by KB Winters
“Maybe it’s nothing, or maybe it’ll help. We won’t know until you tell us.”
She nodded and distracted herself with being a good hostess, pouring first Gunnar and then me, a full mug of coffee to go along with the coffee cake she produced out of nowhere.
She was nervous, shaken as she cut and served the cake.
“Is there cinnamon in this coffee?” Gunnar looked like a kid who’d found marshmallows in his hot chocolate.
Elizabeth gifted him with a proud smile as she sat. “And bourbon. It’s my special recipe.”
“It’s perfect.”
That seemed to relax her shoulders because she sat back in her chair and folded her hands on top of the table. “Thanks. There was this one guy, though, who stuck out. Everything about him screamed ‘big city’ no matter how much he tried to blend in here. Expensive jeans that probably never saw a speck of dust, brand new boots he didn’t have the decency to scuff.”
She thought for a long moment before she spoke again, Gunnar and me both leaned forward in anticipation of what she’d say next.
“This guy was more the type to cut my damn throat than ruin my possessions, know what I’m saying?” We shared a worried look. A guy who looked like that on the surface was probably a hitman. A pro.
The question wasn’t just why, but who?
“Anyway, the weird part was that he checked out on Thursday and Friday morning I saw him meeting with that blond-headed businessman, some kind of developer he said he was. Internet or real estate, I don’t know. But the guy who stayed here didn’t seem to be in development, if you know what I’m saying.”
Yeah, we both knew what Elizabeth was saying. Some shady shit was definitely going on in Opey, and it was more than the petty burglaries. Just like Gunnar thought. It was a lot to unpack, and the B&B wasn’t the place, so I shoveled in two forkfuls of cake and groaned.
“Best coffee cake I’ve had since my grandmama passed, Elizabeth. I swear.”
Her cheeks turned pink even as she leaned forward and let her index finger graze the top of my hand. “You flatter me,” she said and waggled her eyebrows. The old lady made me blush.
“Oh Elizabeth, there you are!” Mary entered the kitchen, the same bundle of energy she always was. The woman woke up, turned her dial to ten, and didn’t stop until her head hit the pillow at night. I was convinced of that.
“Oh, and with such handsome visitors.” Mary winked at both of us, her green eyes lit with mischief.
“These nice boys were just asking some questions.”
Mary leaned in, showing off seventy-year-old cleavage that, honestly, didn’t look a day over fifty.
“I knew you boys would come see about things. I just knew you would.” She patted my cheek, gratitude now darkening her gaze. “Thank you.”
Gunnar looked uncomfortable and shocked at her words, or maybe it was the way her hand slid down his arm to cup his ass. “Uh, we haven’t done anything, Mary.”
“Not yet, you haven’t, but I have faith that you will. Now let me cut you big, strong men another piece of coffee cake, this time the brown sugar rum, and I’ll tell you some things you ought to know.” Mary spoke with the authority she’d earned as one of the biggest gossips in Opey. That was saying a lot for a town that trafficked in gossip. Especially by women of a certain age.
We listened to all the details the twins dished out about every person who’d come in and out of town. Every person who struck them as odd or untrustworthy somehow. The old girls may have been born and raised in Opey but they knew people, and they had excellent instincts.
Three pieces of coffee cake later, Gunnar and I were finally free, and we did one final drive through before heading back to the ranch.
Tonight, nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary.
Chapter Thirteen
Aspen
Curled up on the sofa with my tablet searching for apartments wasn’t how I imagined I’d be spending the day, but I also hadn’t expected Ken to stay gone for more than a week. Not that I was stewing or even pining for him, I wasn’t. But his noticeable absence had finally highlighted my need to get my own place. It wasn’t like money was a factor. It was, as Daddy had accused, laziness. Plain and simple.
But today, I was shrugging off the lazy nametag and getting down to business. Looking for apartments. Why I was looking in Opey, I had not one damn clue except for the fact that it was as good as any place with the added benefit that I was already here. Besides, if I got a short-term rental, I could leave in a hurry if things got too dicey in Opey.
Being at Holden’s had kicked up thoughts and memories of home. Vance, Texas. It was as small town as small towns come, complete with just one stoplight, an old school diner, and a town crazy about football and rodeo. It was a great place for me to grow up. As the daughter of the richest and most influential man in town, it had its perks like the shiny new car I’d gotten on my sixteenth birthday and never ever seeing a lick of trouble, no matter how bad things got.
But it also came with disadvantages, namely living up to the Holt name. Too many responsibilities, too many obligations, and too many damn eyes watching everything I did.
Every-fucking-thing.
But there was something about Holden’s place that made me forget all the eyes and remember only the great outdoors. Even the inside of his home, covered in cedar, summoned the most beautiful parts of Texas where the trees grew tall, and the sky went on forever. Outside though, there was a peace about the place that set my soul at ease. With a slight scent of horses and hay and grass in the air, for just a moment, it felt like the western end of Wrangled Heart Ranch where I grew up. Not to mention that many of my memories of home were tangled up with Holden.
Holden Jennings. He’d grown up to be even yummier than when he was a boy. Even thoughts of the man he was today was enough to have me reaching for my vibrator, which I could do freely with Ken gone. Not that I had the desire, not with this feeling of unease that settled in my gut, a mixture of acid and sawdust that made simple things like eating and drinking difficult.
A knock on the door yanked me out of my head and into the present. The condo I shared with Ken was sterile and sophisticated, decorated in shade of beige and cream. A perfectly nice but blah condo. Walking the length of the living room, I opened the door and found a man dressed in all black, which on its own, wasn’t all that remarkable. But the long sleeves, the combat boots, and the baseball cap marked him as an out of towner, but definitely not a tourist.
Everything about his outfit was the definition of nondescript, brown hair, brown eyes, average height and weight. Suddenly my instincts kicked in, and I gripped the doorknob.
But it was too late. He pushed inside, non-threatening, but still.
“Is there something I can help you with?”
I didn’t bother hiding my annoyance since this guy had invaded my space, not the other way around.
The non-descript man stared at me, gave me a quick once-over before tossing a dismissive wave in my direction. “Ken. Where is he?”
Nice to meet you too, fuck face. “Your guess is as good as mine. Last I saw Ken he was balls deep in some brunette called Paige.”
More information than this guy probably wanted, but again, my space and my time.
“When did you see him last?” The man was angry and quiet, but he had a lethal quality about him that gave me pause. “When?” he barked louder than he needed to, making me jump.
“Almost a week ago, jeez! No need to be an asshole about it.” But this guy wasn’t moved. He was an asshole, and it didn’t bother him one bit. “Why are you asking all these questions?”
It should have been the first question out of my mouth but this guy wasn’t the first to come around looking for Ken. Sometimes he forgot who he owed money to until they tracked him down.
“Your boyfriend,” he began, but I cut him off.
Quickly. “Ex-boyfriend.” He glared at me, and I shrugged. “It’s true. What has he done now?�
�� Because it was always something with Ken. Never anything big, just a serious of nuisances guaranteed to drive the average woman out of her ever-loving mind.
“Don’t you worry about why I need to see him. When you see him let him know Farnsworth is looking for him.”
I searched my mind for that name, and I came up blank. That didn’t mean much, Ken had too many business associates to keep track of, and he preferred to meet with them in nightclubs, bars, and casinos. Not exactly my favorite hangout spots these days. Though I didn’t recognize his face or his name, the man was inside an empty house. With me. My heart raced so fast I thought it might make it out of the condo before I did. I nodded slowly.
“I’ll leave a note.” The plan had been to find a place and move before Ken came back to avoid the drama. Now I saw it might have to be even sooner.
“Give. Him. The. Message.” His voice was low and menacing, his look dark and threatening. Angry.
“I won’t be here, Farnsworth. Ken is your problem now, not mine.”
I wasn’t his goddamn secretary. If he didn’t get the message, that wasn’t on me.
But Farnsworth wasn’t convinced. His brown eyes turned black, and I swear his face turned red with rage as he stormed towards me, getting in my face to intimidate me. His chest pressed against mine until my shoulder blades dug into the wall, and he pulled out a six-inch blade from behind him and pressed the tip to the hollow of my throat.
I tried to ignore my pulse fluttering against the blade, unaware of how dangerous such a natural act was at the moment.
“Maybe you misunderstood me.” He applied the slightest pressure to my neck with a sick smile. “Tell Ken that Farnsworth is looking for him. If he doesn’t get the message, I’m holding you responsible.”
I scoffed, but the knife pressed harder to my throat, and a yelp escaped when the skin broke. One drop of blood trickled down my chest and soaked into the neckline of my tank top.
“Whatever image your pretty head is conjuring up about what you think I’ll do to you, I’ll do a thousand times worse.” His hips pressed into mine, making sure I felt the swell of his cock pressed right between my legs. “Understand?”
How could I not? A quick nod with my eyes closed, and finally, I could breathe again. “Got it.”
“Good.” He slid the knife back into a sheath that disappeared into the back of his boot. “If I have to come back, I’ll bend you over the couch and fuck you in the ass while Ken watches.”
I snorted at the imagery. “Ken would probably get a kick out of that. Maybe you should do it to Paige. He seems actually to give a shit about her.”
The man, Farnsworth, was not amused. He turned a look on me, so dark and menacing it made me shiver. “Then I guess I’ll have to find more creative incentives.” The gleam in his dark eyes terrified me. The moment he left; my feet moved into action.
Into the bedroom to pack two bags as quickly as I could and with as many of my belongings would fit in one trip. I did what I should have done the day Holden dropped me off here. I left.
For good.
***
I had a problem with never staying in any one place for too long; I didn’t have anyone to call on when I really needed an ear. Or a hug. Or refuge. Sure, I could do another turn around the block and hop on the freeway headed to Vance with my tail between my legs, apologizing and letting Daddy strut about like a peacock for being right.
I can just hear him now. “Monty is still single, you know.”
The thought of that conversation made me throw up a little, and I shook off all thoughts of Vance, of my mama, and my younger twin sisters. Vance was a last choice, one I couldn’t in good conscience use. It could put my family in danger, so I drove around Opey.
Aimlessly.
Some thugs had recently vandalized the B&B, so I had to find a hotel for the night. But first, I had a stop to make. Hardtail Ranch. But I went in through the front gate because this visit had nothing to do with Holden. Nothing at all.
I threw my Beemer into park and stepped from the car with the clothes wrapped in paper. Another little quirk of a small town dry cleaners, adorable personal touches like hand-wrapped paper around freshly pressed clothes. The sun was shining bright so all I saw were the curves and the wild curls of the person on the porch.
“I hope you’re the woman I came to see.”
She quirked a brow, and I realized she probably had no idea who the hell I was. “Oh yeah?”
“Yeah. Peaches, right? Sorry, I’m Aspen, and you let me borrow some clothes last week that I wanted to return.” I held up the package, like an idiot.
“I’m Peaches,” she said simply. “You didn’t have to get them dry cleaned.”
“It was the least I could do.”
She looked at me. Stared hard but not with the hardness of one woman judging another. Just a basic assessment to see if I was a threat to her or anyone in her orbit. It was a look as foreign to me as the moon, but like good art, I knew it when I saw it.
“I appreciate it, either way. Come on inside,” she said and went in without waiting for me to answer. It was an impressive move, take charge without being bossy.
“I can’t stay. I have to get going.” Where the hell I was going, I hadn’t a clue, but after that visit by the man in black I wasn’t sure staying in Opey was a smart move.
“Where are you going?”
“Out of town. For a while.” It wasn’t a lie. Probably.
“Family?”
“No,” I sighed. “Things are a little strained with my family these days, and it’s all my fault.” It was a hard pill to swallow, that Daddy had been right. Again. “No. I just need to…go.”
Again, she gave me one of those long, studying looks as if she could see right down to my soul, and then nodded. “Coffee?”
“Uhm, sure. Thanks.”
“Just finished brewing,” she said, setting the pot on a decorative stone on the table along with sugar and cream. “No offense but you don’t seem like The Barn Door type.”
I didn’t know if that was a compliment or not, and I was too tired to figure it out, so I went with honesty.
“I’m not. I went because I didn’t want Ken, that was my boyfriend, to fuck other girls. Turns out my presence wasn’t much of an obstacle.”
Why I thought it was, again, I had no idea.
“Shit, that’s rough. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. You know how, when you want to clean the house and you have to move shit from one place to the other? And then when you get there, you have to move shit there as well so you just say fuck it and live in a messy house?”
I didn’t wait for her to answer.
“That’s how my relationship with Ken was. If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. All clues that we weren’t right for each other until they were impossible to ignore.”
It felt good to get that out, even if it was in front of a complete stranger.
“Sorry. Thanks for the coffee.”
“Why are you leaving so fast?”
I wasn’t sure if I could trust her, then again, I didn’t trust anyone—not anymore. But the word around Opey was that the guys at Hardtail Ranch were military veterans and some kind of gang who kept the town safe. Protected.
“One of Ken’s friends showed up looking for him, and he wasn’t exactly nice about it.” Even thinking about the way he touched me, the way his cock was hard and pressing against me, made me slam my eyes shut and shiver. It wasn’t an actual assault, I didn’t think, but I wasn’t over it. Not yet.
“Whoa, what’s wrong?” I opened my eyes and found Peaches much closer with concern swimming in her beautiful eyes. “What did he to do to make you cry?”
Cry? I wiped under my eyes, and sure enough, there were tears. “It was nothing. He j-j-just scared me a little, that’s all. It’s nothing.”
“If it’s nothing, why are your hands shaking and why are you still crying?”
I shook my head and stood. “I’m not. It’
s just been a long couple of weeks.” More like a long couple of years. “Really, I just wanted to drop the clothes off. Thanks for your hospitality.”
“For crying out loud woman, take a damn seat.” Peaches shook her head, wild curls bouncing around her face even as she brought the coffee mug to her lips. “What did this friend of Ken’s do to you? Exactly?”
“Nothing,” I assured her, shaking my head and feeling silly. “I don’t know why it shook me up. Really.” I gave her a quick rundown of what happened, a shaky smile on my face. “No big deal.”
“It’s a big damn deal, Aspen. A really big deal.”
“No.” It really wasn’t. “It doesn’t matter because I don’t ever plan on seeing him or anyone else named Farnsworth ever again. Ever. That guy gave me the creeps with a capital C.”
“Farnsworth?” Her voice changed when she said the name, and my gaze found hers. “That’s what he said his name was?”
“Yeah. You know him?”
“Not now, but I once knew someone with that name. Wasn’t a good guy either.”
“Another name added to the list of men to avoid.” Maybe tucking my tail between my legs wouldn’t be so bad. At least Daddy would be able to keep me safe. But there’s no way in hell to contain the twins. They were me in high school with better clothes, better technology, and double the bitch.
“Too bad you’re a city girl. I could get Gunnar to hire you around here if I could justify it.”
“Despite appearances, I am not a city girl. Born and raised in Vance, not far from Holden, in fact.” Her eyes flashed, and I knew I’d given her a new piece of information. “But I don’t need a job, and I’ve done my time mucking stalls.”
She shrugged. “From what I understand, everyone mucks stalls.”
“They do. I did, from the time I was big enough to hold a shovel, age four until I left for college. I actually hated it except when I was alone and could talk to my girl Goldie. It took me a long time to realize she was my only true friend back then.” I smiled a little, thinking of my favorite horse when I was a child.
“And your safety isn’t worth a little labor exchange?”