All That Matters Read Free Page A

of the dresser drawers, there was a gun. A real gun, Buddy Lee, sticking out from under some of Royce’s socks. And a big bundle of money. Lots of it.” Fear widened her eyes. “There were some papers, too, but I didn’t get a chance to look at them.”
    He couldn’t stand to see her so afraid. This wasn’t a joke, after all. Something was definitely wrong here. Talk about a swamp full of ‘gators.   “What the hell was a gun and money doing in a sock drawer?   What did Royce say?”
    “When he came in the room, I was holding the money. I didn’t want to touch the gun, but he knew I’d seen it. He wouldn’t tell me where the money came from or why he had a gun.   I mean, I know it’s perfectly normal to have permits for guns, but I just didn’t want any in our home. Not with children around. I tried to reason with him, but he grabbed the money out of my hand, slammed the drawer shut and shoved me out of the room.” She shuddered, took a deep breath.
    “I’ve never seen him so angry, Buddy Lee. There was no reason for him to scare me like that. So when he refused to explain about the money and acted so strange when I asked about the papers, I told him I wanted to postpone the wedding. I had the craziest premonition that there was something really wrong about the whole situation.”
    A flash of fury whipped through him. Something bad was going on, no doubt about it. “What do you mean? What kind of premonition?”
    “I wasn’t really accusing him of anything,” she said, “but I know what his salary is at the bank. There was a lot more money in that drawer than he could’ve ever saved on what he makes. Big bills, too. And besides, he’d borrowed money from me in the past when he was between paychecks. We talked about how his upcoming promotion would help us financially. He had big plans for becoming an investment advisor.” Her deep breath turned into a shudder, and she had to wait a minute before continuing.
    “His anger was so unexpected. So frightening.   He flew into a rage and then I yelled back.” She made a weak gesture with her shoulders. “You know how I get sometimes.   Well, one word led to another. The next thing I knew, we were having a shouting match. That’s when he slapped me. Said I’d be sorry if I didn’t keep my mouth shut. He even threatened to shut me up permanently.”
    Her tears fell freely, and she swiped at them with the already-damp handkerchief. “There was no way I was going to tell him I carried his child. Not after that. So I just ran. Even forgot my car and...and, well, here I am.” She heaved a big sigh and ducked her head. “I’m really scared this time.”
    Then she pulled away and unbuttoned her blouse. Buddy Lee watched in stunned silence as it slid from her shoulders. What he saw turned his stomach.
    “ Awww , Faith, no,” he groaned.
    He didn’t consider himself a violent man, but the dark purple blotches and tell-tale scratches streaking across her soft skin made him want to smash his fist into Royce Webb’s face until he no longer felt this red-hot anger. Son. Of. A. Bitch.
    Gently, he moved her hands aside and fastened her blouse, taking care that his clumsy movements didn’t inflict more pain.   She was so fragile, so lovely. A sudden wave of tenderness surged through him and he felt his heart crack. It took him all of two seconds to make up his mind and the hell with anyone who tried to stop him.
    “Tell me what you need me to do, darlin ’,” he whispered.    Bending forward, he dared to touch his lips to her forehead.   Her shaky sigh as she leaned into his embrace threatened to tear his heart right from his chest.
    “Just marry me and be my baby’s daddy for now.”
    Her words were warm against his chest and adrenalin shot through his veins like a good slug of 150-proof. That was all he needed. He got to his feet, pulling Faith with him. Whatever had to be done, he’d do it to protect her. But he still had questions.
    “Are you