The Best Bride Part 1

The best bride.

by Author unknown.

Travis's Bachelor Chilli (As created by Louise).

115 oz can kidney beans 215 oz cans pinto beans 115 oz can corn 1 large onion, diced 1 large green pepper, diced 1 lb lean ground beef or turkey, cooked and drained 2 141/z oz cans stewed tomatoes 1 cup water 1 cup spicy tomato salsa 1 tsp c.u.min 4 cups cooked white or brown rice Drain canned beans and corn. Combine all ingredients except for rice--in a large pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer for 15 minutes. Serve over rice.

Great for football Sundays, and even better the second day for lunch!

Chapter One.

the white t-bird fishtailed around the corner. it sprayed dirt and gravel up onto the left front of the patrol car parked on the side of the road.

sheriff travis haynes turned the key to start the engine, then flipped on the blue lights. as he pulled out onto the highway, he debated whether or not to use the siren, then decided against it. he was about to mess up someone's long weekend by giving him a ticket; no point in adding insult to injury by using the siren. the good citizens of glenwood had contributed enough money to buy a car equipped with a siren that could wake the dead. but that didn't necessarily mean they wanted him to use it on them.

he stepped on the gas until he was behind the white car, then checked his speed. he gave a low whistle and looked at the car ahead he could see a ma.s.s of brown hair through the rear window, but little else. the lady was going somewhere in a hurry. he followed behind and waited.

it took her another two minutes to notice him. she glanced in her mirror, saw the flas.h.i.+ng lights, did a double take, then immediately put on her blinker and pulled to the side of the road. travis slowed and parked behind her. he shut off the engine, reached for his stetson and ticket book, then got out and walked leisurely toward the car. his cowboy boots crunched on the gravel. he noticed the california license plate tags were current.

"afternoon," he said, when he walked up to the open window. he glanced down at the woman and got a brief impression of big brown eyes in a heart-shaped face. she looked a little pale under her tan. a lot of people were nervous when they were stopped by an officer. he gave her a friendly smile. "you were going pretty fast there."

"i-i know," she said, softly, averting her gaze and staring out the front window. "i'm sorry."

she gripped the steering wheel tightly. he looked past her to the young girl in the pa.s.senger seat. the child looked more frightened than her mother. she clutched a worn brown teddy bear to her chest and stared at him with wide blue eyes. her mouth trembled as if she were fighting tears. about five or six, he thought, giving her a quick wink.

travis returned his attention to the woman. she wore her hair pulled up in a ponytail on top of her head. the ends fell back almost to her shoulders. it was a warm september afternoon. she was dressed in a red tank top and white shorts. he tried not to notice her legs. "i'm going to need to see your driver's license and registration, ma'am," he said politely.

"what? oh, of course."

she bent over to grab her purse from the floor on the pa.s.senger's side. he thought he heard a gasp, as if she were in pain, but before he could be sure, she fumbled with her wallet and pulled out the small identification. as she handed it to him, it slipped out of her fingers and fluttered toward the ground. he caught it before it touched the dirt.

"i'm sorry," she murmured. her mouth pulled into a straight line and dark emotion flickered in her eyes.

immediately his instincts went on alert. something wasn't right. she was too scared or too upset for someone getting a ticket. he glanced down at the license. elizabeth abbott. age twenty-eight. five-six. the address listed her as living in los angeles.

"you're a long way from home," he said, looking from her to the license and back.

"we just moved here," she said.

he took the registration next and saw the car was in her name.

"so what's the story?" he asked, flipping open his ticket book. "

" excuse me?"

"why were you speeding?"

her eyebrows drew together. "i don't understand."

"you're in glenwood, ma'am, and we have a tradition here. if you can tell me a story i haven't heard before, i have to let you go."

her mouth curved up slightly. it made her look pretty. he had a feeling she would be h.e.l.l on wheels if she let go enough to really smile. "you're kidding?"

"no, ma'am." he adjusted his stetson.

"have you ever let anyone go?"

he thought for a minute, then grinned. "i stopped miss. murietta several years ago. she was hurrying home to watch the last episode of dallas on tv."

"and you let her off the hook?"

he shrugged. "i hadn't heard that excuse before. so what's yours? i've been in the sheriff's department almost twelve years, so it'll have to be good"

elizabeth abbott stared up at him and started to laugh. she stopped suddenly, drew in a deep breath and seemed to fall toward the steering wheel. she caught herself and clutched her midsection.

"mommy?" the little girl beside her sounded frantic.

"mommy?"

"i'm fine," elizabeth said, glancing at her.

but travis could see she wasn't fine. he realized the look in her eyes wasn't fear, it was pain. he saw it in the lines around her mouth and the way she paled even more under her tan.

"what's wrong?" he asked, stuffing his ticket book into his back pocket.

"nothing," she said. "just a stomachache. it won't go away. i was going to a walk in clinic to see if they could- " she gasped and nearly doubled over. the seat belt held her in place.

travis opened the car door and crouched beside her. "you pregnant?" he asked. he reached for her wrist and found her pulse. it was rapid. her skin felt cold and clammy to the touch. "

" no, why? "

"miscarriage."

"i'm not pregnant: she leaned her head back against the seat rest. " give me a minute. i'll be fine."

her daughter stared up at her. he could see the worry and the fear in her blue eyes and his heart went out to the little girl. "

" mommy, don't be sick: '

"i'm fine." she touched her child's cheek.

travis leaned in and unlatched the seat belt.

"what are you doing?" elizabeth asked.

"taking you to the hospital."

"that's not necessary. really, i'll just drive to the clinic and-" she drew in a deep breath and held it. her eyes closed and her jaw tightened.

"that's it," he said, reaching one arm under her legs, the other behind her back. before she could protest, he slid her out and carried her toward his car.

she clung to him and s.h.i.+vered. "i don't mean to be any trouble."

"no trouble. part of the job."

"you carry a lot of women in your line of work?"

her muscles felt tight and perspiration clung to her forehead and upper lip. she must be in a lot of pain, but she was trying to keep it all together. he winked. "it's been a good week for me."

when they reached his car, travis lowered her feet to the ground and opened the door to the back seat. he started to pick her up again, but she shook her head and bent over to slide in. he returned to the lady's car and slipped into the driver's seat. the little girl was hunched against the door, staring at him. tears rolled down her face.

"what's your name, honey?" he asked softly."

"mandy."

"how old are you?"

she hiccuped and clutched the bear to her chest. "six: '

"i'm going to take your mom to the hospital, and they're going to make her feel better. i'd like you to come with me. okay?"

she nodded slowly.

he gave her his best smile, then collected elizabeth's purse. after shoving her keys, license and registration into his pocket, he unhooked mandy's seat belt and helped her out of the car. he rolled up the windows and locked the doors, then led her to the sheriff's vehicle.

her tears stopped momentarily as she stared at the array of switches and listened to the crackling of the radio."

"you ever been inside a patrol car before? " he asked.

she shook her head.

"you'll like it. i promise." that earned him a sniff. he settled her quickly beside him, then glanced back at elizabeth she lay across the seat, her knees pulled up to her chest, breathing rapidly.

"how you doing?" he asked.

"hanging in there," she said, her voice tight with strain."

"i'm going to use the siren," he said, starting the engine and switching it on. instantly a piercing wail filled the car. travis checked his mirror, then pulled out onto the road.

traffic was iight and they were at the hospital in less than fifteen minutes. "Two minutes after that, elizabeth had been wheeled away on a gurney and he was filling out paperwork at the circular counter near the emergency entrance. mandy stood beside him, crying.

she didn't make a sound, but he could swear he heard every one of those tears rolling down her cheeks. her pain made it tough to concentrate. poor kid. she was scared to death.

he bent over and picked her up, setting her on the counter next to him. they were almost at eye level. a headband adorned with cartoon characters held her blond hair off her round face. the same collection of animals, in a rainbow of colors, covered her t s.h.i.+rt. she wore denim shorts and scuffed sandals. except for the tean, she looked like just any other six-year-old."

"when did you and your mom move here? " he asked.

she clutched the tattered teddy bear closer. "yesterday," she said, gulping for air. q yqqyyqq qa qt q hope they might have made qq q. qq you have any family here?"

she shook her head and sniffed again.

he looked over the counter to a box of tissues beside the phone. the receptionist was also a nurse, and she had disq qq q qm with elizabeth. mandy wiped her face and tried to blow her nose. it didn't work. he took a couple of tissues and held them over her face.

"blow," he ordered, wondering how many times he'd done this during summer t ball practice. there were always a lot of tears as the kids skinned knees and elbows. and lost games.

"where's your daddy?"

her blue eyes filled again. "he's gone."

gone meaning dead? or divorced?"

"where does he live now? " travis asked.

"i don't know. he doesn't see us anymore. mommy said he had to go away because he's big. she said he's never coming b-back: her voice trembled.

he gave her a rea.s.suring smile. big? that didn't make any sense. elizabeth abbott must be divorced. he glanced down at the hospital forms. she had an insurance card in her wallet, so he copied that information. "where do you live?" he asked, then realized that if they'd just moved here, mandy wouldn't know her address yet."

"by the ducks: '

"the duck pond?"

she nodded vigorously, her tears momentarily forgotten' it pretty. i have a big bed all to myself. just like mommy. and there's little soaps in the bath" she smiled. she had a dimple in each cheek and he could sea she was going to grow up to be a heartbreaker.

he pictured the buildings around the duck pond in the center of town and remembered there was a small motel on the corner. so much for having an address here.

"what about your grandmother and grandfather? do you know where they are?"

"they live far away."

before he could think of any more questions, the receptionist came bustling back into the room. "appendix," she said, pulling her stethoscope from around her neck and placing it in the right hip pocket of her nurse's uniform. "caught it in time." she looked at mandy. "your mommy is going to have an operation. do you know what that means?"

mandy looked scared again. "no."

"the doctor is going to make her sleep for a little bit while he makes her feel better. there's an infection inside and he's going to take it out. but she'll be fine."

mandy didn't looked rea.s.sured. she bit her lower lip hard and tears filled her eyes. travis felt like he'd taken a sucker punch to the gut. apparently the kid didn't know a soul in town, and if the grandparents weren't local, finding them could take days. he didn't even know if abbott was elizabeth's maiden or married name.

he held out his arm, offering mandy a hug, but letting her decide. she threw herself against him with the desperation of a drowning man clutching a raft. her slight body shook with the tremors of her sobs. she smelled of sun and gra.s.s and little girl. so d.a.m.n small to be facing this alone.

"hush," he murmured, stroking her hair. "i'm right here and everything's going to be fine."