by Lara Lacombe
It was Isabel Cruz. His best friend’s sister.
She glanced over as he pulled up alongside, but didn’t stop walking. Wyatt leaned over and cranked down the passenger-side window. “Isabel?” he called. “What are you doing out here?”
Her head whipped around, dark eyes going wide. “Wyatt? Is that you?”
He cut the engine as she lunged for the door. She climbed up into the cab, bringing the scent of night air and jasmine with her. He inhaled deeply, trying not to be too obvious about it. He loved her perfume—always had. For the past several months he’d been wanting to dip his nose into the hollow of her neck and breathe her in, to hold her until her scent was on his skin and clothes. But that wasn’t something he could ever admit, to her or to her brother. Diego would kill him if he knew Wyatt had been thinking about Isabel in anything other than a platonic context.
“What are you doing out here?” he repeated. He hadn’t seen any signs of a stalled car—where had she come from?
“I’m walking home.”
He didn’t bother replying to her ridiculous statement. He simply stared her down, one brow arched to show he wasn’t going to give up that easily.
Isabel held his gaze for several seconds. Then she sighed and looked away. “I was at a party, okay?”
“Out in the middle of nowhere?”
She shot him an incredulous look. “Don’t try to tell me you didn’t go to your share of desert parties in high school, okay? I know for a fact you and Diego were regulars.”
“Yeah, but...” He paused, thinking back to those days. He and Diego had had their share of fun, it was true. But Wyatt knew the kind of stuff that went on at those parties, and he didn’t like the thought of Isabel being exposed to such debauchery.
Her eyes glinted with challenge, practically daring him to argue with her. He lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “It was different for us. We’re guys.”
She snorted. “Oh, please. I’m not some princess who needs to be locked in a tower.”
“I never said you were,” he replied, careful to keep his tone even. “But you’re a beautiful young woman. There are guys who would try to take advantage of you.”
A haunted look flashed across her face and Wyatt’s stomach dropped. Oh God, he thought, immediately assuming the worst.
Before he could ask her another question, Isabel spoke again. “You think I’m beautiful?” There was a note of wonder in her voice, combined with an innocence that made her even more appealing.
Wyatt felt his cheeks warm and was grateful the lights from his dash didn’t provide much illumination in the cab of the truck. “You know you’re pretty,” he said a bit gruffly. It was clear from Isabel’s tone of voice that she hadn’t been fishing for compliments. But if they kept going down this road, he wasn’t going to be able to hide his attraction for her much longer.
Time to change the subject. “What happened?”
She shifted, looked away. “Nothing,” she muttered.
Wyatt ran his eyes over her body, looking for marks on her skin or ripped or dirty spots on her clothes. She didn’t look like she’d been assaulted, but that was no guarantee...
Anger and fear built in his chest as he imagined the worst. “Isabel.” He said her name softly, trying to keep his emotions in check. If someone had hurt her, the last thing he wanted to do was to frighten her with his temper.
She didn’t look at him right away. He said her name a second time and she turned to face him. His heart cracked when he saw the tears welling in her eyes.
“Oh, honey. What happened?” He opened his arms and she slid across the bench seat into his embrace.
She sniffled into his shirt, her nose pressed against his chest. “Nothing,” came her muffled reply.
Wyatt kept his touch light as he gently stroked his hand down her spine. “Sounds like a lot of tears over nothing,” he said carefully. “Who were you with tonight?”
Another sniffle then the muffled sound of a name. “Eddie.”
His hand stilled on her back, fingers curling into a fist. He should have known.
He took a deep breath, slipping a tight rein onto his anger. Isabel deserved better than that future frat boy. Wyatt had always considered him a harmless nuisance, but what if he’d been wrong?
“Did Eddie—” He had to stop, swallow hard. “Did Eddie hurt you?”
Isabel tensed. Time seemed to slow as he waited for her to reply.
She moved back, putting some distance between them. “No,” she said finally. “Not in the way you’re thinking.”
Wyatt’s breath gusted out in a sigh of relief. He lifted a hand to run through his hair, noting with faint surprise that it was shaking.
Isabel grabbed it, her fingers still cold from the evening air. “I’m fine,” she said, her voice firm.
He met her eyes, still wet from her tears. There was no sign of deception in her gaze. “Would you tell me if you weren’t?” It was important that she knew she could trust him. She and Diego loved each other, but their relationship was tumultuous at times. Wyatt wanted her to know he would be there for her if she ever needed anything.
She didn’t hesitate. “Yes,” she said, nodding as she spoke. “I think I would.”
He relaxed a bit, feeling marginally better. “Okay. So what did Eddie do to make you cry tonight?”
Isabel tilted her head. “Who’s asking? You? Or you and Diego?”
“Just me. We don’t tell each other everything, you know.” Like the fact that I want you...
Isabel nodded, apparently satisfied with his reaction. “It’s the last big party of the summer. We came to hang out. We were having fun, but as the night wore on, more and more people started pairing up and sneaking off for some privacy. Eddie thought we should, too, but...” She trailed off, shaking her head. “I kept saying no.”
A feeling of pride unfurled in Wyatt’s chest. Thank God, Isabel wasn’t a pushover. “How’d he take it?” Given the kid’s sense of entitlement, Wyatt didn’t imagine Eddie had been too happy about her refusal.
Tears welled in her eyes again. Wyatt swore silently to himself. Eddie wasn’t worth her tears. But that was something she was going to have to learn on her own.
“He was mad,” she said. “He kept pressuring me, and when I told him to stop or I was going to leave, he laughed. Told me I was welcome to try.”
Eddie was an idiot. But Wyatt was glad to learn he wasn’t stupid enough to force himself on her.
She sniffed, swiping at her eyes with a hand. “Then he wandered away and grabbed Carrie Cordova. They started making out by the campfire, and I wasn’t about to stand around and be disrespected like that.”
She glanced up and met his gaze, and a small shock ran through Wyatt’s body as he realized she wasn’t crying because she was sad.
She was angry.
“He had his keys in his pocket. I thought about trying to hot-wire his car, but I only saw Diego do it the one time to the farm truck. I don’t exactly remember how.”
Wyatt tried not to smile as he imagined Isabel fumbling under the wheel of Eddie’s prize Camaro. “I hate to break it to you, but a muscle car is a little harder to hot-wire than a thirty-year-old truck.” She would have kept at it and, given her determination, she might have even figured it out eventually. Probably better she’d started walking, though. Eddie’s parents were just the type to have her charged with grand theft auto if she’d managed to make off with their precious son’s car.
“I’ll teach you how to do it,” he promised absently. Now that he knew she was safe, annoyance began to replace his earlier concern.
“You should have called someone to pick you up.”
Isabel dug her phone out of her bag. “No service.” She held it up in illustration. It was a common problem out here, something that normally didn’t bother him. It worried him, though, to
think about her essentially stranded out here.
“Why didn’t you drive yourself out there to begin with?” There was an edge to his voice that was obvious even to him.
Isabel lifted one brow. “Because I didn’t see the need to take two cars when we were both going to the same place.”
“Leaving you at the mercy of Eddie’s whims.” Wyatt shook his head. “That wasn’t very smart of you.”
“I don’t recall asking you.” She spoke softly, but Wyatt knew she wouldn’t stay quiet for long. He recognized the set of her mouth—it was the same expression Diego wore right before he lost his temper.
He knew he should stop, but he just couldn’t help himself. “What were you thinking, walking out here alone?”
“I needed to leave. There were no other options,” she said evenly.
“And what if someone else had found you? Someone without my good intentions?” Why was she being so stubborn? Didn’t she realize the kind of danger she’d been in?
She lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “I can handle myself.”
He scoffed. “Is that right?”
“Yeah. I have pepper spray in my bag.”
Wyatt’s anger took over. Without pausing to think, he grabbed her wrist and hauled her close, holding her against his chest. She barely had time to let out a squeak of surprise before he tilted his body, pressing her back flat onto the bench seat. In the next breath he shifted his legs so they tangled with hers. He gripped her free hand then lifted both arms above her head. Her wrists fit easily into his palm, leaving him with one hand free.
She was pinned underneath him, immobile and totally at his mercy.
“How’s that pepper spray working out for you now?” The words were barely more than a growl in the back of his throat.
Isabel tested his hold, making a small sound of frustration when he didn’t loosen his grip. She shifted under him, the movement only serving to emphasize the contact between their bodies. Wyatt immediately realized his mistake; if she kept this up much longer, she was going to learn an entirely different type of lesson.
She stilled against him but didn’t fully relax. He met her gaze, saw the question in her eyes.
His heart started to thump hard against his sternum. Was he imagining things, or did Isabel want him the same way he wanted her?
As much as he’d like to hope his feelings for her were mutual, this was not the way he should be treating the sister of his best friend. He gave her wrists a squeeze then released her.
Shame was a cold stone in his stomach as he watched Isabel from the corner of his eye. She sat up, smoothed a hand over her shirt. The silence in the cab grew until it seemed to take up all the space between them.
Way to go, he told himself. If Isabel was attracted to him, he’d gone and wrecked any chance he might have had with her with that little stunt.
He pulled the seat belt over his chest and fastened it at his hip. Then he turned the key in the ignition. “I’ll take you home,” he said quietly.
“No.”
He turned his head so quickly he nearly gave himself whiplash. “What?”
“I said no.” There was no inflection in her voice. She stared ahead, her gaze focused on something beyond the windshield.
A wave of nausea washed over Wyatt. God, he’d really done it now. He should have never touched her like that. It was clear she was disgusted by him, and rightly so.
“Isabel,” he croaked. “I’m sorry. I won’t come near you again. But I can’t leave you here to walk home by yourself.”
She glanced at him then, her expression inscrutable. “I’m not asking you to leave me. And I’m not mad at you. I just don’t want to go home.”
Wyatt felt some of the tension leave his body as he realized she didn’t hate him. “Where do you want to go?”
Isabel tilted her head to the side, causing a strand of dark hair to fall across her face. He resisted the urge to brush it behind her ear. After the way he’d pinned her down, he didn’t deserve to touch her.
“Can we just drive around for a bit?” she asked. “It’d be nice to talk.”
“Talk?” he echoed.
“Yeah.” She nodded, her mind apparently made up. “If you don’t have any plans, that is.”
“No.” The image of Nikki’s face floated through his brain, a distraction he immediately dismissed. He’d rather spend time with Isabel than see a thousand movies with Nikki.
Isabel gave him a small smile, setting his heart alight. He tipped his hat in her direction and her smile blossomed into a grin. “All right,” he said softly, shifting the truck into gear. “Let’s go.”
* * *
“Let’s go.”
Isabel’s voice cut through Wyatt’s reverie. He shook himself free of the memories and realized they were nearly to the ranch’s stables. “I’m sorry, what did you say?” He’d been so distracted by the past he wasn’t sure what Isabel wanted him to do.
She eyed him with exasperation. “I said we have an empty stall toward the back. You can put your horse there for the night.”
They arrived at the stables in question. Wyatt dismounted, but Isabel remained astride Miel. She jerked her chin in the direction of the shadowed interior. “Last box on the left. One of the hands will be along shortly to help you.”
“What about you?”
“I’m going to find Diego. I don’t want him putting those carcasses in the barn.”
“I could help you.” He moved to get back on Ajax, but Isabel shook her head.
“No need. Just see to your horse and then let yourself inside the house. Maria will give you something to drink.”
He nodded. It was clear Isabel wanted to dismiss him, so he decided to play along.
“Thanks,” he said. “I appreciate it.”
“No problem.” She shifted the reins, turning Miel’s head so they could ride off. “Thanks for your help today,” she said over her shoulder.
He watched her depart, his curiosity more heightened than ever. The past decade had offered no answers as to Isabel’s sudden change toward him. But now that she was back, he had an opportunity to find out why she’d cut him off with no explanation.
She’d been silent long enough. It was time for her to answer his questions.
Chapter 3
“Not there!” Isabel shouted to be heard over the rumble of the truck’s engine. She waved her arms for good measure, catching the attention of Ruben. The older man touched Diego’s arm and her brother glanced in the rearview mirror and saw her standing outside.
He rolled down his window. “What’s the problem?” He sounded annoyed, and with good reason. The day was drawing to a close and there was still a lot of work to be done.
“I don’t want you to put them in the barn. If they died from some kind of disease, the pathogen might contaminate the place. The last thing we need is to have new moms and their calves exposed.”
Diego pressed his lips together. “Okay, so where do you want them?”
Isabel considered her options. It would be easier for her to work indoors, but it would be difficult to drag the carcasses inside. Besides, there wasn’t a good building where she could do this kind of work. The barn was reserved for cows that were having trouble calving, and the stables housed the horses. Neither site met her needs.
The easiest thing would be to conduct the necropsy outside. She could collect the necessary tissue samples and the carcasses could then be dragged off for burial or burned in place.
Her mind made up, she instructed Diego to drop the bodies off in a clearing about fifty yards away from the barn. The wide patch of dirt would give her space to work, and if the area did become contaminated with some kind of pathogen, the lack of grass meant the other animals wouldn’t be nosing around the site tomorrow. It wasn’t a perfect setup, but it would have to do.
She led Miel to the spot then dismounted and stood back while Diego and Ruben emerged from the truck. The two men removed the ropes securing the carcasses to the flatbed. With the push of a button, one end of the bed lifted, putting the flat slab at an angle. While Ruben coiled the rope, Diego climbed back into the truck and slowly moved it forward. The three dead cows slid off and landed with a thump. A second later, a foul smell tinged the air.
Miel danced in place. Diego emerged from the truck and wrinkled his nose. “Dear God. That’s terrible.”
Isabel shrugged. “Could be worse. They haven’t been dead long enough to really stink.”
Diego shook his head. “If you say so.”
“Can you take Miel to the stables for me?” She should have left her there when she’d dropped off Wyatt. But she’d needed to get away, to put some distance between herself and the man who’d broken her heart all those years ago.
“I’ll take her,” Ruben said quietly.
“Thanks.” Isabel smiled at him. “I should get changed.”
Diego clapped her on the shoulder. “We’ll leave you to it.” She could tell by the gleam in his eyes that he was all too happy to have her handle the messy task ahead.
“Thanks,” she drawled. The men began to leave, Diego turning back to his truck and Ruben heading toward Miel. “Gentlemen,” Isabel called out, stopping them in their tracks.
Diego lifted his eyebrows in an unspoken question. “I’m probably being paranoid,” she said, glancing down at the cattle. “But make sure you wash up. If you start to feel sick in the next few days, let me know immediately.” If these animals had died from an infectious disease, there was a small chance it could be passed on to them. But hopefully that wasn’t the case...
“Will do,” her brother said. Ruben merely touched the brim of his hat in acknowledgment.
Isabel studied the inert trio at her feet then glanced up at the sky. There was probably one good hour of daylight left before dusk began to set in. She’d have to hurry.