Cowboy Under Siege Read online

  But did that mean he’d killed Cole’s cows?

  She was still mulling that over as she unsaddled and brushed the mare. She wanted to pin the sabotage on Tony. He’d made her childhood hell, and she’d love to see him pay. But she couldn’t prove he’d done anything wrong yet. And aside from his nasty personality, why would he want to hurt Cole?

  Unable to come up with an answer, she joined her father at the corral. He leaned heavily on his crutches, his face gray, pain adding more lines around his mouth. “You’ve been on your feet too long,” she scolded. “You’d better get back to the house.”

  “I guess. The calves look good, though.”

  She slowed her pace to his, only half listening as he discussed the herd. At least he’d stopped arguing about her helping Cole. But the sight of Earl Runningcrane heading to his truck reminded her of the conversation they’d had.

  Not sure how to broach the subject, she waited until her father had finished critiquing the calves. “Say, Dad,” she began, feeling awkward. “I was wondering—why didn’t we live on the reservation?”

  For several minutes he didn’t answer. He kept maneuvering his way toward the house, his head bowed, the exertion making him breathe hard. “It would have been too hard on your mother,” he finally said.

  “In what way?”

  “I took her to Browning a couple of times when we first met. My parents didn’t accept her any more than her folks accepted me. In the end, it was easier to live in town.”

  She frowned at that. It hadn’t occurred to her that intolerance went both ways. “That couldn’t have been easy for you.”

  “I didn’t mind.” He stopped when he reached the porch and released a sigh. “I was nearly forty years old when I met your mother. I’d waited all my life to find a woman like her, and when I did… I didn’t care where we lived.”

  “So you sacrificed your happiness for hers.”

  “Who said I wasn’t happy? I just wanted to be with her. And sacrifices come easy when you love someone.”

  Guilt trickled through her, and she crossed her arms. “It still must have been hard. Living with the prejudice, I mean.”

  He shrugged. “Sometimes, but people were different back then. And most folks come around if you give them time.”

  She doubted that. Jerks like Tony never would. And as for the others…she didn’t intend to stick around to find out.

  Her father hobbled up the porch steps, but his words lingered in her mind. Should she have stayed in Maple Cove? Should she have sacrificed more for Cole? Had she run because she had to—or out of wounded pride?

  Feeling uneasy, she cast another look toward the barn. Cole stood outside it, talking to a couple of ranch hands. She studied his steely jaw, the implacable set to his massive shoulders, and slowly expelled a sigh.

  No, she’d had to leave. Cole had made his rejection clear. And love went both ways—he could have come with her if he’d cared.

  But for the first time since she’d left Maple Cove, she couldn’t quite banish her doubts.

  It didn’t help that Cole stopped by that evening to discuss ranch business with her father. Unable to avoid him in the tiny cabin, she retreated to the porch swing while she waited for him to leave. But the deep, sexy timbre of his voice carried in the still night air, further unsettling her nerves.

  She still didn’t believe she’d hurt him. Her father was wrong about that. But if she had made a mistake…

  The front door swung open, and he stepped onto the porch. His eyes met hers, and she rose. “Is everything all right?” she asked.

  “At the moment.” He gripped the back of his neck, and the weary motion tugged at her heart. “But I keep expecting the other shoe to drop.”

  “I know what you mean. This is the first quiet day since I’ve arrived.” It was almost too peaceful. They’d driven the calves to the barn without problems. No one had killed any cows. She glanced into the darkness beyond the yard light, feeling apprehensive at the sudden lull.

  “I’m going to check on the calves by the barn.” He angled his head to meet her eyes. “You want to come?”

  Her heart stumbled. Warnings went off in her mind. She should decline. A walk in the moonlight was too cozy, too seductive, too intimate.

  But she’d never been able to resist Cole.

  “Sure,” she heard herself say.

  She followed him down the porch steps, wondering if she’d lost her mind. She should be avoiding Cole, not strolling with him beneath the stars.

  Shaking her head at her lapse in judgment, she stuffed her hands in her jacket pockets to keep them warm. “Where is everyone? The ranch seems deserted tonight.”

  “I sent four men to Butte to get the stock trucks. The rest are on patrol.” His gaze swiveled to hers, and the impact ripped through her, rattling her pulse. “I wanted to let you know that the security system is down. They’ll fix it tomorrow when the part comes in, and I’ve stepped up patrols around the house. But I thought you should know.”

  She flicked her gaze from the shadows surrounding the barn to the profound darkness cloaking the fields, and a chill scuttled down her spine. Someone was out there, watching their movements. Someone wanting to do them harm.

  Suddenly the barn cat flitted past, making her heart race even more. Should she mention the thuds she’d heard in the barn to Cole? But what would be the point? He had enough on his mind without her wild imaginings adding to his stress.

  But with the security system down…

  Still uncertain, she walked beside him around the barn, her feet crunching on the gravel path. The cold wind gusted, and she zipped up her jacket against the chill.

  “Are you cold?” Cole asked.

  “Not too bad.”

  His gaze ran over her face, a crease forming between his dark brows. “Something’s bothering you, though. You’ve looked preoccupied all day.”

  Surprised he’d noticed, she stopped beside the corral and propped her forearms on the fence. She didn’t want to discuss their breakup—at least not yet. Not until she had a better handle on exactly what had gone wrong. And she couldn’t mention her suspicions about Tony since she had nothing to base them on.

  “I’ve just had some problems at work, that’s all,” she finally said.

  “What kind of problems?”

  She studied his eyes, tempted to tell him. Standing together like this, cocooned in the quiet darkness, it was easy to forget the heartbreak and remember the camaraderie they’d shared.

  And he’d revealed his sister’s kidnapping to her.

  “I work at a research clinic,” she said. “The Preston Werner Clinic in Chicago. We’ve been conducting a trial for an experimental rheumatoid arthritis drug called Rheumectatan. The night before I came here, one of my patients died.”

  “That’s tough.”

  “It gets worse.” She pressed her hand to her belly to settle her nerves. “They think I administered the wrong dose, that I made a mistake that caused her death.”

  “You’d never do that.”

  She looked at him in surprise.

  He shrugged. “You’re too careful. I spent enough time studying with you to know that.”

  They hadn’t always studied.

  Awareness arced between them. Sudden heat flared in his eyes. And she knew he was remembering the same thing she was—the hours they’d spent in erotic exploration, touching, kissing, making love…

  Her pulse scrambling, she jerked her gaze back to the cows. The past was gone. She was not going to dwell on their sex life or how madly in love she’d been.

  Struggling to gather her composure, she cleared her throat. “Thanks. I appreciate the vote of confidence.”

  “It’s a fact. You’re the most conscientious person I know.”

  She braved another glance his way. Light spilled from the barn, dusting him with a silver sheen, highlighting the hard, male planes of his face. Their eyes locked again, and something else shimmered between them, something bey
ond the lust—a feeling of friendship, warmth, trust.

  But hadn’t that been an illusion? Hadn’t he callously shut her out?

  He propped his boot on the fence and looked away, breaking the spell. “So what do you think happened?”

  She dragged in a breath, trying to marshal her scattered thoughts. “I don’t know. Maybe the drug caused a bad reaction or interacted with an underlying condition she had. But Adam would have screened her for that. He’s the doctor running the trial.”

  Cole’s gaze traveled back to hers. “Can you check her records?”

  “Yes.” She knew the password and could access the system online. “But I doubt I’ll have to. When they inventory the study drug, they’ll notice the discrepancy and see that they made a mistake.

  “By the way,” she added. “I haven’t mentioned this to my father. I don’t want him to worry.” Or think she’d failed at her job. “I’d appreciate it if you keep this quiet for now.”

  “Sure.” Cole turned his gaze to the cows, his expression thoughtful. The calves shuffled and lowed in the pens. A moment later, he straightened, and they started back toward the house.

  “Tell me more about your life in Chicago,” he said.

  She nodded, grateful for the change of subject. “Well, I love my job. And I’ve got a great apartment near the lake. No view to speak of.” Nothing like the stunning mountain vistas on his ranch. “But I’m close to all the action, so there’s always a lot to do.”

  But somehow, walking beside Cole in the moonlight with millions of stars glittering above her, Chicago didn’t seem that great.

  “So you like it?” he asked.

  “Yes.” Of course she did. “It’s just what I’d hoped it would be.”

  “I’m glad.” They stopped at the steps to her porch. His eyes stayed on hers, and time seemed to disappear. How many nights had they spent like this—walking in the moonlight, gazing into each other’s eyes?

  The moment stretched. She knew she should step back, climb up the steps and say good-night. But emotions tumbled inside her—longing, regret.

  Desire.

  His eyes narrowed. Heat radiated from his muscled build. And his raw masculinity rolled through her, making her heart rate spike.

  And suddenly, she wanted desperately to feel him, to stroke her palms down his stubbled jaw, to feel his hard, warm lips devouring hers.

  He wanted to kiss her, too. She couldn’t mistake the hunger in his eyes this time.

  But that was insane. Nothing good could come from a kiss. They had too much baggage between them, and they couldn’t change the past.

  Cole reached down, tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, and her heart began to thud. Then he cupped her jaw with his work-roughened hand, sending thrills rushing over her skin.

  “Cole…” she whispered, but whether as a plea or a warning, she didn’t know.

  His gaze dropped to her mouth. Her heart tried to burst from her chest. And a fierce sense of yearning mushroomed inside her, the need to lose herself in the strong, solid feel of him making her sway.

  Then he dipped his head, and his lips took hers—hard and potent and warm, sending a hot blast of need sizzling and skipping through her veins. She gripped his rock-hard arms, her knees suddenly buckling, a moan forming deep in her throat.

  She’d missed this. Missed him. Nothing had ever felt so right.

  But, way too soon, he ended the kiss. He stared down at her for a moment, their ragged breaths dueling in the night. Then he stepped back and cleared his throat.

  “I’m glad you found what you were looking for,” he rasped. He turned on his heel and strode away.

  Her heart pounding, her entire body trembling, she grabbed the porch rail for support and watched him go.

  He reached his house, paused to pet Ace waiting beside the steps. Then he bent down, gently picked up the arthritic dog, and carried him inside.

  And, as a deep hush settled around her, Bethany couldn’t help but wonder—if she’d found everything she’d wanted in Chicago, why did she feel bereft?

  Cole didn’t often have regrets, but that kiss ranked up there as one of the biggest mistakes he’d ever made.

  He sprawled in his bed hours later, his sheets tangled and sweaty, so wound up he couldn’t sleep. What in the hell had he been thinking? He’d spent the entire day trying to avoid her, only to blow it at the end.

  He’d had no business walking with her in the darkness, no business asking about her life. He should have told her about the broken security system on the porch, then marched straight back to his house. But she’d looked so damned beautiful standing there in the moonlight, like every fantasy he’d ever had.

  He punched his pillow and sighed, knowing that more than her looks had caused him to cave. Her beauty he could have resisted, although everything about her still turned him on. It was that sense of connection, that rightness she’d made him feel that had caused him to lose his mind.

  So he’d messed up and succumbed to a moment of weakness. Somehow he had to forget it and make sure he didn’t do it again. There was no point torturing himself with needs he couldn’t indulge.

  He rubbed his scratchy eyes, glanced at the clock beside his bed, and groaned. Two o’clock. If he didn’t get some shut-eye soon, he’d never make it through the day.

  Hoping a drink would take the edge off, he rolled out of bed, and pulled on his shirt and jeans. Then he strode down the hall toward the great room, detouring to the wet bar off to the side. Ace padded toward him and whined, and Cole reached down to scratch his ears. “Hey, buddy. You having trouble sleeping, too?”

  Still whining, Ace turned and trotted toward the door.

  “All right, give me a minute and I’ll let you out.” He opened the bar, pulled out a bottle of Scotch and splashed some into a glass. Then he knocked it back, hoping the fiery drink would deaden the lust.

  The dog yipped and pawed at the door. “All right. I’m on my way. You don’t need to wake everyone up.” He poured more Scotch into the tumbler, then stuck the bottle back into the bar. His glass in hand, he headed toward the front door.

  A glow in the windows caught his eye. His heart stopped, a sudden feeling of wrongness surging inside. He slammed down his glass on a nearby table, bolted to the door, and flung it open.

  The barn was engulfed in flames.

  Chapter 6

  Cole gaped at the bright orange flames leaping across the barn in the darkness, twisting and curling like macabre dancers into the sky. Horses screamed from inside the burning building. The fierce fire crackled and roared. Cole launched himself back into the great room in a burst of adrenaline, then sprinted full out down the hall.

  Veering into the guest wing, he whipped his cell phone from his pocket and pounded on his father’s door. He needed to alert his ranch hands. He had to get those horses out fast. It would take the volunteer fire department half an hour or more to get here, and he couldn’t afford to wait.

  Speed-dialing the bunkhouse, he hammered again on the door. The noise drew Bart, the bodyguard on the night shift, from the adjacent lounge.

  “The barn’s on fire,” Cole barked into the phone, but he kept his gaze on Bart. “Get everyone on it. And call the fire department in Maple Cove.”

  Comprehension crossed Bart’s face. His father’s other bodyguard, Gage Prescott, raced from his bedroom with his weapon drawn, just as the senator flung open his door.

  “Take the senator and Hannah into the safe room,” Bart told Gage, referring to the wine cellar, the most secure spot in the house. “I’ll scout around outside.”

  Gage nodded, his eyes grim. “Be careful. It could be a trap, an attempt to lure the senator outside.”

  Cole’s belly tightened. Trap or not, he had to fight the fire.

  Leaving the bodyguards to deal with his father, he raced into the mudroom and jerked on his boots. Then he hurtled out the back door and sprinted flat out toward the barn, desperate to save the animals inside.
/>   Heavy smoke rolled from the roof now. Vivid orange flames spiraled upward, sending sparks shooting into the sky. His eyes watered and stung as he neared the barn, and he coughed on the acrid smoke. He had to free the horses, then try to move the calves. They were in the worst possible place, penned in the corral behind the barn.

  He charged toward the barn, his breathing ragged. Someone darted ahead of him through the billowing smoke. Bethany. His heart stopped when she ran inside.

  “Bethany!” he shouted, but she didn’t hear.

  Swearing, his throat tight with fear for her safety, he plunged after her into the barn. Burning wood rained from the rafters. The roar of the fire filled the air. He coughed, his eyes stinging from the heavy smoke, searching frantically to see where she’d gone.

  He spotted her ahead of him, flinging open Red’s stall. “Go on! Get out!” she yelled at the horse, who was prancing and neighing with fear.

  The crazed horse burst from the stall. Cole flattened himself to the wall as the mare thundered past, her eyes wild with terror as she fled the barn.

  Flames crackled and hissed around them. Dense smoke hung in the air. Cole launched himself into action, lunging from stall to stall, helping Bethany throw open the doors. Several horses instantly bolted to safety, but the rest refused to budge.

  He suddenly lost sight of Bethany, and panic slammed through his nerves. But the smoke shifted, then parted, and Bethany appeared, towing another horse toward the door. A beam fell nearby, and the thoroughbred started trotting in tight circles, his ears flat to his head.

  “Stay outside! I’ll get the rest,” he shouted to her as she hurried past, battling to control the terrified horse.

  With no time to waste, Cole darted into the nearest stall. Tony’s roan gelding reared up, his eyes rolling back as sparks sizzled and popped nearby. Cole tried to throw on his halter, but the gelding pawed and tossed his head.

  “Come on, damn it! I’m trying to save your life!” Coughing, his eyes streaming from the pungent smoke, Cole lunged again at the horse. He managed to toss on his halter, then hauled the skittish horse from the stall. They burst from the barn, the gelding rearing and kicking, and Cole let go of the lead. The horse raced into the night.