"It's hard for me to believe that."

"Why?"

She shrugged, turned in his arms and leaned against the truck, tipping her head up as if to search the stars for an answer. "You were always the guy I fantasized about. The one I knew I could never have. Way out of my league."

"I was too shallow back then to know a good woman from a bad one, Kara. Believe me, I know the difference now."

"That doesn't matter so much, though. I mean, you can't decide who you're attracted to. It just happens." She swallowed hard. "Handsome men aren't usually attracted to me. I keep thinking this is just too good to be true. And then when Mom said your...your wife was in town, I thought that was it. I was right, it was too good to be true. You were married."

He shook his head slowly. She wasn't looking at him but at the stars. He was looking at her, though, in profile. She had no idea just how beautiful she was, did she? "That hurt you. I hurt you. I'm sorry, Kara. I swear, I'm going to do my best not to let that happen again."

She closed her eyes.

"I want you in my life. In Tyler's life."

Her eyes popped open, and she turned her head, staring at him in what looked like shock.

"I know it's too soon for that, but it doesn't seem like it is. It makes perfect sense to me. You and me and Tyler-we make sense, Kara. Don't you think?"

She licked her lips nervously. "I...it doesn't feel like it's too soon to me either," she said. She spoke slowly, haltingly, thinking her words through before speaking them. "But it is. We both know it is, Jimmy. I mean...there are so many things to think about, to talk about...."

There were, he knew that. But Tyler adored this woman, and she would do anything for him. Nothing else mattered. Nothing. He'd work through whatever problems there were. "I know."

"No," she said. "I don't think you do." She met his eyes. "I don't want to leave Big Falls, Jimmy. I love it here. It's my home. My family is here, my new business. I'm just starting to make my own way here. To find my footing. And you, your life is in Chicago. Your career, your home, your friends. It might as well be on Mars. A big city. God, I could never-"

"Okay, okay. I'm moving too fast, coming on like gangbusters, and I've got your head spinning. I'm sorry, honey. I'm sorry." He ran a hand through her hair, saw the panic taking hold in her eyes. "Take a breath."

She did. "And then there's your ex-wife. A drug addict, for God's sake, involved with a criminal. I mean, I don't know if I could handle having a person like that in our lives."

He smiled. "I like when you say 'our lives.'" She didn't smile, though, so he wiped the smile off his face. "I'm not dismissing your concerns. They're real and they're valid. But Angela is one thing you don't have to worry about. She's not a part of my life orTyler's."

"But, Jimmy, she's his mother." She drew another deep breath. "Maybe she just needs help. Maybe she could get clean, go to rehab, change her ways."

"She doesn't want to change."

"A child needs a mother, Jimmy."

He met her eyes. "I know that." Which was precisely why he was here, he thought. But he didn't say it aloud and he hoped to God it didn't show in his eyes. "I've dumped too much on you," he said. "After the scare of learning Skinny Vinnie might be in town and then all this..." He shook his head. "You know, chances are Vinnie isn't any threat at all to Tyler. Hell, I can't even be sure he's a threat to me. Maybe C.B. met a girl and took off for a fling. It wouldn't be the first time. Vinnie and Ang might have just come down here to try talking me into changing my testimony again. Maybe even offering me a bribe this time."

Kara nodded. "But you don't really believe that, do you?"

His lips thinned. Damn, she was a little too insightful. "It's possible."

"But not likely. If he wanted to offer you a bribe, Jimmy, he could have done it over the phone."

He nodded. "I hate that this is happening now. That it's having a negative impact on what's been growing between us."

"It's not," she said. "Nothing's going to have any impact on you and me but you and me. I won't let it."

He pulled her close and kissed her again. "You're one special woman, Kara Brand."

"I never thought so. But you're starting to make me feel like one."

Hell, he thought as he hugged her close. He was a real bastard. Because she was special and she deserved a hell of a lot more than this. A man who wanted her only because she'd be the perfect mother for his son. A man who didn't really love her. Who wasn't capable of loving her.

She deserved so much more.

But Tyler deserved a woman like Kara. And even Kara agreed with him-Tyler came first. He'd be good to her, he promised himself. He'd treat her like gold, give her everything she could ever want.

Except love, a little voice inside whispered.

Hell, love wasn't all that important anyway. He'd loved Angela. Look where that had ended up. Love didn't matter.

Tyler mattered. Tyler was the only thing that mattered.

Chapter 8.

Jim was prepared to spend the night sitting up, watching the house. It wasn't like he was going to be able to sleep anyway, with Ang in town up to God only knew what and that slimebag Vinnie more than likely with her. And Colby missing. Damn, he wished he knew where his friend was. He'd tried calling his cell phone again, just as he'd tried every hour or so since Colby had left. But it was no good.

He should be out there. He should be searching for Colby himself. But dammit, he couldn't leave Tyler and he couldn't drag his son along. Not while there was any risk at all. So he had to settle for phoning the chief for an update.

"Stay put, Corona," Chief Wilcox told him. "We've got officers combing three counties for Benton. His photo and a description of the Blazer, complete with the plate number, have hit every law-enforcement agency in the area, and tonight they made TV news, as well."

"Still-"

"Still nothing. We've circulated photos and information on Vinnie and Ang as well. Not for the press, though. We don't want to tip them off too fast. But trust me, Corona, we've got this covered. We're gonna find Benton one way or another. And you leaving your kid alone and putting yourself at risk isn't going to change the outcome anyway. So sit tight."

He nodded, hating that his chief was right. "Okay."

"You secure there?"

Yeah, as long as I don't sleep, he thought. Aloud he said, "Yeah, we're good." He would see about getting some better locks on this place tomorrow. For now he had every door and window closed and locked. The bedroom where Tyler slept had only one window, and he'd moved a two-hundred-pound hardwood armoire in front of it for added security.

He'd left Tyler's light on, the bedroom door open. He never moved far enough away to break his line of sight to his son. They'd be all right.

"I'll talk to you in the morning then," the chief said.

Jim said good-night and rang off. Then he kept his lonely vigil over his son for another hour and a half without incident, sitting in a hard-back chair he'd dragged in from the kitchen so he wouldn't get too comfortable and nod off. The chair was tipped back on two legs, propped by his feet on a coffee table. His sidearm was in his lap. He thought he probably looked like an overreactive drama king, but he'd rather look like an idiot than risk an unexpected visit from Vinnie Stefano.

Around ten a knock on the door startled him into sitting up straight, feet and all four chair legs hitting the floor at once. A key scraped in the lock. He came to his feet, gun in his hand, barrel down. His forefinger moved without conscious command, nudging the safety off.

The door swung open and Kara Brand stepped inside. She stopped and eyed him, then his gun, then him again. She'd changed clothes, was dressed more casually now in jeans and a sweater. She nodded at him as she dropped her house keys back into her jeans pocket. "Good," she said. "I was afraid you'd think I was overreacting." Then she reached outside the door, retrieving a shotgun from where she'd leaned it against the side.

He felt his eyes widen but said nothing as she hefted a satchel in her other hand and dropped it just inside the door. Then she closed the door and locked it.

"I didn't expect to see you again until tomorrow," he told her, not quite sure what to say. This was not a side of Kara Brand he'd seen or even suspected might lurk underneath her tender surface.

She shrugged and brought the shotgun across the room, took a seat on the sofa and leaned it nearby. "You probably aren't going to like this any better than Mom. But I'm here to stay."

He tilted his head to one side. "So what's not to like?" He crossed the room and picked up the satchel she'd dropped, then carried it up the stairs and put it in the second bedroom. Colby's stuff was still in the first one, and Colby was coming back.

He paused to look into Colby's room, bit his lip, then forced the emotion back down and headed down the stairs again.

"I take it you didn't bring the shotgun to keep me in line."

She smiled just a little. "Not likely."

He met her eyes, and a spark passed between them. But then she broke the contact, hefted the gun and tossed it to him. He caught it easily, knowing even before he checked that it wasn't loaded. Kara was too intelligent to toss a loaded shotgun.

It was a nice old gun, a classic, he thought. Twenty-gauge Ithaca, pump action. Held five shells. Black barrel, rich glossy hardwood stock. It had been freshly cleaned, still smelled of gun oil. He nodded his approval and tossed it back to her. "What did you bring for ammo?"

"Slugs. Hollow-points. Someone comes sniffing around you or Tyler, I don't plan to play games with birdshot."

There was a hint of ferocity in her eyes that he had never seen before. "You're full of surprises, you know that?"

"You didn't think I had a mean bone in my body, did you?" She shrugged. "Most people don't."

"You know how to use that thing?"

Her smile spread wider. "My mama made sure her girls could take care of themselves, Jimmy. Every one of us learned to shoot by the age of ten. I never miss." She gave the gun a half pump, drawing the wooden pump down low, which opened the chamber. Then she set a slug in front of her on the coffee table. With the gun in that position, she could slam the slug directly into the chamber, jerk the action upward again and fire. It would save a step. She knew what she was doing.

He pursed his lips as he thought about the possibility that Vinnie might actually show up here. About the nightmare image of a shoot-out with Tyler, and Kara Brand-sweet, shy, giving Kara Brand-in the middle of it. The thought made his stomach convulse.

"Kara, um, I'm not real sure I'm comfortable with this."

"No, I didn't think you would be once you gave it some thought." She looked toward the stairway. "Which bedroom are you using?"

"I'm staying in Ty's room or on the sofa, close enough to hear him."

"That's a good idea. I was going to if you weren't."

"I put your things in the second bedroom. Colby's been using the first."

"Good, I wouldn't want to put Colby out," she said as if there was no question about whether he was coming back. "But maybe after tonight I can stick a cot down here."

"No."

She met his eyes, didn't argue. Didn't ask why not. Maybe she knew deep down that he'd be too damn distracted if she was sleeping that close to him.

"I was thinking...tomorrow we should put some better locks on this place. And maybe we can start looking for a dog."

"A dog?" He'd just been marveling at how much her thoughts mirrored his own-right up to the part about the dog, which he hadn't even considered.

"We need a good dog," she said. "I know Ty wants a puppy, but I'm hoping we can take him to the pound and convince him to fall for an adult dog. One that will bark if anyone comes around."

"I thought I told you the chances they're going to try anything are slim."

"Which is why you're sitting in the dark with a .45 in your lap, right?"

He shrugged.

"So chances are slim," she said. "We do whatever we can to make them even slimmer." She nodded toward the window. "Caleb's parked outside, just so you know. He'll be there for three hours, then Wade comes and takes over from one until four. Edie's taking the four-to-seven shift."

"They don't have to do all that."

"They want to do all that. The shifts will get shorter once Mel and Alex get back. They're due in tomorrow morning, by the way. So have you called someone back in Chicago to find out where things stand?"

He glanced at the clock. "Did that as soon as I got Ty settled into bed. My chief says they've got every cop in three counties on this. They all have photos of Colby, as well as Ang and Vinnie's mug shots. Colby's face showed up on the TV news tonight."

"Maya told me. She saw it."

He nodded, still uneasy. "Kara, if this guy is dangerous, I'd really feel better keeping you out of the line of fire."

"I know that. But Tyler's more important, don't you think? And the more of us here watching him, the better."

"Still..." He sighed and tried another tack. For some reason he just wanted her safe in her own home, away from him-far enough away that Angela's sickness and Vinnie's filth couldn't touch her. "There's more than just that to consider, Kara."

She was walking up the stairs now, so he followed. She stood just inside the bedroom door, eyeing the place. It was a usable room, clean, freshly painted. It had been his own room as a kid. It made him feel odd to see her standing there in what had been his bedroom. She moved to where he'd put her bag on the bed, bent to unzip it and yanked out a bundle that included fresh sheets.

"What else is there to consider?" she asked him as she tossed the bag aside and began to make the bed.

He got on the other side to help her. "Tyler. He's...he's getting attached to you, Kara. If you move in..."

She lifted her eyes to his. God, they were pretty. "I'll make sure he knows from the beginning that it's only temporary, Jimmy. I promise, I won't let him get his hopes up for anything more."

"It's probably already too late for that," he told her. He swallowed, his throat suddenly dry. "God knows, I've already built my hopes pretty high that there will be something more. How can I expect him to do any different?"

She looked at him, her eyes wide with surprise. Then he swallowed hard, lowered his head and told himself that was the wrong thing to say to get rid of her. But hell, he didn't want to get rid of her. Not really, not down deep.

They got the sheets on the bed and he straightened. "This was my room. My entire childhood, this was my haven."

"Really?" She looked around.

He nodded toward the closet. "I used to pretend that was a fort. Sometimes I slept in there, but only with the door open."

She went to the closet, opened it and looked inside. "I don't blame you. It's not very big." Jim moved to stand beside her, laid his hand over hers on the door. She lifted her eyes to his.

"It means a lot, you coming over here like this. Your family..." He stopped there, shook his head. It really did mean a lot. Enough so his throat was getting tight.

"We care about Tyler. And about you, Jim. We wouldn't want to be anywhere else."