“Nothing,” Jack took a long drink. “Abby’s winning. Our little honey is downright mean, Sam. You had best follow that three-beer dictate of hers, or she’ll pile drive you. Where the hell did she learn that move?”
Melissa pulled out of the hold and reached out to snatch at Abby’s hair. Abby yelped, but then kicked out perfectly with her heel and Melissa went flying.
Sam watched his future wife pull another female up by her hair. A warmth flooded him. She was really pretty when she was fighting.
“And think about it, Sam,” Jack continued. He was watching Abby with a content grin. “She’s doing all it with a plug up her ass.”
Sam’s breath caught. Jack was right. “She is one hell of a woman.”
“And she’s all ours,” Jack said with a satisfaction Sam couldn’t mistake. He felt the same.
In the distance, Sam heard a familiar noise. Sam quickly calculated the distance and figured they didn’t have long.
Jack hopped off his barstool. He looked back at David Sandberg, who had a look of complete shock on his face. The Barn had seen its share of bar fights, but nothing like this, Sam knew.
“Tally up the damage and send me the bill, Dave,” Jack said with a wink. “The cops are coming. I’ll collect Abby. You tell Mike he needs to get Christa out of here, or we’ll be posting bail.”
Jack walked over to Abigail and tossed an arm around her waist, hauling her off her screaming blonde opponent.
“Hey, I wasn’t done with her!” Abby yelled as she was carted out like a piece of luggage.
Jack laughed. “You’re done for now, warrior princess. Sam’s honor has been avenged. It’s time to call it a night.”
Sam ran ahead. He helped Mike pull his wife off a crying Leslie. Christa laughed when Jack caught up to them. Even though they hustled, Sam noticed Abby and Christa seemed satisfied with the chaos they had wrought.
“Abby Moore’s back.” Christa made the pronouncement with a hearty fist pump.
Sam laughed. He opened the door. Even from her position over Jack’s shoulder, she replied with an arrogant grin. “You tell this town they ain’t seen nothing yet!”
Sam couldn’t wait to see what she’d come up with next.
Chapter Nine
Abby sat up in the backseat of the Jeep as Jack turned onto the two lane highway where her mother’s trailer was located. Abby hadn’t been swayed by Jack’s arguments. Try as he might, he hadn’t been able to convince Abby to come home with them. She had been determined to get back to her mother and had promised they would work out the details tomorrow. All of this was decided in between Sam attempting to seduce her in the back of the Jeep. He didn’t seem to be following the conversation she was having with Jack. He was intently concentrating on rubbing her nipples and nibbling on her ear.
“You’re putting off the inevitable,” Jack claimed.
Abby sighed when Sam kissed a very sensitive spot behind her earlobe. “I can’t just leave her alone, Jack, and I can’t uproot her without any warning. Let me talk to her. She was very clear that she approved of the two of you, so it might not be as hard as I think to convince her to move.”
Even in the dark she could see the smoke pouring out from somewhere up ahead. Abby rolled the window down and was assaulted by the acrid smell of burning wood and plastic. Up ahead, she could see a police barricade across the road. The fog of the smoke made the red and blue lights appear eerie, and Jack slowed down the car. Abby got a horrible feeling in her gut.
“Stop, Sam. Something’s wrong.” Abby pushed him away. The minute the Jeep rolled to a stop in front of the barricade, she opened the door.
She heard Sam call out behind her, but she was running towards the lights. The rest of her neighbors were out of their homes, clutching robes around their necks and passing coffee around. Abby ran past them because it was obvious now where the fire was.
Abby hit the police line just in time to watch the volunteer fire department putting out the last of her mother’s smoldering home. Fire had gutted the small trailer, and there was almost nothing left. A cry came from her mouth. It hadn’t been much, but she had grown up in that trailer. She looked around wildly for her mother. Had she been in the trailer?
Sam’s firm hands came around her, holding her. He pointed to a spot a few feet away. “Abigail, your mother is right there, talking to the fire chief.”
Abby felt a real physical relief flood her body when she caught sight of her mother shakily talking to the fire chief. Abby could see her mother’s eyes were swollen from crying, and even as Abby made her way over, she could see the strain on her mother’s face. Her mom looked up and held out her arms as she saw Abby walking toward her.
Sam let Abby go, and she ran the last few feet into her mother’s arms.
“What happened?” Abby hugged her frail mother. It struck her just how much her recent illness had taken out of her mom.
“I don’t know.” Her mom’s voice was shaky. “It was already on fire when I got here. Juan and his wife kindly took me out for a late cup of coffee at the café. Oh, Abby, if they hadn’t…”
The fire chief, who Abby remembered was named Eric Thompson, looked on the women with compassion. “Hello, Abigail. I’m sorry about this. It’s a total loss. Mrs. Moore, do you have insurance?”
Abby heard her mother’s quiet no. She felt tears start to fall. Everything her mother had was in that trailer. It was all gone now. She shook at the thought of having to start all over again at her mother’s age.
“The Red Cross has a shelter in Tyler that can take you in,” Eric said.
“Don’t worry about the Moore women.” Jack strode up. Abby looked at him. He was a big, reassuring presence. “I’ll take care of them. You want to explain to me what happened here?”
The fire chief looked relieved at having an unemotional man to talk to. While Jack dealt with the realities of the situation, Abby felt Sam’s presence at her back. His hands found their way around her waist.
“It’s going to be all right, Abby,” Sam promised. “Jack will take care of the formalities. Just let him take care of you. It’s what he does. Don’t worry about a thing. It’s just moves up our plans.”
Her mother looked up at Sam. “What plans?”
Sam smiled down. He released Abby’s waist and reached out to take her mother’s hands in his. Abby was grateful for his abundance of charm. Sam was able to calm her mother down. “Abby agreed to marry Jack tonight. She’s moving in with us, and we’re moving you into the guest house. You’ll have everything you need, Mrs. Moore. We’re going to make sure of it. I know we can’t replace pictures or memories, but don’t you worry a bit that you won’t have a roof over your head. You have a home with your daughter. We will always take care of her and the people she loves.”
“You’re a good man, Sam Fleetwood.” Her mother sniffled into a tissue. “I would be very proud to stay in the guest house.”
Jack walked back over, his expression grim. “They think it was faulty wiring. We won’t know for certain until the report is finished. It could be a week or so.” Jack cupped Abby’s face in his hands. “Are you all right, sweetheart?”
Abby nodded and threw her arms around Jack’s waist, loving his quiet strength. She would always be able to depend on him. “I’m fine. Can we go home, now?”
He kissed the top of her head, and Sam began to help her mom toward the Jeep. “Yes, there’s nothing we can do here. Let’s get you home and get your mama settled in. It’s going to be all right, Abigail.”