Double the Trouble (Texas Trouble 3) (11 page)

When they stopped by th
e door Karlie held up her hands and said
with a laugh
, "Whoa,
I've seen the inside of enough of these lately...let's take Freddie...or drive separately."

Gabe ignored her and opened the door for her and grinned, then said, "You get to ride up front this time.  C'mon, sugar...you need to experience your handiwork."

She raised an eyebrow and asked with a smug smile, "You think I didn't test it out after I finished?"

"Oh, Lord, don't tell me that..." Gabe said with a groan, then closed
the
door after she sat inside.
  He was lucky to still have a patrol car
,
if she'd done that.  This
woman
was
a magnet for misadventure
,
especially
when she put the pedal to the metal
.

When they got to the Bird, the place was packed with the regulars he usually saw there, but there quite a few new faces too
.
  It looked like his sister's new business was thriving, and he was very happy for her. 

Her career change from
being a police detective in
Phoenix
,
to the owner of a restaurant,
sure put his mind at ease. 
Although Sabrina
had been a damned good detective, she was a better cook, and
this
was helluva lot less dangerous for sure.
 
Her meeting and marrying Cole Jackson kind of helped ease his
tremendous guilt
too, because she'd fallen in love and had another chance at a happy life, the life he'd taken away from her two years ago.

Gabe held Karlie's hand and led her to a booth on the right side of the cafe.  Once
she
slid into a booth
,
he slid in beside her
, and put his arm across her shoulders
.
  He couldn't help but touch her when she was near.  As wild as he thought she was, touching her soothed something inside of him, made him feel happy for a change. 

Karlie
picked up a
menu
from behind the sugar dispenser and flicked it open. "So, what's good?" she asked running her finger down the plastic covered paper.

"Everything...my sister is a master in the kitchen
,
but unfortunately Cole won't let her go in there right now."
 
She raised an eyebrow at him and he told her, "Too hot, she
's pregnant and
passed out
in there a while back
.
  Not to mention the smells make her sick."

"She's pregnant too?
" Karlie snorted
,
then told Gabe with a grin, "
Remind me not to
drink the water."

Sabrina chose that moment to walk up with an order pad in her hand
,
looking harried and tired.  "Hey, big bro, what'll ya'll have today?"

"Ya'll?" he teased with a quirk of his lips.

"Yes,
sugar
, ya'll. Now, come on I'm in a hurry," Sabrina told him
, then
put her hand on her hip
.  Her
g
aze
wandered
to Karlie
and she smiled, then evidently noticed his arm over her shoulders, because she looked back at him with a raised eyebrow.

Gabe flinched, because he really didn't want to put a label on what was going on with him and Karlie, and he didn't want to talk about it with his
nosy
sister.
Without answering the question in her eyes, he asked her,
"Bri, you met Karlie Upton in
Dallas
at the rodeo right?"

Sabrina
nodded and
smiled then leaned over Gabe and stuck out her hand
to Karlie
.  "
Of course,
I remember you...
I would have spoken, but I can't tell ya'll apart.  Didn't want to stick my foot in it," she said and laughed, "Good to see you again."

Karlie shook her hand and told her, "Good to see you too...you'll be seeing a lot more of me around here, I'm working at the Double B with Cassie now."

Sabrina's face showed her relief, when she said, "
Yeah, Cole told me, and that's such a relief.  Cassie
needed
the
help and I felt so bad about leaving her in the lurch..."

Gabe's stomach growled and he put a hand to it, "I thought you were in a hurry, Sis?"

Sabrina shot him a look then dragged her eyes back to Karlie. 
"Never in too much of a hurry for girl talk. 
Cole told me a little,
Karlie,
but
y
ou've got to tell me the
whole
story about how you and my brother met," she
said
with a teasing glint in her blue eyes, obv
ious
ly
holding back laughter.  Gabe cringed when she added,
"
We'll have to get together soon, all three of us and have a girl's night
."

"That sounds
great
, just give me a call at the Double B when you're free." Karlie gave her a thousand-watt smile and Gabe abou
t melted to the
vinyl-covered
seat.

"Hamburger and fries sound good to you, Karlie?" Gabe asked her
shortly
, desperate to quiet the gnawing in his stomach
, and his chatty sister
.

"Cheeseburger for me please, side salad instead of fries...and sweet tea."

"Got it, I'll be back in a flash with your drinks
,
"
Sabrina told them
,
with a wink for Karlie.

"Your sister seems to like what she's doing," Karlie told Gabe then added, "What did she do before she came here?"

"Police detective in
Phoenix
.
..
"
he told her and grabbed a packet of saltines from the silver condiment rack.  Maybe the crackers would take
the edge
off
his hunger
, he thought.

"Wow, she's so tiny, that surprises me...well not miniature, but not what you'd picture a female cop to be."
"Do
not
let her hear you say that," he hooted
, then informed her, "
And don't let her size fool you...she can kick some serious ass
, but I'm glad she doesn't
want
to anymore
."
 

Well maybe
she didn't want to kick
bad guy ass, but Gabe was sure she'd want a piece of him tonight for not telling her he was sort of dating Karlie.  He hadn't mentioned
the gorgeous redhead
at all, after the roping incident, hoping his sister and Cole would stop laughing at him.

"Here you go," Sabrina said and carefully set down two large glasses of tea then
said
, "Your burgers will be here in about five minutes.
..and
Karlie I forgot to tell you someone was in here looking for you earlier.  He grilled my waitress
about you
, then me, and I had no idea who he was, so I didn't tell him
anything
."

Just then the portable radio attached to Gabe's hip sounded an alarm and he pulled it off his belt and answered it.  It was Julie Beth's frantic voice on the radio and she told him she'd just gotten a 911 call from the Double B, then the line disconnected.

"Give us two bags quick,
s
is...we've gotta go," he said and looked over at Karlie who's face was as pale as the paper napkin she was holding to her trembling lips.

Sabrina ran for the serving counter and
was back in a flash then
quickly stuffed their food into the sacks
. 
Gabe grabbed
the bags and
Karlie's hand
then
dragged her out the door.

"Oh, god Gabe, I hope
Jake
didn't hurt Cassie..." Karlie told him on a sob as they crossed the street
with fear clutching her gut and
tears tracking down her cheeks.

"Me too, honey, because
Luke
is at a cattle sale today...I need to call Cole," he told her and flipp
ed out his cell
dialing
as they got
in
to his cruiser.

When Cole answered, he asked rapid fire questions,
"Cole, this is Gabe...where are you?  Did you get the call?  Good, I'll meet you there."

He hung up and told her,
"He's already on his way, he'll beat us there,"
as he
started the car and pulle
d out of the lot with a squeal
, then flipped on
the lights and siren
. 
Karlie
put on her seat belt and hung on for the ride
.  Once they were out of downtown, Gabe pressed
the accelerator to the floor
, and c
ars on the road pulled to the side quickly when they saw them coming
.  It
was a good thing, because Gabe wasn't slowing down, and thanks to her mods to the cruiser, he was hauling tail.

"I'm so sorry, Gabe...I probably should just go somewhere else.  All I've brought to ya'll is trouble.
  I was stupid to think he wouldn't find me here.
"

She saw Gabe's grip on the wheel tighten, but he didn't take his focus off the road when he told her, "This is not your fault, Karlie Upton...
and it wasn't your fault that bastard was abusing you.
 
He's just a
n asshole who
needs his ass kicked, so
stop
apologizing
.
"

He could say what he wanted, but Karlie knew better...if she wasn't here, this definitely wouldn't be happening, so it
was
her fault.

They made it to the dirt driveway of the Double B in record time, and she saw through the trees that Cole was already there.  What she didn't see made her sigh in relief, Jake's truck was nowhere around.  "He's not here, unless he's walking," she told Gabe.

Gabe parked in front of the house and was out, before she even unhooked her seat belt.  He ran up the porch and through the front door without even knocking.  Karlie got out and ran inside too.  There was pandemonium in the foyer, as everyone was talking at once, and then she saw Sarge on the floor trying to poke his way through the crowd to get to her.  She elbowed people aside then bent down and hugged him, while he thoroughly licked the tears off of her face.
 

"Carl, put the shotgun down, he's gone...Cassie, are you okay?" she heard Cole
ask,
yelling to be heard over the crowd.  Gabe stood to the side, his face a thundercloud.
  Cassie's face was white, but Karlie saw a gun in her hand too, and Bud the ranch manager was standing behind them with his hands on his hips, his face red as a beet.
  There were a couple of men behind him that Karlie hadn't met yet, cow hands maybe.

"If that sonofabitch comes back on my property, he'll leave with lead in his ass.  I'm not kidding Cole, he's not going to talk to Cassie Bee like that...or threaten Bud.
..over a damned dog, even.
"

Karlie hugged Sarge tighter and wanted to correct Carl and tell him that Sarge was anything but a 'damned dog', he was her best friend, but she didn't.  This was his house, and he was upset over Jake tearing into Cassie.
  Emotion surged up inside of her, she truly had brought this trouble to their
doorstep, and it was time she took it elsewhere.