The Ranchers: Destiny Bay Romances Boxed Set vol. 1 (Destiny Bay Romances - The Ranchers)

by Helen Conrad

  “Listen, mister,” she said bitingly, reaching for the door handle. “I don’t need taking care of.” She slipped out of the car and stuck her head in. “Thanks for the ride,” she said gruffly. “Goodbye.”

  He didn’t answer, but she didn’t wait around, either. She slammed the car door and strode off down the street, listening intently until she heard him pull in toward the motel office. Then she ran back, keeping behind the oleanders that lined the street, and watched. He got out of the car and went to register, returning very quickly and parking in front of the last bungalow. She watched him get out of the car, stretch and yawn, then pull a leather bag from behind the seat and make his way to the door of his room. A moment later, he was inside and the door was closing firmly.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  The Blue Lagoon

  Jessie had noticed a telephone booth at the corner gas station as they’d driven by. She ran to it now, pulling change from her pockets. She didn’t have much, but she had enough for a local call. Hands shaking, she looked up the number of the Moav police.

  “I’d like to know if you’ve got information on a wanted man, a Michael Drayton?” she asked as soon as she was connected with a detective.

  “Just a minute,” he said, his voice bored and sleepy. When he returned to the telephone, he sounded a little more alert and interested. “Yeah, we do. What do you know about him?”

  “I know where he is.”

  “Great. You just tell me where that is, ma’am, and I’ll get right on it.”

  Jessie sighed with relief. “Not so fast,” she said evenly. “There’s a reward, isn’t there?”

  “For information leading to the arrest and conviction of—yes, indeed,” he replied, though he didn’t sound pleased to know that she was aware of it. “Now if you’ll just tell me what you know...”

  “How about the reward? How does that work?”

  The detective didn’t like to be interrupted. “We arrest the alleged perpetrator, and if he’s convicted in a court of law of the crimes he’s charged with you apply to the Matthews family for the reward. They’re the ones who put it up. Now come on, lady, we’re wasting time here. We’ll need some information first. Such as your name, lady. Who are you?”

  She hesitated. “Jessica Carrington,” she said slowly, wondering if she was doing the right thing. But what else could she do? The information she had wasn’t going to do her any good if she didn’t give it to the police.

  “And where are you right now, Ms Carrington?”

  “I’m in a phone booth at the corner of Bush and Kramer.”

  “Good. Okay, now where did you see this Michael Drayton?”

  They were asking for her ace in the hole. Jessie’s innate wariness took over. “I’ll show you when you get here,” she said firmly.

  The detective was getting real tired of her attitude. “Now come on, lady. What if you’re not around when we get there? It would be faster and more efficient if you would just tell us—“

  “I’ll show you when you get here or not at all,” she retorted. She was not about to be bullied by a man just because he wore a badge.

  “Take it easy, little lady.” His tactics changed. “You’ll get that reward. We wouldn’t try to put anything over on you.”

  That was when the realization hit her. The Tucson police force was one thing. The Moav cops were something else. In the days when she’d come here as a teenager they’d had a reputation for dirty deals. It seemed possible that nothing had changed much. Why hadn’t she taken Michael Drayton into Tucson? She wanted to bang her head against the wall of the kiosk in pure frustration.

  She was caught, though. There wasn’t much she could do about it now but go through with her plans and hope for the best. She hung up and stood at the corner, waiting for Moav’s finest to arrive, but she felt panicky. If she’d gone through all this for nothing...

  The police arrived with sirens blaring and lights flashing—all two cars of them. The inspector got out and came toward her, swaggering a bit. His face was chubby, red.

  “Let’s have it, lady,” he said curtly. “Were’s he at?”

  Jessie held her ground. “Tell me how we’re going to work this.”

  He grimaced with annoyance. “You tell us where the guy is. We arrest him. Simple as that.”

  “I want to come along on the arrest.”

  He shook his head firmly. “It’s too dangerous.”

  “He doesn’t have a gun.”

  “It’s against policy.” She could see he wasn’t going to bend. “After we pick him up we’ll come back to get you.”

  She glared at him, and at the other two officers who’d come up behind him. “What guarantee do I have that you’ll ever come back to get me?”

  She caught the barely suppressed smiles in the looks they all exchanged. “Why, honey, what do you think? Think we’d try to cheat you out of that money? If you can’t trust a lawman, who can you trust?”

  Heart sinking, she studied the three men. Could she trust them? She wasn’t at all sure. Maybe they had friends they would pretend had fingered Michael. Maybe they had ways of getting the reward for themselves. Or maybe they would just keep her from it for pure spite. She didn’t have any leverage here. With her own lawman, in her own town, she was sure of herself. But here...

  “Okay,” she said shortly. “I’ll tell you where he is. He’s in the Golden Horseshoe Motel.”

  All three came alert in a hurry. “What room number?”

  “I didn’t see the room number,” she said quickly. “But he’s driving a black sedan. With New Mexico plates. You ought to be able to find him easy enough.”

  They believed her.

  “You wait right here, honey,” said the red-faced one. “We’ll sure enough be back for you when we get him. Then you can come on down to the station and file your application for that reward.”

  “You bet,” she said dryly. “I won’t move an inch.”

  “Yeah, you do that, sugar.” Their grins were wide. “We’ll see you soon, okay?”

  She watched as they piled into the black-and-white cars and took off down the street, red lights rotating. The moment they rounded the corner, she whirled and ran back to the phone booth, jabbing the button for the operator and putting in a collect call to the Bar None Cafe.’

  “Hello?” Harley’s voice sounded strained.

  “Hello, Harley? It’s me. I’m okay.”

  “Oh, honey. We’ve been so worried, me and the boys. Where are you? Are you really all right?”

  “I’m fine, but listen. I’m up in Moav. I’ve got him with me. And I’m bringing him home.”

  “What?”

  “Just listen. I don’t have time to talk. I’ve got him and I’m going to bring him home. Tell the sheriff, and maybe have some of the boys around, too, just in case. But stay out of sight until I get him into the cafe. We ought to be there in a couple of hours.”

  “But Jessie...?”

  “Bye now.”

  She flung down the receiver and dashed away, hurrying toward the Blue Lagoon Motel. She’d have to move fast. As soon as the police figured out she’d sent them on a wild-goose chase, they’d be back, and the first thing they’d see would be the big flashing sign for the Blue Lagoon. It wouldn’t take a genius to realize she’d likely have called from a phone close to where Michael was staying.

  She found the black-and-gold sports car and ran right up to the motel room, banging on the door with her fist. “Michael!” she called. “Open up!”

  She saw him looking out from behind the drapes. “Quick!” she urged, and a moment later she heard him sliding back the bolt.

  “You’ve got to get out of here,” she said urgently, her gaze skimming over his bare chest. He was dressed in nothing but a towel, and had obviously just had a shower. She was unprepared for how muscular he looked, how hard and smooth. Drops of water still glistened on his shoulders, his eyelashes. Jessie took it all in and stored it away. She had no time to deal with her react
ion now.

  “Wait a minute, wait a minute,” he was saying, grabbing her arm as she tried to charge into his room. “What’s going on?”

  She pushed past him and looked quickly around the room, ready to help him pack if need be. “The cops are coming. Come on! Hurry! They’ll be here any minute.”

  He stared at her for seconds, taking in the seriousness of the situation. Then he didn’t waste any more time. Turning around, he dropped the towel and quickly pulled on his slacks and shirt, while she gathered the clothes he’d left in a heap on the floor and stuffed them into the suitcase he hadn’t even begun to unpack. Throwing down the key on the dresser, he followed her out to the car, tossing the luggage into the back and shrugging into his suit jacket at the same time.

  “Come on,” she said, looking back over her shoulder at the road. “Hurry.”

  He never questioned why she jumped into the car with him. Backing out of the parking space, he eased the car out of the lot and onto the main street. “Where are we going?” he asked, his eyes veiled.

  “I’ll show you,” she replied. Adrenaline coursed through her. For some strange reason she suddenly felt invincible. She was actually pulling this off. “Don’t go on the freeway. I’ve got a better way.”

  She didn’t want him to know where she was heading them right away, so she directed him onto a route that would take them through part of Tucson before they doubled back for home. They drove swiftly through the desert for ten minutes, and then they were on the outskirts of the city. Jessie didn’t know Tucson like the back of her hand, but she had made enough trips there to have some idea of general directions. She led Michael through a bizarre tangle of side streets guaranteed to turn his sense of direction upside-down, but she kept track of where they were all the time.

  If worse came to worst and he realized what she was doing, as he was bound to eventually, she would tell him the truth—that she was taking him home. She’d tell him she was on the run, too, or some such nonsense, and that she planned to shelter him for a while. Would he believe her? What choice did he have?

  She glanced at his stony profile, feeling a wave of guilt. She was being a real rat, tricking him like this. Quickly she reminded herself that he was a thief—he’d taken the money and those jewels knowing the consequences.

  For a time they drove along silently, except for the directions Jessie gave now and then. She sat with her neck craned, staring out the rear window. “I think we did it,” she said at last. “They can’t possibly find us now. We got away.”

  “We did, huh?” He glanced at her sharply as he pulled to a stop before a red light. “Then maybe we have time to take a breath, have a look around and get a few things straight.” His voice hardened. “Like, for instance, what made you think the police were coming to get me?”

  She swallowed and gazed out the window. It seemed so easy to plan lies, but when it came down to telling them, the words stuck in her throat. She’d done more lying tonight than ever before, and it seemed she was getting worse at it rather than better.

  “I... I stopped at a café down the street from the motel and overheard some policemen discussing you. They.. .they had a tip about your whereabouts and they were planning to come and arrest you right away.”

  Weak. Very weak. And she knew it. But to her surprise, he didn’t say a thing. She closed her eyes and tried to keep her breathing even. Her mind was racing, going nowhere. She couldn’t think clearly at all. They drove on for a few more minutes and when he spoke again, she jumped.

  “How did you know my name?’’

  The question hung in the air. “Wh-what?” She searched her mind wildly but couldn’t come up with one good reason why she would know his name. She knew as well as he did that they’d never exchanged names. He didn’t know hers right now.

  The car rolled into the intersection as another light turned from red to green, and he rounded a corner, heading down a main street into heavy traffic.

  “It’s a simple question,” he said quietly, his eyes on the cars around them but his attention firmly on her. “How did you know my name?”

  She felt her stomach flop, as though they’d gone over a huge bump in the road. Glancing at him, all she saw was his profile. “I... you must have mentioned it.”

  “No.” There was a finality to his tone that told her he already had this all figured out. “No, I never mentioned it.”

  He was quiet again for a moment. Her heart was beating so loudly she was sure he could hear it. Her palms were sweating. She looked down quickly, making sure she knew where the door handle was in case she had to use it fast.

  “If there were any cops after me in Moav,” he said at last, “you called them. How else would they have known where I was that fast?”

  Oh, Lord. He was too smart for her. Why had she ever thought she could outwit him? She must have been crazy! “Maybe someone in a town you’ve been through called and—“

  He went on as though she hadn’t spoken. “It’s the best explanation I can think of, and I’ve been thinking about it ever since we left the motel. What I can’t figure out is why you changed your mind.”

  She looked straight ahead and refused to answer him. Her plans were in the dust, that was for sure. Desperately she tried to think of some alternative. If she could only convince him to come back to the café with her... She looked out at the dark landscape, and suddenly saw that they’d left town while she’d been musing and were now heading in exactly the opposite direction they should have been going.

  “No,” she cried, swinging around toward Michael again. “We’re going the wrong way. You should have turned right, not left.”

  His eyes glittered in the darkness. The road they’d emerged on was empty. No car headlights from oncoming traffic lit their faces. The desert loomed dark and lonely for miles ahead. All of a sudden she realized just how vulnerable she was. And how insane it was of her to have attempted this.

  “So you can set me up again?” he asked softly, his voice laced with acid. “No, thanks. I’ll plot my own route. We’ll go my way.”

  The dream was over. The reward was up in smoke. All her work had been for nothing. And now here she was, riding off toward the horizon with a criminal. “Uh, why don’t you let me off right here?” she asked stiffly, her hand moving slowly toward the door handle. “I think I’ve gone about as far as I want to.”

  “I’m afraid I can’t do that.” He sounded sincerely regretful. “We’re going to have to stick together for a while, you and me.”

  She glanced out at the landscape. He was going too fast. She couldn’t jump out yet. “That’s kidnapping, you know.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “You asked for this ride.”

  She turned toward him. “I’m not asking for it anymore. I’m asking to be let out.”

  “Well, I’m afraid I can’t do that, because I’m going to need you with me. You represent a little bit of insurance right now. I think maybe you owe me that much.”

  “I just saved your hide, mister,” she said defiantly.

  “You’re the one who endangered it in the first place.”

  “No, I’m not,” she retorted. “You endangered it when you stole the money and jewels!”

  With a squealing of brakes, he jerked the wheel and pulled over to the side of the road, turning to face her. In the confines of the car, he appeared bigger suddenly, darker. The silver streak in his hair gleamed with an unearthly light. “Okay, let’s have it,” he said, his voice hard, sure. “Who are you? What do you know and where did you find it out?”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  A Night In The Desert

  She fumbled for the door handle, but he moved across the small space with the agility and speed of a cat, his large hand closing over hers before she had a chance to do a thing. Stretched across her, he was much too close, much too threatening, making her feel totally helpless.

  “Come on,” he said silkily. “The time has come to spill your guts.”

  She pressed h
erself back against the seat, trying to put as much distance between them as she could. “I... my name is Jessie Carrington,” she said shakily. “I...I just wanted a ride to Tucson.”

  He slid his hands beneath her jacket, taking her shoulders in his strong grip, letting her sense how slight and fragile she was if he decided to get rough. His fingertips pressed into her flesh, not hurting her, but exerting just enough pressure to give her warning. “The truth,” he said icily, his blue eyes cold and fierce in the gloom.

  She felt her strength ebb, and she went limp as a rag doll. He was overpowering her, not so much with his physical superiority, but with the power of his will, his presence.

  “The sheriff,” she began, her voice husky. “Our local sheriff. He stopped by my father’s café a few hours after you left. He had a picture…. .”

  “And you recognized me?”

  She nodded, avoiding his blazing eyes. “I was in the back when you were having coffee.”

  “So what did the sheriff do, appoint you his official posse?”

  She shook her head. “No. He... I decided to see if I could keep you at the canyon until he got there. The reward...”

  He stiffened. “Reward?”

  She looked into his eyes. “The people you stole from have put out a reward.”

  To her surprise, everything in him seemed to go slack. “A reward,” he muttered, and his mouth twisted into a bitter grin. And then he was laughing.

  Jessie stirred uncomfortably. He was still holding her shoulders, though his grip had loosened. “Let me go,” she suggested softly.

  He looked surprised, as though he’d forgotten for just a moment that she was there. “Sorry, Jessie Carrington,” he said. “I can’t do that.” The color of his eyes deepened as he looked at her, really seeing her for the first time. “You know what?” he said musingly, reaching up to push some of her tangled hair away from her face. “You’re really pretty.”