in the case.

"I didn't think I'd ever want to do that again," Winona said. "But now..." she kissed the baby's soft cheek. "It doesn't seem like such a bad idea."

They turned to walk out of the store and Adam grinned at her. "Maybe I'll have to put a bug in Raylan's ear."

"Don't you dare!" Winona swatted at him with her free hand.

"I bet all he needs is a little push," Adam teased her. "He's obviously crazy about you."

"Crazy is a pretty apt word for our relationship at times, I'm afraid."

Adam held out his hands for the baby as Winona fished in her purse for the car keys. "Loving someone isn't always easy," he said. "If it was, there would be a lot fewer divorces."

Winona watched as he buckled Willa into the car seat, then slipped behind the wheel. She started the car then turned to look at Adam. "I haven't always made the best choices. Raylan isn't the easiest man to live with. Being a lawman has always come first."

"I can relate to that," he said, nodding.

"And the way he does his job, well," she sighed. "The day I told him I was pregnant he went off to Harlan to find this girl . . . Loretta . . . who had a gun and was going after the woman who killed her daddy. He wanted to stop her. He did stop her . . . probably saved her life . . . but he got himself shot in the process. All I could think about was that I'd come in second again, me and our baby. That was the second time I left him."

She realized she was going on, but it had been so long since she'd had someone, anyone besides Gayle, to talk to, especially someone who just might understand. "I came back, of course, when I heard he was shot. I stayed with him in the hospital, then back in the motel. I stayed with him, and Raylan talked about finding a house . . . acted like he wanted to settle down . . . but nothing ever came of it. So, I left him again."

Adam held up three fingers, and she nodded, blushing.

"So, why is this time different?"

"I don't know," she said, honestly. "But it is. Maybe what happened with those Detroit Mafia guys . . ."

"What happened?"

Winona pulled into the courthouse parking lot and circled until she found a spot. Turning to Adam she told him about Nicky Augustine and the shootout at Gayle's.

"Wow." Adam gave a low whistle when she was done. "I had no idea. What an awful thing to go through."

"It was." She pulled a lipstick off her purse and used the rear-view mirror to apply it. "I went to Miami to stay with Mama. Raylan came down when Willa was born. But after a week, he was back up here, and we didn't see him for almost five months. I got tired of it, and Art . . . that's Raylan's boss . . . suggested I come up and surprise him." She smiled. "And here we are."

-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-

Tim was lone man in the office when Winona and Adam came in.

"Hey," he said, barely glancing up from his computer. "You just missed Raylan. He and Rachel went down to Harlan to introduce the smokin' hot FBI Agent to Boyd Crowder." Under his breath, he added, "If she wasn't Raylan's sister, I'd would definitely hit that." He hit 'Send' on his e-mail, and his eyes lifted from the screen. "Who's your friend?"

"This is Adam Reeves, the smokin' hot FBI agent's fiancé." Winona chuckled. "Adam, this is Deputy Marshal Tim Gutterson."

Tim stood, extending his hand to Adam. "Ah, um, nice to meet you." He shrugged, grinning. "You're a lucky man.

"I am," Adam said, returning the grin. "Nice to meet you, too."

Winona cut though the awkward air by changing the subject and asking Tim, "So, you do think Anna really is Raylan's half-sister?"

"Uh. Yeah," Tim said, as if it was obvious.

(To be continued . . .)